The Piltdown Man Hoax: How a Fake Fossil Fooled Science for 40 Years
In 1912 a skull from an English gravel pit was hailed as a missing link. In 1953 it was exposed as a forgery. How Piltdown Man fooled experts, and who did it.
Topic
Hoaxes & Frauds
Fakes, forgeries and deceptions that fooled experts and the public.
The Cardiff Giant Hoax
In 1869, well diggers in New York found a 10-foot “petrified giant.” The story of the stone hoax that fooled crowds and sparked a feud with P.T. Barnum.
The Hitler Diaries Hoax
In 1983, Stern announced it had found Hitler’s secret diaries. How a forger fooled editors and a famous historian, and how the fakes were exposed in days.