Materialization

The word materialization generally refers to the inexplicable appearance in the semisolid or solid form of a ghost, an apparition, or an object. (An object that materializes seemingly out of thin air is called an apport.) In some cases, a materialized spirit is said to seem so real that it casts shadows and/or produces a reflection in a mirror, although it might also seem to walk through solid objects.

Materializations may occur spontaneously, perhaps as part of an ongoing haunting or poltergeist experience, or at the bidding of a spiritual communicator, or medium. Materialization at the bidding of a medium, however, is often suspect because many mediums have been caught faking materializations. In fact, stage magicians note that one of the most common objects materialized by mediums during the nineteenth century, a flower, is also commonly “materialized” during magic tricks.