SCP Reader

SCP-146: Bronze Head of Shame

Item #: SCP-146

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: Containment procedures have been revised after it was noted that the effects of SCP-146 were sharply and dangerously increased under previous containment (a standard one-half (0.5) meter cubed secure-storage bin). The bin should remain free, however, should a researcher wish to test SCP-146 at high intensity. Level 3 clearance is required for any personnel wishing to enclose or cover SCP-146 for a period exceeding two days.

During normal storage, SCP-146 is to be kept on a marble pedestal in its storage room, located [DATA EXPUNGED]. SCP-146's standard storage room measures no less than twenty (20) square meters, with stuccoed walls and a ceiling painted to resemble a clear daytime sky. The room is to be kept well-lit (full daylight equivalent) at all times, furnished with an assortment of potted plants (which must be tended to daily), and decorated in the style of the Late Republican period of Rome (c. 120-80 BCE). Experimentation with different interior styles has shown that SCP-146 seems to prefer this arrangement and to have aesthetic preferences consistent with the aristocracy of Rome from that era. While this containment is standard, researchers with clearance Level 2 or higher may experiment with different containment settings in order to modify the effects of SCP-146.

While SCP-146 is non-motile and therefore requires little security itself, personnel entering its containment area or handling it in any way must not make eye contact with SCP-146. Any attempts to cover SCP-146 in order to prevent eye-contact is prohibited, as this has been shown to increase SCP-146's effect at an unpredictable rate. In general, one (1) day of covering or confinement will cause SCP-146 to skip over the beginning phase of its effect and begin with the most traumatic memories. After three (3) days, SCP-146 has been shown to produce its effect without having to make direct eye-contact first. After seven (7) days, the effect of SCP-146 is both far more intense and no longer confined to subjects within SCP-146's field of vision. Researchers in an adjacent room were affected and one was permanently [DATA REDACTED]. Permission to experiment beyond seven (7) days is denied by order of O5-█. Blinders and decorative screens are available for personnel who must enter SCP-146's containment area for maintenance.

Description: SCP-146 is a hollow bronze head, apparently a fragment of a complete statue or bust, depicting a crowned young woman or perhaps an effeminate young man. The head exhibits severe verdigris over much of its surface. The crown of SCP-146 is inlaid with silver decorations, and its eyes (the apparent source of SCP-146's effects) are beaten silver, shined to be mildly reflective. To date, SCP-146 has not exhibited any signs of movement, but its reaction to certain decor in its containment area indicates that it may possess a degree of sentience, if not outright sapience. If SCP-146 is able to communicate, it has not yet done so.

SCP-146 exhibits the ability to access and bring to mind certain memories in those who initiate eye contact. These memories are usually tied to a sense of guilt or shame in the subject. After initial eye contact is made, the subject need only remain somewhere in SCP-146's field of vision for the memories and associated feelings to become more intense, although continual eye contact speeds the process.

Upon initial eye contact with SCP-146, recent memories will begin to surface in the subject. For example, subjects who have ignored a friend in the hall or exceeded the speed limit will be reminded of these events and begin to feel mildly guilty, whether or not they would normally care about the event. With continued exposure to the gaze of SCP-146, the subject will begin to recall older and more vivid memories, with a corresponding increase in feelings of shame in the subject. Generally, after thirty (30) minutes of exposure, the memories will move from being vivid recollections to intense hallucinations, with the subject unable to distinguish the past from the present, or the imagined from the real. Subjects have been observed to regress in personality as well, particularly in cases where memories of childhood trauma have been brought up. Any test subjects exposed for over thirty (30) minutes should be restrained both for their own safety and the safety of others. All subjects to date who have been exposed to SCP-146 for sixty (60) minutes have completely retreated into their hallucinations; so far no such subject has been restored to consciousness from this near-catatonic state. Such subjects must be fed intravenously and are unresponsive to external stimuli, save for occasional murmurings consistent with their regression.