Ancient Mosaic In Turkey ‘Says Live Your Life’

In the vibrant history of archaeological discoveries, few artifacts resonate as strikingly with contemporary audiences as the “skeletal mosaic” found in the southern province of Hatay, Turkey. Unearthed during excavation efforts near the ancient city of Antiocheia, this mosaic, dating back to the 3rd century B.C., provides a poignant reminder to “Be cheerful, live your life.” The mosaic was discovered in what is believed to be the dining room of a house, a place central to social and cultural activities in Roman times. Demet Kara, an archaeologist from the Hatay Archaeology Museum, described the mosaic as featuring three scenes constructed from black tiles that reflect the social customs of the elite class during the Roman period. The scenes illustrate the importance of timely bath and dinner rituals among the elite, with one depicting a man running late for supper, another a man throwing fire symbolizing the bath, and a final scene featuring a skeleton with a drinking pot and bread, next to the inscription that has captured modern imagination. The mosaic was discovered in 2012 and gained significant media attention when reported by Turkey’s state-run Anadolu Agency and the Daily Sabah following the start of construction for a new cable car in the area. This intriguing find is part of a larger group of mosaics uncovered on what is thought to be a dining room floor, hinting at the luxurious lifestyle once enjoyed by its occupants. As further excavations and research continue, experts like Nikos Tsivikis from the Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum and historian İlber Ortaylı contribute to a deeper understanding of the mosaic’s true date and meaning. Recent interpretations suggest it might date from the late Roman period (2nd-4th century CE) and possibly served a more specific communal dining function, like that of an almshouse. Given the international interest and ongoing debates surrounding its interpretation, there are calls for a new, dedicated museum to preserve better and study this mosaic and others like it, ensuring that their messages—both ancient and resonant—continue to inspire and educate. Exploring the Symbolism of Skeleton Motifs in Ancient Roman Art The skeleton motif, as seen in the recently discovered mosaic in Turkey, holds a significant place in ancient Roman art and culture. This representation is not unique to the Hatay find; instead, it reflects a broader artistic and philosophical tradition that spans the Roman Empire, including major centers like Rome and Pompeii. In ancient Roman culture, skeletons and skulls were often depicted in what is known as “memento mori” art, a Latin phrase that translates to “remember you must die.” This form of art served as a reminder of the inevitability of death, urging individuals to seize the day and enjoy life while they could. These motifs were not intended to be morbid but rather to celebrate life’s transitory nature and the importance of living it to its fullest. Another well-known example of this theme is found along Rome’s Via Appia, in a mosaic that belongs to the Museo Nazionale Romano. This piece depicts a skeleton standing with two wine pitchers, symbolizing enjoyment and indulgence, set against life’s fleeting nature. Similarly, in Pompeii, two separate mosaics showcase skeletons in contexts that remind viewers of death’s democratizing effect, standing as a “great leveler” among different social statuses. One features a skull on a wheel, flanked by symbols of wealth and poverty, illustrating that death equalizes all, irrespective of earthly possessions. These artistic representations often appeared in domestic spaces, particularly dining rooms, where guests could reflect on these messages as they enjoyed the pleasures of food and company. This placement within homes highlights how integrated these philosophical reflections were in everyday life, making the mosaics not just decorative elements but also conversation starters about deeper existential themes.

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The Disappearance Of Serial Killer Pedro Lopez

The Evasive Trail of Pedro Lopez: The Monster of the Andes Pedro Alonso Lopez, born on October 8, 1948, in Santa Isabel, Colombia, grew up in a tumultuous environment that likely shaped his grim future. One of thirteen children, Lopez’s early life was marked by poverty and hardship. His mother, a prostitute, expelled him from their home when he was just eight years old after she caught him touching his sister inappropriately. This event pushed Lopez into a life of vagrancy and petty crime, setting the stage for his later atrocities. After being expelled from his home, Lopez was picked up by a pedophile and suffered repeated abuse. Despite this traumatic start, he managed to escape, only to be captured by a tribe who allegedly enslaved him. After a missionary’s intervention, he was handed over to a Colombian orphanage, where he ran away due to alleged mistreatment. Lopez’s adolescence was a vicious cycle of escape, capture, and abuse, which continued until he reached adulthood and turned to more serious crimes. In his 20s, Lopez traveled across South America, leaving a trail of violence in his wake. His criminal activities escalated from theft to serial murder around 1969. He primarily targeted young girls, luring them away from markets with trinkets or the promise of small jobs. His confession to the murders of over 300 girls in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru revealed a chilling pattern of brutality and cunning, earning him the nickname “The Monster of the Andes.” Lopez’s capture in 1980 by Ecuadorian authorities only occurred because a flood unearthed the bodies of his victims. His initial sentence in Ecuador was light due to the country’s laws at the time—only 16 years, the maximum sentence for any crime. However, he was later transferred to a Colombian psychiatric hospital, where he was declared insane. Astonishingly, he was released in 1998 on $50 bail, under conditions that were never enforced. His disappearance post-release has been a source of frustration and fear. Despite an international warrant issued in 2002 and sporadic reports of sightings, Lopez has eluded capture. His ability to blend into society, combined with the transient nature of his early life, has made tracking him exceedingly difficult for law enforcement. The notion that a confirmed serial killer could simply vanish into the populace is a chilling thought, indeed. Pedro Lopez’s story is a grim reminder of the dark corners of human behavior and the limitations of justice systems across borders. His case continues to haunt the communities he once preyed upon, serving as a macabre legend of criminal infamy and elusive justice.

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(PCM) A tourist from Houston, Texas named Henry Yau was taking photographs at the infamous Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado when he was shocked to discover that his image of the staircase in the hotel lobby featured more than just the hotel decor. Yau captured what appears to be the ghostly apparition of a woman dressed in black standing at the top of the stairwell.

