Are Pyramids Proof Of An Ancient Advanced Civilization?

In our modern era, it cannot be denied that the ancient pyramids of Giza have somewhat become the “apple of mankind’s eyes." This is not just because we revel at their distinctiveness as a tourist destination, but mainly because these ancient structures are vestiges of a once-thriving civilization that had a unique history and culture.

Background:

The oldest and the largest of the Egyptian pyramids found at the vast desert landscape of Giza is the Great Pyramid. Believed to have been built for and by the will of the Pharaoh Khufu at some point during his reign in the 26th century BC, the Great Pyramid withstood the test of time. It was one of the biggest buildings on the face of the earth up until the transition to the twentieth century. Standing today at 455 feet (138 meters), this ancient structure is considered by some to be a unique icon of Egyptian legacy and is also the “last construction standing” among the listed Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. 

The second pyramid, known as Khafre's pyramid, is widely believed to have been commissioned by Khufu’s son Khafre, whose reign commenced around 2520 BC. The Great Sphinx monument is also located near the Khafre’s pyramid and dates around the same time as his reign, which has led some scholars to believe that the human face of the Sphinx is that of Khafre himself. 

The third pyramid, which is the smallest out of the three principal pyramids of Giza, was supposedly built to serve as the final resting place of Pharaoh Menkaure. It is believed to have been constructed between 2510 and 2490 BC during his rule.   

Proof of Advanced Ancient Technology:

The pyramid complex of Giza is regarded by many to be an impressive feat of engineering, considering mankind’s knowledge about construction and the technology available to the builders of the time were supposedly primitive. Scholars also deem these pyramids as testimonial relics of the “blood, sweat and tears” of tens of thousands of laborers who worked for decades to erect these ancient structures. 

These ancient buildings have continued to stand their ground for the past 4,500 hundred years, an incomparable achievement that has gained the interest and admiration of many. Part of the fascination over these pyramids is rooted in the curiosity over who built them as well as why and how they were built. These questions have opened an avenue of “new-age” discourse in our modern era, with some going so far as to assert that the ancient pyramids of Egypt could be a remnant of a technologically-advanced ancient civilization. Some even believe the pyramids are proof that ancient visitors of extraterrestrial origin once socially interacted with the people of earth. 

Most talk of advanced ancient civilizations and ancient astronauts is put off as pseudoscientific or fantastical speculation, but those who believe that the pyramids of Giza could have been built using advanced ancient technology have arguments that are just too compelling to ignore. 

Here are ten reasons why the pyramids of Giza could be evidence that Egypt’s ancient civilization once possessed advanced technology, which could be alien in origin. 

1. The Size & Weight of the Pyramids & Their Materials. 

One of the arguments raised by those who believe that the pyramids of Giza were built using advanced alien technology is the colossal size and weight of the pyramids and the materials they were built from. 

Building the Great Pyramid, for example, required the quarrying and transportation of 2.3 million stone blocks. Lifting each of these blocks was not exactly effortless either as these stones weighed between 2.5 to 15 tons. 

Archaeologists and researchers have presented theories of how the laborers of that time managed to quarry and transport these blocks from a nearby source to the site where the pyramid was built. However, many insist that these massive stones were nearly impossible to mine, move and lift given the primitive tools of that era. Since the Great Pyramid took at estimated 20 years to complete, it would have taken the laborers only two and half minutes to set each of the pyramid’s insanely-heavy blocks. 

2. The White Limestone Casings of the Great Pyramid. 

While the Great Pyramid is still a magnificent sight to behold, its current appearance today is nothing but a shadow of its former shining beauty. In the distant past, Egyptians referred to the Great Pyramid as “Ikhet,” which, which translates to “Glorious Light.” The Great Pyramid was once shielded with casings made of white-colored and smooth limestone until a disastrous earthquake in 1303 AD led to its untimely uncoupling. Much like mirrors, the pyramid stones reflected sunlight, which made the pyramid glisten like a crystal in the middle of the desert. 

What’s interesting about these reflective stone casings is not just their shape and appearance, but also the source of the material they were made of. Gathering large amounts of flat and polished limestone meant that tons of these stones had to cross the long stretch of the Nile river before they could be used. For some, this leads to the inevitable question of how those who worked in the construction of the pyramid managed to transport heavy and reflective limestone without the guidance of sophisticated knowledge and machinery.  

3. The Elaborate Tunnel Systems Inside the Pyramids of Giza. 

Archaeologists uncover a secret or two hiding beneath the pyramids of Giza from time to time. Prime examples of these discoveries are the elaborate networks of tunnels hidden under the vast desert. There are those who have dared to explore these passageways and the potential rooms or compartments hidden within, but most are still largely unexplored by people of the 21st century. 

What purpose could these tunnels have possibly served? Until we have the chance to excavate and thoroughly investigate these pathways, there’s still no definite answer to this question. Some believe that there could be an underground city beneath the pyramids of Giza and that this buried metropolis could be thousands of years old. 

4.  Strange Heat Anomalies in Several Areas of the Great Pyramid. 

In 2015, an international team of scientists and architects conducted thermal scans of the pyramids in Giza. To their astonishment, they observed “thermal anomalies” in the pyramids and detected high-temperature heat spots in several areas of the Great Pyramid. Mainstream science proposed that empty chambers, internal air currents and the use of varied construction materials were the causes of these anomalies, but believers of ancient advanced civilizations had something completely different in mind.

They believe that the heat spots come from advanced ancient equipment or machinery hidden beneath the pyramids. Some even speculate that the Great Pyramid of Giza could be an antiquated spacecraft built or brought here on the planet by extraterrestrial beings and that the heat anomalies indicate that the alien ship’s engines are ready to ignite after receiving sufficient energy from the sun for the past few thousand years. 

5. Alignment of the Great Pyramid with True North. 

The position of the Great Pyramid and its alignment with the location of true north is one of the more well-known pieces of evidence for the possibility of a technologically-superior ancient civilization. Although built thousands of years ago, the Great Pyramid is regarded by many to be the most accurately-aligned structure on the planet – yes, even more so than our modern-day Meridian Building in London – with a very minimal degree of error of 3/60th. Moreover, this error is not just a mistake in calculation but is explained by the fact that true north shifts as time passes. This means that the Great Pyramid was perfectly aligned at the time it was built. 

How did the ancient Egyptians manage to design and erect the Great Pyramid with such a high level of accuracy? They did not have a compass, so they must have calculated the alignment using sophisticated algorithms. But if they didn’t even have the knowledge and technology to make a compass, how could they have mathematically extrapolated the Great Pyramid’s near-perfect alignment with the cardinal direction of true north? Theories have attempted to answer this mystery, but experts can’t seem to agree on a single explanation. 

5. Alignment of the Pyramids with the Stars of Orion’s Belt. 

According to the Orion Correlation Theory, which was first presented by Robert Bauval back in 1983, the placement of the three main pyramids in the Giza Plateau aligns with the three main stars of Orion’s Belt. This theory also alleges that the whole outline of the Great Sphinx, the pyramid complex in Giza as well as the Nile River reflects the location of the constellations of Leo, Orion’s Belt and the Milky Way galaxy, in that order.

What’s interesting about this theory is its suggestion that the three pyramids of Giza were precisely aligned with the three stars of the Orion’s Belt in 10,500 BC. If true, this would mean that these pyramids were constructed 12,000 years ago and not 4,500 years in the past as mainstream science has led us to believe. 

7. Eight-Sided Design of the Great Pyramid

While it may initially seem like the Great Pyramid of Giza has four sides just like most pyramids, it is the only one to have been built with eight sides and four slightly-concave faces. 

Also worth mentioning is the degree of precision required in forming all eight sides of the pyramid, with each side indented by one degree of a half-degree, which is not an easy thing to do even in modern times. 

Moreover, all sides of the Great Pyramid cannot be easily seen from the ground or even from afar, and are only visible from above. 

As for what purpose the eight-sided design of the Great Pyramid served, some say that it had the structural purpose of keeping the casing stones from loosening, while others suggest that the indentations are nothing more than the incidental consequence of erosion. Of course, there are also those who believe that multiple-sided pyramid served an astronomical purpose or that it could be a communication device between ancient Egyptians and the extraterrestrial beings that guided them in the distant past. 

Based on the seven reasons we have just enumerated, can we conclude that the pyramids in Giza prove that ancient Egyptians once possessed highly advanced technology that may very well have come from extraterrestrial sources? 
Were our ancestors far more capable than we give them credit for? We may never know. 

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Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_Wonders_of_the_Ancient_World
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Pyramid_of_Giza
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giza_pyramid_complex#Khafre.27s_pyramid_complex
http://harvardmagazine.com/2003/07/who-built-the-pyramids-html
http://listverse.com/2017/06/02/the-pyramids-of-giza-prove-advanced-ancient-technology/
https://exemplore.com/ufos-aliens/Did-Aliens-Build-Pyramids
http://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/793767/Pyramids-Giza-how-when-built-ancient-aliens
http://proofofalien.com/top-10-evidences-to-prove-the-aliens-built-the-pyramids/
https://www.ancient-code.com/there-is-an-incredible-lost-underground-city-beneath-the-pyramids-of-giza/
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34773856
http://www.express.co.uk/news/weird/793767/Pyramids-Giza-how-when-built-ancient-aliens
http://proofofalien.com/top-10-evidences-to-prove-the-aliens-built-the-pyramids/
https://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/9/29/1242266/-Ancient-Egypt-Misconceptions-About-the-Pyramids
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orion_correlation_theory
http://unexplained.co/paranormal-articles/facts-that-prove-the-great-pyramid-of-giza-was-built-by-an-advanced-ancient-civilization/9523/
https://ancientexplorers.com/blogs/news/the-pyramid-of-giza-built-by-an-extremely-advanced-ancient-civilization
https://www.ancient-code.com/evidence-of-ancient-advanced-technology-the-great-pyramid-of-giza/

Ancient Sports Too Crazy for the Modern World

Mankind is driven by its innate competitive spirit. We thrive on competition, and we have cultivated our competitive streak and integrated it in our daily lives by creating a healthy and relatively safe platform for it through sports.

While modern sports have been finetuned in such a way that the possibility of getting seriously injured has significantly been reduced as time went by, it cannot be denied that these physical activities still pose some danger to those who engage in them. But that degree of danger is nothing compared to the many sports and games from our ancient past that no longer exist today. And as much as many of us enjoy a little risk in exchange for some adrenaline-fueled exhilaration, some of these ancient sports were too bloody, violent and just utterly insane by modern standards that they died out over time as they required the loss of life and limb of most of their players all for the sake of entertainment.

