Thomas Merlin biography. Strange skeletons of unknown creatures discovered in England
In the 1960s in London, while clearing a site for the construction of a new residential area, an old, long-abandoned mansion formerly owned by a certain Thomas Theodore Merlin was sent for demolition.
In the basement of the house, builders found several thousand small wooden boxes tightly sealed. What was their surprise when inside they began to find the corpses of strange mythical creatures that, it seemed, should have lived only in fairy tales.
Lord and Professor Thomas Theodor Merlin.
Sir Merlin was born into an aristocratic London family in 1782. His mother died in childbirth and the boy was raised by his father Edward. His father was a military general, but rather soon after the birth of his son, he retired and began to get seriously interested in esoteric natural history. Good investment in profitable commercial companies allowed him to travel around the world in search of a variety of artifacts and unknown species of animals and plants.
They traveled together for many years until Edward passed away. Thomas took the death of his father very hard. Seeking solace in his work, he became practically a hermit, collecting at home an impressive library and specimens found of unseen creatures. However, he found the strength to return to the scientific world. During his long career, Thomas Merlin traveled the globe many times, he was friends and corresponded with many famous scientists of that time. And, of course, he continued to build his collection.
Once in 1899, he even made an attempt to show it to the world by going on tour across the ocean to America with a small part of his impressive collection. But the local conservative-minded public reacted sharply negatively to those creatures that Merlin showed them. The tour had to be canceled before he could get to California. Surprisingly, even at his venerable age, Sir Merlin retained an amazing physical form. In appearance, he was rarely given more than 40 years. It even got to the point that some began to accuse him of occult practices that allegedly gave him eternal life.
These doubts were only strengthened in the spring of 1942 when someone claiming to be Thomas Merlin presented the paperwork for the house and stated that he wished to transfer ownership of it to the Tunbridge Orphanage on the condition that the house was never sold and the cellar was never opened. People who followed the work of Thomas Merlin naturally assumed that he had died long ago, because in 1942 he must have been over 160 years old. But this man quickly disappeared and it was no longer possible to find him. The orphanage kept their promises, they never opened the basement of the mansion. But in the 1960s they had to move out, and the house was demolished. Only by destroying it almost to the ground, the builders managed to find Merlin's secret collection. And what was there is simply amazing.
fairies
Newborn dragon Draco Magnus
Homo Vampyrus
Complete skeleton of Draco Alatus
Homomimus Aquaticus, or Icthyosapien - a distant ancestor of jumping fish,
who evolved into some kind of mermaid
Draco Alatus
Homo Vampyrus (Vampire) Homo Lupus (Lycanthrope)
Homo Lupus (Lycanthrope Cub)
devil child
adult male lycanthrope
Homomimus Dentata (Tooth Fairy)
Homunculi (Goblin)
Homunculi (Dwarf)
Nymph
Succubi (Succubus)
Lepus temperamentalus (Horned hare)
sea monsters
Ceratopsid Dinosaur
Draco Fluminis
Mummified baby vampire
Head of a lycanthrope
An important addition.
In order to avoid all sorts of misunderstandings, one should nevertheless make a separate clarification (although this is already so obvious) that this entire collection is just a set of interesting miniatures created by artists that have nothing to do with reality. And the story of Sir Thomas Merlin is nothing more than beautiful legend. In our pragmatic everyday world sometimes you want a little secrets and mysteries. Take it easy.
Made in London in 1960 amazing find. While repairing the building of the orphanage, the builders stumbled upon a bricked-up basement filled with wooden boxes with the remains of some fantastic creatures. British journalists suggested that this is the famous collection of cryptids that belonged to Thomas Merlin. The scientist devoted his whole life to mysterious and mysterious animals, the existence of which modern science cannot yet confirm or deny.
No material evidence
For centuries, researchers have been trying to prove the materiality of living beings known only from eyewitness accounts. Most bright examples Bigfoot or Loch Ness monster. There is a lot of evidence of meetings with them - and at the same time there are no weighty arguments for their presence in the real world.
Animals whose existence is assumed, but not scientifically proven, are called cryptids (from the ancient Greek kryptos - “secret”, “hidden”). The science of them is called cryptozoology and is based on the thesis that many biological species on our planet are still waiting to be discovered.
Cryptozoologists are sure that there are dozens, maybe even hundreds of unknown animals that live in remote areas. So far, they are known only from local legends and eyewitness accounts. But quite recently, before mid-nineteenth century, now-famous animals such as the gorilla or the giant panda were considered mythical creatures which cannot be found in real life.
