Franz Xaver Messerschmidt, The Original Ghost-Buster

When celebrated sculptor Franz Xaver Messerschmidt died in Slovakia in 1783, he left behind very few possessions. He had a bed, and a tobacco pipe. He had a flute and a few art books. And he had, strewn around his room, dozens of sculpted copies of his own head, in various stages of grimace.

These are Messerschmidt’s confounding Kopfstücke, or “Head Pieces.” Of the 43 that survive today, some scowl or sneer, while others seem almost joyful. Most sport bulging eyes, protruding noses, or unnaturally stretched mouths. To modern eyes, they look like faces teens Snapchat to their friends while stuck in the drive-through line—but Messerschmidt wasn’t trying to pioneer the sculptural selfie. He was trying to protect himself from ghosts.

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