There is a pretty well-known saying that "curiosity killed the cat." But despite the fact that life is full of confusing or unidentifiable or curiosity-inducing things, people are still very curious. It's hard to find an object in the middle of the street that looks very unique and not wonder what it actually is. Luckily, instead of ending up like the curious cat, the people on this list usually left the situation with some interesting tidbits of knowledge along with some seriously mysterious-looking objects. Read on to witness their discoveries for yourself!
The Mushroom Deer Skull
This must have been a pretty scary thing to discover while taking a nice stroll in the forest. Although you never really know what you might encounter in the woods, you probably aren't expecting to find a lifelike skull of a deer that has mushrooms growing out of its eyes, making it look like a live creature. It's impressive that this person even had the courage to pick up this strange thing.
Most people would avoid touching any animal's skull that they found in the woods. But perhaps this one was so unique, with the mushrooms that were growing out of the eye sockets, that they couldn't resist.
It Almost Looks Like Jewelry
Imagine walking on the beach and seeing this shiny, glass-like object wash up on the shore. It almost looks like a piece of jewelry at first or at least something to hold jewelry. However, that doesn't seem to be the case. Who would have thought that it is actually something very, very different? It is actually not jewelry at all (or anything similar), it is a set of stingray teeth!
Now there is a poor stingray swimming around without any teeth. Maybe it was injured and somehow its teeth got away in the process. Who even knew that stingrays had teeth, let alone such beautiful pearly whites?
Metal Detector Goodies
Metal detectors can be a fun thing to buy, especially when you go to the beach. You never know what you may find hiding in the sand or near the water. It's so easy to lose something at the beach that there are countless treasures that are discovered by metal detectors. This person found a bunch of these little trinkets and didn't know exactly what they were or if they were ancient or new, but the internet had answers.
It turns out that they are actually very modern (not ancient) good luck or prayer charms. People throw them into the water on purpose hoping that all of their wishes come true. We wonder if they did.
A Bleeding Tooth or a Mushroom?
Don't you love it when something has a name that fits it perfectly? This fungus is known as Hydnellum Peckii. And although that is not necessarily the most fitting name for it, the common name certainly is. It is called a Bleeding Tooth. When you take a look at it, you realize that that is the most accurate description and most perfectly named thing you will probably ever see.
Imagine seeing one of these in the wild. It would be almost scary at first, as they don't even look real and almost look like they are some sort of animal.
The Mysterious Blue Nets in the Forest
This looks like something straight out of a horror film. Why are there blue nets tied to all of the trees in this strange manner? It looks like someone was trying to lead a path or say something to the people that might come on this path after. Although it appears to be quite scary and grim, the true answer to what are these strange blue nets is actually pretty dull.
These blue nets are used for harvest season for these trees. They are laid on the ground and rolled out to catch all of the fruit that falls. In the off-season, when there is no fruit they are rolled up.
The Eyeball From the Flea Market
This is such a unique piece that it is no wonder someone picked it up from the flea market, even though they had no idea what it actually was. It is a glass eye that has a piece of metal attached to it and three holes in the metal. The answer to what this is is not so shocking but makes for a very rare and hard to find item.
It was a promotional key ring for a company that made glass eyes for taxidermy. There can't be many of these in circulation!
The Magical and Groovy Mushroom
Have you ever seen such a groovy mushroom? Besides of course the ones that dominated decorations and themes from the 60s and 70s, most likely not. Most people are not lucky enough to see one of these magical-looking mushrooms in the wild. You probably didn't even know that they existed! But this purple, speckled mushroom does exist in the wild and is quite a magnificent thing to behold, especially all on its own.
This mushroom looks like it was ready and waiting to have its picture taken by someone. It was waiting for a long time in those quiet woods for someone to discover it.
A Nice Little Beehive
At first glance, you would probably think that this is a bird's nest of some sort. After all, the little logs do look like a cozy home for a small sparrow or other bird of a sort. However, this is actually a home for an entirely different flying creature. This is a manmade hive for bees, particularly the Mason bee. It was attached to a fence to give the bees a home.
