Top Mysteries that Remain Unsolved

From the date of Jesus' birth to the identity of Jack the Ripper to the location of Cleopatra's tomb, certain historical mysteries may never be answered. Sometimes this is due to the loss of relevant excavated material or the destruction of an archaeological site. Other times, it's because fresh evidence is unlikely to emerge or the existing data is too ambiguous to lead to an agreement among researchers. The lack of answers simply adds to the intrigue of these puzzles. We look at some of the historical questions that may never have conclusive answers in this article.

1. The Zodiac Killer

He terrorised San Francisco with his murder spree from 1968 to 1969, teasing the cops with coded messages to the local paper. Although he claims to have killed 37 people, he was directly linked to at least five murders. When Betty Lou Jensen, 16, and David Arthur Faraday, 17, were discovered laying outside of their bullet-riddled automobile, he was terrified. Jensen died of five gunshot wounds to her back at the scene, while Faraday died of a bullet wound to the head en route to the hospital. A half-year later, a couple who had parked their car four miles away from the crime scene were similarly gunned down, with one person injured and the other killed. Michael Mageau, a survivor, was able to provide a description.

2. Dyatlov Pass Incident

Nine ski-hikers perished unexpectedly in the mountains of what is now Russia on the first night of February 1959. The group had set up camp on a slope the night of the event, enjoyed dinner, and prepared for sleep—but something went horribly wrong, and the group never returned. The hikers' abandoned tent, which had been ripped apart from the inside, was discovered on February 26. Footprints left by the group around the spot, some in socks, some in a single shoe, and some barefoot, all of which continued to the edge of a nearby wood. The first two bodies were discovered there, shoeless and only wearing underpants. The scene included signs of death from hypothermia, but as medical examiners inventoried the remains, there were also signs of death from other causes.

3. Jack the Ripper

In 1888, Jack the Ripper mutilated the bodies of at least five women in London. A series of letters purporting to be from Jack the Ripper were sent to police, mocking their efforts to find him. Whether any of them were written by Jack the Ripper is a point of contention among academics. These letters gave rise to the moniker "Jack the Ripper." Needless to say, the Ripper was never found, and scores of persons have been suggested as plausible suspects over the years. John Morris claims that a woman called Lizzie Williams was the Ripper in his 2012 book "Jack the Ripper: The Hand of a Woman," while other Ripper specialists disagree. Never. Caught.

4. Ghost Ship of Mary Celeste

The "Mary Celeste," a British-American ship, was discovered empty and floating in the Atlantic on December 4, 1872. Except for a lifeboat, which appeared to have been boarded in an orderly manner, it was discovered to be seaworthy and with all of its cargo intact. The Mary Celeste set sail from New York in November 1872, heading for Genoa, Italy. Captain Benjamin Briggs and a crew of seven, including Briggs' wife and their 2-year-old daughter, were on board. On board, there were enough supplies for six months, as well as luxuries like a sewing machine and an upright piano. Some uncommon and terrifying condition must have occurred to cause the abandonment of a seaworthy ship, according to commentators. The last entry in the ship's daily log, on the other hand, was normal.

5. Area 51

Area 51 is a U.S. military station in southern Nevada whose existence remained unknown until 2013, when the CIA was forced to reply to a Freedom of Information Act request from 2005. Area 51 appears to facilitate the creation and testing of experimental aircraft and weaponry, based on historical evidence. Public satellite pictures, such as those found on Google Maps, offer no information. Even individuals with security clearance to visit Area 51 are flown there by an airline named "Janet," whose planes are unmarked and whose windows are shrouded when they land.