( CC BY SA 4.0 ). We dare you. She ventured farther down the tunnels and quickly got turned around. -, Press J to jump to the feed. One of these stories inevitably brings us to Masha, a student who should have known better than to venture inside the tunnels. Version of this photo sourced directly from Eugene Lata. Over the decades that follow, after the gradual abandonment of the mining operations, the Odessa catacombs would become somewhat obscure and forgotten. During the Cold War, they served as bomb shelters. He claimed that his best friend had led the expedition, and that he had been there when the infamous photo was taken. Lists of true accounts of real people who survived unfathomable situations and depictions of fights for survival in film, TV, video games, and other media. This was only aimed at the portions beneath the town center though, and the rest of the catacombs continued to develop some time after. Even though they never managed to explore the tunnels fully, the maps that these urban explorers managed to create are simply on the verge of being impossible. There is, however, a portion of the catacombs that is open to the public within the Museum of Partisan Glory in Nerubayskoye, north of Odessa. Kostya Pugovkin, who identified himself as a veteran of Ukraine's Antiterrorist Operation based in Odessa, claims to be the one who personally hefted the body in that photograph out of the depths. Believing this to be the best explanation for her absence, the group agreed and they left. By 2012, he had begun to sound less like the internet's ambassador to the catacombs. Explorers are rewarded with finds such as weapons caches, and at least once every five years, the discovery of a body. No way that picture was faked. There is little to no record of a girl named Masha ever disappearing into the catacombs, and there are those that refute Lata'saccounts. Actually, the walls of the Odessa catacombs are inscribed with thousands of writings, ranging from names to slogans to caricatures and even poems. She would have gotten delirious, convulsed, and slipped irreversibly into a coma around the third day, not that she would have noticed the days passing. direct entry speech pathology programs near illinois. They're also a pretty good place to stage a murder. Based on what was later found, it is believed that Masha stumbled around in the catacombs for at least three days, starving, thirsty, alone, and in the dark. [4] It is thought that most (9597%) of the catacombs are former coquina multilevel mines from which stone was extracted to construct the city above. Masha and a group of friends thought it would be fun to go out, party, and celebrate at the Stone Mines. Sign up for our newsletter and enter to win the second edition of our book. Proudly powered by WordPress In the 19th century, most houses in Odesa were built of limestone that was mined nearby. Any chamber used as a burial place is a catacomb, although the word is most commonly associated with the Roman Empire. This myth has led many treasure hunters to enter the darkness of the catacombs in search of wealth. An entrance to the Odessa catacombs is located at 4632'33.8N 3038'06.0E. Thanks. They admitted that they had gone to the Stone Mines, and maybe, just maybe Masha had gone inside. Were heading underground to find out whether the tunnels are truly empty. [Online] Available at: https://greentourua.com/the-lost-world-of-odessa-catacombs/, Various. kenmore west in memoriam; sabor dulce en la boca coronavirus; traditional catholic novenas Assuming Masha brought a battery-powered flashlight or lantern down into the depths, it would have died after a few hours, making it harder to continue the search for warmth and water. Catacombs below Odessa, Ukraine. Today we find ourselves wandering the largest catacomb system in the world. The Odessa catacombs are a very complicated system of natural tunnels, mines, bunkers, and caves that are predominantly a result of mining - with the earliest excavations beginning in the 19th century. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Mind boggling isnt it? Masha story is an urban legend. All of these items are housed in a section of the tunnels which were used by the partisans. [7], Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}463248N 303750E / 46.54667N 30.63056E / 46.54667; 30.63056, "People Believe a Girl Died in the Endless Odessa Catacombs, but the Mystery Goes Much Deeper", "Dark secrets of Odessa's vast catacomb labyrinth", "Subterranea of Ukraine: Odessa Catacombs", "The Enduring Legend of the Girl Who Died in Odessa's Catacombs", "The Odesa catacombs. During New Year's Eve celebrations in 2005, she and her friends had one drink too . Several attempts at thorough exploration were made over the years. Atlas Obscura. The group supposedly went to the police, but they were still reluctant to go in to retrieve the body because it was literally miles from the entrance. What you may not know, is that the largest catacomb system in the world is the Odessa Catacombs in Ukraine. Her body had been partially mummified by the cold cool air. But catacombs can be more than religious passageways or burial grounds. I remember seeing that on tv as a teenager and it still freaks me out today to even think about it. A large portion of these tunnels due to the sheer extent and the number of corridors remains completely unexplored. The Tiara of Saitaphernes is certainly one of these priceless objects and its story is long and surprising. According to the investigation of the incident, the man was with a group of friends, and had been drinking with the young girl. I saw this video and did some research on it, ultimately deeming it to be a hoax. Learn how your comment data is processed. 