For those that are unaware, the Stanley Hotel is what inspired author Stephen King to write his famous book “The Shining”, although in both the book and the film adaption, the name of the Stanley Hotel was changed to The Overlook Hotel.  The hotel has fascinated suspense and horror fans for decades and is certainly a prime tourist destination for those visiting the region.

Yau stands by his claim that there were no humans present when he was taking the image and it has also been reviewed by several paranormal experts who claim that feel it was definitely not photoshopped and does indeed feature some sort of paranormal entity.

What do you think? Did Yau capture a ghost or is it just a trick of the eye?

 

By golly! I think I may have captured a #ghost at #StanleyHotel. #EstesPark

A photo posted by Henry Yau (@ares415) on Apr 12, 2016 at 7:33am PDT

The post Man Discovers A Ghostly Figure In Image Taken At Hotel That Inspired “The Shining”! We Are Not Surprised! appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) Whenever a new ghost sighting video is posted there is always a rather large debate over whether or not the footage is indeed legit or if has been tampered with in some way. We have to admit that many of these videos provide some pretty compelling evidence that supports the theory that the spirits of the dead often walk among us. One of the latest ghost sightings was captured by 44-year old Steve Wesson, who was on a ghost-hunting tour with a group called UK Ghost Hunt.

The UK Ghost Hunt group refer to themselves as a Paranormal Investigations Company and the trip consisted of them exploring an abandoned air force base in Lincolnshire, England called Manby Hall. Rumor has it that Manby Hall is haunted by the ghost of a WWII Royal Air Force pilot. Sure enough, the visage of what the group captured on film, unbeknownst to them at the time, very much resembles some sort of officers holding a light source.

You can see that as the group is getting ready to enter another room, Wesson’s video camera captures the image of a shadowy figure walking up a corridor in front of the them, however no one in the group appears to notice. The group claims that there were only four of them on the expedition and that they were all accounted for at the time the incident occurred. You can watch the creepy footage below:

Wesson explains that despite the fact that he appears to follow the shadowy figure with the light down the corridor, he actually didn’t seen the ghostly image until he was reviewing the days footage later. He felt he may have seen something or some kind of slight movement out of the corner of his eye which is what prompted him to walk in that direction, but never saw anything while they were in the building.

According to Elite Daily, Wesson and his team went back to the building again the next day to investigate further and learned that it was impossible for anyone else to be inside the building with them, as only security had access to the premises.

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(PCM) We always love an odd crime story and this one certainly had enough people talking! Mother Christine Collins was committed to a psych ward in 1928 after her young son went missing. She was committed after the LAPD claimed they had “found” her son five months later, however Collins denied the boy the police delivered to her was actually her son.

The boy eventually confessed to being a runaway and was indeed not the son of Collins. It turned out that Collin’s son was actually killed during the Wineville Chicken Coop Murders which were led by a man named Gordon Stewart Northcott.

The Winevillle Chicken Coop Murders are notorious in their own right, as they consisted of a series of abductions and murders of young boys by Northcott in both Los Angeles and Riverside, California between the years of 1926 and 1928.

The case received national publicity and gave the town of Wineville so much negative publicity that they eventually ended up changing the town name to Mira Loma in 1930 and then the towns of Eastvale and Jurupa Valley sprang up in the area each taking parts of Mira Loma. There are still several references to Wineville in the area however with streets names such as Wineville Avenue, Wineville Rd and the Wineville State Park.

According to Wikipedia, in 1926, Gordon Stewart Northcott, a 19-year-old Canadian chicken ranch owner, took his 13-year-old nephew Sanford Clark (with the permission of the boy’s parents) from the boy’s home in Canada. After arriving at his Wineville, California farm (located in present-day Jurupa Valley), Northcott beat and sexually abused him.

In August 1928, Sanford’s older sister, 19-year-old Jessie Clark, visited Sanford, who was 15 at the time, in Wineville. She was concerned about his welfare. At that time, Sanford told her that he feared for his life. One night while Northcott was asleep, Jessie learned from Sanford that Northcott had killed four boys at his ranch.

Once in Canada, Jessie informed the American consul there about Northcott’s crimes. The American consul then wrote a letter to the Los Angeles Police Department, detailing Jessie Clark’s sworn complaint.  On August 31, 1928, two United States Immigration Service inspectors, Judson F. Shaw and George W. Scallorn, visited Northcott’s chicken ranch in Wineville. They found 15-year-old Sanford Clark at the ranch and took him into custody.

Northcott had seen the agents driving up the long road to his ranch. Before fleeing into the treeline, he told Clark to stall the agents, or else he would shoot him from the treeline with a rifle. During the next two hours while Clark stalled, Northcott kept on running. Finally, when Clark felt that the agents could protect him, he told them that Northcott had fled into the trees which lined the edge of his chicken ranch property.

Northcott and his mother, Sarah Louise, fled to Canada but were arrested near Vernon, British Columbia on September 19, 1928. Sanford Clark testified at the sentencing of Sarah Louise Northcott that his uncle, Gordon Northcott, had kidnapped, molested, beaten, and killed three young boys with help from his mother and Clark himself. Sanford Clark also testified about the murder of a fourth boy, a Mexican, where Northcott had forced Clark to help dispose of the head by burning it in a fire pit and then crushing the skull.

Sanford Clark said that quicklime was used to dispose of the remains and that the bodies (of Lewis and Nelson Winslow and of Walter Collins) were buried on the Wineville chicken ranch.