This looks like a pretty fancy beehive. Imagine you are a bee and you get to go home to this. You probably would make all of the other bees very jealous!
A Strange Sort of Clip
This item has most definitely become obsolete throughout the years, despite being very popular for quite some time. You can tell just by the number of them at this flea market, how often they were used, and by how many people. They are a combination of metal or plastic hooks or clips and fabric. They are actually garter clips and they were used by attaching them to a garter belt to hold up stockings.
Once the new type of stockings and tights came into style, these bulky items were no longer necessary.
Porcelain Fungus in the Woods
Fungi never cease to amaze. Just take a look at these stunning mushrooms that were found in the middle of the forest. They almost look too perfect to be real. However, they are real and they are known as porcelain fungi. Of course whoever captured this photo was also quite impressive. Just look at the angle and the lighting of this. It makes an already incredible-looking thing even more amazing.
They really do look like porcelain, making the name for them quite fitting. The ground that is around them, which is perhaps covered in frost, also looks like porcelain. Maybe it is the porcelain forest.
A Unique Set of Unidentifiable Tools
This person found this interesting set of tools that all fit inside one another and comfortably inside this cover. They couldn't figure out what they were despite them being in the family for more than 40 years. The answer was pretty simple, but definitely pretty unique. They are actually a set of medical cervical dilators. It appears that someone in the family was a gynecologist (hopefully), or the possession of these would be quite strange.
Although there is no reason to throw these away, it also seems a bit strange to keep them if the gynecologist is no longer in the family.
Maybe They Had a Mouse as a Guest
This person was surprised to find this mysterious item in their house after hosting a house party. They assumed that a guest left it behind and couldn't figure out what it was and if they should return it to them. They probably wouldn't be needing it back as it is actually rodent poison. The only remaining question is why did someone bring rodent poison to a house party...and leave it behind?
That seems like a very strange and suspicious thing to carry around with you anywhere. Did they see a mouse and left it to help the home owners?
He Hit the Jackpot
Hopefully, this man was out foraging, because otherwise he just found an enormous amount of edible mushrooms and doesn't know what to do with them. These mushrooms are called Chicken of the Woods and, as you can guess by the name, can be cooked to taste like chicken. They are also often very large (although this is exceptionally large) and make for a great mushroom to forage and cook with.
It seems like this man came prepared with a bag to take home some Chicken of the Woods. However, he probably was not prepared for the amount and size of the mushrooms he would find.
Strange Finding at the Lake House
This is definitely not the first thing you want to find when you move to a new lake house that you just bought. It might make you think that the place is haunted or has some untold story hidden in the waters. However, luckily for this person, this is actually quite a harmless contraption and actually does much more harm than good. This is known as a fish crib and it is used to help baby fish grow without outside threats.
Although it looks like a pretty depressing place to grow up, without it, a lot of fish would die at a very young age due to predators that are much larger and stronger than them.
The Mushroom Fairyland
There seems to be no end to the wonders of mushrooms. They come in so many different shapes and sizes and colors that it seems like you could go an entire lifetime studying them and still discover new ones all the time. Look at this incredible mushroom. It is delicate and...purple! It really looks like a whole fairyland all on its own there, complete with the green moss and brown tree branch.
There are so many different types of mushrooms that it is hard to identify and understand all of them, which is why you should be very careful eating them!
A Small Stairway in the Forest
What do you think is stranger about this small stairway in the middle of the forest, the fact that it leads to nothing, or the fact that it is so small? Both are pretty strange and confusing until you realize that it is not for humans at all, and it is actually used as a mount for tieing horses. If you don't want to tie your horse to a tree at this popular stopping spot, this mount has you covered.
Only a true horse lover or nature person would understand that this is for horses. Any average hiker would have no idea what it was used for.
