# What else don't we know - mysterious objects **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 24, 2024, 12:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570 "2024-01-24T00:02:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2024, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/81 "2024-01-28T15:51:08Z")
> [@Common\_Tater](#): > > They pulled a shitload of solid gold and plated items from Tut’s tomb. To expand on TriPolar’s post, there were no gold plated items in Tut’s tomb. There were solid gold items and maybe gold coated items, but no plated items. Gold plating is a specific process that uses electrical current to deposit gold on the surface of an object. The object must be conductive, like some metals, that’s why you can’t gold-plate bone or wood. This isn’t about gold conspiracies, it’s about whether the Baghdad items were batteries. If they were batteries, they were most probably not for plating as we have not found gold plated items from that region at that time. [Gold plating wiki](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_plating) ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2024, 4:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/82 "2024-01-28T16:18:32Z")
> [@Toxylon](#): > > As far as “any rock lying nearby”, not really. Ok, I’ll give you that. I meant any smooth rock. But as for the rest of it, my many years of straightening wooden arrow shafts disagrees. A slight pressure with friction on the bowed side is all that is required. Just enough to provide a little heat. The shape of the stone is pretty much irrelevant so long as it’s reasonably smooth. A smooth bone is excellent for this, but the surface is all that’s needed. I don’t see how a hole improves this. I’m not arguing that they can’t be arrow straighteners, it’s just that it seems overkill to my way of thinking. As for spear throwers, I’m not convinced. The majority of the examples I’ve looked at (online, of course - not in person) don’t have a positive anchor point. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2024, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/83 "2024-01-28T21:23:50Z")
> [@Hari\_Seldon](#): > > Sir Fred Hoyle had a theory about Stonehenge that cannot be proved but also cannot be refuted. He conjectured that it was an eclipse computer. No one can prove this, but Hoyle pointed out that _he_ could have used it 5000 years ago to predict eclipses. The problem with that is that where the stones are now, is not necessarily where they were while being used. Some have fallen down and been put back up. So, the alignment today may be close but hardly that exact. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2024, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/84 "2024-01-28T21:29:24Z")
> [@eburacum45](#): > > No, it is just Bad Archaeology. There are innumerable examples of bad archaeology around, and entire websites dedicated to debunking it. Archaeology, and many other scientific fields can be more about your ability to write grant applications than it is about real science. Grant applications (funding) is the real job. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2024, 11:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/85 "2024-01-29T11:58:30Z")
> [@Peter\_Morris](#): > > Okay, I don’t know this science stuff. But suppose you had two items, identical in appearance. > > One is made from an alloy of 90% lead and 10% gold. > > One is a 90% lead core, with a 10% shell of gold. > > Identical quantities of lead and gold in both items, just differently distributed. > > Wouldn’t they have the same volume and the same weight, and the same ratio between them? Could Archimedes tell the difference between them? Maybe. They will weigh the same but there is no guarantee that the final volume of an alloy will be the exact sum of the volumes of its parts, due to the way the atoms/molecules of the components pack together in the mixture or in some cases, crystallise. Not an alloy, obviously, but a common example of the same phenomenon is the dissolution of salt in water - the final volume is less than the sum of the volume of the components ---
