Bugarach, the Mountain That Would Survive the End
In 2012, rumours spread that when the world ended, aliens inside a mountain in southern France would rescue everyone standing on it. The authorities closed the mountain.
What was reported
Pic de Bugarach is a mountain in the Aude region of France, beside a tiny village of a couple of hundred people. It's known for a geological quirk: its upper layers are older than its lower ones, as if it had been flipped over. For years, it attracted people with mystical beliefs about it.
As 21 December 2012 approached, a date some linked to an ancient Maya calendar and the end of the world, rumours spread online that the mountain hid an alien spaceship that would save those nearby. The world's media arrived, and the authorities closed the peak and sent police to keep crowds away.
Explanations offered
The Maya calendar date marked the end of a long cycle, not the end of the world, and nothing happened. The mountain's 'upside-down' layers were caused by the folding of rock as the Pyrenees formed. Far more journalists than believers turned up.
- When
- December 2012
- Where
- Pic de Bugarach, Aude, France
- Witnesses
- Villagers, police and the world's press
- Status
- Nothing happened
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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