Himalayas have the glory of being merciless mountains, which have killed hundreds of lovers of dangerous adventures. The slopes of the Himalayas keep in their icy embrace the bodies of the unfortunate climbers who have underestimated the climatic conditions of the harshest place on earth or just did not have luck.
People in the Himalayas were victims not only of raw weather. A lake in 1924 opened unrest in the global scientific community. The mystery of the lake with the skeletons has not yet found a rational explanation.
Lake Rupkund is a little glacial lake, accidentally discovered in the first quarter of the 20th century. Located in the Indian state of Uttaranchal, at an altitude of 5, 029 meters above sea level.
Rupkud stands high in the mountains, far from the usual trade routes to Tibet. Not located in an important historical aspect region and no one would know of its existence if its terrible secret were not discovered.
Skeleton Lake is the name that a little glacier lake gets, since in the water and ice around it have been found more than 500 human skulls, bones and all sorts of items. There are various hypotheses for the origin of the gruesome discovery.
Conservative archaeologists initially launched the theory that the skulls are a remnant of the ancient group of people who inhabited the area around the lake that are victims of a mass epidemic or a natural disaster such as a landslide or frostbite.
Proponents of this theory remain very disappointed when closer examination of the wreckage showed that the majority of the skulls have severe injuries. Some archaeologists have suggested that the reason for this may be sudden icy hail. Ice chunks the size of tennis balls caught up ancient Himalayans that had nowhere to hide from this disaster.
Some confirmation of this scientific statement can be found in the ancient Himalayan chants and legends. According to the legend of King Kanudzh (ancient land, which is located south of the Ravens), people angered the gods by not having complied with the wise counsel of their shamans.
After attending an important pilgrimage in honor of the goddess Nanda Devi, the king with all his crew, many dancers, musicians and servants, and his pregnant wife are heading back to the palace, they cut across the sacred lands of the Indian goddess.
The pregnant queen gave birth in a cave near Lake Rupkund. This further angered ambitious goddess. Nanda Devi sent a terrible ice hail to kill anyone who dared to penetrate into the sacred land, especially the mother and the newborn, which are considered unclean immediately after birth.
Whether the legend is true, even with the efforts of modern technology can not be established. Modern DNA testing of the bones that have been preserved very well in the harsh climatic conditions of the Himalayas, show that the estimated age of the human remains found 850 years. That's almost half a millennium later than the initial estimate of the scientists who made the ominous discovery.
Another interesting fact is the categorical distinction between two very different groups of skeletons. Half of the ruins belonged to abnormally short people. DNA tests show remains of unusual genetic mutations that can not be linked to indigenous peoples of this region. Almost a century after its discovery, the Lake still hides its dark secret.