**Author:** ![JacobSwan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@JacobSwan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JacobSwan)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2024, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/86 "2024-01-29T13:31:08Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > The problem with that is that where the stones are now, is not necessarily where they were while being used. Some have fallen down and been put back up. So, the alignment today may be close but hardly that exact. The current theory is that the stones were originally installed in Wales before being moved to Stonehenge. So the original alignment has probably been lost. > **[Stonehenge: Did the stone circle originally stand in Wales?](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-56029203.amp)** > > Archaeologists now believe the stone circle stood 150 miles from its current location in Wiltshire. ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2024, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/87 "2024-01-29T14:20:28Z")
> [@JacobSwan](#): > > The current theory is that the stones were originally installed in Wales before being moved to Stonehenge. _They were 25 tons each stone, my friend But amazingly they got them all down in the sand And they moved it And they dragged it And they rolled it 46 miles from Wales!_ ---
**Author:** ![EnolaStraight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/41988e/32.png) [@EnolaStraight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EnolaStraight)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2024, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/88 "2024-01-30T13:53:32Z")
All these multi-ton stones that are said to be impossible to move thousands of years ago using the ancient state of technology? I believe they WERE moved… …_just_ _very_ _slowly._ ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2024, 11:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/89 "2024-02-01T11:47:59Z")
> [@Common\_Tater](#): > > Possibly heard a tour of Rothenburg, in Bavaria? I’ve been there! Cool little town, cool history. A bit touristy but fun. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2024, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/90 "2024-02-03T21:48:19Z")
This doesn’t quite fit because it’s an image rather than an actual artifact, but there’s this weird thing depicted on Trajan’s Column. The column depicts scenes from the Dacian wars. Most of the images on the column are quite realistic and detailed, but apparently no one has a convincing explanation of what this thing is supposed to be. The best guess is it’s some kind of siege engine, although to my eye it’s hard to see how it would function. [![](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Yh1WG.jpg) ](https://i.stack.imgur.com/Yh1WG.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/91 "2024-02-05T17:42:15Z")
They look like some kind of cart to me, but strange they are not carrying anything. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/92 "2024-02-05T17:53:20Z")
The artist may have never seen the actual device, whatever it is. It does sorta look like a 2-1/2D representation of something on wheels, but a lot of details don’t make sense. What are those tines that hang below the axle? Why a wheel up at the top of the A frame like structure? And what are those things that look like barrels strung on a pole? And why is the one on the right detached? Did the artist just run out of space because the soldier to the right of that had already been carved? ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/93 "2024-02-05T18:05:18Z")
A more contemporary mysterious object that hasn’t been definitively explained: the [Mojave Megaphone](https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/mojave-megaphone). [![](https://img.atlasobscura.com/CGwJh2tf54el0y1dEmBMmFv7litcIeU9eL_Qx23qXk4/rt:fit/h:390/q:81/sm:1/scp:1/ar:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9hdGxh/cy1kZXYuczMuYW1h/em9uYXdzLmNvbS91/cGxvYWRzL3BsYWNl/X2ltYWdlcy8yMTk3/NDk4ZS1jZGQwLTRk/MGQtOGY3My0wZWNi/NGNhMWEwZGJkZWRi/MjQ4ZjY2ZjIxNDY3/OTBfVGhlIEdyZWF0/ZXIgU291dGh3ZXN0/ZXJuIEV4cGxvcmF0/aW9uIENvbXBhbnky/LmpwZw.jpg) ](https://img.atlasobscura.com/CGwJh2tf54el0y1dEmBMmFv7litcIeU9eL_Qx23qXk4/rt:fit/h:390/q:81/sm:1/scp:1/ar:1/aHR0cHM6Ly9hdGxh/cy1kZXYuczMuYW1h/em9uYXdzLmNvbS91/cGxvYWRzL3BsYWNl/X2ltYWdlcy8yMTk3/NDk4ZS1jZGQwLTRk/MGQtOGY3My0wZWNi/NGNhMWEwZGJkZWRi/MjQ4ZjY2ZjIxNDY3/OTBfVGhlIEdyZWF0/ZXIgU291dGh3ZXN0/ZXJuIEV4cGxvcmF0/aW9uIENvbXBhbnky/LmpwZw.jpg) > _This large, megaphone-shaped mystery object is bolted to two rocks on top of a 100-foot hill along a remote strip of desert between the towns of Baker and Ludlow. Some say it’s shaped like a venturi — though they normally are hour-glass shaped — and its shape is more like a rocket nozzle. It’s about 8 feet long, made from thick strips of iron welded together. Many travelers and historians alike have searched for an explanation of how it got there, and for what reason. But while theories abound, the answer remains elusive_. ---
