Museum statue mysteriously starts moving

[Sundew]

Seems likes it is rotating on a pivot point, probably a tiny imperfection coupled with just the right center of gravity, and since it only occurs during the day that would indicate the vibrations of passersby are causing it. Now if it was a representation of Ra the sun god, then of course you would expect it to move only during the day!

[Lava_Lady]

How is it that no one noticed that it was in a different direction from the previous day? It's moving slowly but one would notice the statue is facing a different direction... you'd think.

If I had a room full of antiquities I would be inspecting them everyday and I would definitely notice ANY difference in placement.

I hate hoaxers... they waste so much time.

[pallidin]

If this is a hoax there will be some heads to roll. Uh, I mean rotate.

[seeder]

well it wouldn't be terribly hard to pause the camera would it, and manually move it a fraction at a time

[pallidin]

well it wouldn't be terribly hard to pause the camera would it, and manually move it a fraction at a time

True, but that would not sit well with museum management integrity, I would presume.

[calaf]

He wants his offerings of beer, bread, and beef!

Me too!

[chopmo]

From what I can see;

There's a gloss marble surface and to protect the marble and the statue, the statue itself is probally sitting on a carpet/felt surfact so it does not scratch the marble OR the stone on the bottom of the statue is corroding causing fine sand allowing air to travel underneath it. But my with either one of those I would like to see how hard the wind is coming through the front door as it only seems to be during the opened hours of the museum that it moves. There you would probally have it, much like the sailing stones.

Edited June 24, 2013 by chopmo

[bigjonalien]

Must be the loosest floorboards or display cabinet rocks how do they get to house such and ancient artifact in a crap display case?

[seeder]

From what I can see;

There's a gloss marble surface and to protect the marble and the statue, the statue itself is probally sitting on a carpet/felt surfact so it does not scratch the marble OR the stone on the bottom of the statue is corroding causing fine sand allowing air to travel underneath it. But my with either one of those I would like to see how hard the wind is coming through the front door as it only seems to be during the opened hours of the museum that it moves. There you would probally have it, much like the sailing stones.

lets give it a few days , it may turn out to be viral hoax...

but wind doesn't seem to be a probable cause, in a locked glass cabinet,... imo... or it could be turning round trying to find his mummy

Edited June 24, 2013 by seeder

[mxcx]

@Sundew - Those were my thoughts exactly. It only moves when people are around, and I would assume its off center, and not by much. Thousands of pounds of people walking around have major vibration, and looks to be sitting on glass.

[SHaYap]

one more I haven't read yet ... " the glass shelf is not perfectly level on the flat "

could be just as simple as that ...

`

[rashore]

Just saying... This subject has seen the most multiple posts I have ever seen on UM. I know a few folks search before posting, but wow. A lot of closed merged threads on this one.

[+DieChecker]

and what would those issues be?

Kardashian Baby???

[chopmo]

lets give it a few days , it may turn out to be viral hoax...

but wind doesn't seem to be a probable cause, in a locked glass cabinet,... imo... or it could be turning round trying to find his mummy

I could not see a glass cage...

[seeder]

Kardashian Baby???

well its not mine even tho she keeps calling me. In fact she makes me mad. Im a man with history and dreams. Not just a sex object. Im starting to hate women who just want me for one thing, using me..

It offends me greatly..

[Collateral Damage]

Oh seeder , if I have to explain what should be talked about instead of you just knowing whats more important, this world is in worse shape than I thought... This "statue" has gotten more threads and attention in the last day than even Iran's new president... it's sad

Too bad, really... Ahmadinejad wasn't a bad guy.

[Blink4567]

Too bad, really... Ahmadinejad wasn't a bad guy.

I'd have to refamiliar myself with him, but in this polictical world right now, Iran is a huge middle east player. Sorry for being off topic OP.

[NatureBoff]

Okay, disregard the size stuff. I couldn't tell the size of the others from the long shots. I can see it better now in the links Ring posted. Same idea though.

Thanks to your link about the Ka statue, I've had the idea that the two large curling Ostrich Feathers of Osiris is the equivalent of the Rainbow Serpent, or Feathered Serpent imagery of Quetzalcoatl in Mesoamerican culture.

Atef

Atef is the specific feathered white crown of the Egyptian Deity Osiris. It combines the Hedjet, the crown of Upper Egypt, with red ostrich feathers for the Osiris cult. The feathers are identified as ostrich from their curl or curve at the upper ends, with a slight flare toward the base...

The Atef crown identifies Osiris in ancient Egyptian painting. Osiris wears the Atef crown as a symbol of the ruler of the underworld

To the Aztecs, Quetzalcoatl was, as his name indicates, a feathered serpent, a flying reptile (much like a dragon), who was a boundary-maker (and transgressor) between earth and sky.