And so, for this video, here are eight (8) ancient sports that are just too crazy for the modern world.

#1 — Pitz

Also known as the Mesoamerican Ballgame, this sport dates back to 1400 BCE and was played by the pre-Columbian inhabitants of ancient Mesoamerica. The game is said to be similar to that of racquetball and the players’ objective was to keep a solid, heavy ball in play though vertical stone rings were introduced later on. The sport is brutal as it inflicted serious injuries on the players that left them perpetually bruised and may have possibly killed some of them. Even worse, the sport also had ritual aspects which required the human sacrifice of the losing team and the decapitation of its members, particularly the captain.

#2 — Venatio

Translated in English, this Roman sport means “The Hunt” and it was a popular form of gladiatorial combat and a source entertainment in Rome around 54 A.D. It entailed a team of slaves facing off against the “Beast of Carthage,” which equated to 20 aggressive elephants charging at the competitors at full speed. The players only had around 2% chances of surviving the whole ordeal, and needless to say, the game was very violent and resulted to the deaths of countless humans and elephants alike.

#3 — Cretan Bull Leaping

From the name itself, you could probably already tell that this coming-of-age sport from the island of Crete in Greece involved young men jumping over speeding bulls. To the ancient Cretans, successfully leaping over a bull marked a boy’s transition into manhood, but sadly, some of these boys never got to grow up as adults as their miscalculated attempts at bull leaping often led to their untimely demise. Some were lucky and survived the experience with serious injuries, but others were extremely lucky and potentially heaven-blessed since they successfully made the jump relatively unscathed.

#4 — Pankration

We credit the Ancient Greeks for many things and one of them is probably the development of what is arguably the first known mixed martial art sport on the face of the Earth - Pankration. It’s a combination of striking and wrestling and quite similar with modern-day MMA tournaments. However, this ancient Greek combat sport didn’t have weight divisions, time limits and rests in-between rounds. The rule was simple - almost anything was allowed and the fighting didn’t end until someone surrendered. Interestingly, while the fighting can be brutal and almost deadly, competitors were not allowed to kill their opponents. Doing so resulted to a loss as it meant that the other contestant had a stronger warrior spirit for refusing to quit.

#5 — Skin Pulling

Known as the Viking’s version of the game tug of war, it had the same rules as the classic sport we play today although with a few minor details that made it one of the Vikings’ favorite pastimes. First of all, the Vikings did not pull a rope; they pulled on animal hides which were tied together. And second of all, the Vikings made the game even more interesting by holding the tournaments over open pits of fire. Losing was more than just an unsavory option as the team that got dragged into the burning pit faced a very gruesome and fiery end.

#6 — Chariot Racing

If you’ve watched the 1959 film classic “Ben-Hur,” then you probably recall the iconic “chariot race” scene from the movie and saw how violent and dangerous this ancient sport could get. Chariot racing was a popular event during the thriving civilizations of the Ancient Greeks, Romans and the Byzantine Empire. Charioteers of the time were paid handsomely and enjoyed considerable fame. However, they also lived relatively short lives as chariot racing did not have strict rules to follow and contestants could do anything they wanted to prevent their opponents from finishing the race. They could ram against other chariots to destroy them and even use weapons to slaughter the horses so the other charioteers would crash.

#7 — The Fisherman’s Joust

A very popular aquatic combat sport in ancient Egypt, the Fisherman’s Joust had a simple principle: two teams on their respective boats would venture into the crocodile-infested waters of the Nile and attempt to knock off their opponents from their boats using paddles or long poles. Hitting each other senselessly could get very brutal but that wasn’t the only life-threatening situation that contestants would encounter in playing this sport. If they ended up falling into the water, they would be lucky to swim their way back to dry land but before they could, they risked getting eaten alive by the crocodiles, hippos and other beastly creatures that were lurking in the waters.

#8 — Naumachia

This ancient Roman sport in English literally means “naval combat,” and it’s essentially the staging of naval battles in which the objective of the contestants involved is to destroy the opponent’s fleet of ships and kill all of its crew, which were made up of prisoners. The competitions did not take place at open sea but were held in specially-designed man-made basins that in some cases included various sea creatures. The earliest recorded event of Naumachia was organized by Julius Caesar in 46 BC in celebration of his military accomplishments. However, the largest recorded event of this violent sport was arranged by Emperor Claudius in 52 AD and took place at Fucine Lake. This naval battle involved the participation of 100 vessels and around 19,000 men.  

We cannot deny that our ancient ancestors were capable of coming up with ingenious ways to push the limits of what the human body could achieve while entertaining themselves at the same time. But these ancient sports eventually died out with the passage of time and with good reason. In the world we live in today, we no longer welcome the idea of forcing people into participating in bloody and deadly games for the sake of mass entertainment. But that doesn’t mean we are not capable of finding fun and interesting ways to amuse ourselves. We enjoy dangerous sports too just as much as our ancestors once did, only we no longer think athletes must lose their lives and their limbs for us to deem modern sports events to be worth our while.

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SOURCES:

http://listverse.com/2014/02/06/10-ancient-sports-that-are-completely-terrifying/

http://www.cracked.com/article/180_6-ancient-sports-too-awesome-modern-world/

http://iluvesports.com/ancient-sports-too-awesome-for-the-modern-world/

http://www.themost10.com/crazy-ancient-sports/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mesoamerican_ballgame

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venatio

http://www.ancient-origins.net/history-ancient-traditions/pankration-deadly-martial-art-form-ancient-greece-005221?nopaging=1

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tug_of_war

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chariot_racing#Roman_era

http://healthandfitnesshistory.com/ancient-sports/egyptian-fisherman-jousting-water-jousting/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naumachia

The Real Man Behind the Iron Mask

Around the time of King Louis XIV’s reign in France in the 17th century, there is a story of a mysterious man who had spent many years trapped behind the walls of several French prisons, including the Bastille as well as the Fortress of Pignerol. No one knew who he was or why he was put in jail. Over the centuries that passed, some even argued that no one had even seen his face as this enigmatic prisoner had never spent a day of his life in prison without donning a black velvet mask that hid his true identity. 

This unidentified inmate of several French prisons has been the subject of a variety of tales and legends, particularly in the written works of the likes of Alexandre Dumas and Voltaire, who actually popularized the idea that the prisoner’s mask was crafted from iron. And while the story of an imprisoned man wearing an iron mask seems one of fiction than fact, many historians are in agreement that such a man did exist in France several hundred years ago. 

If this masked prisoner was indeed real, who was he and why did he have to wear a black mask? Over the years, dozens of potential personalities have been presented as the real man behind the iron mask, but experts have had a hard time universally agreeing on a single individual that could be his actual hidden identity. 

And so for this video, we will explore some of these suggested personalities, speculated or real, and assess the likelihood of each one as the potential true identity of the legendary “Man in the Iron Mask.” 

The Story of the Man Behind the Iron Mask

“L’Homme au Masque de Fer,” which in English translates to “The Man in the Iron Mask,” is arguably the most famous prisoner in French history. The earliest known record of this unidentified prisoner dates all the way back to July 1669.  In a letter from the Marquis de Louvois to Bénigne Dauvergne de Saint-Mars, the governor of the prison of Pignerol at the time, the minister mentioned that a prisoner named “Eustache Dauger” was going to be arriving the following month or so. The prison’s governor was told to make the necessary preparations for the prisoner’s arrival, and that Saint-Mars will be the one to oversee the immediate needs of the inmate by visiting only once a day. It was also mentioned in the letter that if the man said anything else apart from his daily needs, he would be executed. Louvois also noted that Dauger did not require a lot of attending to as he was “only a valet.”

While the name of the mysterious inmate was revealed in the letter as Eustache Dauger, no one knew for certain if this was his real name or was just a made-up name to ensure that his true identity stays never gets revealed. Much of the fascination over this individual largely stems from the rumor that his face had to be covered with a black velvet or an iron mask at all times while he was in jail, which naturally sparked the public’s interest and consequently gave rise to many theories and stories about who Dauger was.  It was also a wonder to many people how grave his crimes must have been that he was placed in a prison meant for those deemed to be an embarrassment to the state and why his jailers took extensive precautions to keep him imprisoned for more than three decades of his life in almost complete isolation.   

The interesting tale of the man who was forced to wear an iron mask at all times led to various speculations, which were explored in works authored by the likes of Voltaire in “Le siècle de Louis XIV” and Alexandre Dumas in “The Vicomte de Bragelonne.” For example, some believed that the masked prisoner was nothing more than just a lowly servant who probably saw something he should not have seen, or whose physical appearance displeased the king. There were those, however, who believed that there was so much more to the identity of this prisoner, going so far as to claim that he was someone of royal blood whose face had to remain unseen as he bore a strong resemblance to another individual already in power at the time. 

Illegitimate Half-Brother or Twin Brother of King Louis XIV

One of the popular theories about the lineage of the masked prisoner was initially suggested by Voltaire, who claimed that “The Man in the Iron Mask” was the older, illegitimate half-brother of King Louis XIV, and was the son of Anne of Austria and Cardinal Mazarin. Dumas worked on a similar theory in his book but with one substantial change: the prisoner was not just the half-brother of King Louis XIV but was his older identical twin, making him the legitimate king of France. As the story goes, the king’s brother had to be kept hidden as his existence would raise a serious and chaotic issue about succession. But since a prince with royal blood is not allowed to be killed, he had to spend the rest of his days in prison while wearing a mask the entire time to hide his striking resemblance with the reigning king.  

Real Father of King Louis XIV

There was also a suggestion that the imprisoned man in the iron mask was actually the biological father of King Louis XIV. According to this particular theory, Louis XIV’s miraculous birth came at a time when Louis XIII was already very old, sickly and possibly impotent, which implies that he may not have been capable of fathering a child at the time that Louis XIV’s was conceived. 

Before the birth of Louis XIV, the heir presumptive to the throne of France was Gaston d’Orléans, the brother of King Louis XIII. Neither the king nor the queen was fond of Gaston. The queen, in particular, did not see it as in her best interests to allow Gaston’s ambition to ascend as the next king as she knew he would surely suppress her influence and power. And so, through the machinations of Cardinal Richelieu, the king’s minister and an enemy of Gaston d’Orléans, a substitute was selected to impregnate the queen and father an heir to the throne in the king’s stead. 

