SKULLY - THE MILLENNIUM CRYSTAL SKULL

"Resurfaced" in 1997 - A skull with documented history?

The Millennium Crystal Skull, "Skully", has one of the most intriguing stories you will ever encounter. It is so well documented that, to do it justice, you should visit Skully's website directly. Make sure to check out this official website when you can spend at least an hour reading the fascinating story - just keep on clicking the "next" button to discover more and more about its million-to-one odds of finding it, its ensuing struggle over ownership, its caretaker's journey to the unexplained, the story behind the beautiful music created, and the ultimate response on its authenticity (Solve the mystery: Is it real or not?).

Crystal Skull Skully specifics: (courtesy of www.tobew.com)

The skull weighs 5691.2g and has a volume of 2148 cubic centimeters. It is a fairly 'anatomically correct' interpretation of a human skull. Carved, by hand, against the natural grain, from a block of Grade I, optical quality quartz crystal (Silicon dioxide.) Most of its surface is polished to a standard comparable with that of a telescope lens. The back of its left eye-socket has sustained some damage and it was from this damage that many answers were obtained.

Quartz, like wood, has a natural grain. Anyone who has whittled a piece of wood with a penknife will be aware that whilst it is relatively easy to carve 'along the grain,' it is almost impossible to carve against it: The wood splits, splinters and flakes away. Skully has a curious indent carved into his forehead (slightly offset from center.) A straight line drawn from the skull's center to this indent runs precisely parallel with the natural grain of the quartz. This is extremely unlikely to be a coincidence. It is highly probable that the skull's carver was drawing our attention to the fact that he, or she, was not only skilled enough to carve such delicate features into the surface of a material notoriously difficult to work with; but that he/she was also clever enough to carve on the quartz's most difficult and demanding face.

Skully was created by a master carver, an apprentice and 2 or three assistants. Microscopic investigation of Skully's surface showed no trace of modern (steel and powered) tools. A range of small (less than 1cm wide) chisels were used to chip his features into shape. After this, a series of progressively finer abrasive pastes and finally running water were used to polish it. It is surmised that shortly before completion, Skully's original carver died. His clumsy apprentice hit too hard and caused the damage to Skully's left eye-socket. After this no further carving was undertaken and the roughly worked area was polished to the best of their ability.

This told us how Skully was created, but not when. Although it is not possible to date quartz, debris and fragments found with Skully were subjected to Carbon-14 dating techniques. From this material, key dates of: 375BC, 30AD, 400AD and 800AD were identified. The oldest fragments formed part of a small box used to house the few flakes of quartz from the damaged left eye. This box may have been created specifically to store these small pieces; in which case the skull pre-dates 375BC. Conversely, an already old box could have been adapted for the purpose at any point in time. As such, the question of Skully's age -as with the ages of all skulls- remains a hotly debated subject. Documentation traces Skully's history back only as far as 1800.

Skully
Size: 12.54 lbs / 5.69 kgs
Stone: Clear Quartz
Origin: unknown
"The Millennium Skull" Accidentally found in an old trunk purchased at a Sunday market in the UK in 1997.
Official Website for Skully
Photo Credit