31 Days of Halloween: On Atlas Obscura this month, every day is Halloween. The group snapped a photo, in which three young boys pose with the body as if they have just identified it. Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. Still left for anyone to roam freely, these tunnels are used just as several decades before by anyone who needs or wants to descend into its depths. Masha had died, still trying to escape. With over 1,500 miles of subterranean tunnels, Odessa's catacombs even beat out the well-known Paris Catacombs in terms of length. While going into the catacombs is not illegal, there is only one small portion of the catacombs that is officially open to the public, which can be seen at the Museum of Partisan Glory in Nerubayskoye, north of Odessa. But some tourism still relates to them. ( onyx124 /Adobe Stock). The Iliad can provide new insights on the role of motherhood among the ancient Greek gods, and by extension, amongst ancient mortal Greek women themselves. Beneath its streets, under the slowly unraveling everyday lives of its citizens, lies a sprawling network of tunnels and catacombs, an enigmatic web of dark corridors that built up a reputation of macabre proportions. Part of the tunnels, only under the city, were turned into bomb shelters in the Cold War. After the communists came to power, this man hid both himself and the golden Titanic in the catacombs below, never to be discovered. Every story is true, and each one is a real place you can visit. Atlas Obscura. Perhaps the most popular of catacombs is beneath the city of Paris, France. The Odessa Catacombs and the Legend of Masha, The Fiery Darvaza Gas Crater The Scare Chamber, The Torture and Murder of Kelly Anne Bates, Alexandra Wiwcharuk: The Girl in Saskatoon, Practicing Cannibalism | The Scare Chamber, Alexandra Wiwcharuk: The Girl in Saskatoon | The Scare Chamber, David Parker Ray and his Toy Box of Torture, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. ( Artem Merzlenko /Adobe Stock). All rights reserved. Eventually the majority of the group managed to find their way back out but Masha never did. 2023 Atlas Obscura. These lines give us a glimpse into the melancholic Slavic and Ukrainian soul of the past: No treasure, no happiness, you will find here, Though forehead knocks the wall behind the wall. Despite very extensive searches neither his body, nor any clues about his fate were found. But in their foggy states, they absentmindedlyor maliciouslyleft Masha in the catacombs. The Odesa Catacombs are a labyrinth-like network of tunnels (subterranean cavities) located under the city of Odesa and its outskirts in Ukraine, that are mostly (over 90%) the result of stone mining, particularly coquina. Megalithic Sites Are More than Just Stone, Library in Stone: The Ica Stones of Professor Cabrera Part I, Two Sides to Every Story: The North American Martyrs Shrines and Indigenous/ Roman Catholic Relations, The Origins of the Faeries: Encoded in our Cultures Part I, Curse of the Buried Pearl: The Hunt for Ancient Treasures Part I, The Enigma of the Shugborough Inscription, The Znojmo Catacombs: A Maze of Tunnels Where No Enemies Escaped Alive. What are you a professional corpsologist? This makes it one of the more unique museums of that period as long as you dont strive from the beaten path! Archaeologists have been able to take a closer look at one of the United Kingdoms most famous shipwrecks. When the group arrived, they found it easy enough, with two large metal doors. The post featured a graphic photo of what appeared to be a decaying corpse in the catacombs, which Lata claimed was Masha's body. Fake? Is it easy to get access to the catacombs? They didnt go inside, heeding the warnings their parents had given them. Descending into the darkness below the world, you are thrust headfirst into a deeply disturbing realm. Once the war was over, the catacombs became home to numerous smuggling and criminal groups, who widened and created new tunnel systems of their own. . [citation needed] Perhaps the most famous story dates back to claims made in 2009 by Ukrainian catacombs explorer Eugene Lata. ( gorinov /Adobe Stock). Or maybe they were looking for bodies. Oddly, Lata told us the person responsible for the official Catacombs websiteand the one calling him a liaris "one of the most experienced Odessa catacombs explorers and my best friend." Offer available only in the U.S. (including Puerto Rico). https://irishurbanexplorations.wordpress.com/2014/05/07/odessa-catacombs-day-1-odessa-ukraine/, https://thinkofthetriangle.wordpress.com/2016/09/25/adventures-in-ukraine-odessa-catacombs/, http://www.the13thfloor.tv/2017/04/11/183661/, http://odesskiy.com/chisto-fakti-iz-zhizni-i-istorii/istorija-vozniknovenija-odesskih-katakomb.html, http://www.thebohemianblog.com/2013/10/urban-exploration-odessa-catacombs_20.html, https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/mind-boggling-catacomb-maps, https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/odessa-catacombs, https://greentourua.com/the-lost-world-of-odessa-catacombs/, The Tiara of Saitaphernes: Wow Antique? We believe it is just a practical joke and the corpse is fake." Drunk and needing to urinate, she left the group, seeking a place to relieve herself. She was headed into the Odessa catacombs, the 2,500 kilometers of dark rocky tunnels which run underneath the city. All photos by Wikimedia Commons user . Parts of the mines are still active, but the majority of the tunnels remain closed to the public. The longest single expedition to date was just 40km, completed over a 27-hour period in 1995. Did Masha really exist and meet her fate in the catacombs, or is the whole story just someone's idea of a morbid practical joke? Featured in one of the most iconic scenes in cinema history.