Authorities found three shallow graves exactly where Clark had stated they were at Wineville. It was found, however, that these graves did not contain complete bodies but only parts of bodies. During testimony from both Sanford Clark and his sister Jessie, it was learned that the bodies had been dug up by Gordon Northcott and his mother, Sarah Louise Northcott, on the evening of August 4, 1928, a few weeks before Sanford was taken into protective custody. Northcott and his mother had taken the bodies out to a desert area, where they were most likely burned in the night. The complete bodies were never recovered.

This evidence found in the graves consisted of “51 parts of human anatomy … those silent bits of evidence, of human bones and blood, have spoken and corroborated the testimony of living witnesses”. This evidence enabled the State of California to conclude that Walter Collins, the two Winslow brothers, and the Mexican boy had all been murdered.

The body parts that were found, coupled with the testimony of Sanford Clark, resulted in a death sentence for Gordon Northcott and a life sentence for his mother, Sarah Louise Northcott.

The son of Christine Collins, Walter Collins went missing on March 10, 1928,after having been given money by his mother to go to the movies. His disappearance received nationwide attention, and the Los Angeles Police Department followed up on hundreds of leads without success. The police faced negative publicity and increasing public pressure to solve the case, until five months after Walter’s disappearance, when a boy claiming to be Walter was found in DeKalb, Illinois. Letters and photographs were exchanged before Christine Collins paid for the boy to be brought to Los Angeles.

A public reunion was organized by the police, who hoped to negate the bad publicity they received for their inability to solve this case and others. They also hoped the uplifting human-interest story would deflect attention from a series of corruption scandals that had sullied the department’s reputation. At the reunion, Christine Collins claimed that the boy was not Walter. She was told by the officer in charge of the case, police Captain J.J. Jones, to take the boy home to “try him out for a couple of weeks,” and Collins agreed.

Christine Collins persisted in her claim that the boy was not Walter. Even though she was armed with dental records proving her case, Jones had Collins committed to the psychiatric ward at Los Angeles County Hospital under a “Code 12” internment — a term used to jail or commit someone who was deemed difficult or an inconvenience.

Jones questioned the boy, who admitted to being 12-year-old Arthur Hutchins Jr., a runaway from Iowa. Hutchens was picked up by police in Illinois and when asked if he was Walter Collins, he first said no, but then said yes. His motive for posing as Collins was to get to Hollywood so he could meet his favorite actor, Tom Mix. Collins was released ten days after Hutchins admitted that he was not her son and filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department.

Collins went on to win a lawsuit against Jones and was awarded $10,800, which Jones sadly never paid. The case was eventually made into a 2008 film directed by Clint Eastwood, where actress Angelina Jolie took on the role of distraught mother Christine Collins called “The Changling”. The role earned Jolie a nomination for Best Actress at the Academy Awards.

Despite the fact that Sarah Northcott confessed to the murder of Walter Collins, Christine Collins never accepted the verdict from the trial and still continued to insist that her son was still alive, as his entire body was never recovered. The state evidence presented were pieces of Walters bone, hair and clothing fragments, however Collins never gave up hope. She continued to search for her son for the rest of her life.

The last public record of Christine Collins is from 1941, when she attempted to collect a $15,562 judgment against Captain Jones, by then a retired police officer, in the Superior Court. She used aliases to stay out of the media, and lived alone through the 1950s. She died in Los Angeles on December 8, 1964, at the age of 75 and was then hopefully finally reunited with her son.

Such a sad story!

The post The Wineville Chicken Coop Murders And The Story Of Christine Collins appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) A very strange occurrence took place in the year of 1938, when two RCA engineers in New York City managed to pick up a “televisor” signal from the BBC due to freak weather incident (one in which the conditions had to be just right) and this footage is said to be the only pre-war footage of television in existence.

The signal that was picked up on contains a four minute compilation that features flickering black and white images of Jasmine Bligh, one of the original BBC commentators, and a quick shot of Elizabeth Cowell, who was also a BBC announcer. There is also an excerpt from an unknown period costume drama and the BBC’s station identity signal transmitted at the beginning and end of the day’s output.

The footage was put together by both someone in Great Britain and another person in America. The signal was recorded by the man in Britain who placed a video (or cine) camera in front of the television screen as the images were projected. The compilation was pieced together at a time in history when there was no technology invented to record any type of live broadcasts.

Video tapes were no put into popular culture until the 1950’s, at least that is when their technology was further perfected and the act of “telerecording” which requires the attachment of a video camera to a television screen was not adopted until after WWII.

A man by the name of Andrew Emmerson was able to track down a copy of this “televisior signal” and according to Archive.org, “Mr. Emmerson, 50, a freelance researcher and writer on the television industry, said: “Rumours of a recording existing in America have circulated for years, but no one had ever got to the bottom of them. It was known that about this time there had been tremendous sun spot activity, which had a dramatic effect on the ionosphere. Broadcasts from the BBC Television Station at Alexandra Palace travelled less than 30 miles, but because of the sun spots they were being bounced off the ionosphere and picked up 3,000 miles away on the East Coast of America.”

“There were reports that RCA, which was working on its own television system, had conducted an experiment to film the broadcasts. About five years ago I decided to check it out, but with no success. RCA could not trace anything, nor could anyone else. Then last year a friend at the American Vintage Wireless Collectors’ Society agreed to mention it in their magazine.”

You can check out a copy of the footage below:

The post Technology Fluke Leads To Only Pre-War Television Footage In Existence! appeared first on Weird But True News.

The position of Rabbi would not last long and the family found themselves living in poverty in Milwaukee.  At this time Erik whose first name would slowly change to Harry ran away from home.  He changed his last name to White and was trying to make it to Galveston Texas.  This however did not occur and the family had again moved, this time to New York, Harry would soon join them there.

In New York, Harry’s father found work on a sawing bench, Harry was working as a tie cutter and was now in his teens.  It was during this time that Harry read the Memoirs of Robert Houdin, a famous French magician.  Harry became fascinated with the working of illusion and a dream began.