[Lex540]

True or false i will take it as believe it or not

[Sundew]

I find it completely "awesome" that a thread about a small stone statue "moving" is gathering more attention than issues that actually matter

It's called a light-hearted diversion. People are frustrated with what they perceive as their lack of ability to make real changes in the world. Many fight the good fight, some have given up, but all occasionally need to take a breather and lighten up a bit. In a week this story will be long forgotten, chalked up to just misinterpretation of natural phenomenon, but societal struggles and our concern for them will go on.

[ash68]

Wouldn't it be more scientific if they moved the statue to another place and see if it still turns?

[SHaYap]

Wouldn't it be more scientific if they moved the statue to another place and see if it still turns?

because it is more fun to leave it there to see hoe much longer it will keep this up ...

I used to keep a hand bag and accessories shop ... and every morning ... the display would be on the floor ... kept up for a week or two ...

did we find out how it happened ? no ... but it was fun while it was happening ... not the first few days though ... then I was angry ... after a few days it was just funny

never did find out why it happened still ... as sudden as it started ... it just stopped ... who knows ...

`

[NatureBoff]

Here's an interesting link to a selection of all the news coverage around the world on the spinning statue Storify by Manchester Museum

Wow, there's a Wikipedia page Moving statues

The moving statues phenomenon occurred during the summer of 1985 in Ireland, where statues of the Virgin Mary were reported to move spontaneously.

In Ballinspittle, County Cork in July 1985, an observer claimed to have seen a roadside statue of the Virgin Mary move spontaneously.^[1] Similar occurrences were reported shortly afterward in Mount Melleray, County Waterford and at around 30 other locations around the country. They were not all Marian apparitions. Some involved other divine figures and/or saints who appeared in stains on Church walls etc. Thousands gathered at many of the sites out of curiosity or to gaze in wonder and to pray. Up to 100,000 were said to have visited the Ballinspittle site alone.^[2] The Catholic Church remained reticent or highly skeptical and a bishop declared the whole phenomenon 'an illusion'.^[2] The Ballinspittle statue was damaged by a gang of hammer-wielding Pentecostalist protesters against idolatry (or mariolatry), but it was repaired.^[2] In 2002 the BBC planned a documentary on the phenomenon.^[3]

N.B. 1985 is the date when the sun changed it's solar output and has been in decline since this date. Coincidence? Were these statues made of special soapstone too?

BBC to pay homage to the moving statues phenomenon

The tiny Co Cork village of Ballinspittle is one of five locations throughout the world to be featured in a documentary called Miracle Statues.

Programme-makers spent two days in Ballinspittle earlier this month, interviewing local people and taking footage of the statue of Our Lady in the village grotto. The team also interviewed Cork sculptor Maurice O'Donnell, who made the statue in the 1950s.

John Murray, chairman of the Grotto Committee, who was the subject of an hour-long interview, said the programme makers "wanted an account of what we saw and felt happened at the time and they would put forward the opposing side from scientists".

He said the people of Ballinspittle simply told their story and would let the viewers make up their own minds.

A serving sergeant in Cork city at the time, Mr Murray saw the statue move two days after the first report in July 1985. He was among a crowd of several hundred people saying prayers and singing hymns in front of the grotto when "suddenly, without warning, there was a gasp from the crowd" as the statue, which is embedded in concrete, appeared to be airborne for half a minute.

"I was so convinced it was a fraud that I climbed up into the grotto the next morning and tried to shake the statue, but it wouldn't budge. I checked the back, the sides of it for any trip wires, but I couldn't find anything."

Thousands of people flocked to Ballinspittle in the summer of 1985 to witness the moving statue for themselves.

Although the statue hasn't been seen moving since, it still attracts a steady flow of visitors every year, particularly in the summer months. A BBC spokeswoman said Miracle Statues is in the early days of production and it was too early to say when the programme would be broadcast.

Even the Hindu Milk Miracle Of 1995 has the potential to be explained by soapstone which contains fluid dark matter which only acts on fluids!

Edited June 25, 2013 by RingFenceTheCity

[Blink4567]

It's called a light-hearted diversion. People are frustrated with what they perceive as their lack of ability to make real changes in the world. Many fight the good fight, some have given up, but all occasionally need to take a breather and lighten up a bit. In a week this story will be long forgotten, chalked up to just misinterpretation of natural phenomenon, but societal struggles and our concern for them will go on.

I like you

[Rafterman]

Here's a good analysis of what's going on with the statue as well as some correction of factual inaccuracies in the stories being reported (for example, the statue hasn't been on that shelf "decades" as claimed).

http://metabunk.org/threads/1838-Debunked-Ancient-Egyptian-Statue-Rotating-by-Itself-in-Manchester-Museum