Reproduction
Object numberRCSHC/Osteo. 223
Scientific nameHomo sapiens
CollectionHunterian
CategoryDry preparations
Object nameSkeleton, gigantism, Acromegaly, Pituitary Neoplasms, General Osteology of Man
DescriptionThe articulated skeleton of Charles Byrne (1761-1783), known as the 'Irish Giant'.
Charles Byrne (1761-1783) was born in the village of Littlebridge near Cookstown in County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. He had the condition pituitary gigantism and grew to be 2.35m (7'7'') tall. As a young man Byrne's height drew the attention of a showman called Joe Vance who persuaded Byrne to exhibit himself for profit. After touring Scotland and northern England, Byrne and Vance headed south, arriving in London in April 1782. An advertisement in the Morning Herald on 24 April 1782 read:
'IRISH GIANT. To be seen this, and every day this week, in his large elegant room, at the Cane-shop next door to late Cox's Museum, Spring Gdns, Mr. Byrne, the surprising Irish Giant, who is allowed to be the tallest man in the world, his height is eight feet two inches [sic], and in full proportion accordingly, only 21 years of age. His stay will not be long in London, as he proposes shortly to visit the Continent'.
Byrne gained great celebrity in London and probably met King George III and Queen Charlotte. He used the stage names 'O'Brien' and 'the Irish Giant'. Other giants also used these names, including Patrick Cotter (1760-1806) who is often confused with Byrne.
By his early 20s, as a result of his untreated condition, Byrne's health was deteriorating. The theft of his life savings and his increasing alcohol consumption likely hastened his decline, and he died on 1 June 1783. Byrne had been aware that several anatomists - including Hunter - wanted to acquire his corpse. He reputedly made arrangements for his body to be buried at sea after his death. Despite this John Hunter purchased Byrne's remains, which were taken to Hunter's house at Earl's Court. Hunter later displayed Byrne's skeleton in his museum in Leicester Square, where it formed part of a series illustrating the normal and abnormal growth of human bones.
Hunter did not leave any direct record or description of Byrne's skeleton, and it is not known whether he had any theory to explain its size. It is now known that Byrne had pituitary gigantism. This is caused by the overproduction of growth hormone from the pituitary gland in the base of the brain, starting in childhood or adolescence before growth plates in the bones (epiphyses) fuse, leading to excessive growth. In adults, too much growth hormone causes acromegaly; this does not affect an individual's height, but can lead to changes in facial appearance, joint problems and abnormally large hands and feet. In 1891 the physiologist Daniel Cunningham (1850-1909) suggested Byrne had acromegaly. In 1909 the American neurologist Harvey Cushing (1869-1939) persuaded the Conservator of the Royal College of Surgeons, Arthur Keith, to examine the inside of Byrne's skull. As Cushing had expected, Keith found that the pituitary fossa (the cavity in which the pituitary gland sits) was enlarged, indicating the existence of a benign tumour which would have caused the release of the excessive amounts of growth hormone.
In 2009 a team of researchers led by Professor Márta Korbonits from Queen Mary University of London extracted DNA samples from two of Charles Byrne's teeth. Analysis showed that he had Familial Isolated Pituitary Adenoma (FIPA), a hereditary form of gigantism caused by an altered gene called AIP. The researchers used Byrne's DNA to identify the change in the gene that led to his condition. They found several families currently living in Northern Ireland or originating from there with this gene alteration, some of whom are affected by the disease. Research showed that these families share one common ancestor in whom the original mutation occurred. It is currently believed that this person lived at some time around 500CE in Ireland, but the range of this estimate is wide being from ~400-3700 years ago. These findings may give some real life background to the many tales of giants in Irish folklore. This research has led to a screening programme to reveal carriers of the altered gene. Not every carrier will develop the condition, but the gene could be inherited and their children or grandchildren might. Screening may lead to earlier diagnosis which means that carriers can be treated before severe complications develop.
Following John Hunter's death his museum collection was bought by the British Government in 1799 and transferred to the Company of Surgeons in London (now the Royal College of Surgeons of England) to be used for medical education and training. An independent Board, the Hunterian Collection Trustees, was established to oversee the care of the collection.
Charles Byrne's skeleton was displayed in the Royal College of Surgeons of England's Museum as part of John Hunter's collection from 1813 until 2017. In 2020 the Trustees of the Hunterian Collection agreed that Byrne's skeleton would no longer be displayed in the Hunterian Museum but retained for further research into pituitary gigantism. Opinions differ as to whether Byrne's skeleton should now be buried.
Production date 1783
Preparator
Owner/user
Patient/subject
presented
Related objectsRCSSC/P 296RCSHC/Osteo. 223.2RCSHC/Osteo. 223.1RCSSC/P 121RCSHM/Z 196
Physical Location
LocationNot on public display: contact museum for access conditions
Physical Information
Physical descriptionArticulated skeleton on metal stand.
Bibliography
SourceDobson 1970-71
NotesThis catalogue contains a lengthy account of Charles Byrne.