Harry soon adapted a stage name by adding an I to Houdin and Harry Houdini was born.

Harry’s first act was that of a team called The Brothers Houdini, but this was not actually the case.  He performed the act with a co worker by the name of Jacob Hyman.  The crowd pleaser of the act was The Metamorphosis.  This was a substitution trunk trick which supposedly csat Harry $25.00.  Hyman was soon replaced by Harry’s real brother Theo, who was nick named Dash.

The real Houdini Brothers then began to perform in a number of venues including the midway of The Columbia Exposition in 1893 and Coney Island.  It was in Coney Island that Harry would meet Bess Rahner, a showgirl in an act called The Floral Sisters.  After a brief three week courtship the couple was married much to the dismay of Bess’s family who were Catholic.

The act was now renamed The Houdini’s and Bess and Harry traveled the country getting any work they could.  They would, of course, do the standard act that Harry had created, but they also worked in other show business venues including doing comedy sketches and card tricks.  Harry even masqueraded as Projea The Wild Man of Mexico in a circus sideshow.

In 1899 Harry was seen by Martin Beck, A Vaudeville great.  Beck told Harry to get rid of the magic act part of his performance and start concentrating on The Metamorphosis and Harry’s handcuff escapes which had become a staple of the act by this time.  Harry took the advice and Beck booked Harry in his circuit of theaters in the west.  Harry soon began to promote his act by escaping the handcuffs in local jails using actual police cuffs.  This gave Harry plenty of press coverage and insured an audience for his shows.

Soon Beck booked Harry for a tour of Europe, but when the Houdini’s reached London they found that the bookings had not actually been secured.  So, Harry came up with a plan and ended up escaping handcuffs at the great Scotland Yard.  The European act was then insured complete success

Returning to The United States Harry quickly went to work to secure his fame in his adapted country.  He was invited to escape from the infamous Murderers Row after he had had successfully escaped from the cells of many other prisons.  The prison was along the eastern branch of the Potomac River in Washington and the cell Harry would escape from once held the man who had assassinated President James Garfield.  Harry did not only escape the cell, he also rearranged all the other prisoners in the wing, moving them from one cell to another.

According To John Cox, “Now it wasn’t just handcuffs that harry could be challenged with.  It was anything man could devise.  He freed himself from government mail bags, a giant football, riveted boilers, packing crates, a convict ship, and an iron maiden.  In New York he escaped from a packing crate after it was nailed shut, and dropped into a river.  He would later escape from a straightjacket while suspended by his ankles 100s of feet in the air.  All of his outdoor escapes drew tens of thousands of spectators.  Before long, Houdini was the highest paid entertained in Vaudeville”

Harry’s working life continued to be along the lines of escape artistry and magic, but his personal life took a different turn.  In the early part of the twentieth century, society had become much involved in what is known as spiritualism.  Spiritualism allowed you to connect to the world of the dead through a medium.  Harry had worked much of his life around circus people and magicians and he knew most of this was fakery.  He set out to debunk the whole thing.  And he had great success, exposing some of the most notable mediums of the time.

Harry at one time became great friends with the author of The Sherlock Holmes series of books and stories, Arthur Conan Doyle.  The friendship was strained however as Doyle believed in spiritualism and Harry did not.  One has to ask, what Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes would think of his creator’s beliefs.

Houdini would go on to perform many other escapes even going so far as to allow himself to be buried in a coffin under a tone of sand.  In 1926 Houdini was performing in Montreal Canada.  A college student entered his dressing room and, believing that Harry could with stand any blow to his stomach. the student struck him several times.  Harry ignored the pain and went on stage and then with a fever well over a hundred degrees Harry went to perform in Detroit Michigan.  It was there with a fever of 104 degrees that Harry gave in and went to the hospital.

At the hospital it was discovered that his appendix had ruptured and he had appendicitis, after a second operation to save him Harry Houdini died on Halloween 1926.  His last words were reported as being “I’m tired of fighting.”

The post Harry Houdini Born March 24, 1874 appeared first on Weird But True News.

The Gospel of Matthew tells us in the lineage of Jesus that Joseph’s father’s name was Jacob.  It is believed Joseph was born somewhere around 90 BC in the town of Bethlehem.  Since Joseph was of the lineage of David it is not much of a leap to believe that this was the place of his birth.  David the second King of Israel was born and raised in Bethlehem.

Joseph was a carpenter, a craftsman of his time.  He, more than likely, was apprenticed in this trade under his father as that was pretty much the custom of the time.  When Joseph made his move to Nazareth, where he would meet his future bride Mary, is not known.

The first real fact that we have of Joseph is that he was betrothed to Mary.  A betrothal in those days was a very serious thing and was just short of marriage.  You did not just end a betrothal as you would an engagement today.  There had to be solemn grounds for the breaking of it and it was as serious as a divorcé.

During a betrothal the husband to be would work on the house that he and his wife would live in.  He would also save money and arrange for the things his future wife would need.  The couple would live separately until all the preparations for the marriage and their future life together were made.  But in the eyes of everyone the couple was married except for sexual relations.

During the betrothal period we know from The Gospels that Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel and told that she would conceive a son by the power of God.  Mary humbly accepted God’s will in this but soon after the angelic visit she went to see her cousin Elizabeth who had conceived a baby through her husband.  This child was also miraculous as Elizabeth was considered barren.  Mary spent a number on months with Elizabeth and then returned to home.

On arriving back in Nazareth Mary went to Joseph and told him her story.  It is here we must pause.

