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Memorials aren't always static buildings or objects. In some cases, red dresses have fluttered in memory of missing women, people have transformed their loved ones into precious gems, and time travelers might have attended Stephen Hawking’s funeral.
Monuments can stir up trouble as well. They often split communities and become targets for destruction. Additionally, iconic landmarks are battling a mysterious slime that seems impossible to eliminate.
10. Pedals
Every so often, a wild animal captures the hearts of social media users. Recently, a black bear from New Jersey became an internet sensation. Nicknamed 'Pedals,' the bear gained fame for walking on its hind legs like a human. This unique behavior was due to severe damage to its front paws.
The cause of Pedals’s paw injuries remains a mystery, but it's believed they were caused by a car accident years earlier. As people’s fondness for the bear grew, so did the threats against it. In 2016, after hunters vowed to 'eliminate' Pedals, one tragically ended its life with an arrow.
Photos emerged showing a bear hanging by a chain, and authorities later confirmed that it was likely Pedals. The injuries to the paws matched, and the distinctive chest blaze also pointed to the same bear.
9. A Bulletproof Memorial
In 1955, Emmet Till was brutally murdered after visiting relatives in Mississippi. According to the story, a white woman accused the 14-year-old African American boy of flirting with her. Her brother and husband then tortured and shot Till in the head. The assault was so vicious that Till was unrecognizable, and the only way his family identified him was by the signet ring he wore.
Till's murder became a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement, and in 2007, a memorial sign was placed at the site where his body had been pulled from the Tallahatchie River. However, the sign was stolen a year later and has yet to be recovered.
Not long after, a new sign was installed, but by 2018, it had been shot at over 100 times. The damaged sign was replaced for a third time, but within just 35 days, vandals returned to fire on it once more.
The memorial sign was taken down again, but a fourth version was scheduled to be put up in late 2019. This one would be made from reinforced steel, making it virtually bulletproof.
8. Germany’s Greatest Crime Memorial
In 2005, Germany did something unprecedented. It unveiled a monument to its darkest history right in the heart of its capital. The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, located near the German parliament, took 17 years to complete.
Initially, when proposals were submitted, Germany’s chancellor at the time, Helmut Kohl, rejected the chosen design. Progress stalled until Kohl left office and the capital moved from Bonn to Berlin.
The project was revived, but it hit a major obstacle when it was revealed that Degussa, the company awarded the contract to protect the monument from graffiti, had previously supplied gas to Nazi death camps.
As the project finally made headway, the Jewish designer faced criticism for making light-hearted comments about a dentist pulling out gold teeth—echoing an atrocity committed in the death camps. Despite these setbacks, the memorial was eventually opened, with Holocaust survivors, Jewish leaders, and German officials in attendance.
7. A Reminder of Racism
Not all memorials unite people. A prime example is a museum that opened in 2018, which has caused a divide in Montgomery, Alabama. The Legacy Museum, the first of its kind dedicated to the victims of black lynching in the U.S., tells their stories. Outside, statues of shackled slaves greet visitors.
The grand opening drew a large crowd, but it also sparked anger among locals. Many white residents—and even Native Americans—feared the museum would rekindle old tensions. Some felt they were being unfairly held accountable for past atrocities, while others believed the museum would reopen painful wounds instead of fostering healing.
Not everyone shared the same opinion. Some residents welcomed the Legacy Museum as a vital part of Southern history, believing it was important for their children to understand the experiences of their ancestors. Perhaps too optimistically, one woman remarked, 'This is something everyone will embrace.'
6. The REDress Project, an evocative art initiative, aims to raise awareness about the ongoing crisis of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).
Jaime Black, a Metis artist from Canada, was deeply moved by a speaker at an Indigenous conference who addressed the issue of MMIW. This spurred her to reflect on the stark reality of the crisis.
In 2016, a staggering 5,712 American Indian and Alaska Native women were reported missing, yet only 116 were officially listed in the U.S. Department of Justice’s missing persons database. Tragically, 84 percent of these women suffer from violence, though the true scope of the crisis remains unknown due to insufficient resources.
In response, Black, as an artist, created a powerful symbol of loss. She displayed 35 red dresses—empty, without women—hanging in public spaces for all to witness the haunting silence they represented.
