There are thousands of stories of weird events that got their 15 minutes -or a year- of sensation then faded from public memory. Such is the case of a hand that fell from the sky in Bargaintown, New Jersey. In 1916, Henry and Gottlieba Prantl were mourning the death of their 18-year-old son from pneumonia when they witnessed a shooting star fall into their field. The burning object was too hot to touch, and it looked like a hand that was shooting flames out of its wrist. When it cooled, they took it inside and the "flaming hand" was shown to anyone interested. Scientists studied it and offers came in to purchase it, but Gottlieba felt it was a message from their late son Rudolph, and wouldn't part with it. The family, however, made a deal with some businessmen from Atlantic City to display it for profit.
Speculation and legend grew up around the hand, mainly due to its reputation as an omen or a message from Rudolph. Even more interesting were the legal battles between the Prantl family and Dr. Halvor Harley, who treated Rudolph during his illness, over malpractice and their unpaid medical bill. So where is the "flaming hand" now? No one knows, and the facts of the case grow murkier with time. Read what we know about the flaming hand of doom at Thunderbird Photo. -via Strange Company
