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Scotland’s untamed landscapes and enchanting Celtic allure are undeniable. Yet, many aspects of this land leave outsiders utterly perplexed. From the age-old question of what men wear beneath their kilts to the curious invention of bagpipes, and the mysterious contents of haggis, Scotland is full of enigmas. These 10 unsolved mysteries are even more bizarre, leaving even locals scratching their heads.
10. The Mysterious Death of Annie Borjesson
On December 4, 2005, the body of Annie Borjesson, a 30-year-old Swedish woman, was found washed ashore in Prestwick, along Scotland’s western coast. Authorities swiftly declared it a suicide by drowning, but Annie’s family remained skeptical. Their investigation revealed several peculiar details that cast doubt on the official conclusion.
Upon the return of Annie’s body to Sweden, Swedish undertakers observed several bruises that appeared to have been inflicted while she was still alive. These injuries were not noted in the Scottish autopsy report. Additional marks on her body were officially attributed to impacts with sea debris. However, the family’s primary concern remained the unanswered questions surrounding Annie’s final hours.
Annie resided in Edinburgh but made an unexplained trip to Prestwick Airport, 129 kilometers (80 mi) away, on December 3. She attempted to withdraw £100 and then £50 using her credit card, but both transactions failed due to insufficient funds. Later that afternoon, she appeared on the airport’s surveillance footage.
Airport security footage timestamps indicated that Annie crossed the terminal in just 55 seconds. Independent experts calculated that this distance would typically take over 90 seconds at a normal walking pace, suggesting she was running. She spent less than five minutes at the airport. A friend who reviewed the footage described her as appearing “frustrated and agitated.” She then walked toward Prestwick, a town she didn’t know, located about a mile from the airport. A witness later reported seeing a figure on the beach near the sea, but the distance made identification impossible.
Annie’s family encountered significant obstacles during their investigation. Scottish authorities denied requests for tissue samples that could help determine the cause of death. When they accessed her email account, they found all messages had been deleted. A friend, Maria Jansson, discovered that Annie’s phone company had no records of calls made to her in 2005 and refused to provide further details.
Maria began receiving silent phone calls, and family members experienced issues with their email accounts. Police claimed there were no records of calls to or from Annie during her final three days, despite multiple people recalling conversations with her. It was later revealed that Annie’s hair had been cut after her death and discarded.
Annie’s family remains steadfast in their pursuit of a thorough investigation. Her mother has engaged with Scotland’s First Minister, and a petition bearing 3,000 signatures was submitted to the Scottish Parliament in late 2013. The family is urging authorities to explore the possibility that Annie was murdered during the unaccounted 16-hour period between her departure from the airport and the discovery of her body.
9. The Mystery of Mark Devlin’s Hanging
During the 1830s, a notorious criminal gang known as the Black Band terrorized Dundee. With only 14 police officers in the city, the gang freely engaged in robbery and violent riots.
In 1835, law enforcement caught a Black Band member named Mark Devlin during a burglary and decided to use his case as a deterrent. Devlin was tried and sentenced to death by hanging. However, this posed a challenge, as Dundee lacked an executioner. Hanging was associated with English oppression against Scottish rebels, making it a practice no local wanted to be involved in.
Officials arranged for an executioner to come from Edinburgh and constructed a temporary gallows beside a local Guild Hall. When the hangman failed to appear, they desperately sought a substitute. A local showman named James Livingstone stepped forward, and Devlin was executed. However, Livingstone’s reputation suffered immediately, as he was actually 24 kilometers (15 mi) away in Forfar at the time, with credible witnesses to prove it. He managed to convince everyone he had no involvement in the hanging. The question remains: who actually hanged Mark Devlin? Nearly two centuries later, the mystery endures, and the truth may never be uncovered.
8. The Appin Murder Mystery
On May 14, 1752, Colin Roy Campbell of Glenure was fatally shot near Appin, Scotland. Campbell, a government agent overseeing evictions, was deeply unpopular. He was en route to evict members of the Stewart clan to replace them with his own relatives when he was killed. Ailean Stewart became the prime suspect and fled, but he was tried and sentenced to death in absentia. His brother, James, was also condemned as an accomplice, despite an alibi proving he was nowhere near the crime scene.
