You knew that the secret of the construction of the pyramids was not only solved, but the man who understood how the Egyptians moved the blocks of many tons built a whole city from giant boulders himself. And have you heard about the fact that the Philosopher's Stone was really created in France at the beginning of the 20th century? Or about that criminal who hijacked a plane for the first time in 1971? After all, nothing is known about him until now … Below is a selection of five of the most mysterious people on the planet.
Edward Leedskalnin reveals the secret of the construction of the Egyptian pyramids
In 1913, 16-year-old Latvian girl Agnes Skaffs told her fiancé Edward Lidskalnin that the announced wedding would not take place: he was too old (26 years old) and poor for her. Then the young man decided to move to the United States. He settled off the coast of Florida, near the town of Homestead. The man bought a land plot of 1.6 hectares and built a Coral Castle on it - a monument to his unrequited love.
All buildings Edward created from limestone. It still remains a mystery how he moved blocks from the coast to his site and placed them there. The man lifted sculptures weighing five tons to a height of ten meters. However, he never hired technicians and workers for this. Thin, frail Edward, whose weight barely exceeded 47 kg, always managed on his own. Edward carried out all the work after sunset. On rare questions, he replied that he had revealed the secret of the construction of the Egyptian pyramids. There is a legend that some children saw at night how many-ton boulders floated in the air over the site. After his death, local engineers tried to solve the secret of Leedskalnin, but they did not succeed.
The alchemist Fulcanelli, who discovered the secret of making the philosopher's stone
Promotional video:
The legend of Fulcanelli was born in the 1900s – 1920s in a narrow circle of Parisian alchemists-occultists. He was called the real "Philosopher of Fire", who may have found the secret of creating the philosopher's stone. However, no one knew anything about the alchemist. In 1926, the rumors about him were confirmed when his first book, The Mystery of Cathedrals, was published. In the book, the author wrote that each statue, by its position of the hands, the objects clutched in them, with a tilt of the head, silently conveys the secrets of making a philosopher's stone.
After this book, people realized that Fulcanelli exists and that this man is quite erudite. But no one ever knew what he looked like. Among the occultists, there were two versions of Fulcanelli. Some believed that he achieved the highest spiritual enlightenment, created the Philosopher's Stone and underwent a mystical transformation. Others decided that the master was a person created by the inventive artist Jean-Julien Champagne.
Dan Cooper is the first person in US history to hijack a plane for ransom
On November 24, 1971, a Nortwest Orient Boeing 727 took on board a thin passenger in dark mirrored glasses, dressed as a businessman: a suit, tie, black raincoat for rainy weather, felt hat. He carried a medium-sized travel bag on his shoulder. His seat (18C) was at the rear of the cabin, next to the flight attendant Florence Schaffner. The man looked 40–45 years old. At that time, there was no identity card, people themselves indicated their names. The passenger introduced himself as Dan Cooper.
When the plane took off, the man asked the flight attendant to bring bourbon and soda, giving in exchange a note. The stewardess, accustomed to the attention of men, believed that the passenger was flirting with her, and was in no hurry to read it. But he insisted. The note spoke about the hijacking of the plane for the ransom in the amount of $ 200 thousand
As it turned out, Cooper was armed with a bomb and threatened to detonate on board the ship if his demands were not met. In addition to money, Dan Cooper demanded parachutes: two back and two belay. The information was urgently transmitted to the pilots, and then to the airline. The ship's captain was ordered to land the plane at Seattle-Tacoma airport.
While money and parachutes were being prepared, the Boeing 727 circled in the air with frightened passengers on board. After the delivery of the cargo with money, the criminal released everyone except the flight attendant Tina McLough and the pilots. He ordered them to head for Mexico. During the flight, the criminal jumped out of the plane. When the Boeing 727 landed in Reno, there was nothing on board that would indicate the existence of this person.
Charles Hatfield - the man who sold rain
At the end of the 19th century, farmers were among the richest people in the United States. During the harvest, their profits could reach several thousand dollars; in the moment of drought, they lost everything. One day the farmers had a savior. His name was Charles Hatfield, and he was the man who made and sold rain.
At the beginning of his career of the century, Hatfield traveled around the States feeding sewing machines and earning $ 125 a month. Along the way, he studied meteorology, physics, chemistry, bought chemical reagents and conducted experiments. He dreamed of artificially causing rain. In 1902, he finally received a secret mixture of 23 chemicals that caused rainfall. At first, he made ordinary bets. Over time, Hatfield began to sell rain for money. Each time his powder worked miraculously. His fame grew. From now on, he entered into contracts for thousands of dollars. In 1928, Hatfield filled Big Bear Lake (California) with rainwater, and a year later extinguished a fire in Honduras.
But he also had setbacks. On January 5th, a rainstorm hit the seared city of Hatfield for more than two weeks. Both the reservoir and the dried-up river beds were filled. Water overflowed the banks, destroyed bridges, railways, flooded houses and farms. The damage amounted to more than $ 3 million. The authorities brought him a claim for damages instead of the promised $ 10 thousand. The Great Depression put the end of his career as a "rain charmer". Charles died on January 12, 1958, without revealing the secret formula of the powder. During his career, Hatfield has caused over 500 rains.
The world's most mysterious writer Bruno Traven
Bruno Traven was born in Chicago to a family of immigrants from Scandinavia, his real name is Traven Torsvan Krovs. In his youth he served in the merchant marine, was a cabin boy and a steward on a ship plying along the Pacific coast of North and South America.
At a conscious age, the writer carefully concealed the details of his biography, which led to many rumors and legends. Even Traven's publishers never saw his face. Bruno believed that "a writer should not have any other biography, except for his works."
Several personalities are attributed to Traven: the theater actor Ret Marut, who moved to Mexico, Traven Torsven, in whose name the checks for copyright for the film adaptation of the book "The Treasures of the Sierra Madre" came. Some even believed that the author of his works was Jack London, who faked his own suicide and fled to Mexico. It was also believed that Traven was the illegitimate son of the German Emperor Wilhelm II.
After the death of the writer, his widow announced that his name was B. Traven. She said that as a young man he moved from Germany to Mexico under the name Reta Maruta to avoid the death penalty.
Semyon Khafizov