That Mystery Fish Photograph

One of the oldest unsolved “image” mysteries I have had to deal with at Cryptomundo, starting in 2005, is what is shown on this postcard.

The men in the picture look like military servicemen. They have been tentatively identified (from their belt buckets and hats) as US Marines in pre-1920s uniforms. Are they pre-World War I?

The surroundings appear as if this photograph was taken on a beach or island. The location has been tentatively identified as the Pacific, maybe the Philippines.

The fish seems to be over six feet long (notice the standard military stretcher lying under the cryptid). How long is a WWI-era stretcher?

Where are the fins on this cryptid, if it is a fish? If it is a giant salamander, then is this Japan or China? If it is a constructed fake, doesn’t it look rather too unbelievable to be taken seriously? What is it?

Send in a comment if you can enhance the knowledge of the surroundings, help solve the mystery, or know what this cryptid might be.

The postcard has been tentatively dated. It should be noted that the “Place Stamp Here” box is formed by the letters AZO, which allegedly date this card. All the AZO triangles are pointing upward, thus indicating a date for this postcard of 1904-18.

The photo has been changed to delete the mouth, to see what it looks like that way. However, the original does show a mouth or line on the image.

The International Cryptozoology Museum has an enlarged version of the postcard displayed in the museum to elicit more information on what it may be. If you can contribute to our nonprofit museum’s survival through the non-tourist season, this would be most appreciated. Please click on the “Donate” button below (remember, the upper righthand “Cryptomundo” button is for the admin of the blog and that money does not reach the museum or Loren Coleman). Thanks everyone!

You may directly send a check or money order if in the USA, or, if outside the USA, an international postal money order written to

International Cryptozoology Museum
Attn: Loren Coleman, Director
11 Avon Street
Portland, ME 04101
USA

OPEN Mondays Noon – 4 pm, Wed-Sat, 11 am – 4:30 pm, Sundays Noon – 3:30 pm, CLOSED Tuesdays; $7.00 admission for adults, $5.00 for children, 12 and under, cash or check.

This image, from her postcard, was contributed by reader Ms. Phyllis Mancz of Ohio to Loren Coleman.

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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