A Mushroom Army
How many mushrooms do you think grow off of one dead tree? You would probably think just a few. However, although it depends on the type of mushroom and the type of tree, and the overall general conditions...sometimes it can get to an excessive amount like this. All of these mushrooms were found surrounding just one dead elm tree. That is quite an army of mushrooms that grew around this dead tree.
It almost seems like they could write folklore and legends based on this. Maybe this was the ruling tree of the forest and this was the forest's way to commemorate its death.
This Is One Lucky Person
If you ever thought that you were lucky for finding a rare four-leaf clover, perhaps you actually were, but nothing compared to this person. They spent much of their quarantine time searching for four-leaf clovers, and they seemed to have been extremely successful. They even found many five-leaf clovers (who knew that was even a thing?). THe best part is that they chose to press and preserve each and every one of them.
Either this person is extremely lucky or they just live in a place where four and five leaf clovers grow rampantly all around. Either way, this is quite the collection.
The Dog That Hunts Truffles
Some dogs are man's best friend simply because they are cute and cuddly and have a store of never-ending love. Other dogs take things to the next level. This 10.5-year-old labrador retriever has a very special talent. You can take him out to the forest and he will come back with quite a treasure. He sniffs and searches for truffles, helping his owner collect and sell these expensive and valuable fungus.
If you don't know what a truffle actually looks like, you are in for a big surprise right now. However, you can't be too shocked as they are a fungus after all.
This Isn't What You Think It Is
At first glance, what do you think this object is used for? Its design makes it clear that it's made for the human body, and its pink hue makes it somewhat similar to certain parts of the male anatomy. However, it has nothing to do with that - it's actually meant for your neck. Yes, this curious item is a neck massager, meant to be used to relieve a sore neck and to promote relaxation.
For a device meant to help us relax, it's not the most appealing. However, for a sore neck, we would try just about anything!
The Cat and the Mushroom Are in Kahoots
This picture is adorable in so many different ways that it's difficult to find where to begin. Should you focus on the enormous mushroom (is it even a mushroom) that is protruding out of the tree and enabling this cat to stand next to the tree as if it was a personally-made stepping stool? Or should you focus on the camouflaged cat that is just naturally blending in with the tree it is climbing?
Whatever you focus on in this picture, it is guaranteed that this is not a sight that you will see often. How many mushrooms are large enough and strong enough to hold up a cat?
Hot and Cold Treatment
Although this is a very aesthetically pleasing tub, it is definitely a bit confusing. Why is it divided into two sections and why is it so low? And, although you can't see this, it is divided into hot water and cold water. This is actually a technique that is used in spas and wellness facilities to help with circulation by alternating hot and cold water on your feet a few times.
In Germany, this is known as "Wechselbad" and it is quite common. The repetive process of hot and cold and hot and cold is said to help with circulation issues.
The Hidden Mushroom Hut
This looks like the beginning of a storybook or a fairy tale...once upon a time, there was a little mushroom hut that housed a family of mice. Who knows what actually lives in this little mushroom home and if it was built intentionally or just somehow naturally created? But either way, it is quite a delightful sight to behold. It is both quaint and cute and whimsical all at the same time.
It would be tempting to just wait by this cool-looking mushroom to see what creature emerged from the depths of the moss tunnel. Surely, it would be something cute and whimsical as well.
Time for a Mushroom Dinner
Is it a loaf of bread or is it a mushroom? It's hard to tell at first glance. But it is actually a massive bolete mushroom that is completely bug-free (apparently this is quite rare). It is just ready and waiting to be eaten, and it looks like it will provide enough food for a large number of people. They haven't even finished cutting up the mushroom completely and they ran out of room.
These people seem to really have an appreciation for mushrooms, judging by the containers that they have to hold flour and other things. There are mushrooms everywhere there!
