F. A. Mitchell-Hedges
Encyclopedia
Frederick Albert Mitchell-Hedges (22 October 1882 - June 1959) was an English
adventurer, travel
ler, and writer
. His name was almost always seen in print as F. A. Mitchell-Hedges; he sometimes went by the name "Mike Hedges". Mitchell-Hedges had a talent for telling colourful stories. The veracity of much of his autobiographical writings is in question.
, the Caribbean
, the United Kingdom
, and the United States
. Some sources say he was a mercenary, others thought he was a British government spy
, and others that he was independently wealthy and traveling for diversion. Some of his "expeditions" to Central America were financed by well-to-do British socialites. For a time he was sponsored by the Daily Mail
. He was also supported by the British Museum to whom he donated numerous artifacts.
Mitchell-Hedges repeatedly made claims of having "discovered" Indian tribes and "lost cities" that had already been documented years, sometimes centuries, before. He claimed he discovered "the cradle of civilization" in the Mosquito Coast
of Nicaragua, and that the Bay Islands of Honduras
were remnants of the lost civilization of Atlantis
.
In 1906 he married Lillian Agnes Clarke, known as "Dolly". Most of the time he lived apart from his wife. They had no children on their own but adopted Canadian orphan Anne Marie Le Guillon, today known as Anna Mitchell-Hedges.
For a time in the 1930s he had a weekly radio
show out of New York City
on Sunday evenings. Talking over a background of "jungle drums", Mitchell-Hedges would tell dramatic tales of his adventures, usually including narrow escapes from death at the hands of "savages" or from jungle animals ranging from a jaguar
to a vicious attacking iguana
.
Mitchell-Hedges claimed to have discovered a "crystal skull
" — he called it "The Skull of Doom" — at the Maya
ruin of Lubaantun
(which he also claimed to have discovered) on an expedition to British Honduras
(present-day Belize
) in the 1920s. However he published no mention of the skull until the late 1940s, not long after a crystal skull was auctioned off by Sydney Burney
at Sotheby's
in 1943. Mitchell-Hedges's crystal skull could have been the one from Sotheby's as a skull with identical measurements was described in 1936, and its owner was Sydney Burney.
and New Age
-mythology grew to surround Mitchell-Hedges' tales of the crystal skull, and it is through his association with this alleged artifact that Mitchell-Hedges is best-known today.
Mitchell-Hedges' crystal skull was retained in the possession of his adopted daughter Anna until her death on 11 April 2007 at the age of 100, during which time she periodically exhibited it to the public, continuing to make claims for the skull's mysterious powers and origin. Even after Anna's death, the claimed '17 000' year old crystal skull continues to be publicly exhibited.
The release of the 2008 adventure film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull revived public awareness of the crystal skull mythology, and by extension, F. A. Mitchell-Hedges. His name is one among many to have been speculatively put forward as the "real-life" inspiration for the fictional Indiana Jones
character.
Concerning Land of Wonder and Fear, prominent Maya archaeologist J. Eric S. Thompson
commented that "to me the wonder was how he could write such nonsense and the fear how much taller the next yarn would be". ("Maya Archaeologist", J. Eric S. Thompson, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, 1963)
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
adventurer, travel
Travel
Travel is the movement of people or objects between relatively distant geographical locations. 'Travel' can also include relatively short stays between successive movements.-Etymology:...
ler, and writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
. His name was almost always seen in print as F. A. Mitchell-Hedges; he sometimes went by the name "Mike Hedges". Mitchell-Hedges had a talent for telling colourful stories. The veracity of much of his autobiographical writings is in question.
Biography
Mitchell-Hedges spent some years alternating between Central AmericaCentral America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
, the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Some sources say he was a mercenary, others thought he was a British government spy
SPY
SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...
, and others that he was independently wealthy and traveling for diversion. Some of his "expeditions" to Central America were financed by well-to-do British socialites. For a time he was sponsored by the Daily Mail
Daily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
. He was also supported by the British Museum to whom he donated numerous artifacts.
Mitchell-Hedges repeatedly made claims of having "discovered" Indian tribes and "lost cities" that had already been documented years, sometimes centuries, before. He claimed he discovered "the cradle of civilization" in the Mosquito Coast
Mosquito Coast
The Caribbean Mosquito Coast historically consisted of an area along the Atlantic coast of present-day Nicaragua and Honduras, and part of the Western Caribbean Zone. It was named after the local Miskito Indians and long dominated by British interests...
of Nicaragua, and that the Bay Islands of Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
were remnants of the lost civilization of Atlantis
Atlantis
Atlantis is a legendary island first mentioned in Plato's dialogues Timaeus and Critias, written about 360 BC....
