Mystery Of Century-Old Rubber-Like Blocks Possibly Solved
- 9 years ago
For the past few years tablets inscribed with the word, "Tjipetir" have been washing up onto European shorelines. One woman believes she may have figured out how they became beach debris.
Within the past decade, century-old rubber-like blocks have been found along European beaches, but no one knew where they were from.
Stamped with the word "Tjipetir," many people believed they were from the 1912 sinking of the Titanic.
The tablets' namesake was an Indonesian rubber plantation that existed around the early 20th century.
They're also believed to be made from gutta-percha, the gum of a Malaysian tree.
While many people have found the blocks, one English woman, Tracey Williams, has held a particular fascination.
She discovered two of them on separate occasions in 2012. Afterwards, she started a Facebook page to connect with others who've also made the same beach find.
In 2013, Williams was contacted separately by two different people who claimed the blocks were from the 1917 shipwreck of the Miyazaki Maru, which occurred during World War I.
Currently, that's the most widely regarded explanation.
While the shipwreck may be the answer to the mystery, Williams isn't entirely convinced, saying, “I think, for me, the story is only just beginning, I think there’s always a possibility they are coming from more than one ship.”
Within the past decade, century-old rubber-like blocks have been found along European beaches, but no one knew where they were from.
Stamped with the word "Tjipetir," many people believed they were from the 1912 sinking of the Titanic.
The tablets' namesake was an Indonesian rubber plantation that existed around the early 20th century.
They're also believed to be made from gutta-percha, the gum of a Malaysian tree.
While many people have found the blocks, one English woman, Tracey Williams, has held a particular fascination.
She discovered two of them on separate occasions in 2012. Afterwards, she started a Facebook page to connect with others who've also made the same beach find.
In 2013, Williams was contacted separately by two different people who claimed the blocks were from the 1917 shipwreck of the Miyazaki Maru, which occurred during World War I.
Currently, that's the most widely regarded explanation.
While the shipwreck may be the answer to the mystery, Williams isn't entirely convinced, saying, “I think, for me, the story is only just beginning, I think there’s always a possibility they are coming from more than one ship.”