Hidden below

10 unusual things people found buried in their backyards

Image: Evgeniy Kozlov

If you have a backyard, chances are you've wondered what might be lurking beneath its surface. While most of us will only find little more than rocks—or perhaps the remains of a long-lost pet—incredible discoveries aren’t as rare as you might think. From priceless treasures and ancient artifacts to entire forgotten graveyards, here are 10 astonishing stories of people who unearthed remarkable finds right on their own property!

Image: Rick Lobs

In Virginia, a homeowner unearthed a 150-year-old Civil War cannonball while digging. The artillery shell, found near the site of a historical battle, was over 150 years old. Such relics are not uncommon in Virginia, a state that saw more action than any other during the war. Despite their age, unexploded ordnance like this remains risky, as even after centuries these artifacts can still be active and ready to blow up.

Image: Steve Wrzeszczynski

In 2017, a man in Pombal, Portugal, uncovered the fossilized remains of a sauropod dinosaur while doing construction work on his property. Sauropods are a species of plant-eating herbivores. They are among the largest land animals ever to exist, and this particular specimen was even thought to be the largest ever found in Europe.

Image: Roman Kraft

In Massachusetts, construction work at a schoolyard uncovered a 124-year-old time capsule—a copper box about the size of a shoebox. Inside were newspapers from 1894, fragments of Civil War military uniforms, and lists of local residents who served in the war. The remarkable find was donated to a local historical society for evaluation and preservation.

Image: The DK Photography

In the UK, a man discovered an urn containing thousands of ancient Roman coins while digging a fishpond in his backyard, just four feet below the surface. Talk about striking gold! The coins were estimated to be around 1,700 years old. Roman coin hoards have been found across Britain, often dating back to the decline of the Roman Empire.

Image: Natalie

In Tampa, Florida, a family had their own "Goonies" moment while cleaning out their grandfather's attic. During spring cleaning, they discovered a box containing a tattered map of the Hillsborough River, 18th-century Spanish and Portuguese coins, a family photo—and a mysterious hand wearing an antique ring. To make it even crazier, some suggest the hand might belong to the infamous Tampa Bay pirate José Gaspar.

Image: Jerry Wei

In 1978, two Los Angeles children reportedly discovered a buried Ferrari in their backyard, thought to have been stolen years earlier. The wild story made national news, with the most surprising detail being that the car was in shockingly good condition despite its time underground. However, it was later revealed that the story was a cover-up: an informant had tipped off the police about the car's location, and the story was a plan to shield the snitch's identity.

Image: Library of Congress

In Plymouth, England, an unexploded World War II bomb was found in a garden, forcing the evacuation of 10,000 people. Bomb disposal experts took the device away and, after considering all options, decided to detonate it at sea. Unsurprisingly, the event brought the community together during the massive evacuation, with some likening the sense of unity to the "wartime spirit" of old.

Image: Jingming Pan

In a strange case from Roanne, France, a couple who had recently purchased a house found 28 gold bars buried in the garden, with an estimated value of 800,000 euros (roughly equivalent to 822,000 US dollars). However, when they attempted to sell the bars, their sudden riches drew the attention of the French anti-money laundering agency. This led to claims from the previous owners of the house, quickly turning the discovery into a legal headache.

Image: Dylan de Jonge

While renovating their home in Ames, New York, a couple uncovered a stash of Prohibition-era whiskey hidden inside the walls and floorboards. Bundles wrapped in tattered paper contained six bottles each of "Old Smuggler" Gaelic Whiskey, dating back to 1923. The house had once been owned by a German bootlegger named Adolph Humpfner, who undoubtedly left behind the secret stash for the future. A true treasure for whiskey lovers!

Image: Ashutosh Gupta

A family in Norway got more than they bargained for when searching their yard for a lost earring with a metal detector. Instead of jewelry, they uncovered relics from a Viking burial beneath a large tree. The finds included two bronze ornaments once covered in gold, possibly marking the first Viking Age (A.D. 793–1066) discovery on the island of Jomfruland. Experts even said this amazing find confirmed suspicions that the island was inhabited during the Viking period.

Fancy names for fancy drinks

Who was Bloody Mary? Join us in exploring 10 drinks’ names

Image: Timothé Durand

Nobody thinks twice about the contents of a drink if the name is Gin & Tonic. But what if you never had a Bloody Mary before, and are offered one? According to history, many popular cocktails were created during the Prohibition era when illegal alcohol was not the most palatable drink, and masking its flavor with other ingredients became a necessity. And, since these concoctions needed an appealing name, creative barmen and barwomen came up with many of the denominations we know today. Featured here are 10 of the most popular ones. Have you tried any of these?

