No one knows the name of the girl. Everyone is unclear about her age and circumstances, as well as how her life brought her to Paris, only to drown in the Seine River.
The nameless girl is believed to have just turned 16 when she passed away. (Photo: Sciencealert).
However, when her lifeless body was pulled from the river at the end of the 19th century, she would forever be known as “The Nameless Woman of the Seine”, marking the beginning of an astonishing new story.
The second strange chapter of this tale, the surreal aspect that no one could have predicted, is that the girl ultimately helped save millions of lives. According to Sciencealert, what exactly happened to “The Nameless Woman of the Seine” both before and after her fateful drowning remains a controversial issue. Nevertheless, the following information is the most popular version of a story that is likely over 150 years old.
The nameless girl is believed to have just turned 16 when she passed away. No one knows for sure, but there were no signs of violence on her body, which is why people assumed the girl had committed suicide. After being brought ashore, she was transferred to the Paris morgue and displayed to the public alongside the bodies of other unidentified individuals for identification purposes.
The serene appearance of the nameless girl also drew people’s attention.
Even in death, the serene appearance of the nameless girl captivated onlookers. An artist was so fascinated that he decided to create masks from her face and sell them throughout Paris. The enchanting mask, mimicking the girl’s visage, was described by philosopher Albert Camus as “the drowned Mona Lisa”, and it became a cultural icon.
The popularity of the mask reached new heights with the help of Asmund Laerdal, a toy manufacturer from Norway. Laerdal’s company, established after World War II, initially focused on printing children’s books and calendars, as well as creating small wooden toys. Later, Laerdal began experimenting with producing plastic toys to make the items appear more realistic and lifelike.
By using soft, malleable materials, he created one of his most famous toys: the Anne Doll.
One day, Laerdal’s 2-year-old son, Tore, nearly drowned. Fortunately, his father arrived just in time, pulling the boy from the water and expelling the water from his airway. Shortly after, a group of anesthesiologists approached Laerdal and ordered him to create a doll to practice a newly developed cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) technique.
CPR doll created with the face of the nameless woman of the Seine.
For a toy maker familiar with producing miniature cars and dolls, creating a lifelike mannequin for performing CPR techniques was a challenge. Beyond the technical aspects, Laerdal believed the doll also needed to have a beautiful face.
That was when this manufacturer recalled the strange and mysterious half-smile of the mask of “The Nameless Woman.” Laerdal decided to create a life-sized mannequin named Anne but with the face of “The Nameless Woman of the Seine.” He felt the mannequin should be female since men would be unwilling to practice artificial respiration on a male doll.
Since its introduction in the 1960s, the mannequin named “Rescue Anne” has not been the only CPR doll on the market, but it has been the first and most successful one to date.
This doll has helped hundreds of millions learn the basics of performing cardiopulmonary resuscitation to save lives. And that is why “The Nameless Woman of the Seine” has become the most kissed woman in the world.
