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Okay, so the Transportation Security Administration isn't a wholly joyless group.

Somebody in the TSA's social networking team had a little fun this week, informing the world that yes, you can carry a mummified head on board a plane as a piece of carry-on luggage. Asked whether the preserved noggin of a British philosopher is okay to go, the TSA instagram replied: "Jeremy Bentham's mummified head is allowed in carry-on as long as it's properly packaged, labeled, and declared."

Who is this guy, and why is his head taking a vacation without his body? CNET explains:

Jeremy Bentham was an English philosopher who died in 1832, but not before requesting that a physician friend publicly dissect him and then preserve him as an "auto-icon." This was achieved by clothing his skeleton in one of his suits, sitting it on a chair and displaying it inside a wood cabinet. Originally, Bentham's preserved head was supposed to be attached to the auto-icon, but it turned out to be pretty gross, so a wax replica was made instead.

Good to see the TSA keeping things loose with its @askTSA program, where travelers can find out whether a particular item can go through airport security. Bentham surely would have been pleased to hear that his replica head is air-worthy, though it's probably not really going on holiday. According to the website of University College London, where the philosopher's remains reside: "In 2002 the head was moved to safe storage at the UCL Institute of Archaeology, where it is stored in a climate controlled storeroom and continually monitored by conservation staff."

Source: CNET via Boing Boing

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