The Mary Celeste
A ship was found sailing on its own in the Atlantic, in good order, with no one on board.
What was reported
On 4 December 1872, the crew of the brigantine Dei Gratia sighted the Mary Celeste drifting under partial sail between the Azores and Portugal. She was seaworthy, with food and water on board and her cargo of over 1,700 barrels of alcohol nearly intact. Her lifeboat was gone. Captain Benjamin Briggs, his wife, their two-year-old daughter and seven crew were never seen again.
A short story by Arthur Conan Doyle in 1884 added invented details, like half-eaten meals and warm cups of tea, which are still often repeated.
Explanations offered
The most common explanation is that the crew abandoned ship in a hurry, perhaps fearing an explosion from alcohol fumes, a leak suggested by a faulty pump or a misread sounding, or a waterspout, and that the lifeboat was then lost. Nine empty barrels support some of these ideas, but no theory has been proved.
- When
- 4 December 1872
- Where
- Atlantic, between the Azores and Portugal
- Witnesses
- The crew of the Dei Gratia
- Status
- Never solved
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.