Archaeologists have found a gate to hell (photo). Caves of Cape Matapan

In 1913, a sensation spread around the world: Italian archaeologists discovered one of the ancient portals of the Gates of Hell in Turkey. Among the ancient Greeks and Romans, these gates were considered the entrance to the other world, various rituals were held here with sacrifices to the god-ruler of the kingdom of the dead, Pluto. The gate was located next to a cave from which poisonous fumes from underground sources emanated, capable of killing any living creature. But it remained a mystery why during the rituals only the animals brought by the priests to the cave died, while the priests themselves remained unharmed. Finally, this mystery has been solved...

The gates of Pluto have been known since ancient times. The myths of Ancient Greece and Rome describe a cave in the city of Hierapolis, entering which one can enter the underworld. Around this gate, rituals were held in honor of the god Pluto. Only priests were allowed to approach the cave. Animals, having passed through a narrow passage, went out into the arena and fell dead here.

Crowds of pilgrims who wanted to see the amazing ritual of sacrifice, in which animals died on their own, without human intervention, flocked to this cave.
In the XIV century, a strong earthquake happened in these places, and the city of Hierapolis, along with its main attraction, was destroyed.

An amazing find of archaeologists

And in March 2013, the cave, known from the descriptions of ancient authors as the Gates of Pluto, was discovered by Italian archaeologists in Turkey near the city of Pamukkale. It was on this place that the ancient city of Hierapolis was located. The excavations were led by Francesco d'Andria, professor of classical archeology at the University of Salento.

Here, archaeologists unearthed the remains of a temple - several half-columns, on which inscriptions dedicated to the gods of the world of the dead, Kore and Pluto, have been preserved.

As well as the remains of the pool and the stairs leading to the cave. From these steps, the pilgrims watched the sacred rites of the priests.

All this fully corresponded to the available descriptions of the ancient sacred place.
In addition, this place corresponded to the descriptions of the Greek historian Strabo, who lived from 64 BC. e. up to 24 a.d. e.: " This space is filled with fog so dense that it is impossible to see the ground. Any animal that gets inside dies instantly. I threw sparrows in there, they breathed their last and fell dead».

Italian scientists have also confirmed the lethality of fumes in this place.
"Several birds attempting to approach the warm steam have died of carbon dioxide poisoning.", - said D" Andria. - We have solved this riddle. Poisonous steam from underground sources came out of the cave, which could really kill any living creature when inhaled. And, most likely, specially caught birds were released right at the cave in order to catch fear and show the pilgrims the mysterious power of the gates of Pluto".

These fumes, apparently, were also a source of hallucinations for those pilgrims who nevertheless took a bath in the pool and settled down near the cave for the night. And they took these hallucinations as a prediction of the future.

In November of the same year, a marble statue of the three-headed dog Cerberus, which is always present in the depiction of the Kingdom of the Dead, was also found here. He makes sure no one gets out. And here they found another guardian of the underworld - a stone statue of a coiled snake.

These finds confirmed that the cave discovered by archaeologists in the spring of 2013 in Turkey is indeed the “gates of hell”.

“We found the remains of a temple, a pool and a staircase to a cave - these are the elements described by ancient historians. We saw with our own eyes the deadly properties of the cave - several birds died before our eyes. This is an exceptional discovery and we will make every effort to restore the facility.”, - said the leader of the expedition Francesco D "Andria.

The secret of the cave is revealed

For a long time it remained a mystery why only animals brought as a sacrificial offering to Pluto, the ruler of the kingdom of the dead, die from poisonous fumes, while the priests who accompany them remain alive.

As scientists from Germany and Turkey, working under the guidance of Hardy Pfanz from the University of Duisburg-Essen, found out, the explanation for this "miracle" is quite scientific and quite simple.
The city of Hierapolis was located in one of the most geologically active places and, as a result, was famous for its thermal springs. And the "Gates of Hell" were built just above the fault site, it was here that carbon dioxide came to the surface.

Having determined the source of carbon dioxide, the scientists measured its concentration at different levels and at different times of the day.

