Wednesday, January 30, 2013

PEDRO THE MUMMY


San Pedro Mountains Mummy


Photo: San Pedro Mountains Mummy


In October 1932, two prospectors named Cecil Mayne and Frank Carr discovered a bizarre room while blasting for gold in the San Pedro Mountains, about 60 miles southwest of Casper, Wyoming. 
The enclosure was approximately 4 ft. (1.22 m) tall, 4 ft. (1.22 m) wide and 15 ft. (4.57 m) deep. 
After entering the room, the miners were surprised to see the mummy of a tiny man. 
The carcass was found sitting in an upright position with its arms and legs crossed.  It sat perpendicular to the floor on a small ledge and weighed approximately 12 ounces. 
The mummy was around 7 inches (0.17 m) tall sitting and 14 inches (0.35 m) tall standing.  Its skin was brown and wrinkled, the cranium was flattened and the eyes of the carcass were heavy-lidded and bulged.  The mummy displayed a flat nose, a wide mouth, and thin lips.
The body was so well preserved that even the fingernails were visible.  The head was covered in a dark, gelatinous substance and the mummy appeared to have been preserved in a liquid.  Upon its discovery, the carcass was given the name Pedro the Mummy.  Scientists came from all over the country to take a look at the remains.  
In 1950, x-rays were performed on the mummy and it was reported that a fully formed “manlike” skeleton was inside.  Some of the bones were broken, including the spine, collarbone and skull. These injuries and congealed blood at the top of the head insinuated a violent death.
[[Official Explanation]]
Official Explanation 
The carcass was examined by a man named Dr. Henry Shapiro, who was a biological anthropologist from the American Museum of Natural History.  After studying the x-rays, Dr. Shapiro came to believe that the mummy was the body of a 65-year-old man at the time of death.  The mummy contained particularly large canines in comparison with the rest of the body and was reported as almost vampire-like.  I
n the 1950s, these findings were substantiated by Harvard University.  However, 30 years later, Dr. George Gill, a forensic anthropologist proposed another theory.  He feels the body is an infant of an unknown tribe of Indians.  Years after the mummy was discovered, a second, similar body was found in roughly the same area.  This time it was a female mummy, who was only 4 inches (.10 m) high.
Nearly every Native American culture tells of a race of little people.  Oral traditions from the Arapaho, Sioux, Cheyenne, and Crow, examine a race of “little people” who stand from just 20 inches (.50 m) to three feet (.91 m) tall.  
In some tribes they are known as “tiny people eaters.”  The Nimerigar are a legendary race of little people found in the folklore of the Shoshone people.  According to Native American lore, the Nimerigar lived in the San Pedro Mountains in south central Wyoming and fought constantly with the average sized humans using poisoned arrows.  It is said that when one of the Nimerigar became sick or old, they were killed by their own people with a blow to the head.
Most of these claims were considered folklore until the discovery of Pedro the mummy.  The carcass of Pedro ended up in Meeteetse, Wyoming, at a local drug store where it was shown as an attraction for several years.  On July 7, 1979, an article was published in the Casper Star-Tribune that stated the mummy was passed to a man named Leonard Wadler, who was a New York businessman.  The carcass has not been seen since.  Until Pedro the mummy is found, it will be impossible to determine if it is real.  There is currently a $10,000 reward for the recovery of the remains.

In October 1932, two prospectors named Cecil Mayne and Frank Carr discovered a bizarre room while blasting for gold in the San Pedro Mountains, about 60 miles southwest of Casper, Wyoming.
The enclosure was approximately 4 ft. (1.22 m) tall, 4 ft. (1.22 m) wide and 15 ft. (4.57 m) deep. 

After entering the room, the miners were surprised to see the mummy of a tiny man. 


The carcass was found sitting in an upright position with its arms and legs crossed. It sat perpendicular to the floor on a small ledge and weighed approximately 12 ounces. 


The mummy was around 7 inches (0.17 m) tall sitting and 14 inches (0.35 m) tall standing. Its skin was brown and wrinkled, the cranium was flattened and the eyes of the carcass were heavy-lidded and bulged. The mummy displayed a flat nose, a wide mouth, and thin lips.


The body was so well preserved that even the fingernails were visible. The head was covered in a dark, gelatinous substance and the mummy appeared to have been preserved in a liquid. Upon its discovery, the carcass was given the name Pedro the Mummy. Scientists came from all over the country to take a look at the remains.


In 1950, x-rays were performed on the mummy and it was reported that a fully formed “manlike” skeleton was inside. Some of the bones were broken, including the spine, collarbone and skull. These injuries and congealed blood at the top of the head insinuated a violent death.


Official Explanation

 
The carcass was examined by a man named Dr. Henry Shapiro, who was a biological anthropologist from the American Museum of Natural History. After studying the x-rays, Dr. Shapiro came to believe that the mummy was the body of a 65-year-old man at the time of death. The mummy contained particularly large canines in comparison with the rest of the body and was reported as almost vampire-like. 


 In the 1950s, these findings were substantiated by Harvard University. However, 30 years later, Dr. George Gill, a forensic anthropologist proposed another theory. He feels the body is an infant of an unknown tribe of Indians. Years after the mummy was discovered, a second, similar body was found in roughly the same area. This time it was a female mummy, who was only 4 inches (.10 m) high.

Nearly every Native American culture tells of a race of little people. Oral traditions from the Arapaho, Sioux, Cheyenne, and Crow, examine a race of “little people” who stand from just 20 inches (.50 m) to three feet (.91 m) tall. 


In some tribes they are known as “tiny people eaters.” The Nimerigar are a legendary race of little people found in the folklore of the Shoshone people. According to Native American lore, the Nimerigar lived in the San Pedro Mountains in south central Wyoming and fought constantly with the average sized humans using poisoned arrows. It is said that when one of the Nimerigar became sick or old, they were killed by their own people with a blow to the head.


Most of these claims were considered folklore until the discovery of Pedro the mummy. The carcass of Pedro ended up in Meeteetse, Wyoming, at a local drug store where it was shown as an attraction for several years. On July 7, 1979, an article was published in the Casper Star-Tribune that stated the mummy was passed to a man named Leonard Wadler, who was a New York businessman. The carcass has not been seen since. Until Pedro the mummy is found, it will be impossible to determine if it is real. There is currently a $10,000 reward for the recovery of the remains.


______

When I lived in Arlington, Wyoming we met a Sheriff from Medicine Bow who told us about the little people found in a mine where they were mining for coal.  

The miners broke through a wall and behind it was a little person sitting in a lotus position on a shelf.  There were two women in there too, dressed in little old fashioned dresses.  

The first one they brought out disintegrated when it hit the air.  The second one was brought out in a glass enclosed box.  Supposedly that one was sent to the Smithsonian museum.  

The little man was claimed by a side show carnival owner to be displayed at the circus.

Later we heard about another one that was found in a cave in Torrington, Wyoming where a farmer was plowing his field. His plow broke into the cave, he went into the cave and found a little being. A guy came to the farmer and wanted to buy it but the farmer did not want to sell it and then it ended up missing.  I do not know what happened to it. - Aileen
    

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