Mary comes to Joseph, maybe while he was working on the house they would share, or in his workshop and tells him that she was going to have a baby and that the baby was God’s.  Put yourself in Joseph’s place.  Was he angry, did he think Mary was crazy or a liar? He had to have been hurt deeply as he loved Mary.  There was no question by now that Mart was indeed pregnant as at this time she would have been showing.

According to Gospel Joseph determined in his heart to send Mary away to have her child.  This was a very kind thing to do.  According to the law of the time Joseph could have had her stoned to death as this was the punishment both for infidelity and for a woman carrying a child out of wedlock.  Joseph chose instead to send her away.  God had different plans.

God sent another angel to Joseph in a dream telling him to marry Mary as she was really carrying God’s child.  Joseph believes God and marries Mary and not long after Mary’s child would be born in Bethlehem because of the degree that everyone was to return to their home town to register for a new tax.  Of course the Child was named Jesus.

Jewish law decreed that each first born was to be dedicated to God and a sacrifice was needed to redeem the child  A lamb or two doves were the price of the sacrifice.  When Joseph and Mary took Jesus to The Temple Joseph chose the two doves.  This was the sacrifice that was demanded for the poor as a lamb was much more expensive.  From this we know the family was not wealthy.  We also know that a male and female prophet both stop the family and tell them of what awaits the child Jesus and his mother Mary.

It is believed by some that the Family of Jesus Mary and Joseph may have stayed in Bethlehem for up to two years.  We know from The Gospel of Matthew that the family had moved from the stable where Jesus was born into a house.  We know this because the Wisemen from the east who came to see Jesus saw him in a house.

The Wisemen had told King Herod that a new king had been born in Bethlehem and Herod, fearing for his throne, decides to kill all the male children two years old and younger in Bethlehem.  Joseph is warned of this in another dream and takes his family to Egypt before Herod’s soldiers arrive for what is now called The Slaughter of the Innocent.

It is not known precisely how long the family stayed in Egypt.  What we do know is that Joseph receives one last dream from God and is told that Herod is dead and it is safe to return home.  Joseph takes his family and returns to Nazareth.

There is only one more snapshot of the life of Joseph and the story is told in the Gospel of Luke.  It was customary for the family to make the yearly trip to Jerusalem for the Feast of the Passover.  When Jesus was 12 the family made the trip but on the return home Mary and Joseph discover the young man missing.  They return to Jerusalem and found Jesus discussing the law with the learned men in the temple.  Mary questions Jesus as to why he had disappeared from them.  Jesus answered that both she and Joseph should have known that he would have been about his Father’s business.  It must have been at this point when Joseph finally understood the full truth about his foster son.

After this historians believe that Joseph died at some point before the public ministry of Jesus began.

Joseph was a true man of faith.  Believing hard truths that we now take for granted.  If it is a boost in faith that we need considering the life of Joseph may give us strength.

The post The Feast Day of Saint Joseph March 19 appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) Today is St. Patrick’s Day, so before donning the green clothing, drinking the green beer and chasing after a leprechauns pot of gold be sure to check out our list of some fun facts about the history of St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day falls on March 17th, which is the date of death for Ireland’s patron saint, Saint Patrick. A little known fact is that St. Patrick was not actually Irish. He was actually Romano-British and named Maewyn Succat. He was captured by Irish pirates at the age of sixteen and only changed his name to Patrick after entering the priesthood.

The very first St. Patrick’s Day parade occurred on March 17, 1762 in New York City, when Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched through the city. The first actual celebration of the holiday occurred in Boston, Massachusetts in 1737. St. Patrick’s Day is now a big drinking holiday as consumers will drink roughly about thirteen million pints of Guinness today.

Surprisingly enough, St. Patrick’s Day used to be a non-drinking holiday as from the years of 1903 to 1970, bars were typically closed to honor the holiday.

Both the shamrock and the leprechaun are common images associated with the St. Patrick’s Day holiday. It is said that Saint Patrick used the shamrock as a metaphor to symbolize the Christian trinity, however it also dates back pre-Christian Ireland to symbolize the three deities in the pagan religion.  The first mention of a leprechaun appears in medieval literature, however the original leprechaun was depicted wearing red before it was changed to green in the 20th century.

The color green has always been associated with the holiday, but if history is correct, we should all actually be sporting the color blue. St. Patrick’s official saint color was a light colored blue, and green was not linked to St. Patrick’s Day until the Irish Independence movement in the 18th century.

Hope you enjoyed learning a little bit of St. Patrick’s Day history and lore!  Erin go Bragh (Ireland Forever)!

The post Some Fun Facts About St. Patrick’s Day appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) A man has decided to experiment with the theory that a piece of paper cannot be folded more than seven times and even managed to incorporate the use of a hydraulic press. Using an A3 piece of regular paper, which is about 11 by 16 inches, the man folded the paper over a few times by hand and then made use of the hydraulic press in an attempt to fold it additional times.

Watching the paper literally shatter on the seventh fold was hilarious and certainly proves the theory that even by using machinery and piece of standard paper can definitely not be folded more than seven times. A while back the folks behind Mythbusters took on this theory as well and they were able to fold an incredibly large sheet of paper eleven time, however it was a much larger sheet of paper and they incorporated the use of a steam roller.

The post Man Tests Theory That A Piece Of Paper Cannot Be Folded More Than Seven Times appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) Thanks to the power of Reddit a new video has surfaced which allegedly shows a door being forcefully slammed shut inside of a Brazilian morgue. While many have been debating the authenticity of the video others are swearing that it is the real deal.

It is just a little odd that the timing is so perfect with everything in video, including the lights being perfectly timed to flicker and go out at just the right moment. Authorities in Brazil launched an investigation into the authenticity of the clip (because apparently they don’t have anything better to do with their time) and while they are not saying the clip is a fake they have determined that it was not filmed at a morgue as previously stated.

