The Face of the Johor Mawas

Vincent Chow, Malaysian cryptozoologist and serious-minded natural history investigator, wasn’t ready to talk about the photographs of the Johor Bigfoot, yet, but sometimes events flow more swiftly than one wishes. Such is the case this week when it came out at a news conference that Chow would be releasing the photographs of an unknown hominoid in a book in the near future (June appears a-too-wishful date). Peter Loh, 42, was there, and his new sketch is published here, for the first time, as an exclusive at Cryptomundo. It is based on Chow’s description of what the photograph of the male shows. Loh’s first drawing (below) has an ear that is too elongated, according to Chow, who reports the ears are more chimp-like and about the size of human ears in the photographs he has viewed.

I decided, due to the comments at Cryptomundo, we all needed to ask some questions of Vincent Chow, to move closer to some clarification on this developing story. Of course, no Homo erectus has been confirmed, no photographs have been produced, and in the midst of all of this excitement, of course, the mood is one of caution and sometimes a sense of we have all been here before. Nevertheless, if there is any possibility, even a remote one, that proof is at hand, don’t we want to know more? Therefore, as we continue the quest, retain the passion, hold on to our patience, we need to also ask questions. I reached out to Vincent and he responded, openly, as best he could at this point. Here’s his answers. (See earlier posts for descriptions and more on the photographs.)

First, why was a news conference being held and no photographs shown? It just logically does not make sense. The truth be told, the news conference was held by others. This was not Vincent Chow’s news conference but he was invited there by the Singapore Paranormal Investigations (SPI) to comment on the casting of the footprint made by the Seekers, as well as the Mandt’s brothers team, which they got from Lukut, Kota Tinggi. It was not Dr. Chow’s media event, and the photographic evidence was not necessarily to be discussed then. Certainly, it was not going to be released at that news conference. It only came about through questioning (such as by Peter Loh and others) that the existence of the photographs leaked out.

…actually belong to a group who had spent 11 years protecting the creatures and they own the copyrights. Although there are 14 shots of different views and situations of them, I am only permitted to release 3 (a matured male, a female and a juvenile).

The book is a joint effort between Malaysian writers and Vincent Chow, with two versions being produced. One will be in English and the other in Chinese. I will be writing the preface to at least the English edition.

challenge conventional ideas and hypotheses about Homo erectus and allies. [The photos may lend more] credibility to the work of paleontologists and use the images to support what the experts have been saying to the world about Java man, Peking man and the like. What could happen is that it will finally open the eyes of the world and challenge all theories that Homo erectus is extinct (definitely not in Johor).

In reply to those critics who say Chow should release the photographs immediately, beside the whole issue of them not being entirely in his control, he has this to say:

I am not in a hurry to please the skeptics and cynics but doing it more for serious researchers who know the value of the presence of Homo erectus. The distorted views and imageries of Bigfoot as a monstrous ape to entertain man’s follies and satisfy the ego, and as an object to be viewed with abject ridicule should never be condoned.”

People today are confused by the various descriptions of the “Johor Bigfoot,” the different finds of footprints (some like those found look like rhinos and may be from a rhino, while others look like pongid – as above). And then there’s the question of the varied heights described. People seem to be attaching local terms to all kinds of diverse cryptids. With regard to the continuing name game that is being played by the media, Vincent Chow checks in about this question, as well:

I agree that the local names are confusing especially Mawas which really is an Indonesian term that refers to the Orang hutan . My guess is that the locals have often seen the juveniles who are really a curious lot as compared to the adults. And at that height of 4-5 ft, and with that kind of hair coverage, at a distance they could easily be mistaken for a mawas. But then Orang hutan can’t run like a biped making this a clear-cut impossibility as they are really tree-dwellers. And to date, there is no record of any orang hutan having been seen in Peninsula Malaysia.

Whether its orang dalam, hantu sejarang gigi or mawas, that’s the richness of folk-lore or local culture that is a goldmine of information that cannot be ignored.

And, finally, what is the 59-year-old naturalist Vincent Chow’s reaction to what he is reading at Cryptomundo:

I am inspired by the number of comments at your website and what colorful and imaginative bantering! Right now, I believe our Homo erectus must be in stitches and rolling on the jungle floor to think that his sexual organs have attracted so much attention!

Loren Coleman About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct). Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015. Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.

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