After escaping to the Americas, this substitute supposedly returned to France in the 1660s and tried to extort money in exchange for keeping the secret that he was King Louis XIV’s real father. To protect the legitimacy of Louis XIV’s claim to the throne, the man was immediately arrested. However, out of respect for his biological father, the king allegedly could not bring himself to order the man’s execution and have chosen comfortable imprisonment as a more suitable punishment instead. 

General Vivien de Bulonde

Another theory about the true identity of “The Man in the Iron Mask” came from the Great Cipher of Louis XIV, which was decrypted by Etienne Bazeries of the French Army’s cryptographic department around the 1890s. One of the decoded messages mentioned of a prisoner named General Vivien de Bulonde, who supposedly angered the king for his cowardice during the siege of Cuneo back in 1691. Out of fear of the approaching troops from Austria, de Bulonde ordered the hasty withdrawal of the army, leaving behind supplies and injured soldiers in the process. This enraged the king, who ordered the general’s arrest and imprisonment at the fortress of Pignerol.

It is difficult to determine whether Bulonde really was the iron-masked inmate especially since Bulonde’s arrest was not a secret and was actually reported in the newspaper around that time. Moreover, his death has been recorded to have taken place in 1709, which is six years later than the reported death of the masked prisoner in 1703. 

Count Ercole Antonio Mattioli

Another famous candidate believed to be “The Man in the Iron Mask” was Count Ercole Antonio Mattioli, an Italian diplomat, and minister of Ferdinand Charles, the Duke of Mantua. Mattioli was entrusted in securing the sale of the fortified town of Casale in 1678. However, after he secured his earnings from the agreement, Mattioli betrayed France by leaking the details of the treaty to the country’s Spanish enemies, which thwarted France’s plans to successfully occupy the town. Infuriated over Mattioli’s treachery, the king ordered for Mattioli’s abduction and was subsequently imprisoned in Pignerol in April 1679. 

Because the masked man is known to have been buried under the name “Marchioly,” this led many to believe that Mattioli and “The Man in the Iron Mask” are the same. However, it is generally agreed on by many experts that Mattioli passed away in Îles Sainte-Marguerite back in April 1694, several years before the death of Eustache Dauger. 

Eustache Dauger de Cavoye

One of the more compelling theories about the identity of “The Man in the Iron Mask” is that Eustache Dauger is actually Eustache Dauger de Cavoye, the son of a captain who served as one of Cardinal Richelieu’s guards. Born in 1637, Eustache joined the royal army but was forced to resign his commission in disgrace after he ended up killing a young page boy during a drunken brawl. During his incarceration, Eustache supposedly complained of how he was treated in prison in 1678, and the king subsequently issued an edict that he was no longer permitted to speak to anybody unless in the presence of a priest.

While Eustache Dauger De Cavoye seemed like the most likely candidate to be “The Man in the Iron Mask,” evidence has emerged that Dauger De Cavoye met his demise in the Prison Saint-Lazare in the 1680s, several years before the death of the famous Eustache Dauger in Îles Sainte-Marguerite in 1703.

Perhaps the most recent theory about the identity of the masked prisoner in 17th-century France is presented by Paul Sonnino, a history professor at UC Santa Barbara, in his 2016 book, “The Search for the Man in the Iron Mask: A Historical Detective Story.” According to Sonnino’s book, Dauger was, in fact, the valet of the treasurer of Cardinal Mazarin, a principal minister in France during the early life of Louis XIV.  Mazarin amassed a huge fortune during his lifetime, which led the valet to believe that some of the minister’s money may have been stolen from the previous king and queen of England. When he was arrested, he was warned not to reveal his real identity to anyone unless he wanted to be executed immediately. 

When “The Man in the Iron Mask” passed away on November 19, 1703, at the Îles Sainte-Marguerite and was buried the following day with the name “Marchioly,” all his possessions in his cell, including his furniture and clothing, were all burned. Everything he owned that were made of metal was melted down. And the walls of his cell were scraped clean, leaving no trace of the inmate that once spent many years of his life in confinement and isolation.

With so many theories on who he really was and speculations on whether or not he was actually guilty of a crime worthy of lifetime incarceration, we may never really know the reason why this famous prisoner had to wear an iron mask while in almost complete isolation in prison. For all we know, Eustache Dauger was just an ordinary citizen who slighted the king and had the unusual punishment of having to wear a mask while living the remainder of his life inside a cell. It probably never even crossed his mind that his life of incarceration would be a subject of intrigue and mystery that managed to capture the interest of countless people even until today.
 

SOURCES:
http://www.history.com/news/ask-history/who-was-the-man-in-the-iron-mask
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man_in_the_Iron_Mask
http://www.news.ucsb.edu/2016/016743/mystery-unmasked
https://www.livescience.com/54669-man-in-the-iron-mask-identified.html
http://www.ancient-origins.net/unexplained-phenomena/story-man-iron-mask-002419?nopaging=1
http://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2014/10/real-man-iron-mask/
http://io9.gizmodo.com/how-a-cryptoanalyst-discovered-the-identity-of-the-man-1581576707
http://www.historychannel.com.au/this-day-in-history/the-real-man-in-the-iron-mask-dies-in-prison/
http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2016/05/the-mysterious-man-in-the-iron-mask-is-finally-unmasked/

Modern Armies that Tried to Win Wars with Magic

They say that to win a war, you must be willing to do whatever it takes. The use of threatening words and brute force are all necessary for winning battles, but you’re going to need to take the extra mile if you want an assured victory. If you take a good look at our history of modern warfare, you’ll see just how much science has had a hand in the victory of one military force and the defeat of another. From coming up with the most effective means for gathering intelligence in times of conflict and fragile peace to developing weapons of mass destruction that put an end to a devastating global war and thwarted a powerful and influential empire, it cannot be denied just how many military groups have benefited from the bright minds of scientific experts.

But even in our supposedly technologically-advanced and scientifically-enlightened world, you might be surprised to know just how far our modern armies have gone all in the name of victory. Some have approached magicians and illusionists for tips and tricks in the art of deception while others have attempted to expand the abilities of the human mind beyond the boundaries of conventional science. There are also those that dared to construct weapons of mass destruction that you probably only heard of in literary materials of the science fiction genre. Others, however, have sought out the rumored ancient items mentioned in myths and legends that promised unlimited powers to those who manage to find them and possess them.

And so, let us enumerate five (5) cases of when modern armies and governments have tried to resort to magic or the supernatural to win real wars and achieve supremacy over their enemies.

#1 – The United States Government and the CIA Manual of Trickery & Deception

You’ve watched the movies and the TV shows - from the Bourne Identity films to 24 to Alias and more – and you’ve probably wondered if any of what they have shown in these entertainment pieces are anything like how actual spies and CIA field agents operate in the real world. As it turns out, some of what many actors have done in these spy films are not so far from what real intelligence agents have done in reality. In fact, there’s even an official manual for it.

Back in 2010, the Official CIA Manual of Trickery and Deception was declassified and released for the perusal of the general public. The manual was written during the Cold War by an American magician named John Mulholland. The book was essentially used in training intelligence agents of the CIA on how to use misdirection and deception in completing their assigned missions. The manual also teaches these CIA operatives on the best ways to conceal weapons, how to use sleight of hand to discreetly pass information, take items or put drugs in people’s drinks, and how to assassinate their targets using only a poisoned pen.

#2 — The Allied Forces and the Disappearance of the Suez Canal

Perhaps the most popular real case of an army using a magician to win a war is that of British stage magician Jasper Maskelyne and his alleged large-scale concealment of the Suez Canal during the Second World War.

In 1949, Maskelyne published a ghostwritten memoir titled “Magic – Top Secret,” in which he detailed his exploits in aiding the Allies during World War Two. The British magician was allegedly a part of a special unit focused on the war effort along the Suez Canal. Using his extensive experience and knowledge in the art of illusion, he devised a large-scale illusion system to conceal the Suez Canal and to misdirect the German flying bombers in the sky. To do so, he built an equipment referred to as “dazzle lights,” which was made of a revolving cone of mirrors. It produced a spinning light that was around nine miles wide, and it dazzled and disoriented German pilots, which consequently, made them drop their bombs off-target.

#3 — The British Government and the Use of Astrology

World War II was not an easy time from either side of the war effort, and every military strategy was explored, even the most absurd ones. It would have been easy for the British government to defeat the Nazis had they known everything that was running in Adolf Hitler’s unpredictable mind. And so, they tried to do so by hiring an astrologer to write horoscopes for Hitler and several other Nazi leaders.

In 2008, declassified documents released to Britain’s National Archives catalogs revealed that the British forces assigned an astrologer named Louis de Wohl to create fake astrological reports about the Nazi leaders and distributed them throughout Nazi Germany to demoralize the public. However, Wohl took a step further by offering his services to predict Hitler’s advisers' advice. And so, Wohl typed out a report titled “A Survey of 1943,” which was a seven-page guesswork of when Hitler’s major attacks will take place, and the possible fortunes of important figures from both sides of the war.

Wohl was also sent off by Winston Churchill to convince the United States to join the war, but following the events of Pearl Harbor, his convincing powers and astrological abilities were no longer required. And as disclosed in the declassified documents of the MI5, the British government came to regret their decision to involve Wohl in their military efforts, as many of them eventually led to the conclusion that he was nothing more than a charlatan that liked to boast of his secret role in the war.   

#4 – The Soviets and Their Extensive Study on Psychokinesis

During the Cold War, the Americans and the Soviets tried to outdo the other in many things, the most popular of which is probably the space race that resulted in the first of many successful missions that landed mankind on the moon. For both sides, it became necessary to explore every avenue to win the Cold War, including the paranormal. And so, both the Americans and the Russians raced against each other to be the first one to figure out how to harness the unknown by expanding the human mind and exploring individuals’ potential abilities in telepathy and psychokinesis.

So far, there has been no widely-accepted evidence that confirms the possibility that humans can be trained to read other people’s minds or move objects without lifting a finger. But between the United States and the Soviets, it seems the latter’s research about the paranormal was more on point than those done by the Americans. Amid the Cold War, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency – also known as DARPA – wanted to evaluate and compare the milestones achieved by the United States and the Soviets in researching about the paranormal. And so, they granted RAND Corporation the authority to conduct a study about it, the results of which was published in the early 1970s. The organization reached the conclusion that the Soviets’ research on the supernatural was more specifically geared towards biology and physics in comparison to what the United States came up with, which was largely based on psychological theories.