Her exhibit made its way across Canada, and by 2019, during the eighth anniversary of the memorial, the red dresses fluttered in the plaza of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian.
Red dresses began to appear in private spaces, and the movement even reached Congress. Advocates hope the project will foster greater awareness, prompting the creation of more effective laws to report crimes against Indigenous people.
5. The Death Of Ok
When the Vikings sailed around Iceland, they believed the Okjokull glacier was the resting place of a dead troll. Known as “Ok,” this ice giant officially succumbed to climate change in 2014, having melted beyond recognition and no longer qualifying as a glacier.
As the first glacier to disappear, Ok's end was commemorated with a plaque. In 2019, scientists from the United States and Iceland collaborated to create a modest memorial plate, which was placed at the lofty height once occupied by Ok. A ceremony held in August unveiled its message. The inscription was directed to future generations. It read:
Ok is the first Icelandic glacier to lose its status as a glacier. In the next 200 years, all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it. 415ppm C02.
The tail end measured the current level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, marking the highest concentration ever recorded in human history.
4. The Monument Goop
Memorials and monuments across the United States are being overtaken by a mysterious slime. In Washington, DC, the National Parks Service struggles to explain or halt the phenomenon. The substance, not yet fully understood, is commonly referred to as “biofilm.”
This will remain the catch-all term until the substance can be identified more precisely. Currently, all that is known for certain is that microorganisms are behind it, with the first signs of the colonies emerging in 2006.
The slime issue has grown significantly. It is rapidly discoloring prominent US monuments, transforming them from their original white marble to a dark, slimy black. The Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, and several tombstones at the Congressional Cemetery are among the affected sites.
Understanding biofilm has become essential to preserving these monuments. Unfortunately, this task may prove challenging. Experts are still unsure about how the slime spreads, why it targets memorials, or how to find an affordable solution to stop the spread.
3. Diamonds From The Dead
Cremation has become a widely chosen option for funerals. Not only is it expected to surpass burials in popularity, but the ashes themselves provide a unique way to memorialize a loved one.
The human body contains a significant amount of carbon, and diamonds are formed from crystallized carbon. It didn't take long for someone with an entrepreneurial mind to connect the dots between diamonds and the deceased.
By 2019, at least five companies were offering the service of transforming cremated remains into memorial diamonds. The leading company in this industry, Algordanza, based in Switzerland, has already sold approximately 1,000 of these physical diamonds across 33 countries.
The process begins by extracting and purifying carbon from a sufficient amount of ashes. This purified carbon is then placed in a growth cell with a small diamond, which initiates the crystallization process. The carbon is converted into graphite and subjected to intense heat and pressure for up to eight weeks.
The outcome is a raw diamond, but customers have the option to have the gem cut and polished by a jeweler in Switzerland.
2. Hawking’s Time-Traveling Mourners
When renowned physicist Stephen Hawking passed away in 2018, 1,000 tickets were made available for his memorial service. To secure one, people could enter a raffle online. However, applicants soon noticed something unusual.
In the age drop-down menu, there was an option for people to select a birth year between 2019 and 2038. Upon inquiry, the Stephen Hawking Foundation revealed that they were inviting the unborn. Hawking, a passionate advocate for time travel, had once even hosted a party for future generations.
Although nobody from the future showed up for the party, nobody could disprove the possibility that the throngs attending his interment at Westminster Abbey had time travelers in attendance.
1. Project Capsula Mundi
Dying is no longer environmentally friendly. Toxic chemicals are released in both traditional and cremation practices, memorial parks take up swathes of land, and their lawns require large amounts of water and pesticides.
Project Capsula Mundi could be the answer. Two Italian designers came up with the idea of feeding people to trees. Instead of clearing land for cemeteries, funerals could turn into forests.
Here’s how it works: instead of a traditional casket or urn, the body or ashes are placed in an egg-shaped pod. The pod is then buried beneath a tree. Over time, the biodegradable shell breaks down, turning the body into compost and providing valuable nutrients for the tree to thrive.
While these egg pods are likely to be more affordable than conventional burials, those who wish to have a memorial tree will have to wait until natural burials are legalized in many countries. This concept originated in Italy, where it was first introduced.