The clip was actually filmed at the Center for Comprehensive Care for Children and Adolescents in Araucária, Paraná by a group of caregivers in the facility. They plan to follow-up with their own investigation to prove whether or not any eerie activities took place or will take place in the future. Check out the super creepy video below and let us know your thoughts. Real or fake?

The post Everyone Is Freaking Out Over The Unexplained Haunted Door In Brazil appeared first on Weird But True News.

Friggatriskaidekaphobia: the fear of Friday the 13th is the most widespread superstition in the United States today.

Paraskevidekatriaphobics are people afflicted with a morbid, irrational fear of Friday the 13th. It is estimated that this affects between 17 and 21 million Americans. Some people won’t get out of bed; others won’t fly, buy a house or act on a hot stock tip. Still others won’t work, eat in restaurants or get married on a Friday the 13th. This superstition seemingly began in the 19th century.

Many cities have no 13th Avenue or 13th Street, and many buildings don’t have a 13th floor. 13 letters in a name are referred to as “devil’s luck”… just think of Jack the Ripper, Charles Manson, Jeffrey Dahmer and Theodore Bundy. 13 witches comprise a coven. A Norse myth tells of mischievous Loki joining the party as the 13th guest, and Judas was the 13th at the table at the Last Supper. Christians also held Friday as unlucky due to the crucifixion of Jesus.

The next time that a full moon will fall on a Friday the 13th will not happen again until the year 2049,  August 13th to be exact. This phenomenon only occurs when all the variable are in exactly the right place meaning that the moon phase, the weekday and the day of the month must all coincide perfectly.

Recent and Upcoming Full Moon Friday The 13ths

Friday March 13th 1903

Friday October 13th 1905

Friday June 13th 1919

Friday January 13th 1922

Friday November 13th 1970

Friday July 13th 1984

Friday February 13th 1987

Friday March 13th 1998

Friday October 13th 2000

Friday June 13th 2014

Friday October 13, 2019

Friday August 13th 2049

Friday April 13th 2063

Friday November 13th 2065

Friday February 13th 2082

The post Full Moon On Friday The 13th appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) For years treasure hunters and thrill seeking enthusiasts have been on the quest to located a chest filled with treasures hidden by eccentric art collector Forrest Fenn somewhere in the Rocky Mountains.

Fenn has left several clues hidden within a poem that is supposed to lead seekers to the treasure chest and while many have claimed to have solved Fenn’s mysterious riddle to this day the treasure has not yet been found.

Fenn, who is still alive, but in ailing health now at age 86, even goes as far as to claim that some treasure hunters have come within 200 ft of the treasure and still managed to come up empty-handed. He insists that the treasure has not yet been found, however seekers are definitely on the right track.

The backstory is that when Fenn was diagnosed with cancer back in 1988, he assumed he wasn’t going to survive the disease. He decided to pack a 10-by-10-by-6 Romanesqe copper box with some of his most valuable treasures. These items included some pre-Columbian jewelry, gold nuggets the size of chicken eggs, ancient jade carvings, emeralds, diamonds, and course a copy of his own autobiography.

Fenns’ initial plan was to drag the treasure chest out into the Rockies and reach the end of his life outside next to it, well, it seems that fate had other plans for Fenn and he survived the cancer. For the next 20 years the box set untouched in his study.

Then, sometime in 2010, it dawned on Fenn that he needed to preserve his legacy, so at 80-years old he hopped in his car, drove out into the Rocky Mountains and hid the treasure. In his later memoir, “The Thrill Of The Chase”, Fenn announced that he had hidden the treasure to the general public and provided a 24-line poem that contains 9 clues that will lead someone to the treasures location.

The poem reads as follows:

As I have gone alone in there

And with my treasures bold,

I can keep my secret where,

And hint of riches new and old.

Begin it where warm waters halt

And take it in the canyon down,

Not far, but too far to walk.

Put in below the home of Brown.

From there it’s no place for the meek,

The end is drawing ever nigh;

There’ll be no paddle up your creek,

Just heavy loads and water high.

If you’ve been wise and found the blaze,

Look quickly down, your quest to cease

But tarry scant with marvel gaze,

Just take the chest and go in peace.

So why is it that I must go

And leave my trove for all to seek?

The answers I already know

I’ve done it tired, and now I’m weak

So hear me all and listen good,

Your effort will be worth the cold.

If you are brave and in the wood

I give you title to the gold.

Hundreds of individuals search for Fenn’s treasure each and every year, in fact, one man even died during his search for the riches. All feel that they have solved the mystery after spending countless days and hours analyzing each and every clue.

Fenn’s treasure chest is said to be worth about $2 million. Over the years it has earned a ton of media coverage, however some of that has waned given the fact that no one has yet to find the treasure. Not even Fenn’s wife knows where the treasure is located and both he and his wife are harassed on an almost daily basis with hunters desperate for clues and to know if they are on the right track.

Fenn claims that he has even received bribes and death threats from some crazed individuals. Fenn has revealed some scant details about the treasure’s location saying that it is indeed located somewhere in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado or New Mexico. It is located above 5,000 ft and below 10,000 ft in an area that contains pine trees. It is not located in a graveyard, mine or other man-made structure nor is it in proximity to any human trail. It is also not in a place that an 80-year old man couldn’t go!

That really doesn’t narrow it down too much, but it is a bit of a help. Fenn does an amazing job at staying ambiguous and many begin to wonder if anyone will ever find the treasure before his passing. Some believe it is possible that there is really no treasure at all and Fenn just wanted to give people the “thrill of the chase” and get them back out into nature once again.

Others wholeheartedly believe that Fenn’s treasure is still out there somewhere in the Rockies and they are determined to find it! Either way it is certainly a fascinating story and one we hope ends in riches rather than rags.