The Soviets did not only consider using telepathy as a means of communicating with submarines without the aid of electronic equipment, but they also explored the possibility of training their cosmonauts to tap on their precognitive powers to foresee potential accidents in space. They were also interested in using mental imagery or psychokinesis to move objects, which would be helpful in disrupting the guiding system of intercontinental ballistic missiles. Given the specificity in how the Soviets handled their paranormal research, they were the ones more likely to harness what the paranormal world had to offer if it really existed.

#5 — The Nazi and The Search for the Holy Grail and the Spear of Destiny

You’ve probably watched Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade in which the Nazis were on the hunt for the mythical and magical Holy Grail. And while we can’t say for certain if they did encounter an immortal knight or solicited the expertise of an archaeologist with a dashing appearance equal to that of Harrison Ford, the Nazis did look for the Holy Grail in real life, along with other religious ancient artifacts like the Spear of Destiny.

According to the book “The Desecrated Abbey” written by Montserrat Rico Góngora, Heinrich Himmler, the head of the Nazi SS, embarked on a top-secret mission during the Second World War to acquire the Holy Grail at an abbey in Spain. The book claims that the Reichsführer-SS believed that Jesus Christ was not the King of the Jews, and was in fact of Aryan blood. And so, Himmler allegedly thought that if the Nazis gained possession of the Aryan Holy Grail, the ancient artifact would grant him supernatural powers and help the Germans win the global war. Unfortunately for the Nazi leader, no such magical cup was found, and if he did find one, it was never disclosed to the public.

There are also stories and historical records claiming that Hitler himself acquired the Spear of Destiny – the lance that pierced the body of Jesus to confirm his death – back in 1938 following his annexation of Austria. According to legend, whoever gains possession of the Spear also gains the power to decide the fate of the world. However, once he ceases to be its owner, he meets his death and is refused entry to the gates of Heaven. While what he found may very well be a very expensive knock-off of the Holy Lance, Hitler brought this Spear to Nuremberg for safekeeping.

In 1945, U.S. soldiers under the leadership of General Patton got a hold of the spear Hitler thought was the real Spear of Destiny. Interestingly, Hitler died soon after he lost ownership of the lance, having committed suicide in his bunker. It seems to confirm the legend that losing possession of the spear results to the owner’s death, but we won’t be able to test this theory again unless we’re hoping to encounter another tyrannical global leader, so perhaps it is better that the spear Hitler discovered is being safely kept inside the Weltliches Schatzkammer Museum in Vienna instead.

People at war live in violent and uncertain times, which is why it is not that surprising that even in the modern world, opposing sides of a conflict are desperate to find ways to turn the tides of these bloody battles in their favor. To some of us, the idea of using magic, exploring psychic defense or searching for lost ancient artifacts all for the sake of winning a war seems an absurd waste of time. However, to the leaders of these modern armies, it is a factor that they could not discount so easily.

After all, they could not risk not giving magic and the supernatural the time of day when their enemies were spending resources to possibly utilize them as weapons. What if their enemies succeeded? How could they outsmart an enemy that has mastered the art of deception and misdirection? How could they fight against thousands of troops that can easily kill their opponents and predict the future using only their minds? How could they win against a colossal army in possession of a powerful ancient artifact that pretty much made them invincible?  

As commanders that lead thousands, if not millions, of soldiers, these military and intelligence leaders chose to exhaust all possibilities to end the conflict in their favor, even if it meant resorting to magic or the supernatural. Perhaps, from their perspective, they would rather have their pursuit for such things end up as a fruitless endeavor rather than neglect that option and allow their enemies to use it against them later on.

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SOURCES:

http://listverse.com/2013/03/05/10-attempts-to-use-magic-and-the-supernatural-to-win-wars/

http://www.cracked.com/article_24722_6-modern-armies-who-tried-to-win-wars-using-magic-sci-fi.html

https://www.thrillist.com/vice/10-secret-lessons-from-the-cia-manual-of-trickery-and-deception

https://archive.org/stream/cia-manual-trickery-deception-2009/cia-manual-trickery-deception-2009_djvu.txt

https://www.magictricks.com/war-magician.html

http://www.nbcnews.com/id/23456119/#.WWjSIIiGPb1

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/revealed-how-mi5-recruited-an-astrologer-in-plot-to-outwit-hitler-790876.html

https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/news-blog/us-and-soviet-spooks-studied-parano-2008-10-29/

https://www.wired.com/2007/12/rand-russians-t/

http://io9.gizmodo.com/5889471/what-is-the-spear-of-destiny-and-where-can-you-get-it

http://www.salon.com/2016/03/04/relic_hunter_a_missing_christian_relic_the_fall_of_nazi_germany_and_a_mystery_that_flummoxed_historians_for_centuries/

The Mystery of Ancient Egypt’s Red-Haired Mummies

What we’re going to be talking about right now is what some people may consider being a controversial subject, but also one worthy of study. Do we really know, genetically speaking, where ancient Egyptians came from?

When we try to imagine what Ancient Egypt may have looked like, some of us immediately picture a civilization populated by citizens with dark skin and dark hair. But was that truly the case?

At the time when graves of mummies were discovered more than a hundred years ago, a general expectation was that the early Egyptians were of Negroid origin. But in our enlightened and technologically-advanced era, where we possess greatly-enhanced capabilities in forensic science, certain mind-blowing archaeological discoveries and evidence have emerged that are not exactly supportive of the seemingly universally known the fact that dynastic Egyptians were exclusive of black African origin.  

All shades of hair were found around the time of Ancient Egypt’s civilization – from brown to blonde, and even auburn and red. Today, these hair colors are found among the people of North Europe and North America and are indicative of Caucasian origins. Does this mean there were fair-skinned, blonde or red-haired ancient Egyptians prior and during Egypt’s dynastic periods?

Theory That Some Ancient Egyptians Were of Caucasoid Origin

There is a theory suggesting that before 2000 BC, Egyptians were of Caucasoid-European ethnicity. This is supported by the physical anthropology of the oldest mummies that have been found, the busts and statues of several pharaohs and their wives, the colored wall paintings discovered, and the descriptions provided in historical accounts.  As early as 5000 BC, the majority of the Caucasoid-European occupants of Egypt were believed to have begun abandoning the increasingly warm country and headed to the cooler climates of Europe. Then, after about 1500 BC, the population in the area became increasingly mixed with the Nubians from the South of Egypt, which explains the typical physical appearance and genetic makeup of modern-day Egyptians.

This theory strongly refutes the ideas of Afrocentrism with the presentation of several archaeological, anthropological and forensic evidence, three of which I am about to discuss with you now.

The “Ginger” from the Gebelein Pre-Dynastic Mummies

One of the most famous cases of mummies of Ancient Egypt that had red or blonde hair is one of the Gebelein pre-dynastic mummies which is housed in the British Museum.  Commonly referred to by curators and the public as “Ginger,” this ancestor from ancient Egypt died more than five thousand years ago, in the Late Pre-dynastic period, around 3400 BC or earlier. His mummified body was found in a cemetery at Gebelein, Egypt, with his toe and finger nails perfectly preserved. He was given the nickname of “Ginger” because of his golden curly hair, which interestingly, looks similar to the curly locks often seen on Greek and Roman sculptures. And although his body is stained from being buried in the sand for more than 5,000 years, this Egyptian ancestor looked like he once had yellowish-white skin.

Red-Haired Mummies from the Fag el-Gamous Cemetry

Another example of uncovered red-haired mummies from Ancient Egypt are the ones found among thousands of other mummies by a group of archeologists in the Fag el-Gamous graveyard in the south of Cairo.

Archaeologists from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah have been excavating the Fag el-Gamous cemetery for about 30 years, and they had established that many of the mummies they have found date back date back to 30 BC, which is around the time when the Roman or Byzantine Empire ruled Egypt. Researchers concluded that there were more than a million bodies within this cemetery, and it was also revealed that the Fag el-Gamous graveyard was not intended for royalty, but for the common people.

There were many interesting discoveries that were uncovered in the excavation of this ancient cemetery and the analysis of the mummies found buried in the area, and one of them is the observation that the mummies appear to be clustered together according to hair color. They found blonde-haired mummies in one area, while another area was filled with red-haired ones. This led to the overall impression that the clusters of mummies buried by hair color in the graveyard could be indicative that these people once belonged to the same family groups, and therefore, were related to each other. This also speaks volumes of the possibility that a small but significant part of ancient Egypt’s population was red-haired or blonde-haired individuals.

The Mummy of Ramesses II

The last case of red-haired Egyptian mummies we will be discussing is the preserved body of Ramesses II – who is arguably the most famous of all the Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. Ramesses II ruled as a Pharaoh of the 19th Dynasty between 1279 to 1213 BC and is believed to be the one who reigned when the Children of Israel were liberated through the prophet Moses.

In 1975, the Egyptian government tasked French scientists to attempt the preservation of Ramesses’s mummy. This opened an opportunity for researchers to determine his age, body condition, health, diet, and even his racial affinities. There were those who were of the opinion that Ramesses II was black. However, according to the study conducted by Professor P.F. Ceccaldi and his research team, microscopic examinations of the pharaoh’s hair roots showed that his hair had natural red pigments, which meant that in his younger years, Ramesses II was a red head. Moreover, it was also determined that Ramesses had wavy hair, and a combination of these features meant that the pharaoh was fair-skinned.

Research

While there has been enough evidence for some experts to conclude that some ancient Egyptians were blonde or red-haired – there are still many researchers who believe that there was no Ancient Egyptians whose natural hair wasn't dark brown or black. Some of these skeptics argue that mummies found with light-colored strands of hair can be explained by the effects of the mummification process itself.

And so, to find a definitive answer to this intriguing question about the effects of the mummification process on human hair, Dr. Janet Davey from the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine in Australia decided to conduct experiments on 16 hair samples from men and women aged between 4 and 92 years old. Most of the hair samples were dark-colored, but for comparison, one of the sample strands was gray, while another one was fair. There was also one strand with henna on it.

Davey and her colleague, retired industrial chemist Alan Elliot, also prepared some powder of synthetic natron for their experiment. Natron was a type of salt that was applied on the bodies during the process of mummification to dry them out. It has also been linked to the supposed change in the hair color of the human remains.  

Davey and Elliot covered the hair samples in synthetic natron for 40 days – the same amount of time believed to be required back in ancient times to dry out human bodies. When the 40-day period had passed, the samples were removed from the salty powder, and after undergoing microscopic analysis, it was determined that there was no change in the color of the hair samples at all.

