Sword swallowing

In Japan, it became a part of the Japanese acrobatic theatre, Sangaku, which included fire eating, tightrope walking, juggling and early illusion.

Prolific swallower Teodor Olsen famously made an appeal to Haakon VII of Norway, who was not swayed by his performance enough to rescind the ban.

The troupe was led by the famous juggler and sword swallower Ramo Samee, who continued to perform until his death in London in August 1850, having at times also toured Europe and America.

[5] From 1850 to the 1890s a small number of sword swallowers performed in the UK, such as Martha Mitchell (c. 1855) and Benedetti (1863–1895), and in the US, including Lawson Peck (c. 1850s), Ling Look (c. 1872), Wandana (d. 1875), and Harry Parsons (d. 1880).

The best-known North American sword swallower of this time was Fred McLone, better known to the public as "Chevalier Cliquot", who performed from 1878 to the early 20th century.

The performer must first lean the head back, hyper-extending the neck, and relax the upper esophageal sphincter (a generally involuntary muscle that contracts the top of the esophagus).

[7] Some swallowers consume a large meal or drink water before performing to give the stomach a more vertical orientation, allowing for easier passage of the sword.

[7] Careful focus is required to complete the process without injury, as the sword passes within millimetres of vital body parts such as the aorta, heart and lungs.

[9] A minor injury may predispose the performer to sustaining a more major one, including perforation of the esophagus, stomach, heart, lungs, and other organs in proximity to the path of the sword, or intestinal bleeding.

[10] In 1868, Adolf Kussmaul of Freiburg, Germany, performed an esophagoscopy on a sword-swallower using a rigid 47 cm tube, mirrors, and a gasoline lamp.

Small metal tubes, pierced with holes and filled with meat, were swallowed and after a time regurgitated, allowing Stevens to examine the extent of the digestion that had taken place.

[citation needed] This approach has since been proven useful by numerous studies; esophageal recording at a location in proximity to the heart improves signal detection.