The case is widely regarded as a grave injustice. The presiding judge and 11 of the 15 jurors were Campbells. In 2008, a Scottish lawyer petitioned to overturn the verdict, arguing there was “no evidence” implicating the Stewarts. In 2013, modern forensic analysis suggested there were two shooters, contradicting the lone witness’s claim of seeing a single gunman on a hill.
Author James Hunter’s research points to Donald Stewart as the shooter. Hunter asserts that many Stewarts were aware of this at the time but chose to protect Donald, allowing James to bear the blame. He claims this secret has been handed down through generations. While this case still evokes strong feelings among some Scots, it is unlikely to ever be fully resolved.
7. The Enigma of Gilmerton Cove
Beneath a modest cottage in Edinburgh’s Gilmerton suburb lies a fascinating mystery: a network of tunnels known as Gilmerton Cove. Clearly man-made, the tunnels feature benches, seats, and stairs carved directly into the sandstone. Despite their intricate design, their origin, purpose, and creators remain unknown.
One theory, dating back to 1769, suggests the tunnels were carved by blacksmith George Paterson between 1719 and 1724 as a home and workshop. However, evidence contradicts this. The supposed fireplace shows no signs of burning, and a well-like structure never reached water. Another possibility is that the tunnels were a 17th-century coal exploration site. Some passages, now blocked, may have once connected to Craigmillar Castle, hinting at an escape route. More speculative theories propose the tunnels served as a refuge for persecuted witches.
Between 2000 and 2002, an archaeological investigation was conducted to uncover the true purpose of the tunnels. Unfortunately, the study concluded that centuries of use had erased any traces of their origins, leaving the mystery unsolved.
6. The Mystery of the Stones
One of Scotland’s most iconic forms of ancient art is the ring-and-cup marks—patterns of concentric circles and lines etched into rocks. Some of these carvings may date back as far as 5,000 years. Their meaning, if they ever had one, remains a mystery lost to time.
A more recent artistic discovery in Scotland is the Pictish stones. These stone slabs feature intricate relief carvings of people and animals, resembling Egyptian hieroglyphs. A statistical analysis of 200 Pictish stones from the sixth century revealed that they are not merely decorative but represent a written language. Researchers from Exeter University studied the frequency and sequence of symbols, finding patterns consistent with ancient written languages.
Despite the study, the true meaning of the stones remains elusive. Rob Lee, the lead researcher, theorizes they might be memorials listing the deceased. The limited vocabulary used on the stones suggests we may never fully grasp what the Picts intended to record.
5. The Vanishing Ninth Legion
The Roman Ninth Legion conquered England in A.D. 43 and maintained control over southern Britain for 74 years, barring occasional rebellions. However, from A.D. 117 onward, the legion mysteriously disappeared from historical records, leaving their fate unknown.
A widely accepted theory is that the legion marched into Scotland to quell a Pictish uprising. This narrative has inspired numerous books and films, though some historians argue the legion may have been reassigned to other conflicts. Other speculations include their defeat by the Parthians in Iran or their loss in a Jewish revolt in A.D. 132.
Evidence indicates that the Ninth Legion faced difficulties even before their disappearance. When Emperor Hadrian arrived in A.D. 122, he brought the Sixth Legion with him and constructed a wall across northern England, then known as Britannia, to defend against northern tribes. If the Ninth had been annihilated by these tribes, it would explain the urgency behind building such a formidable barrier.
4. The Lost Library of Iona
In A.D. 563, St. Columba and his followers arrived on the Scottish island of Iona, where he established a monastery. This monastery became a beacon of knowledge during the Dark Ages, attracting kings for burial and pilgrims seeking the monks’ wisdom. It housed some of the finest writings of the era, most of which have since disappeared.
The sole surviving artifact is The Book of Kells, now housed at Trinity College in Dublin. While many attribute the loss of other texts to Viking raids in the ninth century, some historians speculate that the books might still exist. They propose the texts could have been transported to Ireland or hidden nearby for safekeeping.
Although archaeological excavations on neighboring islands in the 1950s yielded no results, the missing manuscripts could still be close by. The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, far older and found by chance in a cave, offers hope. A vast written record from an era known for its lack of documentation might still be out there, waiting to be uncovered.