For Dr. Davey, the result of her experiment is convincing enough to say that fair-haired Egyptians did exist in Ancient Egypt; it’s just that finding fair-haired Egyptian mummies has so far been a very rare occurrence. Some ancient Egyptians could have been blue-eyed blondes or red heads, and while the country during those times was not as multi-cultural as several parts of the world are today, there were certainly a variety of racial mixes that made the existence of fair-skinned Egyptians possible.   

Now, is this discovery particularly earth-shattering? Well, it depends on which vantage point you are analyzing the evidence from. It remains the fact that a majority of Egyptians today are dark-haired and dark-skinned. These archaeological, anthropological and forensic evidence merely attest to a not-so implausible reality that, at some point in its ancient history, there was a portion of the people in Egypt who were red or blonde-haired and fair-skinned. In our modern world, individuals of different race and ethnicities encounter and mingle with each other like a natural habit, if not an inescapable necessity. So, is it really that surprising that our ancestors did the same thing thousands of years ago?

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Sources:

http://fabweb.org/2016/11/29/the-myth-of-blonde-egyptians/

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2877855/Cemetery-one-MILLION-mummies-unearthed-Egypt-1-500-year-old-desert-necropolis-largest-found.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gebelein_predynastic_mummies

http://www.egyptorigins.org/ginger.htm

http://www.celticnz.co.nz/Nazca/Ancient%20Caucasoid%20Egyptians.htm

https://hiddenincatours.com/the-mystery-of-ancient-egypts-red-haired-mummies/

http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2016/05/mystery-of-the-blonde-egyptian-mummies-has-been-solved/

http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/new-research-shows-some-ancient-egyptians-were-naturally-fair-haired-005812

http://www.livescience.com/49147-egyptian-cemetery-million-mummies.html

http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/intriguing-discoveries-million-mummy-necropolis-egypt-revealed-002459

Mysterious Ancient Caves that Could Rewrite History

Caves are more than just hollow places in our earthly ground; they play a very indispensable role in the story of mankind. Aside from serving as a shelter for our earliest ancestors, ancient caves also serve as a rich source of many extraordinary artifacts, mysterious undeciphered symbols, and traces of unknown human civilizations in different parts of the world. For some old cultures, several of which still endure to this day, these caves were seen in a mystical and a magical light, while some archaeologists have discovered evidence in these places that raise several compelling and unanswered questions about our distant past.

And so, in this list, let us talk about seven of the most mysterious ancient caves that could re-write history as we know it.

2. Theopetra Cave – Thessaly, Greece

Located at the foot of the Chasia mountain range, which serves as the natural boundary between Thessaly and Macedonia prefectures, the Theopetra Cave is a unique archaeological site that holds many ancient secrets. The site contains one of the longest archaeological sequences in Greece as it contained cultural remains from the Middle and Upper Paleolithic as well as Mesolithic and Neolithic periods, bridging the Pleistocene epoch with the Holocene. Earliest estimation of human inhabitants in the cave dates back to 130,000 years ago, and the site is also the home to the oldest known example of man-made structure – an ancient stone wall that is believed to have been constructed 23,000 years ago as a probable barrier against cold winds. Excavations of the Theopetra Cave started in 1987, and over the years, more and more groundbreaking discoveries have been uncovered by experts in this ancient place.

2. Ciur-Izbuc Cave – Transylvania, Romania

In 1965, Ciur-Izbuc Cave in the Carpathian Mountains of Romania was found to contain around 400 ancient human footprints. At the time of its discovery, researchers were of the opinion that the footprints were made by a man, woman and child who was in the cave approximately 10,000 to 15,000 years ago. However, according to a recent study published in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, the ancient human footprints found in the Romanian cave are actually more than 35,000 years old. Radiocarbon testing on the bear bones found buried just beneath some of the footprints revealed that they are tens of thousands of years older than the initial estimate. To scientists, the footprints found in the Ciur-Izbuc Cave are evidence of the earliest known humans in Europe, which was only previously determined through the discovery of animal bones and stone tools.

3. Royston Cave – Hertfordshire, England

The Royston Cave is an artificial cave that was discovered in August 1742. When it was found, the cave was half-filled with dirt and rock, but once the earth was removed, they found several sculptures and carvings, which date as far back as 1200 AD. The images of the artifacts found in the cave are mostly religious in nature, including a depiction of the Holy Family and the Crucifixion. It remains unknown who created the artificial cave or what its purpose was when it was made, but there has been much speculation in answering this mystery. Some believe that the Royston Cave was used by the Knights Templar, while others think it may have been an Augustinian store mine. However, none of these theories have been substantiated yet, leaving the origin of the cave to continue as an enigma even until now.

4. Huashan Caves – Huangshan, China

Manually chiseled more than 1700 years ago, the Huashan caves are steeped in ancient and mysterious legends. Each cave ranges from 10 to 20 meters in height, with their variously-shaped stone columns supporting the ceilings. A total of 36 chambers have been found among the Huashan Hills, and their neatly chiseled walls and roofs, big pillars and stone stairs indicate that these caves were excavated by men. Because there are currently no historical records revealing why our ancestors in China dug the Huashan Caves, a variety of guesses have been presented in an attempt to resolve this mystery. Some believe the caves were dug to produce stone which probably had been used to build a nearby town. Another theory suggests that the caves were once used to station troops. There is also speculation that the caves were used as imperial tombs but were somehow abandoned later on. However, despite these interesting guesses, the true purpose of the Huashan Caves remains a mystery left unanswered by modern man.

5. Ellora Caves – Maharashtra, India

Situated not far from Aurangabad, in the Indian state of Maharashtra, the site is home to 34 monasteries and temples, extending over a distance of more than 2 kilometers. Unlike past examples in history, where the dominant religion of a particular time and place brought down the temples and structures of other groups, replacing them with their own, the Ellora Caves is proof that tolerance, acceptance, and co-existence of different religions are possible. The caves are a unique sanctuary that blends the art and culture of three religions – Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism. It is unclear when these caves were built, but estimates range from between 200 B.C. and 600 A.D. to 600 A.D. and 1000 A.D.

6. Piyang Caves – Tibet

The Piyan Caves are among the most important caves of Tibet, situated in the western part of the Tibetan Plateau and close vicinity of the sacred Mount of Kailash. There are over 1,100 caves at the site of different shapes and sizes – some are habitation sites, while other locations are believed to be meditation or ritual caves governed by gods and spirits. Humans inhabited the Tibetan Plateau at least 21,000 years ago, so there are speculations that numerous ancient artifacts and relics are hidden in the caves, tunnels, dark subterranean passages and other mysterious areas at the site, many of which have yet to be localized. The Piyang region covers an area of 10,000 square meters, making it difficult to explore. In the many temples built in the vicinity, there are prehistoric castle walls, murals, sculptures, pagodas and Buddhist niches filled with priceless paintings. However, no one really knows for sure where all the ancient scriptures, historical paper scrolls and prehistoric books believed to be safeguarded in the caves are really hidden.

7. Denisova Cave – Siberia, Russia

Located in the northwestern Altai Mountains some 6 kilometers away from the village of Chernyi Anui, the Denisova Cave is a rock shelter where a series of scientific discoveries on man’s origins have been made in recent years. In 2008, a finger bone fragment of a juvenile female – referred to as the “X woman” – was found at the site. Experts have estimated that the female lived around 41,000 years ago, and analysis has indicated that this creature was genetically distinct from Neanderthals and modern humans. This previously unknown and long extinct hominin species or subspecies has been named Denisovan after the cave where the bone fragment was discovered. In 2010, analysis on an upper molar from a young adult which was found in the cave ten years earlier was also determined to be from a Denisova hominin. The cave is located in a region thought to have also been inhabited concurrently in the past by Neanderthals and modern humans, making the site the one place we know so far where all three human forms have lived at one time or another.

The ancient caves we have mentioned are just a few of many archaeological sites that have the potential to rewrite history as we know it. These ancient sites and their abundant resources of historical and archaeological evidences are still being extensively explored and studied until now, as many believe that these caves still hide an abundance of secrets and discoveries that could fill the missing pieces in the origins of humanity.

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Sources:

http://www.messagetoeagle.com/10-mysterious-ancient-caves-that-could-re-write-history/
http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places/ten-amazing-caves-ancient-world-002957?nopaging=1
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/ancient-secrets-of-the-theopetra-cave-worlds-oldest-man-made-structure-and-home-to-humans-130000-years-ago/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theopetra_cave
http://www.ancient-origins.net/news-evolution-human-origins/oldest-european-human-footprints-romanian-cave-102003
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/unanswered-questions-related-to-the-mysterious-huashan-caves/
http://www.ancient-origins.net/ancient-places-asia/magnificent-ellora-caves-india-001605
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/ancient-secrets-hidden-in-the-piyang-caves-mysterious-sacred-caves-of-tibet/
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/first-unique-view-inside-denisova-cave-ancient-history/#.V9Mi4_mLSM9
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denisova_Cave
https://www.thoughtco.com/denisova-cave-only-evidence-denisovan-people-170604

The Food Chinese Emperors Ate

What kinds of delicious food did the emperors eat in Imperial China? Since the time of emperors living in magnificent palaces, there were such things as imperial foods. Specially prepared meals exclusively for the emperors, their wives, concubines, and royal family members Imperial food represented the best cuisine that a dynasty had to offer. The emperors and those who cater to their health and nutrition used their resources and influence to discover the very best delicacies from across the nation and picked the top cooks to them.

While Imperial food is a reflection of each dynasty's diet, it's also an indispensable part of Chinese cultural heritage that endures even into our modern era.

What is Chinese Imperial Cuisine?

Chinese Imperial Cuisine's diverse cooking styles originated from different Chinese regions and are a collection of various dishes and delicacies that were originally invented by the common people. The royal chefs studied and refined the dishes until fit for an emperor.

The Imperial cuisines are characterized by:

1. intricate cooking methods,
2. meticulous selection of quality raw materials,
3. time-consuming and complicated preparation, and
4. elaborate visual presentation.

History of Chinese Imperial Cuisine

Styles and tastes of Imperial Chinese Cuisines differ from one dynasty to another, with each dynasty possessing its own distinctive features. China’s dietetic culture started from the Xia, Shang, and Zhou Dynasties. However, the nation’s imperial cuisine evolved rapidly during the Qin and Han Dynasties' ruling periods and thrived in the Tang, Song, and Yuan Dynasties. It reached considerable heights in the more recent Ming and Qing Dynasties.

