MYSTERY

What Exactly is American Cheese?

The ooey-gooey goodness that is American cheese is delicious ... but what is it?

7 Ships That Disappeared Without a Trace

The true fate of many of these ships will never be known, but speculation suggests that storms, piracy, mutiny, accidental bombing, and even the attack of a giant squid could be responsible for their vanishings.

Vermont has been home to a strange series of disappearances.

The Lost Girl of Vermont's 'Bennington Triangle'

In 1946, college student Paula Welden went for a hike on a local path known as the Long Trail. Her fate has become part of Vermont's folklore.

The Dare Stones: The Elaborate Hoax That “Solved” the Mystery of the Lost Colony of Roanoke

What really happened to Virginia Dare and the rest of the Lost Colony of Roanoke? In the late 1930s, an enterprising con man claimed to know.

7 Mysterious People Without a Past

History is loaded with people who have disappeared without a trace; rarer are the ones who seem to have emerged from nowhere.

'Kryptos' at CIA headquarters in Virginia.

8 of History’s Most Mysterious Uncracked Codes

The world of cryptology is full of stumpers. Here are the stories behind eight especially infamous ones.

Agatha Christie's work is under fresh scrutiny.

Agatha, Edited: Mystery Author Agatha Christie's Work Is Being Reworked to Remove Objectionable Content

Some passages from Agatha Christie's library are being eliminated in an effort to address concerns over alleged xenophobia and racist descriptions.

Treasure Island: The Enduring Enigma of Tucker’s Cross

Finding a highly valuable treasure is one thing. Keeping it is another.

When Joyce Carol Oates Tried—and Failed—to Fool the World As 'Rosamond Smith'

The celebrated author decided she wanted to adopt a new writing identity for a mystery novel. It didn't turn out well.

Mary, Queen of Scots, painted by an unknown artist; and symbols from her correspondence in a graphical user interface tool developed by CrypTool 2.

How Codebreakers Decrypted a Trove of Long-Lost Letters Written by Mary, Queen of Scots

The letters, mysteriously misfiled among Italian documents, shed new light on Mary Stuart’s political machinations during her years in captivity.

An illustration by William L. Sheppard of John White and company discussing the ‘CROATOAN’ clue.

13 Tantalizing Facts About the Lost Colony of Roanoke

What happened to the Lost Colony of Roanoke? Corporate greed, dreadful diplomacy, and the wrath of Mother Nature. Also, we don’t know.

What’s on Alexander Graham Bell’s Early Audio Recordings? The Mystery Might Finally Be Solved

Alexander Graham Bell’s telephone helped fund his future experiments—some of which have proven tough to decipher.

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in 1986.

Queen Elizabeth II Wrote a Letter to the People of Sydney, Australia—But It Can’t Be Opened and Read Until 2085

In November 1986, Queen Elizabeth II wrote a letter to the people of Sydney, Australia. No one knows its contents, but it cannot be opened until 2085.

The Hydes’ homemade scow as found by searchers.

An Empty Boat in the Grand Canyon: The Mysterious Disappearance of Glen and Bessie Hyde

Bessie and Glen Hyde made history with their Grand Canyon boat trip in 1928, but not for the reasons they intended.

12 Memorable Facts About the S.S. ‘Edmund Fitzgerald’

More than 40 years after the most famous ship in Great Lakes history vanished during a storm, the cause is still a mystery.

Your giftee would die to receive these presents.

15 Killer Gifts for True Crime Fans

Humans have a strange and lasting fascination with the dark and macabre. Lucky for you, we’ve compiled a list of the best gifts for true crime fans that will appeal to any murder mystery lover.

A 2013 photo of the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, showing the vacant frame from which Rembrandt's The Storm on the Sea of Galilee was stolen.

10 Puzzling Unsolved Crimes

Unsolved crimes are exhaustively covered in the media, but chances are, there’s at least one crime from history in this list—from unsolved art heists to mysterious crimes committed against (or by?) royals—that you’re not familiar with.

Storms seemed to bring small blobs of a strange substance to Oakville, Washington, in 1994.

Weird Weather: The Mystery of the 'Oakville Blobs'

In 1994, goopy droplets of unknown origin rained down over the tiny hamlet of Oakville, Washington. Residents were curious. Then they started getting sick.

13 True Crime Books to Add to Your Collection

Discover 13 true crime books to add to your collection, including Truman Capote's classic 'In Cold Blood' and 'My Friend Anna: The True Story of a Fake Heiress.'

5 Mysteries Surrounding the 'Mona Lisa'

Despite all we do know about this Leonardo da Vinci painting, there are still a number of lingering questions.

Digging Into the Explosive Mystery Behind the Kentucky Meat Shower of 1876

On Friday, March 3, 1876, something unexpected started tumbling from the skies in Olympian Springs, Kentucky: gristly, oozing chunks of flesh.

How Victorian Explorers and Pining Lovers Used Coded Newspaper Ads to Communicate

“S. lkqo. C. hgo & Tatty.” It’s gibberish to you, but not to Captain Richard Collinson.

Handwritten code found in the back of the poetry book thought to belong to the Somerton Man.

The Somerton Man Has Been Identified By DNA Researchers 73 Years After His Mysterious Death

Seventy-three years after his body was discovered under strange circumstances, DNA researchers claim to know the identity of Australia's Somerton Man.

The globster known as the St. Augustine Monster washed up on a Florida beach in 1896.

6 Bizarre Globsters That Have Washed Ashore

Though these marine mysteries are often solved, globsters—unidentified organic masses that wash up on beaches—continue to capture the public’s imagination.