Take a look at our infographic of the weirdest things ever delivered!

1. A BANK
WEIRD AND WONDERFUL PARCELS
DELIVERY
SPECIAL
More and more people are ditching the high street in favour of
online shopping. In Britain, £1 in every £5 is now spent online.
With a vast range of items available and convenient delivery options,
it’s easy to see why e-commerce is so popular. Whether you’re looking
for the weird or the wonderful, you’ll find it on the World Wide Web.
Join us as we take a look at some of the
strangest things to ever be delivered.
£1 £1 £1 £1 £1
While it would be impossible to transport a completely constructed
building, in 1913, 80,000 bricks were sent through the US postal system.
The bricks were created by the Salt Lake Pressed Brick Company, over 120 miles away
from their intended Utah destination, where they would be used to build a bank.
Because of the high freight costs to transport the bricks, they were sent through the
mail instead. In order to meet the US postal system’s maximum weight limit of 50lbs,
the bricks were packaged into crates — 40 of which were sent at a time.
Clearly, this posed problems for postal workers, so the regulations were
changed. Once new rules were put into effect, a single customer could
only send and receive goods weighing up to 200lbs per day.
1 Delivery
(of 40!)
A molar tooth was sent through the US postal system in the year 2000
as part of an experiment to test the limits of what could be posted.
Packaged in a clear plastic box, the tooth arrived at its destination after
14 days with the following message: “Please be advised that human
remains may not be transported through the mail, but we assumed this
to be of sentimental value, and made an exception in your case.
TEETH
A PIE
Everyone misses their home comforts now and again,
but one Dorset mum took this to extremes!
GLASGOW
DORSET
450miles
She placed a shipping request
to take a freshly cooked
shepherd’s pie from her oven
to her son in Edinburgh, over
400 miles away!
She even requested that it
was kept warm during the trip!
2nd
Keep hot!
Love mam.
OFFLINE ONLINE
2nd
Surprisingly, cats have featured heavily in the mail over the years.
In 1897, a system of high-speed pneumatic tubes was put in place
to quickly transport mail in tubes across New York City.
A black cat was found in the second ever tube to be sent. Despite its journey,
the cat arrived safe and well. In the UK, one moggy unknowingly mailed itself
67 miles from Southampton to Berkshire when it climbed into the back of
a post van. She was later renamed Jess after Postman Pat’s companion.
A CAT
Did you know?
A UK couple asked for their cat to be shipped overseas to them
after it died while they were away. The pair wanted to say
a final goodbye before it started to decompose.
A HAMSTER
In 2006, two students were fined and banned
from keeping animals for 10 years for posting
a hamster as part of a drunken prank.
Thankfully, the animal managed to nibble through its envelope
and was later found safe and well in the post box. In recognition
of its ordeal, the hamster was renamed First Class.
So can you send any living creatures through the post? According to the Royal
Mail’s guidelines, you can send the following if they are correctly packaged:
They must be sent First Class as a minimum and clearly marked
‘URGENT – LIVING CREATURES - HANDLE WITH CARE’.
BEES
LUG
W
O
RM
S
LEEC
H
ES
FISH
EG
G
S
SILKW
O
RM
S
M
AG
G
O
TS
C
ATERPILLARS
M
EALW
O
RM
S
EARTH
W
O
RM
S
RAG
W
O
RM
S
Of course, it’s not just the parcels that are
a little unusual — the recipients can be too.
In December 2015, a cat named Ted narrowly missed out on his
delivery of a kitty advent calendar. Sent through the post by his
owner’s mother and addressed to Ted himself, the parcel was
returned to the Royal Mail when it couldn’t be delivered.
UNUSUAL RECIPIENTS
When Ted’s owner went to
collect it, she was told that
they’d need to see Ted’s ID
before they could hand over
the parcel.
Thankfully, the rule was
eventually waived and
Ted was able to enjoy his
advent calendar.
www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/11657830/
Online-shopping-to-grow-by-320bn-in-three-years.html
postalmuseumblog.si.edu/2013/02/very-special-deliveries.html
www.stampsofdistinction.com/2008/07/bank-that-was-sent-through-post-office.html
www.improbable.com/airchives/paperair/volume6/v6i4/postal-6-4.html
www.express.co.uk/news/weird/407559/Dead-cat-or-live-hamster-
Top-ten-weirdest-things-people-have-tried-to-send-by-post
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2393211/How-New-Yorkers-sent-cat-mail-pneumatic-
tubes-years-ago--inspired-Elon-Musks-revolutionary-Hyperloop.html
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-27998222
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4623754.stm
www.royalmail.com/personal/help-and-support/Tell-me-about-Restricted-Goods
www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-35037791
http://mentalfloss.com/article/53334/6-bizarre-items-mailed-through-us-postal-system
SOURCES
courtesy of www.vanmonster.com
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