The point, I think, is what it tells us about ourselves or, more precisely, what our preoccupation with it tells us about ourselves. The rumors said it was deep underground, but from what they had seen, the body appeared to be fresh. A group of urban explorers were pushing deeper into the mines, into one of the most unexplored areas, when they came across the body of a woman. Their development really took off when Odessa the city was founded by Catherine the Great in the late 1700s. Pearl did interview another man, Kostya Pugovkin, who claimed to have dragged the corpse in the photograph up and to a police station in the hope of getting a reward; Pugovkin stated that he was told by others that the dead person was "a Satanist who got lost". They go on multi-day underground treks, known as expeditions, to document and map the system. Eventually, a journalist wrote about the body, and within 24 hours, the police came and had it removed. Her friends never were able to find her, and the police saw neither hide nor hair of her, as they didn't want to venture into the mysterious catacombs. Today, there are dozens of semi-professional catacomb explorer groups that venture into the Odessa catacombs. Its proof that Masha suffered a terrible fate. In January of 2012, for example, a 22-year-old student who trekked into the Odessa catacombs to explore subsequently went missing; a search was mounted, but a few days later, officials announced that they had decided to stop the search, reported the Ukrainian News Agency at the time. These men and women would play chess, checkers, cook, and listen to Soviet Radio, generally trying to make a normal life below the surface of the city. Eager to escape, she ran through the tunnels, not knowing she was heading the wrong direction. In line with the 2009 forum post on Urban Explorer's Resource (UER) with a catacombs explorer known as Eugene Lata, whom brought Masha's tale towards the English-speaking world, the tale starts later on New 12 months's time (or even New Year's Eve) in 2005. They're the backdrop for the tragic tale of Masha, an innocent partygoer who ventured down into the depths with some friends, took a wrong turn or two, and got lost forever. [1] But catacombs can be more than religious passageways or burial grounds. It's not unlikely that she drunkenly forgot to leave a trail of breadcrumbs. Odessa is built from the catacomb coquina. It was wearing jeans and modern shoes, and did appear to be the result of a fairly recent death. Or here. CMI is a proven leader at applying industry knowledge and engineering expertise to solve problems that other fabricators cannot or will not take on. They did seem to have belonged to a girl but the identity of the person was never confirmed. While you may have never heard of the Odessa catacombs, they are filled with legends and dark tales that you'll never forget. In 2009, a post was made on the urban exploration website UER which first brought forth Masha's story, and a photo of the purported body (warning: graphic) was posted in which three (possibly four) young urban explorers appear to have discovered her remains. With the onset of a global pandemic causing the shutdown of fan conventions all over the world, it was only a matter of time before the cancellations hit the Theres something strange moving through Kentucky like a virus, twisting through the Mammoth Cave system and hovering in the skies above the Appalachian Mountains. On January 1st, 2005, some Odessa teens decided to spend New Years night partying in the catacombs. The Fascist Germans and Romanians meanwhile chose random catacomb exits and sealed them, hoping to trap the men below the city forever, and occasionally tossed poison gas canisters into the catacombs hoping to smoke the soviet rebels out. The legend goes a little something like this: In 2005, a group of teenagers headed out on New Year's Eve (or New Year's Day, depending on the source) to have a little party. Photo shows bomb-shelters in catacombs - system of underground tunnels, organized by citizens of Odessa, on March 23, 2022 in Odessa, Ukraine. The most famous photoone that Lata told VICE in an email that he was involved in takingshows three blank-faced boys who look like they're in their early teens, posing like they've just stumbled upon the body in a narrow, curved section of the cavern. One story stands out among the rest, and that is the story of Masha. Odessa, just outside of Ukraine's capital, Kiev, is home to one of the largest catacombs in the entire world. As is the nature of people, and urban explorers, tunnels and caves outside of the trusted zone serve as an exhilarating adventure. 7 Things You Didn't Know About Odessa's Catacombs - Culture Trip [2] According to urban legend, these mines were abandoned and later used and widened by local smugglers who created a labyrinth of tunnels and hid treasure beneath Odesa. ", "That's why I really beg you not to try to walk underground in Odessa itself. During the Cold War, they served as bomb shelters. 2015 CMI GROUP of Companies | All Rights Reserved, Materials Database Product Specifications, Reverse Engineered Collector Ring Standoff. Lists of true accounts of real people who survived unfathomable situations and depictions of fights for survival in film, TV, video games, and other media. Our story begins sometime early in 2005, when a party (possibly for New Years) was allegedly held within the catacombs by a group of young adults. In a post from 2010, he claimed that he used to take trips that lasted over a week, and that he'd fill his "catacombs bag" with food, camping equipment, diving gear, and mapmaking tools to prepare for long trips. Over the years, urban explorers have traveled to Odessa to explore the catacombs, despite only a small portion of them being open to the public. Legends, after all, frequently function as lenses through which to examine our own fears and, maybe, do something about them. The boys in the photograph found her, its said or, at least, her remains. Investigating the mysterious death of a young woman who wandered into an underground tunnel and never came outbut lives on as an internet rumor. Winner will be selected at random on 06/01/2023. A photo tour of the catacombs of Odessa 1 of 15 CNN Known as the Pearl of the Black Sea, Odessa is one of the most captivating destinations in Ukraine. Based on where she was found it is believed Masha spent at least three days wandering in the freezing cold and pitch black before dying of dehydration. The catacombs are not easy to navigate, especially when you're drunk like Masha might have been that night. The thought is fukking with my head. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. Like Atlas Obscura and get our latest and greatest stories in your Facebook feed. Since the organization is in charge of fielding inquiries about the Catacombs it "probably prefers to stay out of this business, just as I do," Lata theorized. Authorities have also suggested that the photo is a prank, and that the corpse is a fake. On a more historical basis, it is also believed that the catacombs were used to murder and store Jewish people during World War II. It does not store any personal data. After the war, the tunnels remained active with smugglers and criminal groups who went so far as to widen or even create their own tunnels. His descriptions of his journeys into the dark were tantalizing tales of adventure. March 18, 2023 Uncategorized Leave a Comment Uncategorized Leave a Comment Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. The origins of the Odessa catacombs The catacombs in Odessa are made out of limestone and are thought to originate from the 16th century, when people began using the limestone for building. Odesa's Maze-Like Catacombs Could Be Bad News For Russian Invaders She didn't make it out alive, it's said. Contents Girl lost in odessa catacombs Description History Accidental deaths References All photos by Wikimedia Commons user . However, the catacombs began to truly grow into their astonishing, labyrinthine form in the early 1800s, when the limestone quarried from them was used to build much of the city. Theyve also never been fully mapped, and its common for sections to flood, or collapse, or suffer any number of structural issues. The Enduring Legend of the Girl Who Died in Odessa's Catacombs It`s a dead body of the 19-years old girl, who has lost the right way in the maze. They go on multi-day underground treks, known as expeditions, to document and map the system. [citation needed], The first underground stone mines started to appear in the 19th century, while vigorous construction took place in Odesa. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Every weekday we compile our most wondrous stories and deliver them straight to you. There also would have been nowhere to stay warm, since that area is also not deep enough for it to have been much warmer than the chilly surface weather that night. Or maybe they were looking for bodies. They left without her and she never reappeared. The closest thing in real life to the deadly labyrinth of King Minosor, if you prefer, the one from the movie Labyrinthis a network of tunnels under the city of Odessa, Ukraine. Explorers make gruesome discovery inside Odessa Catacombs - Week In Weird Creepy stories about the Odessa catacombs range fromdead bodies found in catacombs, topeople who have gotten lost in catacombs and were never seen again. But the photograph is not without context, of course; theres a story thats passed around alongside it. 24TV later reported that he was never located. See. So it's a photo of a body that willit seemsnever be positively identified, and it immortalizes the last moment of someone's life. Such tours are not officially sanctioned[4] because the catacombs have not been fully mapped and the tunnels themselves are unsafe. This was enough to drive a group of explorers to the area in search of the supposed corpse, and it appeared they actually found it. Just Masha; no surname is given. http://whatsupkuwait.files.wordpress.com/2010/09/odessa-catacombs-10069-large_slideshow.jpg, http://whofortedblog.com/2014/12/29acombs-illustrates-dangers-urban-exploration/. The catacombs appeared in the 19th century, at the time of Odessa construction. masha odessa catacombs photo - mobipalma.mobi A massive search effort was launched but they werent able to find her among the 2,500 kilometers of often unmapped tunnels. After three days in total darkness without food or water, Masha collapsed and died from dehydration. No one is exactly sure how she died, but it could have been dehydration or hypothermia. What followed for Masha was a three day trek from hell. Romania: Castles, Ruins, and Medieval Villages, Iceland in Summer: Journey Through a Fabled Land, Monster of the Month w/ Colin Dickey: Mokele-Mbembe, Accidental Discoveries: A Celebration of Historical Mistakes, Antiques and Their Afterlives: Stories from the Collection of Ryan and Regina Cohn, Monster of the Month w/ Colin Dickey: Satanists, Once Upon a Time: Fairy Tale Writing With Anca Szilgyi, Gourds Gone Wild: Growing and Crafting Gourds With Gourdlandia, Playing Ancient Games: History & Mythology With John Bucher, Secrets of Tarot Reading: History & Practice With T. Susan Chang, Why 18th-Century Scots Performed Mock Human Sacrifices Over Cake. Many of the partisan groups lived in the catacombs for the entirety of the rest of the war, and on occasion the partisan groups even managed to blow up German facilities. We dont even really know for sure whether the remains Pugovkin found are, in fact, the ones depicted in Latas photograph or whether Latas photograph is authentic in the first place. However, Pearl also found that a post about Masha in the FAQ section of Katacomby.odessa.ua the official website of the Odessa catacombs expressly stated (via Google Translate), It is worth noting that, apart form the author of the photographs, not a single person, both from among civilians and from among law enforcement officers, can confirm the authenticity of this story in Odessa. The post went on to say that, in the opinion of the operators of the site, the photo was a hoax. Since its creation, it has expanded understanding of the catacombs, and provided information to expand mapping of the tunnels. They admitted that they had gone to the Stone Mines, and maybe, just maybe Masha had gone inside.