Image: Johann Trasch

While the real origin of this cocktail consisting of rye, sweet vermouth, and bitters is probably lost to time, the most popular legend is that the Manhattan was specially invented for a banquet hosted by Lady Randolf (mother of Winston) Churchill at the famous Manhattan Club in New York in the late 1800s.

But, when this supposed party took place, Lady Randolph was pregnant with Winston and living in England. So, even if it is a cool story, it is probably not true.

Image: Alex Block

These days, it refers almost exclusively to a cocktail of bourbon whiskey flavored with sugar and mint but, the word julep was originally borrowed from French to refer to a sweet-tasting or sweetened drink. Before then, it had Persian roots, and its original pronunciation, "gulab" essentially means sweetened rosewater.

The term was translated to "julab" in classical Arabic and then into Latin as "julapium." Eventually, the word would morph into "julep."

Image: Gabriel Gurrola

To explain the origin of the Tom Collins cocktail, we must first introduce his brother, John: A John Collins is a mixture of London dry gin, lemon, sugar, and soda. If you replace the London gin with Old Tom gin, you have prepared a Tom Collins.

The Collins surname of this drink is said to come from a 19th-century headwaiter known as John Collins, who worked at Limmer's Hotel and Coffee House and is thought to be the inventor of the drink. As for the Tom part, its origin is lost to the ages.

Image: Mauro Lima

There are two leading theories as to where the name of the Mojito comes from. The first one holds that the name relates to mojo, a Cuban seasoning made from lime and used to flavor dishes.

Another theory is that the name Mojito is simply a derivative of mojadito, which is a Spanish word for "lightly wet", which would be the diminutive of "mojado" (wet).

Image: Allan Francis

As the legend goes, a certain Count Negroni of Florence, Italy, once requested a drink that would stand apart from all the Americanos ordered at his usual neighborhood cafe.

The bartender answered his request with a cocktail composed of equal parts gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari, and he garnished the result with a telltale orange slice. Unfortunately for the count, the drink became as popular as the Americano, losing the desired exclusivity.

Image: Deeliver

This classic cocktail is named after the Cuban village of Daiquirí and, as the story goes, it was invented by local American mining engineers around the time of the Spanish-American War when they ran out of gin and had to use the local rum instead. The cocktail usually consists of sugar, rum, lime juice, and simple syrup.

The daiquiri is identified with revered author Ernest Hemingway, who drank this beverage during his stay in Cuba.

Image: Thomas Hetzler

James Bond's drink of choice is typically made with gin or vodka and vermouth. There are many stories about the origin of the cocktail and its name. The bartender professor Jerry Thomas of San Francisco, has claimed that it was invented by a stranger on his way to Martinez, California. Another story says it's named after Martini & Rossi Vermouth, because that brand was first used in the drink Gin and It, with one half gin and one half Martini & Rossi Vermouth.

Another story claims that it was named after a British army rifle, the Martini and Henry, which is known for its kick, like the drink. And the last one, says that it was created at the Knickerbocker Hotel in the early 1900s, by a bartender named Martini di Arma Tiggia that mixed a martini using only a dry gin and dry vermouth.

Image: Luke Bender

The most widely accepted theory about the origin of the Margarita name says that bartender Carlos "Danny" Herrera supposedly thought up this drink around 1938 in Tijuana, Mexico. He created it for Marjorie King, an aspiring actress who he said was allergic to "everything except tequila."

After crafting something for King to drink, Herrera reportedly dubbed the drink margarita, which is a Spanish twist on Marjorie's name.

Image: Bon Vivant

Apparently, in the late 1800s, it became popular to introduce liqueurs into cocktail recipes. And the older, more basic recipes that omitted them, and in particular this classic mix of whiskey and bitters, became known as "old fashioned" cocktails.

People ordering drinks in this fashion wanted to stick to the basics and eventually the modifier "old-fashioned" became the name for this classic cocktail with a lot of variations. The classic version uses a bit of sugar or simple syrup, a splash or two of aromatic bitters, perhaps an ice cube, and rye whiskey.

Image: SuckerPunch Gourmet

The most popular tale about this drink’s name links it to the English monarch Mary Tudor, whose nickname was, wait for it, "Bloody Mary", because of how many Protestant heretics she condemned to death.

Another theory suggests that the drink was concocted by a bartender at a Paris bar, where a patron who drank it dubbed it the Bucket of Blood, after a Chicago nightclub, with the name later developing into Bloody Mary.