The post Will Anyone Ever Find Forrest Fenn’s Treasure? appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) We can all remember the debate over #TheDress and #TheFlipFlops that drove folks on the internet into knock down drag out arguments over just what color these items happened to appear. The internet has once again graced us with yet another optical illusion thanks to Akiyoshi Kitaoka, a psychology professor at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, Japan.

This time the photo in question is a delicious looking strawberry cake, baked by Kitaoka’s wife that despite being an image made up of only gray-colored pixels, to our minds-eye it appears red, because, well, they are strawberries, of course! There is seriously not one red pixel used in the creation of this particular image.

This image, produced with the alpha blending method, consists of pixels of cyan hue, but strawberries appear to be reddish. この画像の画素はすべてシアン色。 pic.twitter.com/46y6V3VJ3j

— Akiyoshi Kitaoka (@AkiyoshiKitaoka) March 3, 2017

We only see it in red because our brain automatically corrects colors based on the surrounding ones, so that you’ll be able to judge colors accurately even under unusual lighting. This is the same reason that everyone saw #TheDress and #TheFlipFlops in different colors. It is truly a fascinating phenomena.

Here is a photo of the original cake just for comparison:

The original image of the strawberry cake. My wife made it. pic.twitter.com/RFRpwsDzEQ

— Akiyoshi Kitaoka (@AkiyoshiKitaoka) March 2, 2017

The post Mind-blowing Strawberry Optical Illusion Leaves Us Mystified appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) Many of us moan and groan about Daylight Savings Time because for most of us, unless you live in Arizona or Hawaii, will be losing an hour of precious sleep. The clocks “spring ahead” one hour beginning this Sunday, 3/8 at 2:00am.

The entire idea behind Daylight Savings time started as a way to both conserve energy and make better use out of the daylight hours. The idea of Daylight Savings Time was first instituted in the U.S. back in 1918, however the idea was actually conceived by Benjamin Franklin in 1784.  It was truly made official in 1966 when President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the Uniform Time Act, thus making it a law, however the states were allowed to exempt themselves from participation, hence Arizona and Hawaii who do not participate in DST.

It typically runs from the second Sunday in March until the first Sunday in November. It was even once described by the great Winston Churchill as “An extra yawn one morning in the springtime, an extra snooze one night in the autumn … We borrow an hour one night in April; we pay it back with golden interest five months later.”

There has been both good and bad associated with the Daylight Savings Time, as research shows that more workplace and traffic accidents occur just after the time switch, however many fire departments urge people to use Daylight Savings Time as a reminder to switch the batteries out in smoke detectors and look at other home safety concerns. There was also a study that was conducted back in 2008 that showed a significant increase in both heart attacks and suicide immediately following the “springing forward” of DST.

It also seems that Daylight Savings Time actually does very little to actually conserve electricity and is said to cost the U.S. billions in disruptions to the airline and retail industry, as well as TV ratings and the stock market. Either way, Daylight Savings Time is here to stay, so don’t party too hard this weekend and make sure you remember to set the clocks ahead one hour at 2:00am on Sunday, 3/8!

The post Don’t Forget About Daylight Savings Time appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) Painter Joanne Parent had quite the unnerving encounter while visit the infamous Lizzie Borden house bed & breakfast in Falls River, Massachusetts. It appears that while Parent was snapping photographs in the room that belonged to Abby Borden, she may have captured a bit more than she bargained for!

When looking through her photographs from that day, Parent was shocked to discover what appears to be a ghostly figure wearing a hood of some sort in the reflection of a mirror that is in the room. Parent claims that she had an uneasy feeling about Abby’s room that day, so much so that she did not even go inside the room, but only stuck her arm around the corner with the camera and fired off a few quick shots.

For those that may not be familiar with the Lizzie Borden story, Lizzie was accused of viciously murdering her father Andrew and stepmother Abby with an axe. The case gained quite a bit of national attention and Lizzie was eventually acquitted for the crime. Many people still believed she was the person responsible for the gruesome murders and to this day the case continues to fascinate fans of both horror and the macabre.

Someone even created a nursery rhyme about the case:

Lizzie Borden took an axe
She gave her mother forty whacks.
When she saw what she had done
She gave her father forty-one.
Lizzie Borden got away
For her crime she did not pay.

Parent posted her images online for comparison and found that the ghost-like figure actually appears in more than one shot. There is also a black bar, which is the reflection of a vent that appears in some shots but not in others which makes this all the more bizarre.

Co-owner of the Lizzie Borden house bed & breakfast claims this is not the first time that people have spotted an odd object reflected in one of the mirrors or had an unexplained experience happen on the  property she says “Depending on how you’re standing, you won’t see any anomalies in the mirror unless you take the picture from an angle. We’ve had plenty of pictures that were taken several years ago that can’t be explained, however, by a gentlemen by the name of Glenn Teza, a psychic and spiritual healing teacher from New Jersey. His photos show a mist figure and were taken with Instant Polaroid film and there is absolutely no way to mess with that film.”

What do you think? Do Parent’s image show the ghost of Abby Borden or is there a more logical explanation? Either way the images are going viral and there has once again been a renewed interest for those brave enough for an overnight stay in the Lizzie Borden house.

The post Woman Allegedly Captured a Ghost Photo While Visiting The Lizzie Borden House appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) A Brigham Young University student named Claire Lewis  sparked a huge debate among conspiracy theorists after her assignment art project was speculated to be eggs laid on a Utah lake by an alien creature. The curiosity about the mysterious objects sparked national attention and people even began filming videos of the mysterious objects which have surpassed over 2 million views and counting on YouTube.

