5 Weirdest Happenings in August Throughout History
1. The invention of the Guinness World Book of Records
The idea of the book was inspired when a heated argument took place debating which was the fastest game bird. Sir Hugh Beaver, the Managing Director of Guinness Brewery initiated this project by commissioning the McWhirter twins to write and publish 50,000 copies of this epic book in the 1950s, and it still remains very popular to this day.
2. The discovery of Oxygen
On 1 August 1774, Joseph Priestley, British minister and chemist, discovered Oxygen following his famous “burning lens” experiment. This involved placing mercuric oxide in a glass container and focusing sunlight onto that substance that emitted a colourless gas – which triggered a candle to burn.
3. The first around-the-world telegram was sent in 1911
With a simple message that read “The message sent around the world”, the first telegram was transferred by 16 operators in various points across the globe, traveling over 28,000 miles in just 16.5 minutes from New York Times and back.
4. The stolen Mona Lisa
The priceless jewel of the Louvre in Paris was stolen by a handyman employed by the museum to construct protective glass cases for some of the museum’s most famous works. After spending a night in the closet, he simply walked out with the painting under his clothes, as he was let out by a plumber after finding the doors locked.
Leonardo Da Vinci’s prized masterpiece was recovered two years later in 1913.
5. The Loch Ness monster is spotted for the first time in 565
Scholars claim that an Irish monk, Columba, came across some locals who claimed that a water monster had snatched and bitten a friend. So, Columba ordered one of his acolytes to swim across the river to a boat, when he and the local people witnessing this swim, saw the appearance of the Scottish water monster.