Underwater monsters
The most likely habitats for cryptids are the depths of lakes and seas. Scientists say that now the underwater world has been studied by only 3%, so what exactly does it promise the largest number new discoveries.
Since ancient times, there have been legends among sailors about giant ocean monsters that are capable of dragging a large ship to the bottom. Such an animal is called a kraken; evidence of encounters with it has been known since the 12th century. Some describe it as looking like a crab, others like an octopus or squid.
Such monsters can be found not only in sea water. In three interconnected lakes located in US state Oklahoma, a huge freshwater octopus has been repeatedly seen attacking swimmers. By the way, indirect evidence of its existence can be the fact that the mortality rate among swimmers in these lakes is much higher than in other places.
Giant fish can also be found in the water depths. In 1924 at sea near the town of Marghita ( South Africa) many residents observed how huge fish, covered with sparse hair, fought with two killer whales. This cryptid was called "tran-ko", but he did not appear again.
Many animals living in the underwater world, due to lack of knowledge, cannot be classified. For example, some consider the Loch Ness monster to be a preserved dinosaur, others to be a warm-blooded animal, and most simply find it difficult to answer what kind of zoological species this creature represents.
Of course, skeptics express doubts that such cryptids really exist. But remember that before mid-eighteenth century, a huge sea animal, which was later called the "steller's cow" (in honor of the naturalist Georg Steller, who first scientifically described this zoological species), was known only from the stories of individual sailors.
Have pterodactyls survived?
Other varieties of cryptids include unusual flying animals. For example, on the islands of Papua New, a creature called a ropen and resembling a pterodactyl was repeatedly seen. The pilots of the aircraft met him in the air, according to their testimony, the wingspan of the ropen is approaching 10 meters, the beak resembles the mouth of a crocodile, and there is a crest on the head.
In the jungle, according to the testimony of local residents, there live huge bats called ahuls, with a wingspan of more than three meters. They are covered with short hair and are nocturnal, feeding on fish that they catch in the rivers. Naturalist traveler Ernest Bartels, who saw them in 1925 and 1927, wrote about encounters with these animals.
Eyewitnesses from Latin America tell about winged creatures that look like huge bats or pterosaurs. In the legends of the Indians, such an animal is called "camazotz" - a bat with a human head. Some researchers have seen similar creatures and believe that this is an unknown type of vampire bat, whose head really looks like a human.
Still a monkey or already a man?
Many cryptids resemble giant apes. In the region of the middle reaches of the Tana River, according to legend, a creature lives, which is called “code-finished”. It walks on four legs and looks like a big baboon. These animals steal sheep in the villages, which is why the inhabitants periodically scare them away with the beating of drums.
IN North America eyewitnesses met a creature called "bigfoot" (from the English bigfoot - " big foot”) - due to the fact that it leaves traces of a huge size. According to the stories, his height reaches three meters, and his weight is up to 200 kilograms, he has a small forehead and highly developed brow ridges.
IN Latin America lives a cryptid called "mapinguari". He also looks like a big monkey and can walk on two legs. There are cases when these animals were killed, but their bodies were so fetid that the hunters were in a hurry to bury them as soon as possible.
The Yeti, or Bigfoot, can be attributed to the same group - a hypothetical humanoid creature, covered with wool and living in high mountains and Nepal.
Little Alpine Dragon
One of the most famous cryptids is the so-called tatzelwurm (from the German words tatze - "paw" and wurm - "worm"). Researchers consider it a kind of dragon - a reptile that lives in the Alpine region.
Written evidence of encounters with the Tatzelwurm has been known since the end of the 15th century. True, the testimonies largely contradict each other. The length of the animal is 0.5-4 meters, the skin can be smooth, warty or lamellar, the number of paws varies from two to six, there may be a ridge on the back.
In 1850, the remains of one of the dead animals were shown in a small church in, but they were later destroyed. In 1914, on the territory of modern one of the animals was allegedly caught by a soldier - then a stuffed animal was made from tatzelvur-ma, which mysteriously disappeared.
Photographs and the presented remains of tatzelwurms often turned out to be a joke or a deliberate fraud. So, in 1939, the newspapers of Munich reported the capture of this creature on the streets of the city, but later it turned out that sensation lovers passed off a large American lizard that had escaped from the zoo for tat-tselwurm. In 1934, a Swiss photographer sent a clear picture of a tatzelwurm to the newspapers - but then it turned out to be a photo of a ceramic figurine. In Europe it has already become good tradition for every April 1, report some “sensational” news about the tatzelwurms, which eventually turns into a joke.
