Wednesday, January 6, 2010

The most enduring paranormal pictures of all time (Part 1)

by Joan Seth

Here's a look at some of the most enduring paranormal pictures of all time. Part 2 coming soon.

1) The Cottingley Fairies



This picture was taken by cousins Elsie Wright and Frances Griffiths in 1917. The author of Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle declared them genuine. Later on, in 1981, the girls admitted that the pictures were faked. However, on their death bed, they insisted that they really did see fairies.

2) Tesla Crop Circle



This crop circle appeared on a wheat field in Wiltshire, UK in 2004. It was named after the scientist Nikola Tesla, due to its uncanny resemblance to one of his inventions. Even though most crop circles have been declared as hoaxed, there are still a large number of them which cannot be created through conventional means. Other favoured theories include UFOs, Earth Energies, Wind Vortexes.

3) Easter Island Head Statues



Easter Island contains hundreds of these statues. Experts believe they were carved around the years 1250 to 1500. The most mysterious aspect of these statues was their creation. How did the early colonizers of the island carved them? Did they have technologies and techniques similar to the Egyptians? Or did they just used a lot of manual labour, primitive tools and have a lot of free time? Or did they had help from Extraterrestrial sources?

4) The Hope Diamond



The Hope Diamond has brought along death and destruction to almost all of its owners ever since it was created. Legend has it that it was stolen from an eye of a sculpted idol of the Hindu goddess, Sita. Hence it was doomed to curse all of its owners. It is currently on display at the Smithsonian Institution, under heavy guard, of course.

5) The War of the Worlds radio broadcast



In 1938, amid rising tensions of the impending World War 2, American audiences tuned in to a radio drama broadcast of HG Wells classic, War of the Worlds. Cleverly disguised as a series of simulated news bulletins and without commercial breaks, people were actually convinced that Martians were invading Earth. Thousands panicked and escaped from their homes as rumours spread like wildfire.

6) Bigfoot



This is a still from a video taken in 1967 by Roger Patterson and Robert Gimlin. In this video, what seems to be a humanoid figure which looks like an ape is spotted walking away from the camera. Sceptics have stated that the subject is actually a man in a gorilla suit; Patterson and Gimlin has always insisted that the video is real.

7) Roswell Alien Autopsy



In July 1947, a UFO crashed landed in Roswell, USA. A massive government coverup ensued, and the official report was that a top secret weather balloon crashed. However, many people claim to have witnessed alien bodies being removed from the scene. In this image, which has been proven to be a hoax, one of the aliens from the crash is being subject to an autopsy. The video is faked; but did something really happen on that fateful day at Roswell?

8) The Brown Lady of Raynham Hall



This is one of the most famous ghost photos ever. Taken in Raynham Hall in 1936, this was supposedly the ghost of Lady Townsend who died in 1726. Taken by photographers from Country Life magazine, it has been examined many times by experts, who declared it genuine and one of the most definite proof of the existence of ghosts.

9) The Jersey Devil



The Jersey Devil is a monster said to dwell in Pine Barrens, New Jersey. There have been numerous sightings of it since 1819 till date. Its origins are unclear, some say it was the 13th child of a woman named Mrs Leeds, who was cursed by the Devil; others say it was the offspring of a woman and the Devil. Whatever it was, it remains one of the most mysterious crytids of all time.

10) The Shroud of Turin



The Shroud of Turin was a linen cloth that bore the image of a man subject to crucifixion. It is currently held in the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in Turin, Italy. Experts have argued that carbon dating indicates that the shroud was created in the 13th century, which was long after Jesus Christ passed away. Believers still hold firm to the belief that the shroud was placed on Jesus' body after he passed.

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