More Facts about the Loch Ness Monster

Sir Peter Scott who is the son of the renowned explorer Robert Falcon Scott offered a new scientific name to the Loch Ness monster in 1975. The monster was renamed as Nessiteras Rhombopteryx, which means the “Ness wonder with a diamond fin”. However, many skeptics said that the name was an anagram of the name “monster hoax by Sir Peter S”. Later, Dr. Robert Rines who is a part of the American Academy of Applied Science and leader of the major survey on Loch Ness countered this statement with a response stating “yes, both pictures are monsters, R.” The name was further shortened by the masses to “Nessie”.

On 12th November 1933, Hugh Gray took Nessie’s first photograph near Foyers. He was witness to an object that rose between two and three feet out of the water that created turbulence. He clicked five pictures of the phenomenon.

Dr. Robert Kenneth Wilson from London took the most well known picture of the monster in 1934 neat Invermoriston. The photograph showing a head and a long neck emerging out of the water and was published in the Daily Mail. The picture is known as the “surgeon’s photograph” because Dr. Wilson refused to be connected with the photograph. In fact, after almost sixty years, the picture was discovered to be a hoax.

Another hoax associated with the Loch Ness monster happened in December 1933 when the Daily Mail hired Marmaduke Wetherall, a famous big-game hunter to discover the monster. The mission turned out to be more difficult than his anticipation but Wetherall was very glad when he discovered a series of large footmarks. The casts of the marks were soon sent to the National History Museum, where it was discovered the marks were actually made by an ornamental Hippopotamus. Wetherall’s findings were discredited; however, the question of whether Wetherall planted the footmarks or was cheated by another hoaxer remains.

An Italian journalist claimed in the year 1959 that Nessie was created by him in the year 1933. Francesco Gasprini, a London correspondent with a newspaper in Milan was unable to find any catching news. When he read a short news item in a Scottish newspaper about a strange fish being discovered by two fishermen, he expanded the story to a monster. In addition, he claims that he created the eyewitnesses and made drawings and pictures for publication use. Gasprini had plans to kill the monster or make it escape from the Loch, however, the press continued with the story and the rest is history.