Yesterday, I went to visit an exhibit about Vikings with a couple of good friends. As we toured the exhibit, one of my friends asked me, “Have you heard of necropants?”
And here are a pair — well, a replica of a pair.
Necropants are part of Icelandic magic folklore from the 17th century. Wearing these pants are meant to guarantee your wealth, but getting a pair involves finding a living man willing to donate his skin to you after he dies, and a coin from a widow (in one account, I read that the widow had to be of the guy whose legs you are about to wear) during a Christmas or Easter. You place the coin in the scrotum of the pants to ensure your wealth. What is worse, I think, is that you are supposed to wear them from that point on and then make sure to get them off before you die.
The following video does a good job of explaining the zany rules around making the necropants work.
The Devil's Muse 