Oh Baby! Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum in St. Augustine Opens Fertility Statue Exhibit

30. Dec, 2009 Comments Off

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. (Dec. 30, 2009) – Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum in St. Augustine is hosting the return of the world-famous Ripley’s Fertility Statues – and they’re now available for public viewing.

Please Don’t Touch – Unless You Want a Baby!

More than 2,000 women have reported that they became pregnant shortly after touching the wooden statues. Many of them had been told by doctors they would never be able to conceive.

Some are very serious about touching the statues, believing in their powers to help them conceive. Others want to avoid touching the statues – for the very same reason!

The five-foot tall wooden statues were acquired from the Ivory Coast of West Africa in 1993, and were placed in the lobby of Ripley Entertainment’s corporate headquarters in Orlando. Within months, 13 women, including staffers and office visitors were pregnant.

The Real American Idols

Following a December 1995 story in the Wall Street Journal chronicling the phenomenon, the demand to touch them became international news. In the ensuing years, the edifices made three trips around the world.

They were retired to the Ripley warehouse in 2001, but due to great demand, they were put on display at the Ripley headquarters in Orlando, where women routinely made special visits just to see and touch the statues.

“For years, we were inundated with requests to make these statues available once again, so we’ve brought them out of retirement and they are proving to be very popular during this world tour,” said Edward Meyer, VP of Archives & Exhibits for Ripley Entertainment.

: Male and Female Fertility Statues

: Male Fertility Statue

: Female Fertility Statue

The statues are back in the U.S. after wrapping up the European leg of their three-year world tour. They have been seen by thousands of people during crowd-pleasing stops at the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museums in New York’s Times Square, Grand Prairie, Texas, Williamsburg, Virginia, Orlando, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, San Francisco, London and Blackpool, England.

How to Reach Out and Touch the Statues in St. Augustine

The statues will be on display in the lobby of Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Museum in St. Augustine through February 21. Would-be parents are invited to come in and touch them for FREE during regular business hours. Museum hours and location:

Sunday – Thursday 9:00 am – 7:00pm

Friday – Saturday 9:00 am – 8:00 pm

19 San Marco Ave, St. Augustine

(904) 824-1606

After St. Augustine, the statues will spend several months touring the Ripley’s Believe It or Not! museums around the U.S. The current schedule is:

Newport, Oregon: March 1 – March 28

San Antonio, Texas: April 2 – April 28

Branson, Missouri: May 3 – May 30

Atlantic City, New Jersey: June 4 – June 29

Ocean City, Maryland: July 2 – July 27

Gatlinburg, Tennessee: July 31 – August 29

Niagara Falls, Ontario: September 4 – September 26

Panama City, Florida: October 4 – October 25

To set up an interview with a mother who touched the statues and became pregnant, contact Tim O’Brien at Obrien@ripleys.com.

About Ripley Entertainment Inc.

Ripley Entertainment Inc. (www.ripleys.com), keepers of the venerable Ripley’s Believe It or Not! brand, is a global leader in location-based entertainment, entertaining more than 13 million annually at its 70-plus attractions in 13 countries. In addition to its 30 Believe It or Not! museums, the Orlando, Florida-based company has publishing, licensing and broadcast divisions that oversee projects including the syndicated Believe It or Not! television show, best-selling books and the popular syndicated cartoon strip, Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, that still runs daily in 42 countries. Ripley Entertainment is a Jim Pattison Company, the third-largest privately held company in Canada.