.
In 1906 he married Lillian Agnes Clarke, known as "Dolly". Most of the time he lived apart from his wife. They had no children on their own but adopted Canadian orphan Anne Marie Le Guillon, today known as Anna Mitchell-Hedges.
For a time in the 1930s he had a weekly radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
show out of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on Sunday evenings. Talking over a background of "jungle drums", Mitchell-Hedges would tell dramatic tales of his adventures, usually including narrow escapes from death at the hands of "savages" or from jungle animals ranging from a jaguar
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
to a vicious attacking iguana
Iguana
Iguana is a herbivorous genus of lizard native to tropical areas of Central America and the Caribbean. The genus was first described in 1768 by Austrian naturalist Josephus Nicolaus Laurenti in his book Specimen Medicum, Exhibens Synopsin Reptilium Emendatam cum Experimentis circa Venena...
.
Mitchell-Hedges claimed to have discovered a "crystal skull
Crystal skull
The crystal skulls are a number of human skull hardstone carvings made of clear or milky quartz rock, known in art history as "rock crystal", claimed to be pre-Columbian Mesoamerican artifacts by their alleged finders. However, none of the specimens made available for scientific study have been...
" — he called it "The Skull of Doom" — at the Maya
Maya civilization
The Maya is a Mesoamerican civilization, noted for the only known fully developed written language of the pre-Columbian Americas, as well as for its art, architecture, and mathematical and astronomical systems. Initially established during the Pre-Classic period The Maya is a Mesoamerican...
ruin of Lubaantun
Lubaantun
Lubaantun is a pre-Columbian ruined city of the Maya civilization in southern Belize, Central America...
(which he also claimed to have discovered) on an expedition to British Honduras
British Honduras
British Honduras was a British colony that is now the independent nation of Belize.First colonised by Spaniards in the 17th century, the territory on the east coast of Central America, south of Mexico, became a British crown colony from 1862 until 1964, when it became self-governing. Belize became...
(present-day Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
) in the 1920s. However he published no mention of the skull until the late 1940s, not long after a crystal skull was auctioned off by Sydney Burney
Sydney Burney
Sydney Burney was a 20th century art and antiquities dealer and collector based in London. He was responsible for organizing an exhibition of African art in 1933 in which African art was depicted as equal to the art of other cultures. He donated a limestone Etruscan urn to the British...
at Sotheby's
Sotheby's
Sotheby's is the world's fourth oldest auction house in continuous operation.-History:The oldest auction house in operation is the Stockholms Auktionsverk founded in 1674, the second oldest is Göteborgs Auktionsverk founded in 1681 and third oldest being founded in 1731, all Swedish...
in 1943. Mitchell-Hedges's crystal skull could have been the one from Sotheby's as a skull with identical measurements was described in 1936, and its owner was Sydney Burney.
Legacy
A body of popular culturePopular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
and New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
-mythology grew to surround Mitchell-Hedges' tales of the crystal skull, and it is through his association with this alleged artifact that Mitchell-Hedges is best-known today.
Mitchell-Hedges' crystal skull was retained in the possession of his adopted daughter Anna until her death on 11 April 2007 at the age of 100, during which time she periodically exhibited it to the public, continuing to make claims for the skull's mysterious powers and origin. Even after Anna's death, the claimed '17 000' year old crystal skull continues to be publicly exhibited.
The release of the 2008 adventure film Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull revived public awareness of the crystal skull mythology, and by extension, F. A. Mitchell-Hedges. His name is one among many to have been speculatively put forward as the "real-life" inspiration for the fictional Indiana Jones
Indiana Jones
Colonel Henry Walton "Indiana" Jones, Jr., Ph.D. is a fictional character and the protagonist of the Indiana Jones franchise. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg created the character in homage to the action heroes of 1930s film serials...
character.
Published works
Books and other titles written by Mitchell-Hedges include:- Battles With Giant Fish
- Danger, My Ally
- Land of Wonder and Fear
Concerning Land of Wonder and Fear, prominent Maya archaeologist J. Eric S. Thompson
J. Eric S. Thompson
Sir John Eric Sidney Thompson was an English Mesoamerican archeologist and epigrapher. His contributions to the understanding of Maya hieroglyphs lead him to be one of the foremost mid-20th century anthropological scholars. He was generally known as J. Eric S...
commented that "to me the wonder was how he could write such nonsense and the fear how much taller the next yarn would be". ("Maya Archaeologist", J. Eric S. Thompson, University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, 1963)