Hoax Museum Blog: Pareidolia

Posted: Wed Jan 01, 2014.   Comments (6)

Holy Cheesecake —

A family in Scottsdale, Arizona recently made a cheesecake. As it was cooling off it, it cracked in the shape of a cross. The reporter for azcentral.com asks:

"Is this a simple crust cracking or is this actually Jesus Christ coming back and showing support for this family's religious beliefs?"

Um. I guess I'll choose option A. My wife (the cook in the family) says it cracked because they didn't make it right. If you overbeat the batter, you'll get too much air in it, which can cause the cracking.

The family decided not to eat the holy cheesecake. Instead, they hope to sell it and donate the proceeds to charity.


Posted: Fri Dec 27, 2013.   Comments (3)

The Belen Miracle Window — Here's a case of pareidolia from 1927. That was the year Mrs. Baca of Belen, NM glanced up at the window that had recently been installed in the attic of her family's house and noticed "an image of Christ ascending into heaven" on the windowpane. [miracles of intervention blog]


Soon thousands of people were flocking to see the "miracle window". The Christ figure could only be seen during daylight, and only from the ground. If you stood in the attic, the window looked perfectly transparent.

The image survived attempts to clean the window, even when it was cleaned with gasoline.

But puzzlingly, the image resisted being photographed. Many tried, but only one person, Fernando Gabaldon, succeeded in getting a shot of it. He then printed the image on postcards that he sold for 25 cents each.

The window is back in the news because it's recently been acquired by the Harvey House Museum in Belen and will be on display on Dec. 21 and 22.
Posted: Wed Dec 18, 2013.   Comments (0)

The Virgin Mary Stump —
It can be found in Harlingen, Texas. A mesquite tree was recently struck by lightning, and now some people are saying the resulting stump looks like the silhouette of the Virgin Mary. But others say it looks like "a gnome with a peak hat." [The Monitor]
Posted: Thu Aug 22, 2013.   Comments (2)


Gummy Virgin Mary — Desmond and Amy Duguay of Turner, Maine claim that they found a piece of Dot gummy candy that resembles the Virgin Mary. They've put it up for sale on eBay, and bidding is currently at $215. [Bangor Daily News]


But some are crying hoax. The website corporatemal.com notes that there are Virgin Mary molds, which might have been used to create the Virgin Mary Dot.


However, the Duguays are sticking to their guns and insist their "Gummy Virgin Mary" is no hoax. In response to the accusations, they've posted this message on their eBay auction page:

I have seen pictures of the mold with a tape measure next to it and it is larger than the Holy DOT. All I can say is that I purchased the box of DOTs unopened from RiteAid in Auburn, ME. I have not altered the DOT in any way. I think that the only logical explanation here is that there has been some divine intervention that placed this Holy DOT in my box. You know, with the resignation of the Pope it may be possible that we have some sort of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" scenario playing out here... The Holy Dot was my Golden Ticket! Now all i have to do is get myself to the Vatican and try not to drink all the "Blood of Christ" and turn into a giant grape like how Violet Beauregarde turned into a giant blueberry.

Posted: Wed Mar 06, 2013.   Comments (0)

Bird Poo Jesus — Thanks to LaMa for bringing this recent Jesus sighting to our attention. A bird pooped on the windshield of Jim Lawry's car, while the car was parked in his parents' driveway outside their Brooklyn, Ohio home. When he got into his car, Lawry could clearly see the face of Jesus looking at him from within the poop. Lawry says it's "some sort of sign." [newsnet5.com]


Posted: Wed Feb 27, 2013.   Comments (6)

Pareidolia Roundup—October 2012 — Rust Spot Jesus
Spotted by Marcy Marksberry on top of her farm's corn silo. She says, "I just kinda veered my head to it and I saw it and it was there. It was weird." [myfoxdc.com]



Cloud Jesus
Filmed in the sky above Egypt (by someone incapable of holding the camera steady). [allnewsweb.com]





Angels Above Swiss Lake
Captured by Google Street view. [gawker.com]



Cookie Monster Crater on Mars
Or, as NASA explains, "the superposition of younger craters on older craters (in this case two smaller craters upon the rim of an older crater)." [nasa.gov]


Posted: Tue Oct 16, 2012.   Comments (2)

Martian Pareidolia: An Elephant in Lava Flow — An image released by NASA last week, taken by the Mars Reconaissance Orbiter, shows ancient lava flow on the surface of Mars, in the Elysium Planitia region. Some are saying that the shape of the lava flow looks like an elephant. Hmm. It looks like Jesus to me. (link: space.com)


Posted: Tue Apr 10, 2012.   Comments (2)

Monthly Pareidolia Roundup—Jesus on columns, floorboards, etc. —
Jesus on a Column
A shadow cast by a chandelier onto a column, that's next to a statue of Jesus in the school chapel of the Ursuline Academy in New Orleans. Some say the shadow looks like Jesus wearing a crown of thorns. Strangely, the shadow has been casting this shadow for years, but no one noticed before that the shadow resembled anything in particular.