It was found that at night its concentration is much higher than during the day. This is due to the fact that during the day carbon dioxide dissipates from the sun, and accumulates at night. It was also noted that its concentration depended on height - the higher from the floor of the arena, the higher the gas concentration. Scientists have found that the highest concentration of deadly gas was observed at dawn, when even at a height of 40 centimeters from the floor it reached deadly values. And higher she went down. Sacrifices were usually held at dawn, and the animals died from excess gas accumulated during the night. And people whose height is higher than that of animals remained alive. Perhaps they even stood on the rocks to be higher.

If, in fact, there is hell underground, then its gates are located in the Karakum desert in Turkmenistan. This ominous place is a unique gas crater.

Since it is located near the small town of Darvaza, the crater received exactly the same name. Moreover, in translation from the Persian language, Darvaza means “gate, door”. However, among locals and travelers, the ominous crater is called Hell Gate or Door to hell. Also breathing fire crater gate to hell is located 90 kilometers from the village of Erbent.

The crater has a fairly solid size: its diameter is about 60 meters, and its depth is about 20 meters. Any person or animal that accidentally falls into the crater will immediately face imminent death, since from the inside it is completely covered with flames that reach a height of up to 15 meters.

The gates of hell were discovered in Turkmenistan back in 1971, which became a real sensation. The fact is that at that time atheism was the official religion in the Soviet Union, and it was forbidden to believe in God, in the afterlife.

And the crater found by Soviet geologists with tongues of ominous flame escaping from the ground was taken by many people as clear evidence that hell exists. At the same time, the story was passed from mouth to mouth, overgrown with details (for example, that groans and cries of long-dead people are heard there) and could well pass for sedition against the leading party actively promoting atheism. But, in fact, the Gates of Hell crater has a very simple scientific explanation - geologists have found a large accumulation of underground gas.

Excavations and drilling of a well led to the discovery of an underground cavern (void), due to which the earth collapsed and a large hole filled with underground gas remained on the surface of the earth.

People were not injured during the formation of the hole, but the drilling rig, equipment and vehicles fell into it. To prevent the gas harmful to the health of people and livestock from escaping, they decided to set it on fire. Initially, geologists were sure that the gas would burn out in a few days and the fire would go out. But they were wrong: from 1971 to the present day, natural gas coming out of the hole burns continuously day and night. Not far from the ever-burning crater, there are two similar failures, but the gas pressure in them is much weaker and their craters do not burn. The bottom of one of these craters is covered with a bubbling mud liquid that has a light gray color, and at the bottom of another crater there is a beautiful turquoise liquid.

The theme of the afterlife does not lose its popularity even in the modern high-tech world. You can read about this not only in ancient myths, but also in today's popular social networks. Many people are sure that there are places on our planet that are portals to the Underworld. In our review, 10 such creepy places.

1. Houska Castle

Czech
Houska Castle is located 80 kilometers north of Prague in the Czech Republic. This is a Gothic castle that was built between 1253 and 1278 during the reign of Ottokar II of Bohemia. According to rumors, the castle stands over a huge bottomless pit - a portal to hell. Local legend says that Houska Castle was built to keep evil within its walls. From the outside, many windows are visible in the castle.

But upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that most of these windows are fake: behind the glass you can see the walls of the castle. There is a chapel inside Houska that is built right over the alleged gates to hell, presumably to keep them closed. When the castle was built, local prisoners sentenced to death were brought into it.

They were offered a reprieve from execution if they went down into the pit and later told what they saw there. The first person to be lowered into the pit on a rope let out a heart-rending scream almost immediately. The prisoner was lifted to the surface, after which it turned out that his hair had become completely gray (and he was 30 years old). When the Nazis used the castle as their headquarters, there were rumors that they were trying to open a portal.

2. Tunnel of Satan

Blue Ash, Ohio
In the forests of Blue Ash in the US state of Ohio, there is a supposed portal to hell that has become known as "Satan's Tunnel" among the locals. The story began with the fact that a local group of Satanists allegedly met in these tunnels, conducting their rituals there. The legend claims that they managed to open the door to hell, which today is guarded by the "shadow of a man." This shadow looks like a normal person, only completely dark. It is sometimes said that screams and "breathes of evil" come from the tunnel.

3. Seven Gates of Hell

Hellam, Pennsylvania
Hellam, Pennsylvania is said to be home to the Seven Gates of Hell, which are located in the local forest. There are several legends about the origin of this portal. According to one of them, a psychiatric hospital once stood here, which once caught fire. But the hospital was allegedly surrounded by seven gates that failed to open in time and all the patients burned to death.

