Scientists solve the mystery of the ‘Portal to Hell’ temple where ‘breath of Hades’ causes every living thing to fall DEAD
THE MYSTERY that shrouded the temple and caused a series of unexplained deaths has finally been solved.
For years it was thought that any living creature that came near the gruesome cave was killed by the deadly “breath of Hades” – the Greek god of the underworld.
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Since the ancient Roman and Greek periods, many have avoided the temple in the city of Hierapolis, modern-day Turkey, for fear of death – considering it a “gateway to hell.”
The ancient Greek geographer Strabo described it as a deadly place, killing any visitor instantly.
He wrote: “It is an opening of only modest size, large enough to admit a man, but it extends to a considerable depth and this space is full of a vapor so misty and dense that you can scarcely touch the ground can see.
‘Bulls led into it fall and are dragged out dead. I threw sparrows into it and they immediately breathed their last and fell.”
The site was once used for grim religious sacrifices, with birds, bulls and other animals given as signs to the gods of the underworld.
Skeletons of birds line the site of the temple ruins, where a cave with ionic columns was recently found.
On these columns are terrifying inscriptions dedicated to the gods of the underworld pleading to be spared from a deadly fate.
According to one of the archaeologists who excavated the site, the deadly nature of the temple was immediately apparent to the team.
Francesco D’Andria revealed: “During the excavation we could see the deadly properties of the cave.
“Several birds died trying to get close to the warm opening.”
But, D’Andria explained, this was not due to Hades’ breath, but to a deadly gas seeping from the Earth’s crust.
The team of archaeologists discovered that deadly concentrations of carbon dioxide were emitted from the entrance to the temple.
The archaeologists’ research revealed the following: “In a cave under the temple of Pluto, CO2 was found to be present in lethal concentrations of up to 91 percent.
“Amazingly, these fumes are still emitted in concentrations that today kill insects, birds and mammals.”
The researchers added that the deadliest time to visit the Temple of Doom was at dawn, when the gas had all night to intensify in the cave.
But during the day, most of the gas is expelled by the sun.
At the bottom of the neighboring lake, the concentration of carbon dioxide was higher than 50 percent – strong enough to kill a human.
The archaeologists also revealed that tourists brought small animals, such as birds, and sacrificed them at the site.
They were thrown from the stands and the crowd watched cruelly as the animals died in front of them.
On holidays, larger creatures – such as bulls – were brutally sacrificed by hallucinating priests.
The bulls, whose nostrils are 60 to 90 cm high, would be exposed to the poisonous gases – while the priests, who were larger, would not suffer the same fate as the poor animals.
Although they were generally much larger than the poisonous levels of the gas, it was reported that they sometimes used stones that were larger.
The priests also used the cave to ‘prove’ that they were immune to death and that they enjoyed divine protection.
Reports suggest they entered the cave holding their breath, or crawled for oxygen bags.
However, it is thought that they were hallucinating madly from the fumes.
Other “Portals to Hell”
Bodai Ji
Tucked neatly into the slopes of Mount Osore lies the Bodai-Ji Buddhist temple.
According to legend, the site was for a long time the entrance to the underworld, with the small river nearby being thought to be the place where the dead entered the afterlife.
Cape Tainarnon
Another suspected gateway to the underworld lies on the coast of Greece.
It is thought that the gate was guarded by a three-headed dog that prevented the dead from escaping.
Devil’s lair
In a gigantic volcanic field in Naples lies Lake Avernus, a hellish pit that birds fear to fly over.
It has long been said that the lake hides a cave that was believed to be a portal to hell.
Door to hell
A flaming gas crater in Turkmenistan has been burning continuously for half a century.
It was set on fire by the Soviets in 1971, assuming it would stop burning in a few weeks. Decades later, it is still active and has been nicknamed the “door to hell”.
Gate of death
Located between India and China, Murgo is completely devoid of any life.
At an altitude of 4,000 meters, where it is -50 degrees Celsius in winter, and completely barren, legend considers this to be another entrance to the underworld.
Hellmouth
This crater in Siberia has long been known by locals as a gateway to hell, a belief that has become increasingly stronger as it rapidly increases in size.
As it continues to devour the landscape, at a terrifying rate of 10 meters per year, neighboring villages are convinced the ever-expanding site must be supernatural.
Mount Etna
According to Greek myth, Zeus’ daughter Persephone was abducted by Hades from the slopes of this volcano in Sicily.
Eruptions, lava and toxic fumes continue to plague the region, fueling the belief that this Etna is still used as Hades’ gateway to the underworld.
Seven gates of hell
Legend has it that several gates to hell plague the forest in Pennsylvania – with some claiming they emerged from a burned down asylum, while others suggest they were built by a mad doctor.
However, the main claim remains the same: if you pass through all seven gates, you will be sent straight to hell.
To hell indeed
The local legend, also located in Siberia, tells how scientists drilled a gigantic hole of fifteen kilometers in the earth’s crust. After lowering microphones into the canyon, the scientists heard human screams.
Only then did they realize that they had created a passageway to hell. They fled in panic and never returned.
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