**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/94 "2024-02-05T18:40:43Z")
The detached barrel may suggest that the object is a cart whose purpose is to transport the barrels, but individually stringing them horizontally between the A-frames is a very bizarre way of carrying them. Why aren’t they just loaded into a normal cart? And what’s in the barrels anyway? ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/95 "2024-02-05T19:46:19Z")
> [@markn\_1](#): > > there’s this weird thing depicted on Trajan’s Column. I wonder whether all those things swivel at the connection points? – I don’t know what it is even if they do swivel, though. ---
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/96 "2024-02-05T21:33:10Z")
That’s pretty interesting. Somebody went to a lot of trouble for that. How far from the Nevada test site, would be my first guess maybe. Some sort of long forgotten portion of some arcane measurement … of something. ---
**Author:** ![Retzbu\_Tox](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/retzbu_tox/32/11829_2.png) [@Retzbu\_Tox](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Retzbu_Tox)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/97 "2024-02-05T22:31:17Z")
> [@Common\_Tater](#): > > How far from the Nevada test site, would be my first guess maybe. Some sort of long forgotten portion of some arcane measurement … of something. Thinking along those lines, it reminds me of a larger version of the gadgets they used for holding rupture discs on Mythbusters when testing blast wave pressures. [![](https://img.piprocessinstrumentation.com/files/base/ebm/fcn/image/2011/04/FC-0611_Oseco.png?auto=format,compress&fit=clip&height=786.6&width=715.5&cache=0.6575806677252434) ](https://img.piprocessinstrumentation.com/files/base/ebm/fcn/image/2011/04/FC-0611_Oseco.png?auto=format,compress&fit=clip&height=786.6&width=715.5&cache=0.6575806677252434) ---
**Author:** ![Babale](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/babale/32/15666_2.png) [@Babale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Babale)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/98 "2024-02-05T22:40:59Z")
I saw claims to that exact effect online, that it held a rupturing film to measure shock waves. But I also saw a claim that there is an article in the Desert Dispatch newspaper from Dec 8, 1990. And that this article identifies the object as a drum placed there by a local land owner. That does appear to be a newspaper by that name but I wasn’t able to get access to the Dec 8 1990 edition of the paper. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/99 "2024-02-05T23:40:03Z")
> [@Common\_Tater](#): > > Another “interesting” tale that sounded intriguing, I think it was mentioned on a particular tour of a large estate or castle, there was large wooden trunk from medieval times that had a warning “To be opened only if the castle is in great danger” which I cannot believe anybody would leave unopened. It’s a great story though. Are you perhaps thinking of the[Fairy Flag of Dunvegan?](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairy_Flag) That’s an 18" silk square, probably from a shirt woven in Syria or Rhodes, that was either given to the chief of the Macleods by the queen of the fairies, or brought home from one of the Crusades. It’s said to protect the Macleod clan if unfurled in times of great danger, but only three times; on the last occasion, the bearer will be carried away by _sídh_, never to be seen again. According to family legend, a fire broke out at Dunvegan Castle in 1938, and as the chest containing the Fairy Flag was carried past for safety, the flames immediately checked. I suppose the flag fits this thread, as it’s origin is still unknown. But it’s been examined by historians and is most likely a saint’s relic (and has been unfurled more than three times; Sir Walter Scott inspected it on a trip to Skye, once.) No one knows for certain, though. ---
**Author:** ![thorny\_locust](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thorny_locust/32/431_2.png) [@thorny\_locust](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thorny_locust)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2024, 11:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570/100 "2024-02-05T23:50:27Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > (and has been unfurled more than three times; Sir Walter Scott inspected it on a trip to Skye, once.) Was Scott a danger to the Macleod clan at the time, though? Maybe it isn’t the literal unfurling that’s the issue, but the use against danger. (At any rate, that’s the story I’d tell the tourists, if one of them brought that up – ) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-else-dont-we-know-mysterious-objects/996570.md?page=6)