Although China’s dietetic culture developed much earlier than the Zhou Dynasty, most agree Chinese imperial food can trace its roots there. Not only was the Zhou Dynasty's Imperial Cuisine an improvement from those prepared in the early Xia and Shang Dynasties, it was also during this period that a complete imperial food management system of the royals and noblemen began. From procurement, diets, and preparation, to staffing, supervision, and the development of meal grades for the members of the imperial family, these responsibilities were handled in accordance with the empire’s established “eating rites.”

As prescribed in the “Rites of the Zhou Dynasty,” “when the emperor took a meal, there were 12 deep bowls with legs and 12 plates. Music was played to urge him to eat.” The rites also indicated that the three daily meals that the emperor would consume included beef, pork, mutton, fish, cured meat, intestine, and stomach.

Even banquets and feasts held by the emperor and his officials had rules to follow. For example, according to the Rites of the Zhou Dynasty, “When the Emperor gives a banquet, there must be six cereals and six animals for food, the six clears for drink, 120 delicacies, eight dainties, and 120 urns of sauce.” The six cereals mentioned in the Rites were rice, broomcorn, wheat, sorghum, millet and wild rice stem, while the six animals the Rites referred to were cow, pig, chicken, sheep, horse, and dog.

Zhou Dynasty

In the Zhou Dynasty, 22 departments were tasked with handling and managing imperial foods prepared and served in the palace. More than 2,300 staff members had different responsibilities and positions in the department like chief cook, internal cook, external cook, assistants, nutritionists, and even wine officers. This complex organization of the royal kitchen assured a detailed and well-defined division of labor that maintained the premium quality of the meals served to the emperor.

Food in Chinese politics became very important during the Zhou, Qin and Han Dynasties, as holding banquets became standard practice whenever the emperor hosted meetings with princes, dukes, or royal family. The imperial food in the later Han and Wei dynasties largely followed this Zhou Dynasty system. However, China’s empowered economy and openness for cultural exchange allowed the palace to attain external sources of raw materials, superior cooking utensils, widespread use of ironware, and higher quality standards for imperial dishes and the skills to make them.

Sui, Tang, & Song Dynasties

The imperial food of the Sui, Tang, and Song Dynasties also picked up the established system and rules of the previous dynasties, but there were also a lot of changes implemented during these periods in what kinds of food were served to the emperor and members of his family and how they were prepared. There were also more variety in the dishes that were made during these dynasties, as the royal kitchen paid a lot of its attention in diversifying the flavor, tastes, color, and presentation of these dishes. They also took great lengths into naming these dishes. Some popular imperial dishes handed down to us today are quick-friend prawns, fried ringing bells, crab rolls, and steamed Mandarin fish with no soy sauce.

Song & Qing Dynasties

Foods during the Song and Qin dynasties were very similar. However, when the Ming Dynasty usurped Mongolian rule in China, the royal kitchen abandoned the Mongolian food style served to the Yuan emperors. Instead, imperial cuisine during the Ming Dynasty was mostly inspired by Southern Chinese flavors because the emperor preferred it. Protecting the emperor’s health also became an important factor in the preparation of imperial meals, and the rulers of the Ming Dynasty were particularly mindful of protecting their well-being by eating the right healthy foods.

Ming Dynasty

Imperial cuisine of the Ming dynasty was essentially grain-based. At the time, meat and beans were used less in the emperors’ meals compared to their significant use in the earlier dynasties of China. The meat and fish eaten by the emperors were limited to chicken, pheasant, goose, duck, carp, golden carp, Mandarin fish, bream, rabbit, and deer.

The menu in the Ming Palace also changed daily, and the royal kitchen did not repeat the meals and light refreshments they served to the emperors on a daily basis. Some dishes worth noting are shark’s fin soup and edible bird’s nest. Prawns and sea cucumbers were also served in the palace during the Ming Dynasty. Peking Duck, a dish which was first heard of during the Southern and Northern Dynasties, were also fully developed during this time and included in official menus of imperial dishes cooked in the Ming Palace.

There are very few differences between the imperial food served during the Ming Dynasty and the subsequent Qing Dynasty, and even today, the cuisines from these two dynasties remain important to those with Chinese ancestry in different parts of the world. In the Forbidden City, around the imperial rule of the Qing Dynasty, the Imperial Household Department was the division in the Chinese empire’s government that was given the mandate involving the management of the emperor’s meals. There was also a special organization known as the “Imperial Kitchen” in the Qing palace that was tasked with the preparation of imperial cuisine for the emperor.

During the rule of Emperor Qianlong, the kitchens for the imperial tea and meals were separated into two groups: the External Kitchen and the Internal Kitchen. The External Kitchen handled the Qing palace’s official food-related events such as feasts, banquets, and sacrificial rites. The Internal Kitchen, on the other hand, was divided further into departments assigned in the management and preparation of vegetables, meat dishes, roasting, rice cooking, and baking. The meat department, for one, was responsible for cooking delicacies from both land and sea. The bakery was assigned with making cakes and pastries, and the rice-cooking department was the team designated with the preparation of cooked rice and different porridges.  

The Imperial cuisine was a significant part of the lives of the royal family members residing in the Qing Palace. The rites of preparing and serving imperial dishes during this time are arguably the greatest of all Chinese dynasties. They included the number of individuals required to make them, and the quality, variety, and cost of the courses served at every meal. Some of the notable dishes of this period were, for example, the Dezhou Braised Chicken – a which is a traditional cuisine that originated from Dezhou in Shangdong Province – and the Wensi Tofu – a soup dish that can be traced back to Jiangsu cuisine.

With how much of its legacy managed to endure until today, Chinese imperial cuisine cannot be dismissed as a minute and irrelevant element of the country’s history. In reality, besides reflecting the dedication, effort, and ingenuity of all the preparers, servers, and inventive common people, Chinese imperial cuisine is also an integral part of all Chinese people's cultural heritage.

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Sources:

http://www.cits.net/china-travel-guide/imperial-cuisine-museum-of-china.html
http://www.china.org.cn/english/imperial/25995.htm
http://www.china.org.cn/english/imperial/26109.htm
http://www.china.org.cn/english/imperial/26110.htm
http://www.china.org.cn/english/imperial/26112.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Imperial_cuisine
http://gbtimes.com/life/forbidden-city-how-did-emperor-eat
https://www.quora.com/What-dishes-best-represent-Chinas-history-and-culture

5 Great Ancient Mysteries of China

China is one of the world’s four ancient civilizations and considered the oldest civilization with an unbroken history up to today's modern era. Though Chinese history is unrivaled in its documentation, and its ancient origins have been extensively studied by various experts in science, history and archaeology, China – as a cradle of human civilization – remains a place full of secrets. 

Moreover, so, let us examine five of the greatest ancient mysteries that China has to offer. 

1. Ancient City Under Fuxian Lake

Spanning an area of 212 square kilometers, the Fuxian Lake stretches out through Chenjiang, Jianchuan and Huaning Counties in Yunnan Province. It is ranked as the third-largest lake in Yunnan, and also the deepest lake in the province. As it is 155 meters deep at its greatest depth, the Fuxian Lake is also the third-deepest freshwater lake in all of China. 

The Fuxian Lake is known for its unique fauna and many endemic species, but beyond this is a mystery that lies scattered on the lake’s unexplored bottom. According to an ancient local legend, a city-like silhouette under the lake can be seen on a beautiful calm day from the mountains nearby. To confirm if there is a hidden city in the deep waters of the lake, a Chinese submarine archaeology team stationed in the area conducted surveys in the Fuxian Lake. 

In 2001, they discovered earthenware and stonework beneath the lake, covering an area of approximately 2.4 to 2.7 square kilometers. Carbon dating of some shells attached to the blocks confirmed that the site was 1750 years old, which meant that it had existed around 257 CE and sunk during the Han period. It is believed that the ancient unidentified structure of the under-lake construction could represent the remains of the ancient Dian Kingdom. The Dian Kingdom is an ancient country with a high level of civilization which mysteriously disappeared after 86 BC.  

As for how the ancient civilization ended up at the bottom of the lake, some say that the ancient kingdom slid into the lake during an earthquake. Nevertheless, there are various legends involving the Fuxian Lake which has endured for more than 1,000 years that have yet to be verified. Since it is a huge body of water that remains largely unexplored, the credibility of these compelling mysteries may remain unconfirmed in the foreseeable future.

2. Mystery of the Huashan Caves

Located in the eastern suburbs of Tunxi district in the Anhui province city of Huangshan, the Huashan Caves are steeped in ancient, mysterious legends. Each ranging from 10 to 20 meters in height, the Huashan Caves, were manually chiseled more than 1,700 years ago. Stone columns, which vary in shapes support the caves’ ceilings. Altogether, 36 chambers were found among the Huashan Hills. Some of these chambers are filled with water, while some are two-story chambers. It's neatly chiseled walls and roofs, the big pillars and stone stairs, indicated that men excavated the caves.

Out of all the 36 caves, the biggest of them all is the Qingliang Cave, which is also referred to as the “Underground Palace” because of its scale and magnificent layout. This cave has a total length of 170 meters and an area of 12,600 square meters, and digging out the cave could have originally produced at least 50,000 cubic meters of stone. Inside the cave, a stone bridge above an underground river can be found, and stone paths lead to different halls. 

The Huashan Mountain has the biggest, most content-rich, and best-preserved ancient rock carvings ever discovered in China. They stretch 200 meters long and 40 meters high containing over 1,800 images. Carbon dating suggests the oldest ones are 16,000 years old with the youngest still 690 years old. 

Since no historical records reveal why the ancient people dug the Huashan Caves, some people believe the caves were mined for many stones needed to build a nearby town, to station troops, or maybe as Imperial tombs eventually abandoned. Despite all these guesses, the true reason creating this elaborate site remains an enduring mystery unanswered by today's man.

 
3. The Mystery of the Mystical Yellow Emperor

Ancient Chinese records speak of an extraordinary being, described as a god-like king and the “son of heaven.” This wise and powerful being was Huang-Di or Yellow Emperor. He was a legendary ruler who is said to have lived for over one hundred years around 3,000 B.C. Cited for being instrumental in developing the Chinese society and for being the founder of Chinese civilization, the Yellow Emperor created Chinese medicine, various religious practices, and mechanical inventions. 

However, aside from these achievements, there are several other reasons why the legendary Yellow Emperor was special and different. Huang-Di possessed advanced technology and extensive knowledge of the stars and the heavens. It was even believed that he descended on Earth in a “thunderclap on a clear day” when he began his reign. It has also been said that he had the ability to summon a metal-scaled dragon. He also kept in his possession a magical chariot known as Changhuan, which could take the Yellow Emperor to any part of his kingdom at fantastic speed. 