People obviously didn’t do any further research because as it turns out, the “alleged” alien eggs are really nothing more than small fist-fulls of baked salt dough that Lewis placed on the surface of the icy lake, creating a mystical-looking geometric pattern. She erased all traces of her footprints around the design and when she returned the next day she discovered hundreds of footprints surrounding the design. According to her mother, Ann Laemmlen Lewis’s blog, her daughter felt it better to leave no explanation and allow people to wonder just what these mysterious objects actually were.

Claire commented on the phenomenon, as she had no idea that people were actually still speculating about her project and still believing that alien eggs were actually laid on a Utah lake saying:

I found this video of an art project I did 2 years ago on the frozen Utah Lake. This video has over 1.7 views because people think they are ALIEN EGGS! It was an installation piece I did for my BYU New Genre class. The assignment was to use “body residue” and repetition. The shapes are made from the print of the inside of my closed fist if that makes sense. I used a flour+salt+water dough, and then baked the shapes, then Laura Varella and I set it up in this geometric pattern on the lake. I had to have a creative way to record my audience, so we walked out to an area of the frozen surface of the lake where there had been no footprints yet, set it up, then “erased” our footprints with our snow shovel when we left. When we came back the next day (probably the same day this video was taken), we found that the little sculptures had melted themselves into the ice because of the salt!!!

I spent 20 minutes and found over 50 different websites talking about what possible theories there are for this mysterious find…HAHA.

So there you have it conspiracy lovers, unfortunately there are no alien eggs in Utah!

The post Alien Eggs Or Art? Debate Has Been Debunked! appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) Whether you believe in ghosts or not, you have to admit that the eerie apparition that appears in the back of this teen’s camping photo definitely provides some tangible evidence.  A woman named Jessica Ogletree posted a selfie on Facebook that was taken by her 13-year-old daughter during a family camping trip. The photo appears innocent enough until you come to the realization that the image of the black man, who is facing the camera, was not a friend who tagged along for the trip.

In the photo you can see a white man bending over facing away from the camera and the black man is facing the camera with a huge smile on his face. According to Ogletree, there were only two people in the photo when it was snapped: her daughter and her son who can be seen in the background! Ogletree’s post read:

FB FRIENDS CHECK THIS OUT! This picture was taken by my 13 year old daughter earlier today at Paradise (the fishing place) in Tifton, Ga. Notice my son Kolton in the background and then notice the gentleman standing to his right!!! Ya’ll this gentleman was NOT with them today and there was no one else at these back ponds where they were fishing! The only people there today were Haley, Kolton, and their grandparents Dennis and Vera Baldree. Haley was going back through her pictures and saw this and needless to say freaked out and called me lol! I personally think it’s pretty cool because today is Kolton’s birthday and he caught the biggest fish he’s ever caught! It looks like the man is happy for him!
*Please feel free to share

It can be assumed that the black man the appeared in the photo is definitely a ghost, but he does look quite friendly, so there is really no reason to be too frightened. Although, it is a bit creepy! Ogletree’s post has gone viral with many people sharing their opinions about the mysterious apparition. What do you think? Ghost or camera trick?

The post Teens Camping Picture Was Photobombed By A Ghost appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) New research has now been uncovered that reveals that the fleas on black rats that were initially thought to have caused the bubonic plague many not necessarily be at fault. Instead, researchers have now uncovered information that leads them to believe that it may have been gerbils, not rats that are behind the wide-spread outbreak of the deadly disease.

The bubonic plague, or Black Death, wiped out about 100 million people in Europe during its’ outbreaks that occurred in the mid-14th century and then again in the 1800’s. The new research study posted in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows climate data that dates back to the 14th century that contradicts the conditions that would be cause of the plague outbreaks to have been caused by disease-carrying fleas on the rat population.

Using 15 tree ring records the researchers were able to determine that the plagues occurred in Europe after Asia experienced a particularly wet spring and a warm summer. These conditions are not good for the rat population, however they are excellent for Asia’s gerbil population. It is thought that the gerbils, rather than the rats, along with the disease-ridden fleas traveled along the Silk Road and arrived in Europe several years later causing the horrific bubonic plague outbreaks.

The researchers also claim that this is the reason why the disease would only outbreak every so often instead of staying with the rats that were already living in Europe the entire time.

Definitely food for thought and certainly changes the viewpoint about the cause of the Black Death quite a bit.

The post Rats No Longer Thought To Be Responsible For Bubonic Plague appeared first on Weird But True News.

(PCM) The popular Science Channel series “NASA’s Unexplained Files” has returned for a new season and provides us with a fascinating look the mysteries of space and the latest evidence for life beyond Earth. The series recently looked at some very early Apollo missions where astronauts reported hearing very strange music-like noises during their journey around to the dark side of the moon.

The astronauts who were on the Apollo 10 mission back in 1969 reported hearing a strange, whistling-like music when orbiting around the moon. The flight crew observed the sounds while on the dark side of the moon and while out of radio contact with NASA ground control. At the time they did not report the sounds to ground control and their recorded conversation about the strange and eerie noises was considered classified until 2008 when it was finally released to the public.

There is much debate as to whether or not what the astronauts heard was actually radio interference from another space craft or if it could possibly be some kind of alien communications from within our galaxy. The astronauts who were on the mission made the decision to never discuss hearing the noises publicly as they did not want their mental health to come into question or possibly jeopardize their involvement in any future missions.

The dark side of the moon has always been clothed in both myth and mystery, as it has been photographed by space satellites, however no astronaut has physically ventured out to explore the far-side of the moon in person. Many believe it is the source for both alien and UFO conspiracies.

“NASA’s Unexplained Files” will air new episodes beginning on Tuesday, Feb 23 at 10pm on Science Channel.

The post Early Apollo Mission Reports Strange Music-Like Noises From The Far Side Of The Moon appeared first on Weird But True News.