The Mystery of Coral Castle

Coral Castle is among the most fascinating cases of 20th Century paranormal lore and for good reason. This massive garden display, made up of over 1,000 tons of limestone rock, is not just fascinating because of its sheer size, or placement in rural America, but because it was supposedly the work of one mysterious little man who, according to some, could move mountains with his mind.

In 1920, Latvian immigrant Edward Leedskalnin, having had his heart broken by a runaway bride just one day before his wedding and having wandered Canada and the United States for some years since, settled in Florida City, Florida after being diagnosed with terminal tuberculosis. However, instead of dying, he mysteriously cured himself, citing the use of magnets. Then, over the next 28 years, he constructed his magnificent coral display, which he named “Rock Gate Park” on a small plot of land he had purchased from a friend.

The true mystery of Coral Castle is that Leedskalnin allegedly constructed it all by himself, working by candlelight after dark and never letting anyone watch him work. Somehow, this thin, 5-foot-tall man managed to quarry and erect dozens of pieces of stone, most weighing 10 to 30 tons each. Some are twice the weight of the blocks in the Great Pyramid at Giza. According to experts, the massive piece that makes up the 9-ton revolving stone gate leading into the castle, fits to within a quarter of an inch of the gate’s stone frame and is so well-balanced a small child could push it open with one finger.

Among the other objects Leedskalnin created from stone are: a two-story castle tower that served as Leedskalnin's living quarters, a Polaris telescope, an obelisk, a water well, a fountain, a barbecue, celestial stars and planets, an accurate sundial and numerous pieces of furniture.

Adding to the legend is that in 1936, Leedskalnin was forced to relocate. But, rather than leave his creation, he moved it all, stone-by-stone over 10 miles to its final location in Homestead, Florida. And, although many people saw the stones being transported on a borrowed truck, no one saw them being moved on or off of it.

Over the years, several people came forward, alleging to have seen Leedskalnin at work. They stated that he would place his hands above the huge stones and sing to them. They would then float up, beneath his hands and move with him, as lightly as a helium balloon, to where he wanted them. When asked about his techniques, Leedskalnin always stated that he simply understood the physics of leverage and used the same techniques as were used in constructing the pyramids of Egypt and South America.

Leedskalnin passed away in 1951, leaving the mystery of Coral Castle forever open to debate. Today it is a tourist attraction, where people of all ages can visit and marvel at the perhaps supernatural fruition of one man’s dream.