Given the nature of the Yellow Emperor’s backstory, there are those who have speculated that Huang-Di was actually an extra-terrestrial who landed in the land of ancient China five thousand years ago and ruled over the people who lived in the area at the time. Whether this is true or not, it cannot be denied that the Yellow Emperor is a very important figure in ancient China’s legends and history. 

4. Ancient World Buried Under the Taklamakan Desert

Ancient people believed that once you entered the Taklamakan desert, there was no getting out of it. The Taklamakan desert is the largest desert in China, and it is considered to be the world’s second largest shifting-sand desert, covering a massive area of over 33,700 square kilometers.

A long, long time ago, houses and temples were built amid the vast space of the “Sea of Death.” However, today, everything – including precious ancient relics – are hidden deep under the sand. Over the years, archaeologists have begun to discover some of the secrets that have been hidden in this mysterious region. 

Aside from its vital role in trade and commerce back when Silk Road connected various traders from the East and the West, some believe that an entire ancient world is hidden beneath the sand of the Taklamakan Desert. Remains of houses, temples, and the ancient city of Loulan were found buried under the sand, and corpses dating back nearly 4,000 years were also discovered in the area.

In the late 1980s, several well-preserved mummies estimated to be at least 3000 years old were also discovered in the Taklamakan desert. These well-preserved corpses revealed that these people once had long reddish-blond hair and European features. Neither did they appear to be the ancestors of the modern-day Chinese people. Moreover, so, some experts in archaeology now believe that these mummies were once citizens of an ancient civilization existing at the crossroads between Europe and China. 

While this seems to be a big leap in logic, more surprising discoveries are expected to as archaeologists continue to investigate the mysterious and dangerous desert, which could support or refute the hypothesis of a secret ancient world hidden beneath the sand. 

5. The Great Pyramid of China

The story behind the Great Pyramid of China is beyond interesting. For years, the Chinese government has allegedly hindered proper and extensive studies to be performed on the numerous pyramids located near the city of Xi-an. The pyramids are believed to be over 8,000 years old, and one of them is said to be much larger than the world-famous Great Pyramid of Giza.

The knowledge of the existence of several pyramids in China came to popular attention sometime after the Second World War. Many of the stories focused on the “Great White Pyramid” or the Maoling, which is the tomb of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty (156-87 BCE) located in Xingping, Shaanxi Province. 

During World War II, U.S. Army Air Corps pilot James Gaussman is said to have seen a white jewel-topped pyramid during his flight between India and China. Fascinated by what he saw, he decided to take several photographs, which he later submitted along with a detailed report to his superiors as soon as he returned to base. Colonel Maurice Sheahan, the Far Eastern director of the Trans World Airline, told a similar eyewitness account, which was published in the March 28, 1947, edition of The New York Times. Over the years, numerous images of the alleged gigantic pyramids in China have been taken by pilots and satellites, providing further confirmation of the existence of these mysterious structures in Asia. 

Given the immense knowledge of geometry and mathematics required to build these pyramids, a glaring question has been raised: Who were the mysterious people that built these Chinese pyramids?

There are those who speculate that the Great Pyramid, as well as the other pyramids standing in the area, were actually built by extraterrestrial beings. According to reports, several European excursions took samples of the objects and metals around these pyramids. Analysis showed a fascinating detail about them: the metallic materials present at the Pyramids have yet to be accurately identified until now, since these metals are made out of materials that are currently unknown to modern science. 

Aside from the five things we have just discussed, there are several other puzzling and strange ancient places and objects in this Far East civilization that are still shrouded in mystery. Many of these places and artifacts are unknown to the Chinese themselves, but should the time come that their hidden mysteries are completely unraveled, they have the potential to rewrite history as we know it. 

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Sources:
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/10-great-ancient-mysteries-of-china/
http://www.ancientpages.com/2015/06/13/underwater-city-unveiling-the-secrets-at-the-bottom-of-fuxian-lake/
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/anhui/travel/2011-05/10/content_12483078.htm
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/unanswered-questions-related-to-the-mysterious-huashan-caves/
http://www.ancientpages.com/2015/09/21/unravelling-mystery-yellow-emperor-connection-regulus/
https://www.ufoinsight.com/worldly-mysteries-chinas-yellow-emperor/
http://www.ancientpages.com/2014/05/21/secret-ancient-world-buried-under-the-vast-takla-makan-desert/
http://www.ancient-code.com/the-great-pyramid-of-china-the-largest-and-oldest-pyramid-on-the-planet/
http://www.ancientpages.com/2015/10/10/mysterious-great-pyramid-of-china-almost-totally-unknown-even-to-most-chinese/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_pyramids#Sensational_claims

The Mysterious Dark Watchers

The Santa Lucia Mountains or the Santa Lucia Range is a rugged mountain range located in the coastal area of central California. Named in 1602 by a Spanish cartographer as the Sierra de Santa Lucia, the mountain range stretches for 105 miles or 169 kilometers from Monterey County in the north all the way south to San Luis Obispo County. Among its southern peaks stands the famous Hearst Castle. The Santa Lucia Range is the coast north of Ragged Point, forming a 100-kilometer wall of wave-dashed cliffs known as the Big Sur, to which the Pacific Coast Highway clings. 

It is a land of immense beauty and tranquility, where California Condors fly high above its mountains, and sea otters and elephant seals populate the turbulent waters at their base. 

But lurking within these mountains is the strange and mystifying phantoms that stand motionless in long black cloaks. Surveying the crags and peaks of the mountains of Santa Lucia, these unfathomable creatures have been spotted by travelers to be looking out to the sea, often wearing broad brimmed hats, and sometimes carrying either a staff or a walking stick. But what is consistent in the description of those who have seen them is that they are always still, silent and featureless. Those who try to get a good look at these fantastical beings fail because, by the time that they attempt a second glance, they have already vanished. 

What Are Dark Watchers?

These mystical entities are believed to reside in the misty hillside of Big Sur in the Santa Lucia Mountains. The early Spanish explorers and Mexican ranchers that came after referred to these creatures as “Los Vigilantes Oscuros.” In modern times, they came to be known as “The Dark Watchers.”

The Dark Watchers are a group of migratory entities that have appeared in California Folklore for supposedly the past several hundred years and are purportedly stalking travelers along the Santa Lucia Mountains. They are apparently giant human-like phantoms that are only seen at twilight, and they are usually spotted standing silhouetted against the night sky along the ridges and peaks of the mountains. These beings are believed to possess incredible hearing as well as impeccable eyesight. They are also immune to high-tech detection and prefer to only reveal themselves to travelers or trekkers who are equipped with simple items like hats and sticks. 

Origins, References & Accounts

Tales about the Dark Watchers appear in many books, and many personal accounts of encounters with them can also be found online. A description of the Dark Watchers can be read in many books about California’s famous supernatural stories, but these descriptions always referred to the writings of Pulitzer Prize-winner John Steinbeck and poet Robinson Jeffers as literary sources that mention this phenomenon. 

In 1938, John Steinbeck was living near Monterey at the northern end of the Santa Lucia Mountains when he published his book of short stories titled “The Long Valley.” One of the stories included in the book is the short story “Flight,” which most famously mentions the Dark Watchers specifically. The Dark Watchers had notoriety in the area at the time because of poet Robinson Jeffers – who also lived in Big Sur – published the poem “Such Counsels You Gave to Me” in 1937. In his poem, Jeffers described the Dark Watchers as “forms that look human… but certainly are not human.”

Steinbeck and Jeffers writing around the same time in the same region and drawing inspiration from the same local traditions implied that some form of Dark Watchers lore predated both of their literary creations. But what was it?

Original accounts of the Dark Watchers date all the way back to the Chumash - a native American tribe which has lived along the central coast of California and among the Channel Islands for around 13,000 years. These Chumash natives have included stories of The Dark Watchers in their oral legends and traditions since the Pre-Columbian era.

Validity of Origin Story

One of the most detailed and authoritative accounts of Chumash beliefs is arguably the 1974 1200-page doctoral dissertation by Thomas Blackburn, which was later on published as “December’s Child: A Book of Chumash Oral Narratives.” Blackburn’s principal source in writing his dissertation about Chumash beliefs was the massive archive collected by American linguist and ethnologist John Peabody Harrington between 1912 and 1928, including 111 oral narratives of the Chumash native tribe. Harrington’s body of unpublished research was housed at the Smithsonian’s National Anthropological Archives, and Blackburn went through it all, compiling virtually all there is to know about the Chumash beliefs. 

With an expert having researched extensively on the subject matter, we are now left with a very important question: Did the Chumash really tell stories about the Dark Watchers? If we are going to base our answer to this question on Blackburn’s work about the Chumash beliefs, then we can conclude that there were no creatures anything like the Dark Watchers mentioned in the oral narratives of this native American tribe. 

The closest thing that can be connected to these watchers was a creature called nunašīš. The Chumash believed that the Earth, as we know it, is the Middle World, which is an island surrounded by the ocean. The sun and other celestial bodies are a part of the Upper World, and down below are a Lower World. Among the dwellers of this Lower World are the Nunašīš, which are monstrous and misshapen animals who come up to the Middle World at night and spread bad luck, illness and other negative things. These creatures can also be shaped like humans, but they are neither dark nor cloaked. They are also not known for standing still against the night sky along mountain peaks.

The Chumash also believed in shape-shifting animals and humans, which is a belief widely held by many Native American cultures. However, so far, claiming that the Dark Watchers can actually be linked with any Chumash tradition cannot be done without casting doubts on its validity. Hence, it is also just as likely, if not more so, that the supposed connection of the Dark Watchers with Chumash oral stories could be just an invention of the 20th-century ghost story authors. After all, what better way to lend credibility to an urban legend than to tie it to an ancient culture?

Possible Explanations Behind the Dark Watchers

So, if the mysterious dark watchers are not at all a supernatural or mystical phenomenon, why are there people claiming to have seen one while hiking in the Santa Lucia Mountains in the fading twilight? 

We do not need to be an expert to know that our minds and eyes can sometimes play tricks on us, especially when we are in spooky environments where we are on edge, and our senses are on high alert. According to psychologists, illusions, hallucinations or misrepresentation of natural stimulus can be brought on by either exhaustion or isolation - conditions that are prevalent when you are traveling alone on the mountain trails of the Santa Lucia Range. 

