The Mystery of the Mary Celeste

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The Mystery of the Mary Celeste
Tweet Topic Started: Thu Dec 30, 2010 1:40 pm (486 Views)
Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 1:40 pm Post #1
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	While I was looking into some of the great Bela Lugosi's film catalog, I came across a film, (that I'm waiting to see) called "Phantom Ship" Which is a highly fictitious depiction of the tale of the ship called Mary Celeste, or in this case, the "Marie" Celeste, a misnomer which originates from an Arthur Conan Doyle short story of the same subject. The fictitious versions both deal in murder as an explanation to the ship's inexplicable abandonment The real ship was a brigantine, flying under an American flag, which had set sail from New York 11/7/1872, bound for Genoa, with a cargo of, aprox. 1700 barrels of denatured alcohol. The persons aboard were, the captain - Benjamin S. Briggs (37), his wife Sarah (30) & child Sophia (2), the 1st mate - Albert G. Richardson (28), the 2nd mate - Andrew Gilling (25), The cook - Edward Wm. Head (23), seaman Arian Martens (35), seaman Volkert Lorenson (29), Seaman Boy Lorenson (23) & seaman Gotlieb Gondeschall (23) On 12/5 The ship was found completely abandoned, in water logged, but seaworthy condition, by the crew of the Dei Gratia, which had been following a similar course, several days behind. The early notions of a pirate attack, or being otherwise commandeered were eventually dismissed, & what presumed signs of foul play were explained, an axe mark on the rail, which was likely from cutting loose the halyard rope, the finding of blood on a sword, which turned out to be rust, etc... Most notably, the cargo, provisions & valuables were left undisturbed, & only the people went missing The event (Possibly the most intriguing maritime mystery ever) has been investigated, rumored & fictionalized, extensively for a century or more, & I was just wondering what anyone might have heard about it. I found a website which has what seems to be the most plausible recreation of events, http://www.deafwhale.com/maryceleste/ that suggests a seaquake (Which went unrecorded) causing enough stir aboard to loosen some 9 barrels which were later found empty, & dump some five hundred gallons of alcohol into the bilge, causing alcohol fumes to flow heavily throughout the ship. With a burning cooking stove on board, in the galley (Which had been found jostled loose from its chocks) I imagine the galley stove suddenly being tossed around, spurting smoke, sparks & embers, into an alcohol infused galley, led them to hastily abandon ship for fear of explosion Or perhaps there was no quake at all, & the evacuation took place solely due to fear of alcohol vapor filling the ship, because of poor barrel integrity suddenly giving way to the flammable emergency condition. The 9 empty barrels were made of different materials than the rest of the stock. The general disarray that the ship was found in (Broken compass, shifted stove, etc...) could be attributable to having been derelict, in rough waters. Still other theories have the ship being struck by a water tornado, leaving the captain to believe the ship was sinking, or other internal problems that prematurely led the captain to believe that the ship was going to be unnavigable, (broken bilge pumps, damaged sails etc...) Either way, they cut loose a lifeboat (Which was found missing) & got everyone aboard (The sextant, chronometer & captain's papers were missing as well), & possibly tied themselves to the ship with a length of sturdy rope (Found dragging loose behind the ship, possibly cut from the halyard) to wait out the possible emergency, which actually never happened It seems plausible that the rope gave way somehow, & the poor souls were left with the choice to set sail to safe haven, or to reacquire their ship They chose poorly, or failed in whatever attempt they made The ship was claimed as salvage by the crew of the Dei Gratia, whose commander, Captain Morehouse was a friend of Briggs, & who was eventually cleared of all arrant claims that he was connected to its fate Nothing is known of the fate of all hands aboard, but it is notable to mention that many weeks (like months) later several bodies washed up on the shore of Northern Spain at Biscayne Bay, tied to two crudely fashioned rafts, which could very well have been the remains of the lifeboat. An American flag was found with it It seems that with all the intrigue surrounding this event, & all the various confusion & misrepresentation of the tale over time, someone would have put together a realistic recounting of the events & made a modern movie out of it or something Or maybe it was the time traveling Daleks from Dr. Who, that made them jump ship That was in one of their episodes



VioletCloud	Thu Dec 30, 2010 1:52 pm Post #2
Water Tribe! Posts: 18,370 Group: Admin Member #1,331 Joined: October 14, 2007	wow, that is very intriguing!
	All my posts are done from my tablet. I apologize for all strange errors in my posts... as swype hates me.


Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 2:00 pm Post #3
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	VioletCloud Thu Dec 30, 2010 1:52 pm wow, that is very intriguing! What's even crazier is the myth that developed from it. With theories as wild as the crew going batshit crazy from drinking the denatured alcohol (Which would more likely have killed them) Or the Dei Gratia crew murdered them for the salvage rights, poisoned food which made them all hallucinate, or even sea monsters! All fairly well debunked



Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 2:05 pm Post #4
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	Oh yeah, & wrongful accounts, like people saying meals & drinks were still warm & pipes, cigars & such were still smoking, which isn't even possible, because it took the salvage crew like 2 hours to even board her



slutpuppy	Thu Dec 30, 2010 2:09 pm Post #5
Posts: 8,024 Group: Cardassian 5000 post angel Member #5,886 Joined: June 3, 2009	ok i was agreeing with violet, but mojo you post too fast lol and i got sidetracked lol
	trekslut=lus stalker rest in peace mr meowgi 12/28/10 thank you denny, i love it!!! :*


Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 2:16 pm Post #6
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	I want a movie about this! But actually it's horribly tragic, with the captain's family dying & stuff



wissaboo	Thu Dec 30, 2010 4:42 pm Post #7
Posts: 25,676 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: November 16, 2005	probably this sort of thing happened more than once. Ships were lost at sea all the time with no explanation and no later sightings. This could have just as easily been the same thing if another ship hadn't happened along.



magentastorm	Thu Dec 30, 2010 4:49 pm Post #8
Randomer than you since 1992 Posts: 5,089 Group: Ships 5000 Post Member #3,684 Joined: July 28, 2008	Yeah, a movie would be interesting. I was fascinated with the story of the Mary Celeste when I first read about it, and really it was a bit of a disappointment to hear the perfectly plausible 'evacuation because of alcholol fumes' theory instead of something more supernatural. But at the same time I'm still glad there's an answer, because I hate things like this not having an explanation



AWOLangel	Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:09 pm Post #9
Posts: 36,542 Group: DS9 Nirvana Member #25 Joined: January 17, 2006	i think the did a segment about that on unsolved mysteries long ago
	All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.--Abraham Lincoln


wissaboo	Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:15 pm Post #10
Posts: 25,676 Group: Admin Member #1 Joined: November 16, 2005	I loved that show.



Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:51 pm Post #11
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	Yeah, I think the BBC did a special on it too. You'd think there'd be a movie script in it. It'd have to be a fair sight better than Master and Commander



Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:54 pm Post #12
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	magentastorm Thu Dec 30, 2010 4:49 pm Yeah, a movie would be interesting. I was fascinated with the story of the Mary Celeste when I first read about it, and really it was a bit of a disappointment to hear the perfectly plausible 'evacuation because of alcholol fumes' theory instead of something more supernatural. But at the same time I'm still glad there's an answer, because I hate things like this not having an explanation I'm the opposite actually. It centers my reality to find out the realistic possibilities of things like supposed "Ghost" ships & such. Plus it's still very gripping, given that they were likely taking a very sensible precautionary action by evacuating, but it somehow went horribly wrong



slutpuppy	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:13 pm Post #13
Posts: 8,024 Group: Cardassian 5000 post angel Member #5,886 Joined: June 3, 2009	Mojochi Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:51 pm Yeah, I think the BBC did a special on it too. You'd think there'd be a movie script in it. It'd have to be a fair sight better than Master and Commander or titanic by cameron i hated that movie and yes i know im probably the only female in the world that did. they should get sebastion junger to write about it, and make it into a movie, he did a fair enough job with a perfect storm.
	trekslut=lus stalker rest in peace mr meowgi 12/28/10 thank you denny, i love it!!! :*


AWOLangel	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:20 pm Post #14
Posts: 36,542 Group: DS9 Nirvana Member #25 Joined: January 17, 2006	slutpuppy Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:13 pm Mojochi Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:51 pm Yeah, I think the BBC did a special on it too. You'd think there'd be a movie script in it. It'd have to be a fair sight better than Master and Commander or titanic by cameron i hated that movie and yes i know im probably the only female in the world that did. i never seen it the whole way through, but i didn't like it either
	All that I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother.--Abraham Lincoln


slutpuppy	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:42 pm Post #15
Posts: 8,024 Group: Cardassian 5000 post angel Member #5,886 Joined: June 3, 2009	AWOLangel Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:20 pm slutpuppy Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:13 pm Mojochi Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:51 pm Yeah, I think the BBC did a special on it too. You'd think there'd be a movie script in it. It'd have to be a fair sight better than Master and Commander or titanic by cameron i hated that movie and yes i know im probably the only female in the world that did. i never seen it the whole way through, but i didn't like it either this sounds awful but the best part of that movie was the ship sinking, they did do a good job with that. the rest of it was rubbish
	trekslut=lus stalker rest in peace mr meowgi 12/28/10 thank you denny, i love it!!! :*


Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:43 pm Post #16
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	slutpuppy Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:13 pm perfect storm. Oh yeah, like that!



magentastorm	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:45 pm Post #17
Randomer than you since 1992 Posts: 5,089 Group: Ships 5000 Post Member #3,684 Joined: July 28, 2008	Mojochi Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:54 pm magentastorm Thu Dec 30, 2010 4:49 pm Yeah, a movie would be interesting. I was fascinated with the story of the Mary Celeste when I first read about it, and really it was a bit of a disappointment to hear the perfectly plausible 'evacuation because of alcholol fumes' theory instead of something more supernatural. But at the same time I'm still glad there's an answer, because I hate things like this not having an explanation I'm the opposite actually. It centers my reality to find out the realistic possibilities of things like supposed "Ghost" ships & such. Plus it's still very gripping, given that they were likely taking a very sensible precautionary action by evacuating, but it somehow went horribly wrong I'm sort of in the middle on that. When I read about/see a documentary on a 'paranormal' mystery and I know that the real answer or some reasonable theories will be presented at the end of the article/show, I centre my thoughts on scientific/skeptic explanations and am usually happy with the answer given (especially if I was able to guess the answer before it was revealed,) but if I see an unsolved mystery and a long time goes by between hearing about the mystery and finding the answer, I inevitably find it a little disappointing that it's no longer a mystery with a possible paranormal cause, but still glad that I know the real answer. If that makes any sense at all.



slutpuppy	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:46 pm Post #18
Posts: 8,024 Group: Cardassian 5000 post angel Member #5,886 Joined: June 3, 2009	and what about a rogue wave, that would explain alot of things too.
	trekslut=lus stalker rest in peace mr meowgi 12/28/10 thank you denny, i love it!!! :*


Mojochi	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:49 pm Post #19
........................... Posts: 13,333 Group: Movie Era 10000 post spammer Member #1,478 Joined: November 14, 2007	Quote: I'm sort of in the middle on that. When I read about/see a documentary on a 'paranormal' mystery and I know that the real answer or some reasonable theories will be presented at the end of the article/show, I centre my thoughts on scientific/skeptic explanations and am usually happy with the answer given (especially if I was able to guess the answer before it was revealed,) but if I see an unsolved mystery and a long time goes by between hearing about the mystery and finding the answer, I inevitably find it a little disappointing that it's no longer a mystery with a possible paranormal cause, but still glad that I know the real answer. If that makes any sense at all. It does. You get caught up in the mystery of the unknown, which is fun, I'm sure. I however get annoyed, the longer a mystery goes unresolved, with how ridiculous the conjecture gets, like the Loch Ness Monster Would somebody solve that crap finally!



slutpuppy	Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:50 pm Post #20
Posts: 8,024 Group: Cardassian 5000 post angel Member #5,886 Joined: June 3, 2009	magentastorm Thu Dec 30, 2010 6:45 pm Mojochi Thu Dec 30, 2010 5:54 pm magentastorm Thu Dec 30, 2010 4:49 pm Yeah, a movie would be interesting. I was fascinated with the story of the Mary Celeste when I first read about it, and really it was a bit of a disappointment to hear the perfectly plausible 'evacuation because of alcholol fumes' theory instead of something more supernatural. But at the same time I'm still glad there's an answer, because I hate things like this not having an explanation I'm the opposite actually. It centers my reality to find out the realistic possibilities of things like supposed "Ghost" ships & such. Plus it's still very gripping, given that they were likely taking a very sensible precautionary action by evacuating, but it somehow went horribly wrong I'm sort of in the middle on that. When I read about/see a documentary on a 'paranormal' mystery and I know that the real answer or some reasonable theories will be presented at the end of the article/show, I centre my thoughts on scientific/skeptic explanations and am usually happy with the answer given (especially if I was able to guess the answer before it was revealed,) but if I see an unsolved mystery and a long time goes by between hearing about the mystery and finding the answer, I inevitably find it a little disappointing that it's no longer a mystery with a possible paranormal cause, but still glad that I know the real answer. If that makes any sense at all. you always make sense
	trekslut=lus stalker rest in peace mr meowgi 12/28/10 thank you denny, i love it!!! :*


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