Coral Castle In Florida Is Razor-Sharp And Weighs Over Two Million Pounds, Making Its Construction One Of The State’s Largest Mysteries
One of the most fascinating and unusual attractions in Homestead, Florida, is Coral Castle. The monument is made of 1,100 tons of stony coral, which means it weighs about 2.2. million pounds.
The rock features razor-sharp edges that do not make them ideal building materials. Its construction remains one of Florida’s biggest mysteries.
Legend has it that a man named Edward Leedskalnin singlehandedly built the castle in the early 1900s. It took him nearly three decades to complete.
However, he was only 100 pounds and barely over five feet tall. As a result, many people found it difficult to believe that he was responsible for moving and carving so much stony coral.
Leedskalnin claimed that he had learned the ways of those who built the pyramids, but others think that black magic was involved. Experts still argue over the methods that were used to construct Coral Castle.
In 1919, Edward Leedskalnin, a Latvia native, moved to Florida City after his wedding was called off. He had planned to marry 16-year-old Agnes Skuvst and take her to America with him. At the time, he was around 30-years-old.
But, just a day before the festivities were supposed to take place, she backed out of the wedding. It is unclear why she didn’t go through with the marriage.
In 1923, Leedskalnin began creating Coral Castle. In 1936, he began a three-year process of moving the castle to a plot of land he bought 10 miles away in the remote region of Homestead. Without the aid of modern construction tools and equipment or any hired help, he somehow managed to move over two million pounds of stony coral.
The material he used was commonly known as “stony coral,” but it is really called Oolitic limestone, which can be found throughout southeastern Florida. Its abundance must have been why Leedskalnin chose it for his castle. He spent nearly three decades building this monument for his lost love in the hopes of winning her back.
JHVEPhoto – stock.adobe.com – illustrative purposes only
Leedskalnin always worked at night by lantern light so no one could see what he was up to. However, one night, two teenagers witnessed Leedskalnin at work. They told authorities that the rocks were floating in mid-air “like hydrogen balloons.”
Leedskalnin claimed that he did not use any mortar. Yet, no light passed through the seams where the stones touch. He also came from a family of Latvian stonemasons.
The masonic symbols he incorporated throughout Coral Castle, in addition to neighbors hearing him chant incantations over the stones, led to the belief that he used magic to craft the structure.
He explained that he used a “perpetual motion holder” that he made himself to assist him with building the castle.
However, scientists say that such a device cannot and does not exist. Eventually, Leedskalnin finished constructing the castle in 1951 after 28 years. He died that same year.
When he was alive, he conducted tours of the castle for a fee of 10 or 25 cents. Today, visitors can still visit Coral Castle, although the rates have gone up since then.
Within the structure, there is a nine-ton gate, a three-ton gate, a Polaris telescope, and a sundial carved from rock. Furniture pieces, such as rocking chairs, tables, and beds, are made of rock as well.
Sign up for Chip Chick’s newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox.
More About:Freaky