Infrasound, which can be generated by the wind, can also cause feelings of uneasiness and anxiety in some people, which is why it is often connected to paranormal sightings. Studies show that infrasound between 7 and 19 Hertz can cause feelings of fear and panic in human beings. Researchers from the University of Hertfordshire conducted an experiment where they played music with and without tones of 17 Hertz frequency in the background. Results of the study showed that when the participants heard or felt the music with the 17 Hertz tones, they felt nervous, anxious and fearful. They also felt some pressure on their chests and chills crawling down their spine - feelings which are described by most people when they experience a paranormal event. 

An optical illusion known as the Brocken specter could also be a plausible explanation for the legend of the Dark Watchers. “Mountain Specter” can occur in certain atmospheric conditions when the sun is shining at a particular angle. A person’s shadow can be cast onto a cloud bank around them, which could create the illusion of a large shadowy humanoid figure. 

No one knows for sure who or what these Dark Watchers are. Where they come from or where they go when they disappear remains an unsolvable mystery to this day. As we have explained, it is likely that these creatures are nothing more than fictional legend, but even if they are real, these Dark Watchers were wise enough to have left no footprint behind that would have served as tangible proof of their existence. 

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Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Watchers
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santa_Lucia_Range
https://skeptoid.com/episodes/4522
http://www.weirdca.com/location.php?location=179
http://www.independent.com/news/2014/nov/13/search-dark-watchers/
http://www.messagetoeagle.com/mysterious-dark-watchers-one-of-americas-greatest-ancient-riddles/
http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2015/03/exploring-american-monsters-california/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infrasound#Suggested_relationship_to_ghost_sightings
http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2013/06/ghost-of-the-machine-sounds-in-the-paranormal/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brocken_spectre
https://www.britannica.com/science/Brocken-specter
http://earthsky.org/earth/what-is-the-brocken-spectre
http://www.atoptics.co.uk/droplets/globrock.htm

The Ourang Medan, The Mystery of the Deadliest Ghost Ship in History

In June 1947, the Dutch freighter S.S. Ourang Medan was traveling along the straits of Malacca, when the ship suddenly sent out a chilling distress signal.

"All Officers, including the Captain, are dead. Lying in chartroom and bridge. Possibly whole crew dead."

This first message was followed by a series of indecipherable Morse code sequences until finally, a last ominous transmission:

"I die." 

ARTICLE CONTINUES AFTER VIDEO

Ourang Medan's grim SOS was picked up by British and Dutch listening posts around Sumatra and Malaysia, who worked together to determined where the signal was coming from and alerted nearby ships.

American merchant ship Silver Star was first to reach Ourang Medan. They waived and shouted at the vessel to check for signs of life above deck. But there was no answer. Only eerie silence.

The US ship decided to send out a rescue team to board the ship to look for survivors. But what they found was a blood-curdling nightmare.

The entire Dutch crew was a ghastly pile of corpses – eyes wide open in horror, mouths are frozen in an eternal scream, arms stretched out as if saying stop as if saying no more.

Inside, they found the captain with the same twisted expression on his face as that of his men, dead on the bridge of the ship. Now nothing more than a dead captain, leading a dead ship.

His once strapping officers are now cold corpses straggled on the wheelhouse and chartroom floor. Even the ship’s dog wasn't spared a horrific death.

But the most harrowing is finding the radio operator, fingertips still on the telegraph where he sent his dying message.

After seeing the chilling devastation on board, the Silver Star decided to tow the Ourang Medan to port. But it wouldn't make it to shore, as thick clouds of smoke started rising from the lower decks and interrupted the rescue.

The crew barely had time to sever the line and move to safety, before the Ourang Medan exploded. The blast was apparently so big that the ship “lifted herself from the water and swiftly sank,” taking with it all the answers to its mysterious end to the bottom of the sea.

Or so the story of the Ourang Medan goes.

Some details may differ slightly in each version of the story. Like it happened in February 1948 instead of June 1947. Or that the waters that day were choppy instead of calm. And that the crew wasn't just dead, but they were decomposing at a faster rate. 

While in some versions, the details are, well, too detailed. Like one of the two American ships that heard the distress signal was named The City of Baltimore. That the smoke from the lower deck before the explosion came exactly from the Number 4 hold. Or that the poor canine aboard was a small terrier.

But whichever version of the story you've heard (or told), the basic plot points remain the same - Ourang Medan's entire crew met a gruesome and inexplicable death, and then very conveniently blew up and sank to the bottom of the ocean, leaving us all with an unsolved nautical macabre mystery.

So what happened to the Ourang Medan?

Theory #1: It was a cover up.

The most commonly pointed out loophole in the tale of the Ourang Medan is the vessel's lack of paper trail.

The Lloyd's Shipping registers don't have any mention of the ship. It's not in The Dictionary of Disasters at Sea that covers the years 1824-1962. It wasn't in the Registrar of Shipping and Seamen either.

There's no trace of it in the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich. Nothing in the Dutch Shipping records in Amsterdam. The Maritime Authority of Singapore also doesn't have the ill-fated ship in any of their records. 

In other words, the Ourang Medan was a ghost ship, even before it gained notoriety as one. Because there's no tangible proof that it even existed.

But as espousers of this legend would explain, it's because the Ourang Medan is part of a transnational government cover-up involving the Netherlands, Japan, Germany, China, the United States, and possibly many others.

They believe that the ship was deliberately expunged from all maritime records because it was being used to smuggle a secret cargo of lethal nerve gas to Japan.

Saying the Ourang Medan's voyage is linked to Army Unit 731 founded by Japanese bacteriologist Shirō Ishii, whose main objective was to bring back a weapon of the chemical, gas, or biological variety, that could win the war in their favor.

But as the Geneva Protocol of 1925 prohibited the use of all chemical and biological weapons in war, the only way a large shipment of poisonous gas could make it across the other side of the world without raising any suspicion from authorities is by loading it as inconspicuous cargo, in an old, beat up Dutch freighter.  

This theory also provides a convenient and somewhat plausible explanation for the grisly death of the Ourang Medan's crew. With that much hazardous chemicals on board, a gas leak would've certainly led to the immediate death of everyone in the ship.

However, it wouldn't explain why the rescue crew from Silver Star wasn't affected by the poisonous gas when they boarded the ship.

Or why, like the Ourang Medan, there’s no mention of the Silver Star in Lloyd's register.

Theory #2: It was carbon monoxide poisoning.

American author and inventor of the term Bermuda Triangle, Vincent Gaddis, speculates that it was carbon monoxide poisoning is the answer to the mysterious deaths of the Ourang Medan crew.

According to his theory, burning fuel from a malfunctioning boiler system produced carbon monoxide fumes that poisoned the crew.

When breathed in carbon monoxide enters the bloodstream and prevents red blood cells from carrying oxygen around the body. At high levels, carbon monoxide can cause dizziness, vomiting, seizures, loss of consciousness, and even death. 

The trouble with this theory is that Ourang Medan is not an enclosed space. Fumes could've simply escaped into the atmosphere, and lives of the crew working the upper decks of the ship would've been spared.

Theory #3: It was pirates.

What's a story about a ghost ship without pirates, right?

There are theories claiming that pirates invaded the Ourang Medan and killed everyone on board, which although doesn't explain some accounts saying that there were no visible wounds on the victims' bodies, it does fit with the Strait of Malacca's long history with piracy as far back as the 14th century.

Because of its geography - narrow and dotted with many islets - it makes it ideal for a surprise attack towards ships using it as the trade route to China and Europe.

Theory #4: Ghosts

One of the most repeated, but arguably, also the most inconsequential detail in the story of the Ourang Medan is the extreme chill the rescue team felt as soon as they entered the hull of the ship, despite it being 110°F outside.

Inexplicable drop in temperature plus the frightened expressions on the crew's faces set in a vast, unforgiving sea, equals ghosts did it.

There aren't many supporters of this theory, but what's a ghost ship story without a ghosts-did-it theory?

Theory #5: Aliens

You might think that the alien theory is the most far-fetched, the most uncreative, the most cop out theory explaining the phenomena of the Ourang Medan, but it's a very popular theory, with entire books dedicated to it.

The story of the Ourang Medan has all the elements of a good mystery - inexplicable deaths, unknown assailants, world powers, war, pirates, ghosts, and multiple highly-plausible conspiracy theories. 

Which is probably why it still fascinates us to this day, even if it's already been dismissed by historians, researchers, and the casual internet fact-checker alike as a hoax.

But if it's good enough for the CIA to release a document in 1959 saying, that the Ourang Medan holds the key to many of the sea's mysteries, including that of sightings of huge fiery spheres that come from the sky and descend into the sea, then, it's certainly a hoax worth retelling.

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Sources:
1. Death Ship: The Ourang Medan Mystery, http://mysteriousuniverse.org/2011/11/death-ship-the-ourang-medan-mystery/
2. The Myth of the Ourang Medan Ghost Ship, 1940, http://skittishlibrary.co.uk/the-myth-of-the-ourang-medan-ghost-ship-1940/
3. S.S. Ourang Medan, http://www.crime-mystery.info/great-mysteries/ss_ourang_medan/the_hoax
4.S.S. Ourang Medan, https://www.historicmysteries.com/ourang-medan/
5. CARGO OF DEATH, https://web.archive.org/web/20070205223141/http://www.neswa.org.au/Library/Articles/A%20cargo%20of%20death.htm
6. LETTER TO<Sanitized> FROM C.H. MARCK, https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/docs/CIA-RDP80R01731R000300010043-5.pdf
7. Did the Ourang Medan “ghost ship” exist?, https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/20263/did-the-ourang-medan-ghost-ship-exist
8. The SS Ourang Medan: Death Ship (Updated), https://shortoncontent.wordpress.com/2015/01/15/the-ss-ourang-medan-death-ship-updated/
9. Mysterious Death at Sea: the Disturbing Discovery at the S.S. Ourang Medan, http://weekinweird.com/2011/07/17/mysterious-death-sea-disturbing-discovery-s-s-ourang-medan/
10. The Mammoth Book of Unexplained Phenomena: From bizarre biology to inexplicable astronomy, https://books.google.com.ph/books?id=YHCeBAAAQBAJ&lpg=PT263&dq=Vincent%20Gaddis%20ourang%20medan&pg=PT263#v=onepage&q=Vincent%20Gaddis%20ourang%20medan&f=false
11. Vincent Gaddis, http://self.gutenberg.org/articles/eng/Vincent_Gaddis
12. Crime on the high seas: The World's Most Dangerous Waters, http://www.cnbc.com/2014/09/15/worlds-most-pirated-waters.html
13. The World's Most Dangerous Waters, http://time.com/piracy-southeast-asia-malacca-strait/