The Sphinx of the Bucegi Mountains
On a high plateau in Romania, a rock looks like a giant human face. Some believe it hides a secret chamber built by an ancient civilisation.
What was reported
The Sphinx is a rock formation about 8 metres high on the Bucegi plateau, in the Carpathian mountains of Romania. Seen from the right angle, it resembles a human head, and it was named after the Egyptian Sphinx in 1936.
In the 2000s, a book claimed that a secret chamber full of ancient technology had been found beneath the Bucegi mountains by a secret team. The story spread online, and the mountains became a destination for believers in hidden civilisations.
Explanations offered
Geologists say the Sphinx was shaped by wind and frost eroding the rock, which is softer in some layers. There's no evidence for the secret chamber. Similar faces in rocks are found around the world.
- When
- Shaped by erosion; named in 1936
- Where
- Bucegi Mountains, Prahova, Romania
- Witnesses
- Hikers and believers
- Status
- Natural rock
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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