I grew up in an old home that my great-grandfather built, and it was filled with all sorts of things that he left behind: strange tools, bottles in the basement, old parts, and drawers filled with things that would pique the interest of any child. This was all before the internet, so most of my discoveries remained mysteries.
These days, online communities are dedicated to sharing discoveries and, more importantly, answers to what people have found. Here are a few interesting ones.
1. “My parents and I found this in our backyard earlier. It’s on a circular concrete thing.”
“It’s a septic lid. Honestly, I’d mark where it is in the event that you have a septic problem someday so the contractors can find it easier.” – enraged768
2. “I found this blue disc in a packet of sour cream crisps. It has the words ‘ferrous 25mm BST, cert number 213026B’ on it.”
“It’s a testing chip. It goes through the metal detectors to ensure they’re working. There’s a problem here, though.
You send X number of testers and get X number back. If you get X-1 or some other number, you stop the line until you find your chip. The entire purpose of the test is to make sure that stuff like this—which is supposed to simulate a foreign object—does not get through.
There’s usually paperwork to document this. Write to the outfit and tell them what you found and rest assured there will be a shitstorm on the other end.” – dethbychocolate
3. “Red waxy substance found in/around the keyhole on my front door.”
“So this happened one time when I was flipping houses for a guy. I went to unlock the door and noticed something covering the lock that looked like white lipstick. I looked around, and the other houses had it, too. I called Crime Check, and they said it had been used as a method by squatters/burglars to see who on the block is using their key or even if there might be empty homes. Like how people sometimes go door to door pretending to sell solar panels, window replacements, or landscaping services so they can see who answers in the middle of the day. A bit of an eye-opening phone call for me.” – Atllas66
4. “Switch on the back of an old clock labeled ‘Miracle Eye.’ What is this?”
“It’s a light sensor that will mute all chimes/music/sounds when the room it’s in is dark.” – WeAllWantToBeHappy
5. “Found on Guam in shallow water. 3-meter diameter disk. Top looks like polyester in a honeycomb shape that is fiber-glassed to a flimsy aluminum disk.”
“This is absolutely part of a rocket. There was a Chinese Long March 3B rocket launch that failed right around when you found this, and its payload was seen reentering the atmosphere near Guam.” – Kosmos_Entuziast
6. “What is this tube full of balls in the wall in a home built in the mid-90s?”
“It’s a termite indicator. I have some experience with indicators similar to this.” – RowHard
7. “What is this thing we found while renovating? We haven’t touched it because my dad thinks it’s an explosive from WWII. It’s about 10″ long.”
“Looks like a WWII British 2″ mortar round. They did not use chemical weapons in WWII, so the filler is likely high explosive but could be WP or Illum. Call the EOD and do not touch.” – uragruver
8. “Saw this in a forest in Germany. What is it?”
“It’s a fridge or an old-time cold room. Basically, a room covered with dirt for insulation. Also known as a wurzel kellar (root cellar) in German.” – mdroflmaozedon
9. “Arrived in the mail addressed to me. Small glass tubes with two tiny bearings in them. No idea, and not something I ordered.”
“Those are rattles that you can put inside fishing lures so they make noise to attract fish.” – Dannieh42
10. “I know it’s a chair, but why are the arms so long?”
“It’s a planter’s chair. You’d put your sore, swollen legs up on the arms after sitting on a horse all day. This is why the back is so sloped as well. If you sit up straight, it wouldn’t be comfortable to put your legs up like that, but in a reclined position, it’s good for blood flow and airflow.” – ChestaDaMole
11. “I found this in my backyard while doing some gardening. After cleaning it, it doesn’t look like a normal ring. Any ideas?”
“It’s a Georgian/early Victorian mourning ring. The initials belong to the lost loved one. They were typically made from gold (18k+) and enameled in black. Yours looks like it was made around 1820s-40s.” – batbrat
12. “What is the purpose of these floors? They have no windows, only this cylindrical thing in them.”
“In addition to the other generic things that apply to tall buildings, in that tower specifically, the empty floors are a workaround to a New York rule that attempts to restrict building size by restricting floor space. By having empty floors, they can move the upper floors higher up, thus making them more valuable to the super-rich buyers who want to have the highest apartment in New York City.” – OllyFunkster
13. “Found a rock on the porch of my new home, flipped it over, and saw this. Is this a fossil? I love in SW Pennsylvania, and fossils are very common, but I’m not certain.”
“Yeah, that’s a fossil. It’s a tree trunk impression.” -jimocconell
14. “Found in my fiance’s backyard. It’s been sitting there since the 90s.”
“It’s a 490-liter drop trank used by the MiG-21. It’s inert and harmless except for whatever creepy-crawlies might have taken up residence inside.” –utes_utes
15. “What is the purpose of the ‘chip’ in the one prong of this fork? At first, I thought it was just a chip, but it turns out it’s on multiple forks in my drawer.”
“They make one tine wider for cutting stuff, but the wider one wouldn’t stab as well as the others, so they give it a clipped point.” – PKDman