Strange Wire Handles Found in the Woods
Most people are used to finding incredible mushrooms or nature in the woods. What you are not necessarily expecting is to come across something that is made of mesh wire and has a wooden handle. You can examine it for quite some time, but it can be challenging to understand what it could possibly be. Who would think that it would be a fire beater, something that is used to extinguish small fires, usually made for cooking or warmth.
This mysterious item was found in the highlands of Scotland. It appears to have been handmade and once you understand what it was used for, it actually pretty cool.
The Mysterious Jars of...
What is your best guess as to what this jar contains? It almost looks like sticky rice or some sort of porridge. However, that is not the case. These jars actually contain natural sea salt. This sea salt was foraged from the ocean outside of Maine. Someone simply collected a few gallons of seawater, boiled it down over three days, and made themselves a few quarts of natural sea salt.
This seems like a lot of work for some sea salt. But at least they don't have to worry that there are any additives put into it. They know that this is 100% natural, fresh sea salt.
The Netherlands and Their Tall Nets
What are they trying to catch in the Netherlands with these tall net posts on the sides of the road? It almost looks like something out of a science fiction movie. There are so many of them lined up on the road and there is no clear explanation as to why they are there. The real reason may be a bit surprising as they are actually put there for bats.
In order to fly and have a sense of direction, bats need their noise to reflect in order to know where they are going. As this road probably just recently cut down some trees (which usually help the bats with this), these tall nets take their place until the trees grow.
Freshly Foraged Lilac Ice Cubes
Is there anything that sounds more beautiful and romantic than freshly foraged lilac ice cubes? Although most people can't tell a lilac from a lily, this person was able to go into the woods, identify the lilacs, pick them, take them home, and freeze them in some ice cubes. This makes for a beautiful and refreshing treat in the summer months that is sure to impress any and all houseguests.
If you aren't familiar with different flowers and the fact that some of them are edible, this might be a pretty confusing sight to you. However, worry not! It is perfectly safe and actually healthy!
Surrounding the Stop Sign
Ok, so what is your best guess for this? It's not every day that you see a stop sign that has almost every letter of the sign covered in a box of unexplainable material. It is certainly mysterious to the average person, but there is a very logical explanation for it. These are known as blinders and they are put on the sign so that people are able to read it even from a narrow angle.
Sometimes you can also see these on traffic lights and they are also known as directional shields. This little thing can save lives!
The Mysterious Terracota Container
This person found an interesting-looking piece of terracotta and didn't quite know what to make of it. It had four deep grooves in it and sunflowers painted on the sides. It almost seemed decorational, but what can you decorate with it? Actually, this item is quite useful and is a taco holder. Although few people probably have one of these in their homes outside of Mexico, it is quite an interesting piece.
This would be a great item to give to someone for a birthday who really loves tacos. They would never expect it and probably didn't even know something like this existed.
The Never-Ending Spiral
Looking from above, this looks to be quite a surreal spotting. It looks like an alien launch pad or a pit that never ends. There is a simple explanation for it, but it perhaps makes it even more interesting. This is actually a pit mine and the spiral that seems to lead to nowhere is actually a road that trucks drive on in order to transport materials that are mined from the bottom to the top.
That seems like a nightmare if someone tries to drive down while another person is trying to drive up. How would you even get out of a situation like that?
The Violin Mouse
You might be sort of scared when you find this hiding inside of a musical instrument. Is it alive? Is it an animal? Is it just a ball of dirt? What on earth is it? Well, luckily you need not fear. It looks gross and creepy and although it has a concerning name, it's not so creepy at all. It is called a violin mouse and it is often found in musical instruments.
It is actually just the result of fluff, dirt, and dust that have been collected inside the instrument over the course of a few years. Many musicians keep it inside the instrument for good luck.
A Butter Lover's Dream
You probably won't be able to find one of these utensils in your local home goods store, and if you asked for it no one would know what you were talking about. It's hard to even guess what this could be used for. This is known as a butter pick and it was used to pick up pieces of butter while at dinner. It seems interesting that a whole utensil was needed just for this.