Jesus Dead Ray
A dead cownose ray found by Erica Scheldt on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina. She saw an image on it that at first she thought resembled a homeless man. Then she decided it was Jesus. She left it at the beach.


Plaster Wall Jesus
While working on a house in Eldroth, North Yorkshire, painter Sam Dalby moved a stereo and noticed that the plaster on the wall behind it hadn't been finished, creating an image that resembled a bearded face. And obviously a bearded face = Jesus. Dalby took some pictures of the face, then covered it with two coats of off-white emulsion.


Floorboard Jesus
Elaine Ferguson was cleaning the floor of the Old Swan Inn in Paisley, Renfrewshire when she saw a mark in the floor boards. Yup, it was Jesus!


Virgin Mary in the Sky
Kevin McAleese was walking along a beach in New Jersey when he took a picture of the sky with a cellphone. When he later looked at the photo, he could clearly see the shape of the Virgin Mary. (I'm not seeing it at all.)


Plastic Glass Virgin Mary
A family in Colombia noticed a funny brown stain on their plastic spiderman glass. It was the Virgin Mary, who had materialized directly between two pictures of Spiderman.

Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2012.   Comments (0)

Burnt Toast With Image Of Romney Shaking Hands With Satan — This auction managed to generate some attention from the internet — enough to get it pulled from eBay. Try as anyone might, no one could see the image the seller claimed was there. And the guy wanted $88.40 just for shipping. Apparently the auction was really just a thinly veiled anti-Mormon diatribe. Link: gawker.com.


Posted: Mon Mar 19, 2012.   Comments (1)

TV Screen Jesus — This might be in the running for the stupidest pareidolia ever. Floridian Guerda Maurice was watching the Bachelor on TV when she saw a design she wanted to take a picture of. (A design? I have no idea what she means by that.) So she picks up her phone and takes a picture of the TV screen. Later she looks at the picture she took and sees "Jesus picture". That is, there was a reflection on the screen that she thought looked like Jesus. She was so excited that she made a locket out of TV Screen Jesus. Link: wtsp.com. (Thanks, Bob!)




Posted: Thu Mar 15, 2012.   Comments (2)

Face of ET Found in a Log — Ken Dobson of Chiseldon was sawing logs with a chainsaw for firewood when he saw the face of ET staring back at him from the log he just cut. Dobson doesn't say anything about believing the face to be a message from extraterrestrials. (So by American standards he's clearly nuts! Isn't it obvious this is a sign from ET?) Nor does he have plans to sell this on eBay. Instead he wants to have a professional slice more pieces from the log to see if he can get a couple more faces out of it to give to his sons. Link: BBC News. (Thanks, Hudson!)


Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2012.   Comments (0)

$8100 George Washington Chicken McNugget — Three years ago, Rebekah Speight of Dakota City and her kids were at McDonalds, where they ordered some Chicken McNuggets. One of the McNuggets went uneaten, but just as she was about to throw it out, Rebekah noticed that it resembled George Washington. So she took it home and kept it in her freezer.

And just a few days ago, this decision paid off when she managed to sell the GWCM for $8100 on eBay. But she's not keeping the money. It's all going to a charity to send children to summer church camp. Where they'll spend their time looking for the face of Jesus in tree stumps and the Virgin Mary in water stains.

Actually, I can definitely see the resemblance between the McNugget and the former president. Though is it that the McNugget looks like George, or George looks like a McNugget? (link: telegraph.co.uk)


Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2012.   Comments (2)

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2012.   Comments (4)

Pareidolia Round: September 2011 — concrete jesusVirgin Mary Sea Shell
Felicia Avila of Rio Grande Valley found a sea shell that she says bears the image of the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus. valleycentral.com

concrete jesusVirgin Mary Rock
Tammy Tollett was vacationing in Lake Tahoe when she found a rock that she believes looks like the Virgin Mary holding baby Jesus. She says this is the real deal (unlike, presumably, all those other phony pareidolia). orlandosentinel.com

concrete jesusConcrete Jesus Face
The face of Jesus materialized on Mary Vasquez's concrete patio. She's lived in the apartment for 18 months, but only noticed the Jesus face recently. Apparently she first tried scrubbing the face off her patio with soap. When that didn't work, she called the local newspaper. the33tv.com.

concrete jesusJesus on Cross
Clay Perry recently made a 7-inch cross from some leftover scraps of poplar wood. Then the grandfather of his nephew noticed it appeared to have the face of Jesus on it... right where the face should be at the top of the cross. Personally, I'm not seeing it. 11alive.com.

Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2011.   Comments (2)

Michael Jackson in Clouds — New Michael Jackson pareidolia (jackodolia). A 43-year-old builder from Stafford "who happens to be a bit of a skeptic" took this picture of his car. He intended to send the picture to a car sales magazine, until he noticed the image of Michael Jackson formed by the reflection of clouds on its hood. (youtube)


Posted: Thu Jul 30, 2009.   Comments (8)

Margaret’s Stain — A stain, shaped like a human body, can be found on the concrete floor of the Athens Mental Health and Retardation Center in Athens Ohio. According to legend, this stain marks the location where the body of a patient, Margaret Schilling, lay undiscovered for several weeks back in 1979.