Another legend tells of an eccentric doctor who erected a huge gate at the entrance to his mansion. As a result, they began to talk about seven gates along the local road that lead directly to hell.

4. The ancient city of Hierapolis

Pamukkale, Turkey
In 2013, a temple was discovered in the ancient city of Hierapolis (now Pamukkale) in southwestern Turkey, with toxic gas seeping from its door. The team of archaeologists saw that even the birds that flew by fell from the sky to the ground. On the temple columns were found inscriptions intended for the "gods of the underworld." Scientists suggest that they have found the so-famous "Gate of Pluto", described in mythology, which was an entrance to the underworld - a portal to hell.

The ancient Greek geographer Strabo wrote about these gates that behind them there is “a passage of sufficient size for a person to pass through it, leading to great depths. The space of the passage is filled with clouds of steam, so poisonous that animals that get inside die instantly.

5. Black Prince distillery

Clifton, New Jersey
The drains behind the Black Prince distillery in Clifton, New Jersey look quite normal until you climb inside them. The walls of drains running hundreds of meters underground are decorated with satanic graffiti and frescoes. Also, drains go in several levels, like the circles of Hell. They are full of bones and rotting corpses of alleged victims of Satanists. Legends say that at the end of the winding corridors of the drainage systems there is a room blocked by a pair of giant axes.

Only those with "authority" will be able to push back the axes and get inside, where they will see a flaming human skull, which is the final warning that you will face the devil himself next.

6. House of demons

Gary, Indiana
In 2014, ghost hunter Zack Bagans bought a house in Indiana that was rumored to be full of paranormal activity. It was also believed that there was a portal to hell in the house. Previously, the house is believed to have belonged to the possessed. In 2012, he became famous across the country when a mother and her two children living in the house were faced with something incomprehensible and frightening: a woman claims to have seen her 12-year-old daughter hovering above the bed, and her 9-year-old son walked on the ceiling.

Bagans bought the house from the woman, and in February 2016 destroyed it in order to “close the portal.” Bagans claimed that he really met with dark energy, and the demons in the house were really real. The house was bulldozed and Bagans collected the debris and locked it in storage, stating that the house should never be inhabited again.

7. Purgatory of St. Patrick

Loch Derg, Ireland
Saint Patrick's Purgatory is a cave on Station Island in the middle of Irish Loch Derg. According to legend, Jesus showed Saint Patrick this cave, in which he could see another world and hellish torment. Jesus told Saint Patrick that if anyone doubts the Christian concept of life after death, then Patrick can bring him to this cave, so that the doubter will receive visual evidence. In 1632, the entrance to the cave was closed, and a chapel was built nearby, which is visited by pilgrims every year.

8. River Acheron

Greece
The real Acheron is a river in Epirus, a region in northwestern Greece. However, this river also features prominently in Greek mythology. For example, in Homer's Odyssey, the protagonist is trying to find the underworld. Circe tells Odysseus that he will find the entrance where the river Acheron meets Pyriflegethon and Styx.

Virgil's epic poem "Aeneid" also mentions Acheron, but here it is said that this is the river into which the Styx and Cocytus flow. It was through Acheron that the ferryman Charon, according to myths, transported the souls of the recently dead to the afterlife.

9. Caves of Cape Matapan

Greece
The caves of Cape Matapan are located at the southern tip of Greece on the Mani Peninsula. As in the case of the Acheron River, this real place could be found in Greek mythology. This portal served as a "back door" to the underworld for those who wished to avoid Charon the ferryman. A temple dedicated to the Greek god Poseidon still stands above the caves. According to Greek mythology, Poseidon was the brother of Hades, the god of the underworld.

10. Stull Cemetery

Stull, Kansas
The Kansas town has become infamous for its satanic, occult and paranormal activity. The legend says that the devil himself appears in this place, and also that the local cemetery is one of the gates to hell. For generations, some locals have told these stories as if they were not legends but real events.

Even if these stories are not to be believed, it is a fact that there is strange activity in Stall. Buildings mysteriously light up for no apparent reason, and people hear strange voices. After the old church in the cemetery was demolished, a high fence was erected around the cemetery.

Lovers of everything mystical and unknown will like and.