Why couldn't they just use a fork? This seems like a very fancy contraption just to pick up pieces of butter. How much butter were people eating at the time that they felt the need to include this in their silverware set?
Strange Device Hanging From the Fireplace
This person walked into the rental home and found this strange device hanging next to the fireplace. After examining it carefully for a long time, they were no closer to understanding what it was used for than in the beginning. It appeared to have gears inside and pivoted into the fireplace. What is it actually? It is a clockwork spit turner for turning a roast or other meat automatically in the fireplace.
Although this item looks pretty strange it is actually quite useful. After all, why have a fireplace if you can't use it to keep warm and also cook some food?
A Very Unique Kitchen Utensil
There are all sorts of strange kitchen utensils. It can be a confusing and overwhelming world, especially for those who are just starting to cook. This one is particularly strange, with its wooden handle, round metal cup, and spikes with holes in them. Even an experienced cook might be baffled by this one. The only people who would know it would be the Portuguese as it is used to make the sweet called "Fios de Ovos" or Egg Threads.
Egg threads sound interesting enough, no wonder they need a special tool like this to make them! How do you think they made this dessert before the invention of this strange utensil?
Unexplained Purple Smoke
If this color cloud was seen in a sunset or a sunrise, no one would think twice. However, it looks like it is neither time of day here and the bright color is clearly coming out of the tower. Sadly, this looks much more beautiful than it actually is. The purple cloud is the byproduct of burning trash that has a high iodine content and it is polluting the air.
That is a lot of iodine-rich trash that is being burnt! It's sad that it looks so beautiful and yet is so bad for the environement.
The Cabbage Sized Mushroom
Did you know that mushrooms can grow to be the size of a cabbage...and even larger? If you didn't know before, now you do! This mushroom is known as the Laetiporus, or Chicken of the Woods. Not only is it massive and impressive, but it is actually also edible and tasty. And as you can see by the size of it, it can feed a lot of people, making it a great food to forage.
If you're starving and you come across one of these, you are in luck! It is quite a large mushroom and is said to taste like and have the texture of chicken.
Liquid Pouch Vests Worn by the Dutch
Every country has its own attire and traditions when it comes to clothing. These Dutch sailors seem to have something even more unique than normal. They are wearing bright orange vests with little liquid pouches. Here they were being interviewed after a big race. These vests are actually very useful and they are cooling vests. You're probably more accustomed to people wearing things to keep them warm, but here is a great alternative for those trying to stay cool.
Maybe that helped them to win the race. There is nothing like staying cool and calm during a big race!
It Looks Like a Very Large Birdhouse
If you were to guess that this was a very large birdhouse or a poorly built treehouse, no one would blame you. It's hard to tell what exactly this item is from far. One property owner was confused by the sight of these items on his property and couldn't figure out what they were used for. However, once he found out that they were bat homes, it was hard for him to consider removing them.
It doesn't look like there are very many tall trees in the area for the bats to live in, so these bat homes were probably necessary. Hopefully, he didn't tear them down.
The Random, Unexplained Pool
Although most people won't complain about random bodies of water in any location (after all, it can be pretty useful in the hot summer months), this one is a bit confusing. It is a well0built pool of water in the middle of nowhere. There is no house or home or even human dwelling anywhere in sight, so why do they need the pool? The answer is that it is for the fire fighters.
This pool is used as a reserve in the case of a forest fire. The water can be used by fire fighters to put out the flames quickly.
This Is Known as a Hip Bath
This is one of those items, that even when you figure out what it is called, you are still not so sure what it is actually used for. This is known as a hip bath, and although you would assume it is used for the hips, it is still pretty confusing. To clarify things, a person uses it when they have pain just in the lower part of their bodies and to soak just the bottom part.
It seems pretty strange to create an entire bath just for this. After all, why not just soak your entire body at that point? It can't do any harm and it must feel sort of strange to only soak the bottoms part.