If we were to burn NH4Cr2O7 with HgSCN in the Dark Ages in Europe and show it to anyone, it is us who would be burning next on a fiery cross of Inquisition. And it’s no wonder, since this experiment produces a truly marvelous result. At first, as you ignite the mixture of NH4Cr2O7 and HgSCN, all you can see is that it is slowly burning with a reddish flame. After a while, however, a crater is formed in the middle of the burning pile, and then, suddenly, tentacle-like appendages start sprouting from the burning mixture. And you can almost hear the scream of the mad occultist – “Come forth, Kraken! Come forth!” But of course, this is simply a chemical reaction that is called the "Pharoah's Serpent". It was also often sold in firework stores until people realized that it was toxic.

The world's longest moustache (belonging to one Ram Singh Chauhan of Rajasthan, India) measures a staggering 11.5 feet, or nearly 4 metres.

Отава Ё – Яблочко (Otava Yo – Yablochko; Russian: Яблочко, “Little Apple”). Yablochko is a Russian folk song of chastushka style and dance, traditionally presented as sailors' dance. The choreographed version of the dance first appeared in the 1926 Reinhold Glière ballet The Red Poppy and from there is known in the West as the Russian Sailors Dance.

A Police officer reacts to protestors outside the Piet Retief Magistrates court where the five accused in the shooting of the Coka brothers on the Pampoenkraal farm appeared, Mhkondo, Mpumalanga, South Africa on April 19, 2021. (Photo by Jacques Nelles)

Glam revellers have proudly shown off their vaccine passports as they glammed up for a night on the town on the first day of fresh Covid restrictions in Newcastle, United Kingdom on December 15, 2021. Brits donning festive gear decided to tear up nightclub dance floors and booze in pubs despite fears over the Omicron variant. (Photo by Newcastle New Projects)

Charli XCX performs on day three of the Pitchfork Music Festival at Union Park on July 21, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)

Beach Policeman, Potomac River, 1922. (Photo by National Photo Company/Colorized by Patty Allison)

A Parisian dances at the installation Electronica, a unique look at the great classics of 20th century electronic music, played under the vaults at the Collège des Bernardins part of Nuit Blanche, an annual evening festival of culture and art on October 03, 2020 in Paris, France. Scaled down this year because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the festival is split across the left and right banks of the city with many outdoor exhibitions to enable social distancing. (Photo by Kiran Ridley/Getty Images)