The Unexplained 10 - Acupuncture, Rennes-le-Chateau, Loch Ness, Toads

The needle and the damage undone. Issue 10 cover.

The traditional Chinese medicine of acupuncture is the cover image and first article in the tenth edition of The Unexplained. The practice of inserting needles into certain points to stimulate the body's energy to relieve pain and treat conditions dates back thousands of years. The article comes with a full length illustration of the main acupuncture points on the human body (see below). 

Chart showing the main acupuncture points on the human body.

The practice also serves other animals, for example the chart for elephant acupuncture points below. 

The elephant's acupuncture points.

The dreary topic of Rennes-le-Chateau continues with an investigation into where the treasure allegedly discovered by Berenger Sauniere may have come from. Cue much Knights Templar chatter and wild speculation. 

A Templar seal.

Still there is nice image of a demon statue illustrating the article. The chap below is generally believed to be Baphomet and he lives at the Templar commanderie at St Bris-le-Vineux. He apparently heavily resembles similar demon statues in the church in Rennes. The article itself goes heavily into Templar history and lore before threatening the reader that the mystery only gets more complex in the next article in the series.

Demon sculpture believed to represent Baphomet.

The highlight of the issue has to be the Loch Ness Photo File which brings together some classic photos of Nessie. 

Is this Nessie?

The image above was taken by scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology using a sonar system that triggered cameras and appears to show the head and neck of the lake dwelling creature. In case also be argued that the photo simply shows an inanimate object.

Nessie pictured on 12th November, 1933.

Since the above photo was taken by Hugh Gray it has been a point of controversy among Nessie researchers. Gray estimated the object to be 12 metres long with a dark, greyish flesh which was smooth and shiny. 

One of the more famous Nessie photos.

The above image was taken by R. K. Wilson on 1st April, 1934 and shows what appears to be either a flipper, or a neck, of something breaking the surface of the water. Surely this is the head and neck of a bird?

Nessie smiling for the camera.

Whether the above image is real or not I just love Nessie's cheeky grin. This was one of a series of eight photos taken by Geoffrey Watson in the early afternoon of 3rd September, 1978. It apparently shows the neck and head of Nessie, but you could also say it might be the trunk of an elephant swimming under the surface. 

Toads dancing at a witches' Sabbat.

The Fascination of the Toad describes some of the ancient superstitions surrounding the creature. The article begins with the possible ritual killing of Charles Walton in the Warwickshire village of Lower Quinton on the evening of 14th February, 1945.  The foremost detective of the era, Superintendent Robert Fabian (Fabian of the Yard), led the investigation. He was told by villagers that instead of a dog or a cat he kept natterjack toads and when he visited the deceased's property he found a number of the toads in the garden. Perhaps Walton was murdered because someone had suspected he was a witch?

Isobel Gowdie consorts with the Devil.

A rather surprising (to me) anecdote in the article outlines the association of toads with the traditional training method of horse whispering. In parts of East Anglia, especially in Norwich, horse whisperers were also known as toadmen due to their use of the animal in subduing a horse. "A natterjack toad was taken home, killed, then put on a whitethorn bush for 24 hours until it was dry. It was then buried in an ant hill and left there until the appearance of a full moon. The skeleton of the toad was taken to a stream and watched carefully in the moonlight to see whether the 'crotch bone' floated against the current. If it did it was taken back home, baked, powdered and put in a box; this powder could be mixed with a special oil solution. If you applied this to the horse's tongue, nostrils, chin and chest, the horse would be your servant and do anything you wanted." (The Fascination of the Toad by Frank Smyth, The Unexplained 10, 1980, p.196). 

In Suffolk the ceremony varied slightly with horsemen using the bone whole, wrapped in linen. A horse could be captured by touching it with the bone on the shoulder. It was released by touching the rump. 

The much maligned natterjack toad.

Two odd figures encountered in France in 1954.

The magazine concludes with a couple more UFO Casebooks from Charles Bowen. Curiously the illustrations, which are in the same style as previous features, are now credited to Robert Hunt instead of the magazine's designer Richard Burgess. 

A UFO buzzes a plane on 11th November, 1979 in Spain.