The most exciting thing I’ve ever discovered was a binder full of old baseball cards in the walls of my old apartment. It wasn’t really that interesting, honestly. Rest assured, these discoveries are far more fascinating — not to mention surprising.
Ancient footprints.
This long trail of footprints in New Mexico is old — really old. Archaeologists say they probably belonged to a mother and a toddler, making their way through the area during the last Ice Age.
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That’s one big egg.
If you were diving and found this, you might think aliens definitely live among us. Turns out it’s a squid egg. I mean, it’s still pretty alien.
The greatest.
“My grandparents have had these gloves for years. Never asked about them,” wrote the person who snapped this pic. “Turns out they’re signed by Muhammad Ali.”
Centuries in chain mail.
This fighter slipped his chain mail helmet on one morning back in 1361, before the Battle of Visby, and never took it off. Centuries later, it’s still on his head.
Cha-ching.
This person goes diving with a metal detector and sometimes makes a big find. This wedding ring, worth $5,000, had been missing for years before the diver returned it to its owner.
Out of nowhere.
It must be a strange feeling to look outside after a snowstorm to see that someone’s left a fully-formed snow bust on the curb.
So intricate.
This wall of prehistoric writing in the Amazon rainforest is an incredible eight miles long. It includes depictions of animals that are long extinct.
Ancestors.
These two vacuums both come from the same company (Bissell). Clearly, a lot of stuff can change in a hundred years.
Cave croc.
These dwarf crocodiles, which can be found in the caves of Gabon, have orange skin and can barely see. They may be in the process of evolving into a new type of croc.
Good boy.
This formation — a rock with some dead wood, covered in moss — looks suspiciously like an adorable little puppy.
❤️.
These miners weren’t expecting to have a day full of hearts, but that’s exactly what they got when they uncovered this incredible geode.
Frozen in time.
If you’re old enough, you’ll remember when most fast food restaurants looked like this. Now, you’ll have to enter a time warp to see them again.
Big bird.
The moa, a gigantic flightless bird, went extinct about 700 years ago. Archaeologists discovered this well-preserved moa claw, which shows just how big they were.
Three dimensions.
Incredibly, this Dorito got puffed up without breaking, then survived being jostled around in its bag without breaking. It should be saved.
Last of his name.
This is King Richard III, who was discovered under a parking lot. He was killed in battle, and represents the last of the Plantagenet kings.
Suspended.
It’s hard to appreciate the beauty of an individual snowflake when they last for such a short period of time. This snowflake, though, has become suspended in a spider web.
Eagle eye.
This satellite image helped solve a mystery, after someone noticed that it showed a submerged car. Turns out a missing person, who’d driven to their death, was inside.
Big chompers.
This person was exploring their family’s land when they found an honest-to-goodness mastodon tooth, dating back to the last Ice Age.
Theater seating.
The Paris Catacombs are full of mysteries, including this: a secret theater with room for 20, along with electricity, a bar and a dining room.
Secret fireplace.
After removing a wall at an old Victorian house, renovation crews uncovered this old cast iron fireplace, which looks like it’s still in working order.
