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This sign came from a palm-reading fortune-teller’s window in Reno, Nevada. The fortune-teller, known as Miss Claire, always wore a white glove on her one of her hands. It was rumored that she had a prosthetic hand under the glove, although no one ever knew for sure. Oddly, the gloved hand was a second left hand, not the proper hand for the right side of her body. This strange phenomenon considerably enhanced her mystique and undoubtedly drew many additional customers to her practice. She had a disorienting habit of crossing her arms upright in front of her with her palms out when she went into her trances, which of course drew even more attention to her odd pair of appendages.

Beverly Rayner, Fortune Teller's Sign, Museum of Mesmerism
Fortune teller’s sign
American, c. 1935
Accession No. 1991-02-us
12” x 20” x 1”