A team of forensic scientists recently tested the stain to determine whether it's a genuine human decomposition stain, or if it was created artificially. They published the results of their investigation in the Nov 2008 issue of the Journal of Forensic Sciences (vol 53, no. 6), "Analysis of Suspected Trace Human Remains from an Indoor Concrete Surface."

Their conclusion: Yes, it's a human decomposition stain, although the stain has been made more prominent over the years by attempts to remove it:

Margaret’s body was probably in contact with the area of the stain for a period of 4–5 weeks. During this time, significant decomposition is known to have occurred, indicating that the room was apparently warm enough to facilitate bacterial degradation. During this time, anaerobic bacterial decomposition could have taken place in the contact areas between the concrete and the heavier, fatty areas of Margaret’s body, such as the buttocks, back and shoulders. Bacterial action is supported by the oddnumbered fatty acids found in the residues. Such decomposition, facilitated by the moisture naturally present in Margaret’s body, formed free fatty acids from the lipids in her subcutaneous tissue. This process may have been accompanied, in part or in whole, by the basic conditions provided through contact with the concrete. During the 4- to 5-week period in which the free fatty acids were being formed, and in any subsequent washing over the years, at least half of the sodium ions were displaced by calcium ions from the concrete. The result is a waxy residue of mostly calcium palmitate which is up to 2 mm thick in certain areas of the stain.In most areas of the stain, the waxy residue also resides in surface pores in the concrete, consistent with the suggestion that removal of the stain was attempted on at least one occasion.

At some point since the removal of Margaret’s remains in January of 1979, the floor has likely been treated with an acidic chemical— probably Blu-Lite (20.5% phosphoric acid)—to lighten the color of the waxy residue and of the concrete. The chemical etching was not uniform across the entire floor surface, however, but was selectively restricted to a shape that resembled the apparent outline of a human body.

What a great way to be remembered -- by the stain you left on the floor. (via Legends & Rumors)
Posted: Mon Jul 27, 2009.   Comments (10)

Jackodolia — More Michael Jackson pareidolia, or "Jackodolia".

The Edison family of Brazil prepared a roast last Saturday, but neglected to do the dishes for a day. Then they noticed that the face of Michael Jackson had mysteriously appeared in the roasting pan. Link: terra.com.br via ceticismoaberto
Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2009.   Comments (11)

Michael Jackson seen all over — The guy may be dead, but he's showing up all over the place. Michaeljacksonsightings.com has a few blurry pictures of the back of someone who vaguely resembles Jackson. They offer this as proof that Jackson faked his death.

A family in Stockton, California have noticed an image of Michael Jackson in a tree stump in their front yard. They swear the image only appeared on the day he died. (I'm not seeing anything at all.)


Then there's the ghost of Michael Jackson, which you can see in the video below. To me, it looks like someone's shadow.


Posted: Mon Jul 06, 2009.   Comments (10)

Pareidolia Roundup (June 2009) — Virgin Mary Air Conditioner
Antonia Ruiz of Texas noticed a stain on her air conditioner that looked to her like the Virgin Mary. Therefore, she built a shrine around the air conditioner.


Cheeto Jesus
A bag of Cheetos bought by Dan Bell at a North Texas gas station yielded this "praying Jesus". The couple have nicknamed it "Cheesus." (Note: there was a similar Cheesus in the news last year.)


Tortilla Jesus
Lloyd Osborne's wife had thrown away the packet of tortillas, but he "resurrected it from the bin" and found a tortilla inside bearing the "almost unmistakable" image of Jesus. (The article notes that one of the most famous examples of food pareidolia was the Jesus Tortilla of 1978).


Cheese Toast Jesus
Linda Lowe's boyfriend prepared her a cheese toast snack, but she didn't eat it because she noticed the face of Jesus "visible in the bubbled and burned cheese." She says, "when I do look at it, it does make me feel tearful. That there is a Jesus and he is real."


God Salami
South Florida resident Nancy Simoes was flipping pieces of salami in a skillet when she saw that one of them had the letter "G" on it. Then she saw an "O" and then a "D". The salami pieces spelled "DOG". or "GOD". One or the other. She says that she realizes people will think she's crazy, but "I can't make this up... it's there in the burn marks."


The Hand of God
Paul Grayhek of Coeur d'Alene had a rock formation in his backyard that looked like a right hand. He called it the "Hand of God." He tried to sell it on eBay. Or rather, he tried to sell the rights to it (including the movie and literary rights), although the formation itself would remain in his backyard. He had no luck (just hoax bids).


Marmite Jesus
The Allen family of Ystrad, Wales noticed the face of Jesus on the underside of the lid of a Marmite jar. Mrs. Allen said, "We've had a tough couple of months; my mum's been really ill and it's comforting to think that if he is there, he's watching over us."


Greasy Griddle Virgin Mary
While cleaning the griddle at the Las Palmas restaurant in Calexico, workers noticed an image of the Virgin Mary. The griddle was promptly retired from service and placed in a shrine in a storage room.
Posted: Tue Jun 09, 2009.   Comments (13)

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