At the same time, even venerable scientists do not deny the likelihood that this animal can be real existing variety lizard, which over time will be able to identify and classify.
Mysterious collection
But back to the collection of Thomas Merlin. This Englishman was born in 1782. He traveled all his life, collecting artifacts, and became the owner unique collection incredible cryptid exhibits. In 1899, he made an attempt to show his collection to spectators in several small towns, but the Americans showed no interest in the mysterious skeletons, and Merlin had to cancel the tour.
Another thing is surprising - during this trip, Thomas Merlin was already 117 years old! At the same time, according to the memoirs of contemporaries, he did not age at all and looked forty years old.
Ultimately, such strange properties of the body led to the fact that the scientist was considered an evil sorcerer, no one wanted to communicate with him. And Thomas Merlin mysteriously disappeared - along with his collection.
His next public appearance took place already in 1942 in London. The forty-year-old-looking man presented authentic documents in the name of Thomas Merlin and proved ownership of one of the houses in the capital - after which he transferred it to an orphanage on the condition that the building would never be put up for sale.
According to the documents, Merlin's age at that time was 160 years old. Journalists became interested in this phenomenon, but the scientist disappeared again.
The house was really never sold and stood unchanged until 1960, when the building was held overhaul, during which they discovered a basement with a collection of cryptids.
Some of the remains were mummified, while others were represented by skeletons or individual bones. The boxes also contained old manuscripts and accompanying scientific notes.
In 2006, a book was published, the authors of which claimed that the artifacts from the collection of Thomas Merlin were a grandiose hoax made by unknown artists and sculptors. But many exhibits give the impression of being authentic - there are no traces of processing on the mysterious bones, their location and connection with each other does not contradict physiological laws.
A few years ago, the International Union of Cryptozoologists was created, which brings together more than 800 scientists from 20 countries. These people are sure: mysterious mythical animals exist. And that means that new discoveries await us, which for the time being seem incredible.
The famous traveler Thor Heyerdahl wrote in his book “Journey to the Kon-Tiki” that in 1947 the expedition members saw a mysterious sea animal that surfaced and again went into the depths.
Thomas Merrilin was born in 1782 into a wealthy aristocratic family. His mother died in childbirth and he was raised by his father Edward. His father was an army general, but in retirement he became interested in esoteric and natural history. He invested in profitable companies to finance his travels around the world in search of various artifacts and unknown species that lived on forgotten continents or lost places, far from prying human eyes.
They traveled together for many years until his father died of sudden death. This event turned Thomas into a recluse, and he sought solace in his work. He studied at big library at his home and also studied at University College London on Gower Street. Even then, he isolated himself from the other students.
In subsequent years, Merrilin expanded the collection exponentially. He traveled all over the Earth, learned a lot, but he himself remained a mystery to everyone. He simply disappeared in 1942.
In the spring of that year, a man who identified himself as Thomas Theodore Merrylin donated the townhouse to an orphanage. His only condition was that the house would never be sold and the basement of the house would always be closed. Thomas Merrilin, pictured in a local newspaper handing over the deeds to the house to the new owner, looks to be in his 40s when he should be 160 years old. It is said that he quickly disappeared, leaving no trace of his existence.
IN orphanage they kept their promise, in the 60s it was closed and the existence of the basement was forgotten. The door, sealed behind two brick walls, could only be discovered by chance, which happened before the demolition of the building.
Alex CF explains that all of these outlandish creatures and mysterious manuscripts are currently on display at the Merrylin Cryptid Museum and are real. Scientifically, their authenticity has never been proven.
It is believed that the Merrylin Cryptid Museum collection is actually a fictional invention of Alex CF, a London-based illustrator, writer and sculptor with a bizarrely twisted imagination and a flair for all things mysterious. And now you can add the skill of a marketing specialist to his merits, so he promotes his Merrylin Cryptid Museum so superbly.
Of course, such truth destroys the illusion, but this does not stop his creepy creations from being amazing.
British builders in the 60s accidentally discovered a basement with boxes in which the remains of mysterious creatures were kept during the repair of an orphanage, and scientists immediately suggested that it was the collection of Thomas Merlin. Their colleague devoted his whole life to the search for cryptids, the existence of which he managed to prove.
