The Encounter of Rosa Lotti
Walking to church with a bunch of carnations, a Tuscan woman met two small beings who took a flower and a stocking.
What was reported
On the morning of 1 November 1954, Rosa Lotti was walking through the woods near Cennina, in Tuscany, carrying a bunch of carnations and a pair of stockings to put on at church. In a clearing she said she found a spindle-shaped object, about two metres tall, and two small, smiling beings about a metre high, dressed in grey.
They chattered in a language she didn't understand, took one carnation and one of her stockings. When she ran away, she said, the object rose and flew off. Some local people said they saw a strange object in the sky that morning.
Explanations offered
The case came during a wave of UFO reports across Europe in the autumn of 1954. No explanation has been confirmed, and sceptics think it may have grown from a misunderstood encounter. Lotti was described by those who knew her as honest and sincere.
- When
- 1 November 1954
- Where
- Cennina, Tuscany, Italy
- Witnesses
- Rosa Lotti
- Status
- Unexplained
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.