Pasqual Pinon

Pasqual Pinon, known as The two-headed Mexican, was a performer with the Sells-Floto Circus in the early 1900s. Pinon was a railroad worker from Texas who was discovered by a sideshow promoter. A large benign cyst or tumor at the top of his head had attracted the promoters attention, who decided to draft Pinon into his freak show. They created a fake face made of wax to place onto the growth (though some reports state that it was made of silver and surgically placed under the skin) and he toured around claiming to have two heads. After several years of touring, the circus manager paid to have the cyst or tumoer removed and Pinon returned to Texas.

Although it is likely that Pinon was indeed a Mexican, some accounts claim he was actually French.

The novel "Downfall" by Per Olov Enquist features Pinon, though portrays the story as factual. [ [http://www.complete-review.com/reviews/enquistp/nedangel.htm "Downfall" by Per Olov Enquist] ]

While it is possible for a person to have two heads, the condition craniopagus parasiticus, a form of conjoined twins, sees one head upside-down on top of the other – Pinon's "second head" was the same way around.

References