[WorldUrbanLegend] Caras de Bélmez
In 1971, in the town of Belmez in Andalusia, Spain, Maria Pereira Gómez was living with her family. On August 23rd, her grandson was horrified by something he saw on the kitchen floor. When Maria looked, she was shocked to see a human face-shaped image appearing on the floor. Despite her best efforts to erase it, the face would not disappear. Maria’s husband also tried various methods, but nothing worked, and eventually, he covered the floor with cement.
However, a few days later, the face reappeared, and after several failed attempts to remove it, Maria's husband decided to completely tear up the floor and replace it with fresh cement. Yet, not long after, the face started to appear again, and soon other faces appeared throughout the house.
Terrified, the family sought help from Professor Algumosa of the University of Madrid, who visited the house and began investigating the strange phenomenon. Initially, there was suspicion that the family might have drawn the faces intentionally, but it became clear that this was not the case, as no matter how much they tried to erase them, the faces would remain. Professor Algumosa decided to cut out a piece of the floor with the face and bring it to the university for an X-ray. Strangely, when the piece was brought to the university, the face disappeared. However, at the same time, the faces reappeared at the house in Belmez, even more numerous than before, filling the kitchen floor.
The faces disappeared once again, but on April 9, 1972, about six months later, the faces returned and covered the house once more. This time, there were various faces, including those of male and female monks or nuns, all with grim expressions. Researchers studying paranormal phenomena visited the house and, noting that these occurrences happened frequently on the kitchen floor, they began digging underneath it. When they dug about 2.7 meters down, they uncovered numerous human bones. Through scientific analysis and historical research, it was determined that these remains likely belonged to Christian victims killed by the Moors in the 11th century, during their rule over Andalusia. The theory was that the faces were the spirits of these victims, appearing to express their anguish.
After the bones were properly reburied and a Catholic mass was held for the souls, the strange occurrences ceased. However, in 1982, a decade after the original events, the faces began to appear once again, and the house became a famous "ghost spot" in Europe, attracting many visitors.
As for the cause of the phenomenon, some believed it was the vengeful spirits of Christians killed by the Moors. Others, however, argued that the faces were simply stains caused by chemical reactions, and that people were merely imagining human faces. There were also claims that the Pereira family had deliberately created the faces. Another theory suggested that Maria Pereira Gómez, due to her strong spiritual sensitivity, had attracted these spirits, which then projected their faces onto the floor.
Maria Pereira Gómez passed away in 2004 at the age of 85. However, a year after her death, a new "Belmez face" appeared, sparking controversy. A Spanish journalist in 2007 claimed that this new face was a forgery, allegedly created by Maria's son, Diego Pereira Gómez. As a result, suspicions arose that the earlier faces might have been part of a clever hoax by the Pereira family.
