Catalepsy has been defined as a trance or seizure with a loss of sensation and consciousness accompanied by rigidity of the body. It may occur in neurological diseases such as Parkinsonism and epilepsy, also following the withdrawal from certain drugs such as cocaine. These images are part of a series of observations made in an asylum on a patient called Albertine M. She is presented here in a normal state (fig 1) and during a cataleptic seizure. These photos were taken in an era when the patients’ informed consent was rarely obtained.