SourceFlower 1879
pp.24-25
NotesDimensions are given in mm. The codes for the cranial dimensions are as follows: C= Horizontal circumference, taken above the glabella and round the most prominent part of the occiput. L= Length, from the ophryon to the most prominent part of the occiput. B= Breadth across the parietals. Bi= Index of breadth, (B x 100)/L. H= Height from basion to bregma. Hi= Index of height, (Hx100)/L. Ca= Capacity in cubic centimetres. These details are given in the introduction to Flower's catalogue of human osteology.
Transcript223. The articulated skeleton of Charles Byrne, who was exhibited in London as "O'Brian [sic], the Irish Giant," and died in 1783. O.C. 5905. The following record of the death of the individual to whom this skeleton belonged is extracted from the 'Annual Register Chronicle', June 1783, vol. xxvi. p. 209:- "In Cockspur Street, Charing Cross, aged only 22, Mr Charles Byrne, the famous Irish Giant, whose death is said to have been precipitated by excessive drinking, to which he was always addicted, but more particularly since his late loss of almost all his property, which he had simply invested in a single bank note of £700. Our philosophical readers may not be displeased to know on the credit of an ingenious correspondent who had opportunity of informing himself, that Mr Byrne, in August 1780, measured eight feet; that in 1782 he had gained two inches; and after he was dead he measured eight feet four inches. Neither his father, mother, brother, nor any other person of his family, was of an extraordinary size." The above-named heights are evidently exaggerations, as the actual height of the skeleton, in which due allowance appears to be given for the intervertebral substance, is only seven feet seven inches. The posterior molars are in place; and the epiphyses of the long bones are united, though the crests of the ilia and posterior borders of the scapulae are still free. The corresponding limb-bones of the opposite sides present great differences in dimensions. The bones of the cranium are thick and massive. The glabella, supraorbital ridges, mastoid processes, all the muscular ridges and the bones of the face, and especially the lower jaw, are greatly developed; but the alveolar arches and teeth are scarcely larger than those of a man of ordinary stature. The squamosal joins the frontal for more than half an inch on the left side, but does not quite reach it on the right. The frontal region is low and retreating, and the cranial cavity small for the external size of the skull. Height 2310 = 7 feet 7 inches. Clavicle, r. 228, l. 220; humerus, r. 450, l. 430; radius, r. 334, l. 325; hand r. 255, l. 256; femur, r. 625, l. 642; tibia, r. 541, l. 537; foot, r. 325, l. 318. Cranium: C.593, L.214, B.148, Bi.692, H.147, Hi.687, Ca.1520. A clever contemporary sketch of O'Brian by Rowlandson hangs in the office of the Conservator of the Museum: and a boot and slipper which he wore are preserved with the skeleton.
SourceOwen 1853 Vol. 2
Transcript5905. The skeleton of an Irishman of abnormal stature *.
It measures eight feet, in a straight line from the vertex to the sole, and belonged to the individual who was exhibited, under the name of O'Brian, or Byrne, as the Irish Giant.
The cranium presents the long and narrow form: it is proportionally much depressed, and with a narrow, low, and retreating forehead; the cavity for the brain not exceeding that of a European of ordinary stature: but the upper, and especially the lower, jaws are powerfully developed, the chin being very prominent. The malar bones are moderately prominent. The bones of the rest of the skeleton are well proportioned to the extraordinary height of the individual, with the exception of the bones of the upper extremity, which are relatively shorter. The humerus, which, in the adjoining skeleton, reaches to the labrum of the ilium, in the present does not extend below the last pair of ribs. The metapophyses become distinct upon the eleventh dorsal, and are continued, together with the anapophyses, upon the twelfth dorsal and first lumbar, in which, as well as on the second lumbar, the anapophyses are well marked. The. diapophyses are unusually lengthened out in the third lumbar, become shorter in the fourth, and very strong and thick in the fifth lumbar. The neural arch is completed over the fifth as well as the preceding sacral vertebrae. The diapophyses of the first coccygeal vertebrae are unusually developed. The neck of the left thigh bone is longer than that of the right.
Hunterian.
* The following record of the death of the individual to whom the skeleton belonged is extracted from the' Annual Register Chronicle,' June 1783, vol. xxvi. p. 209 :-
"In Cockspur Street, Charing Cross, aged only 22, Mr. Charles Byrne, the famous Irish Giant, whose death is said to have been precipitated by excessive drinking, to which he was always addicted, but more particularly since his late loss of almost all his property, which he had simply invested in a single bank note of £700.
"Our philosophical readers may not be displeased to know, on the credit of an ingenious correspondent who had opportunity of informing himself, that Mr. Byrne, in August 1780, measured eight feet; that in 1782 he had gained two inches; and after he was dead, he measured eight feet four inches.
"Neither his father, mother, brother, nor any other person of his family, was of an extraordinary size."
It has been said, that in his last moments he expressed an earnest desire that his ponderous remains might be sunk out at sea; but if such were his wish, it was never fulfilled, as Mr. Hunter obtained his body before interment of any kind had taken place.
