Mysteries and puzzles

Mysteries and puzzles

Task

Nazca lines
When the first commercial flights started in the 1930s, giant ground drawings covering 400
square metres of Peru’s desert were spotted. These drawings take the forms of animals such
as foxes, a monkey and hummingbirds, and even a 30 metre tall man. They were created in
what is now desert by removing rock to reveal the pale pink sand underneath. But, how were
they created, and why?

The mystery of Easter Island

For many years scholars have puzzled over the people who built the giant statues on Easter
Island, one of the most remote islands in the world. When it was discovered in 1722 by a
Dutch captain, the island was uninhabited, but covered in hundreds of giant rock statues,
some nine metres tall. But, how and why were they created, and by whom?

The locked room mystery

Jonas Anderson’s body was found by police in the back room of the shop he owned in
Chicago. Afraid of robbery, he had made the back room extremely difficult to get into – it
had bars on the windows and heavy locks on the door but, when he was found by the police,
Jonas was inside the room with two bullet shots to his chest. However, the room was locked
from the inside and there was no gun in the room. In addition, the safe was unopened and
Jonas had money in his wallet. But, how was he killed, by whom and for what reason? Or was
it suicide?

The swimmer
The body of a dead man was found deep in the forest. He was wearing only swimming
trunks, a snorkel and a facemask. The nearest lake was 8 km away and the sea 50 km. How
had he died?

1 U060CEU 1805 © British Council