3. The Glasgow Enigma
Scotland has one of Europe’s lowest average life expectancies, largely due to Glasgow, where some areas report life expectancies as low as 54 years. While poverty plays a role, other similarly deprived UK cities do not experience such high rates of premature death. Factors like smoking, alcohol, and drug use contribute, but even accounting for these, Glasgow’s life expectancy remains puzzlingly low.
This puzzling trend, known as the Glasgow effect, remains unexplained. Various theories have been proposed, ranging from the region’s climate to cultural factors and political influences. The issue isn’t confined to Glasgow—Scotland’s overall life expectancy growth lags behind many other nations, with countries once trailing Scotland now surpassing it. The underlying causes are just as unclear as those behind the Glasgow effect.
2. The Mystery of the Great Mull Plane
The disappearance and death of Peter Gibb defy explanation. On Christmas Eve 1975, after finishing dinner and a bottle of claret at a hotel on the Isle of Mull, the former RAF pilot announced he was taking his Cessna plane for a flight. Despite warnings from staff and guests, he insisted, “I’m not asking permission; I’m just informing you out of courtesy. I don’t want a fuss.”
Gibb left with Felicity Granger, a former university lecturer. She later stated that Gibb instructed her to stand at the runway’s end with torches to guide his takeoff. Witnesses reported seeing two torches moving independently, suggesting another person was present, though Granger denied this. Gibb took off, and a 72-hour sleet storm began shortly after. He never returned.
While Gibb’s actions were perplexing, the true enigma unfolded four months later when his body was discovered on a nearby hillside. A pathologist determined he died from exposure, with only a leg injury noted. Tests confirmed his body and clothing had no contact with seawater, proving he exited the plane on land. However, the plane was never found. Mull, an island roughly the size of Dallas, made the aircraft’s disappearance even more baffling. In 1986, a plane matching the description was found in the sea between Mull and the mainland, but its doors were locked, and it appeared to have crashed with immense force, its wings separated from the fuselage—a crash no one could have survived unscathed.
Two improbable theories have been proposed. The first suggests Gibb jumped from the plane midair, landing on the hill with only a leg injury before succumbing to the cold. However, this leaves the mystery of how the plane flew itself into the sea and locked its doors. The second theory posits Gibb was an MI5 agent on a mission in Northern Ireland, captured and killed by terrorists without visible injuries, then his body was returned to Mull. This theory ignores the plane found at sea, but neither explanation is particularly convincing.
1. The Tragedy of David Stewart
David Stewart, Duke of Rothesay, fell victim to a bitter royal feud. His father, Robert III, King of Scots, struggled to rule effectively after ascending the throne in 1390 due to lack of noble support, which favored his younger brother, Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany. (Both brothers were named Robert—Robert III was originally John Stewart but changed his name upon becoming king.) In 1399, David was appointed lieutenant of the kingdom by his father, but his uncle, threatened by the young duke’s rising power, had him arrested in 1401 to maintain control over Scotland.
The fate of David Stewart remains shrouded in mystery. Some believe he perished from starvation in the dungeons, with one account suggesting he resorted to eating his own hands to survive. The Duke of Albany claimed David died of dysentery. He is thought to have been buried in an unmarked grave at Lindores Abbey. The current landowners are using advanced imaging technology to locate his remains, hoping to use DNA analysis to confirm his identity and uncover the truth about his death.
+Bluejacket Boy
This poignant mystery has finally been resolved. In 1949, a woman in Kirkwall, Orkney Islands, discovered an old letter hidden behind her fireplace. The letter, addressed to Wales and dated 1916, was signed simply as “Bluejacket Boy.”
The letter provided a glimpse into family life, mentioning a toddler named Ethel, likely the author’s niece, and a sister named Hannah. It was addressed to a man named John Phillips. In November 2013, historians from the Orkney Archive sought public assistance in the Welsh town where the letter was intended to be delivered.
Online investigators successfully identified a woman named Mary Hodge, the granddaughter of the Bluejacket Boy. His real name was David John Phillips, a naval serviceman stationed on Orkney during World War I. He married a local woman from the street where the letter was discovered, and the couple later moved to Wales to raise their family. In 2014, nearly a century later, the letter finally reached its intended destination.
