The current Curious Antiques campaign is due to see the release of four new rares in total – including a Sherlock-inspired detective outfit and a Victorian inspired hairstyle which we’ve already seen in the past few weeks. One rare, however, somewhat stands out: the new Silverback Gorilla.

“Read more” to hear more about this rare!

Animal-related rares have become a staple of Habbo campaigns, with recent campaigns including the Aussie Shepherd and the Chilly Bunny. While these rares can often become a beloved addition to rooms and collections alike, they are not the most popular among players due to their rapid decrease in value; with fewer than 700 Habbos having purchased either of the aforementioned rares upon their initial release.

With the historic unpopularity of these types of rares and the arguable lack of a link to the Victorian and Edwardian inspired campaign, seeing this rare up for release left me asking one question: why a gorilla?! Well, after a bout of research I’ve come up with a couple of theories.

The majority of this campaign is themed around Victorian and Edwardian England, and so there is a potential link to what was known as the Golden Age of Zoos. Although zoos first opened to the public during the Victorian era, the first gorilla to be kept in a UK zoo was a lovely chap called Alfred who moved to Bristol Zoo in 1930. This was 19 years after the end of the Victorian era in 1901 and 20 years after the end of Edwardian era in 1910. So this couldn’t be it.

Which is when I noticed that the gorilla has red eyes – WHY?

It was at this point I remembered the references in the campaign to Sherlock Holmes, so I ran over (definitely didn’t run) to my bookshelf and grabbed my copy of “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes” and flicked through for any mention of a gorilla AND… I found nothing. But a handy bit of online research uncovered a little gem – in 1908 an American silent movie entitled “Sherlock Holmes in the Great Murder Mystery” was released.

In this movie, a gorilla escapes his cage, runs away from his master and kills a woman. Not exactly a Sherlock classic, but in the rest of the story a guy called Jim gets accused of the murder, and Sherlock helps him get cleared of all charges right before he gets hanged. Sorry for the spoiler if you were planning on rushing out to watch this film.

So, could the red in the gorilla’s eyes be representative of his bloodthirst? How wholesome…

My final theory – and the most likely theory – is that Habbo have released a gorilla because they just want to.

What do you think? Is there a sinister story behind the rare Silverback Gorilla? Why do you think Habbo chose to release a Gorilla rare during this campaign? Have I lost my mind? Let me know what you think in the comments below!

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