Lead Masks And A Cryptic Note
The Mystery of the Lead Masks is certainly an intriguing one. It follows a series of mysterious events that led up to the unfortunate discovery of two lifeless bodies found in Brazil—and the disturbing scene that surrounded them.
Discovering The Bodies
On the afternoon of August 20, 1966, authorities got a strange call from a young boy who claimed to have come across two bodies while flying his kite in Niterói, Rio de Janeiro.
Brazilian government, Wikimedia Commons
A Treacherous Terrain
The authorities immediately responded, sending crews to the location that the boy had described, but the uphill terrain proved too difficult to traverse, and they had to turn back.
Nucleo de digitalizacao / IMS, Wikimedia Commons
The Disturbing Scene
The next day, a small crew of firefighters and officers made the trek up the hill to investigate—and what they found was more disturbing than they had ever imagined.
Identifying The Bodies
The bodies were identified as two Brazilian men, Manoel Pereira da Cruz and Miguel José Viana. And while there were no initial signs of trauma or evidence of a struggle, the scene was littered with strange items that filled authorities with more questions than answers.
Brazilian government, Wikimedia Commons
They Were Dressed To Impress
It’s unfortunate that it was a young child who happened upon this scene, because it wasn’t just odd, it was terrifying. According to authorities, the bodies were lying next to each other and were partially covered in grass. They were dressed in formal attire—with some strange added accessories.
DIY Eye Masks
Both bodies were wearing suits and ties with a waterproof coat over top, along with handmade eye masks made of lead—which is where we get the name “lead masks case”. But that wasn’t all.
More Strange Items
While the lead masks were at the center of the investigation, they weren’t the only bizarre thing found at the scene. Beside the bodies, authorities also discovered an empty water bottle and a package containing two wet towels. If this isn’t weird enough already—there’s more.
A Cryptic Message
Not far from the bodies, a small notebook was found with a seriously cryptic message written inside: "16:30 be at the specified location. 18:30 ingest capsules, after the effect protect metals await mask signal".
Now, it appears the men were certainly up to something. But what?
The Victims
Manoel and Miguel were electronic technicians from Campos dos Goytacazes, a town several kilometers northeast of Rio de Janeiro. Their families had apparently not seen them since August 17th. Authorities started piecing together the two men’s last days— and what they uncovered was unbelievable.
Vladhillrj, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Piecing Together The Puzzle
According to authorities, they believe the men had left home on August 17th, after telling their families that they had to go purchase materials for work. They took a bus to Niterói, arriving around 2:30 pm, and found a shop that would have what they needed.
They Went Shopping
A receipt found shows the men purchased their raincoats from a local shop, and one bottle of water from a local bar—where a waitress told authorities of her strange interaction with the men.
They Stopped At A Bar
The waitress at the bar claimed that Miguel appeared to be “very nervous” and was “frequently checking his watch”. Authorities believe they then went directly from the bar to the spot where their bodies were later discovered. But how did they get there?
They Hitched A Ride
The waitress at the bar was the last person to speak to the men. But she was not the last person to see them. Sources claim the men hitched a ride to the top of the hill in a jeep with two other men—however no one has been able to identify the vehicle, or the occupants. And that’s not all they were unable to identify.
The Autopsies
Unfortunately, it took several weeks for autopsies to be conducted as the coroner’s office was apparently “very busy” at the time. And while no injuries were reported—what they found was equally as unhelpful.
They Couldn’t Test The Bodies
Because the autopsies were so late, the bodies were terribly decomposed—which meant testing for toxic substances was not reliable, and therefore was not carried out at all.
This meant authorities had to dig a little deeper into other forms of evidence instead.
They Had A Fat Stack Of Cash
In addition to the water bottle, the towels, the coats, and the notebook, the men were also believed to have left home with enough cash on them to buy a cheap car—around 3,000,000 cruzeiros. However, most of this money was unaccounted for.
Authorities also took a deeper look into the notebook.
Central Bank of Brazil, Wikimedia Commons
The Notebook
In addition to the cryptic plan, the notebook also had a list of electronics part numbers, which was originally presumed to pertain to their repair business. Some people believed those numbers had a hidden message, but no one was able to decipher what it was.
But when authorities interviewed friends of the two men, they found something of much better value.
Relying On Theories
Because the autopsies were done too late, they hindered the investigation quite a bit. Authorities were not able to figure out if the men had actually injected anything, and no capsules were found at the scene. Basically, there was no way to tell how these men died.
The only thing we have now are theories—and the closest one to the truth is utterly bizarre.
They Belonged To A Group
While some people still believe foul play had to have been involved, the most widely believed theory involves UFOs. In fact, one family friend claimed the men were members of a very intriguing group of “scientific spiritualists”—who sought to contact extraterrestrials.
jdeeringdavis from San Francisco, CA, USA, Wikimedia Commons
An Otherworldly Experience
It is possible that the men were attempting to contact aliens or spirits using psychedelic drugs. In doing so, they may have believed that their encounter with the otherworldly subjects would be accompanied by a blinding light—hence the need for metal masks to shield their eyes.
The Most Likely Answer
It’s likely that during their efforts, the men died of a simultaneous overdose. This theory is backed by the strange message in the notebook, the lead masks, as well as some literature found in their homes pertaining to spirits and extraterrestrials.
Actually, there’s one last detail that makes all of this come together.
Someone Saw Something
While this information is nearly impossible to fact check, some sources claim that at least two respectable newspapers in Rio reported that a local resident believed she saw a “round orange UFO going up and down above Vintém Hill” on the night that the two men were up there.
Perhaps the men were successful in their attempt after all.
George Stock, Wikimedia Commons
An Unsolved Mystery
It should be noted, this theory is exactly that: a theory. Nothing has been proven. To this day, the “mystery of the lead masks” remains unsolved.
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