For many centuries, experts have tried to prove the reality of the most famous monsters described in the stories of eyewitnesses of events. This concerned Bigfoot and a monster from Scotland, but then no one found weighty arguments confirming their presence in the world. It is worth adding right away that these animals are called cryptids, and the scientists involved in the search are sure that there are hundreds of unknown species on the planet, hiding in hard-to-reach corners and known only local residents or described in their legends. Until the 19th century, the gorilla or giant panda was also referred to as these individuals, not found in nature. Lakes and seas are the most frequent havens for mysterious monsters, because they are only 3% explored and can bring sensational discoveries to the scientific world.
Ancient sailors often described encounters with creepy creatures that could drag ships to the bottom. Krakens really were in real life and are mentioned in the annals of the 12th century, where some people described them as octopuses or crabs. Such monsters can be found not only in the depths of the sea, since the Americans from Oklahoma also repeatedly noticed a giant monster with tentacles attacking people in the waters of the lakes. Therefore, there are much more deaths in this corner than in other water bodies of the country. Mysterious fish of incredible size have also been found. Many residents of the South African city of Marghita in the 20s witnessed an incredible fight between such an individual, covered with wool, and killer whales, but no one else saw her.
Also, scientists cannot classify the inhabitants underwater world living in such places, so Nessie is still considered a type of dinosaur or warm-blooded creature, but most experts find it difficult to answer such a question. Skeptics used to say they simply didn't exist, but it wasn't until after the 18th century that the sea cow was recognized. species, and until that moment it was seen only by sailors during the voyage. This refers to flying monsters, striking in their resemblance to the ancient extinct pterodactyls. Pilots flying over Papua New Guinea saw a 10-meter-long ropen with a reptile-like beak and a crest on its head. Indonesian jungle hides from people ahuls, which are gigantic bats, going hunting at night and having 3-meter wings. They were first discovered by the scientist Ernest Bartels, who explored these territories in the 20s, after which he described that these individuals are covered with thick hair and feed on caught fish. Latin American Indians even have legends about mice with human head who drink the blood of people and still live in mountain caves.
Many cryptids appearance resemble a monkey, so the Kenyans were absolutely right in talking about a monster stealing sheep from the villages for their dinner, but afraid of the sound of drums. Bigfoods are also often mentioned by Americans who have seen their large footprints, and also describe these creatures as three-meter giants covered with wool, with a small forehead and weighing 200 kilograms. They are able not only to frighten a person, but also to hypnotize him with the help of superpowers, and also to suddenly disappear from view, passing through a temporary portal. Mapinguari also outwardly resembles a primate, only moves on two legs and emits a strong stench after death, so that the hunters were forced to immediately bury the corpses in the ground. This includes the yeti, which looks like a person and lives in the highlands of Pakistan and Nepal at high altitude.
by the most famous view the cryptid became a tatzelwurm living in the Alps. Scientists consider it a kind of reptilians, and the first mention of such unusual dragon can be found in chronicles of the 15th century. Then many people variously described a creature reaching 4 meters, and having a sharp ridge on its back, covered with scales or warts. Then it disappeared from sight until 1850, when the temple's parishioners for the first time could contemplate the remains of the slain monster, put on public display. Then they decided to destroy them, and already in 1914 in Slovenia, the military caught such a monster and made a stuffed animal out of it. Then came the turn of falsifications, when instead of a dragon they showed an American lizard and pictures of a figurine, and Europeans on the first day of April were already used to each new sensation about finding the creature to be taken as a joke.
But what then did the legendary collector, who himself was also mysterious person? Thomas Merlin was born in 1782 and then wandered the world all his life in search of mysterious exhibits, and then decided to show the Americans his collected collection, only in 1899 no one appreciated such a great discovery. Then the scientist crossed the 117-year mark, but contemporaries described him as a 40-year-old man, after which strange features organisms began to be considered witchcraft. No one wanted to communicate with the man who disappeared along with his rarities, but in 1942 he suddenly appeared in the British capital and showed the original documents for his house, transferring the building to the shelter on the condition that it would never be sold. Then his age was 160 years old, only the scientist again disappeared mysteriously. The collection of unique cryptids was partially mummified, and there were also old manuscripts proving the authenticity of the exhibits. Now 800 specialists from 20 countries have formed an alliance to find traces mystical creatures and people are still waiting for new discoveries in the future, capable of overturning current scientific theories.
Reshetnikova Irina
