Digital Detectives: 35+ Times Online Sleuths Trumped Google At Identifying Strange Objects
The world is full of mysteries that even the greatest thinkers and philosophers of our time have been unable to solve. Even those with in-depth knowledge of metaphysics and chemistry do not have all the answers. And then there are seemingly commonplace objects we cannot figure out. They seem so simple, making the mystery behind them even more frustrating. This combination of frustration and curiosity leads people to search for answers. The quest takes them to the internet; however, even Google doesn’t know everything. Sometimes answers come from the most unexpected places, fellow humans! That being said, bear in mind that we also often get things wrong, even with ample self-confidence. So, come along with us and discover odd and confusing objects that trumped even the almighty Google.
A Himalayan Calendar
This weird semi-circle abacus-looking thing found in an old house by the poster must have been confounding. Fortunately, some helpful commenters on Reddit were able to provide an answer, suggesting it was a Himalayan calendar. We’ve never come across one, have you?
The rings and attached balls represented various measurable aspects, from years, months, and times. People want to know how to use it. However, while most comments suggested a Himalayan calendar, some were less certain due to a lack of proper information to identify the object.
Telephone Dialler
We wouldn’t blame you if, at first glance, you thought the weird metal thing next to the coin was a type of musical instrument. It has a much stranger identity, but what you are looking at is a telephone dialer.
Old telephones – the ones you see in movies – had something called a rotary dial – a disc with numbers on it – that you had to move to enter a telephone number. Dialers prevented folks from hurting their fingers or chipping nails.
Pigeon Transporter
What might initially seem an ordinary transport container is not so common after all. This particular type of container safely stores and transports pigeons. In this case, the transporter is likely using it for racing pigeons. Yes, they are a thing.
For those who don’t know, pigeon racing is a popular – if niche – completive sport, but it’s unlike racing horses. Trained homing pigeons are taken far away from their ‘homes’ and then released to see which pigeon returns home the fastest.
Fishing Net Claw
We would have loved to have seen the look on the person who found this thing, mainly because we were equally confused about its purpose. Was it used to scratch people’s backs? It turns out it’s a claw for fishing nets.
From what we understand, the hooks make it easier to grab the net, while the ring-shaped handle provides a better grip. That said, we are unsure how effective and practical the tool is. We don’t see fishermen using it nowadays.
Bathroom Magazine Rack
This strange chunk of metal is not weird new art or décor style. Its function has something to do with the bathroom. Anyway, digressions aside, this is supposed to be a magazine rack, and it’s a bit weird if you ask us.
We understand its logic, and having something to read on the toilet is always welcome. But how many users of this Airbnb would use it instead of going on their phones? Germaphobes won’t touch this thing at all.
Diver Rescue Marker
No, that’s not a rusty and oddly shaped pen nor a gross cigar. Its identity is far more interesting. It is a rescue marker that divers would use in emergencies where they need to attract attention and get help.
A diver needing aid would open the marker, allowing the dye inside to color the water around it. This makes it easy for rescuers to find the diver easily. The dyed water is even visible at night when a black light is shined against it.
Old Hearing Aid
This peculiar-looking trinket is another gadget that had people confused. It is an old hearing aid. Well, more precisely, it’s a transmitter designed like a tie clip that would attach to the hearing aid. Have you heard of this thing before?
The transmitter houses a microphone to pick up the song and travel through the cord plugged into the hearing aid. Beltone, a company known established in 1940 and known for quality workmanship, is believed be the manufacturer of this type of hearing tool.
Broken Off Car Lift
Cars can be confusing. Not talking about how they work or how to drive them – that’s another story – we’re talking about the parts that make them. Like opening the hood and having no idea what all the things are for.
One car owner took to the Internet for help when they saw an oddly shaped metal thing attached to the underside of their vehicle. What was it? Part of a mechanic’s lift must have snapped off during a checkup.
Ambergris
Be forewarned. This next one is fascinating and quite disgusting. It also might change how you look at a specific popular product. This slimy and gelatinous ball is known as Ambergris, and it’s incredibly precious. The higher-quality version of this product is worth $27 per gram.
The reason it’s priceless is because it’s an essential ingredient for many expensive perfume and cologne brands, which helps make the scent last longer. Now the gross part. Ambergris can be found in whale feces. How can something used for fragrances come from something that smells terrible? We have the same thoughts.
Terra Cotta Sugar Preserver
While it might be a bit of an overused phrase, sometimes you have to think about how we take some things for granted. And no, nothing like the obvious but smaller and simpler things that people hardly pay attention to.
An excellent example of what we’re discussing is this tiny disc made from terra cotta or clay. This seemingly uninteresting object helps prevent brown sugar from drying up or clumping together while in storage—it clips around the opening of the container.
Steel Soap Bar
While discussing strange inventions most folks have never heard of or seen, here’s another addition. What appears to be a lump of metal is a steel ‘soap bar,’ if you will, used to get strong odors off your hands.
If you’ve never diced onions or garlic, you should know how tricky it can be to wash the smell off thoroughly. Some other commenters made the valid point that you could get the same result by rubbing a spoon.
Vasculum
Did you also scratch your head trying to figure out what this thing was? We first thought it was something nautical or ship themed because of its weathered wooden appearance. What did you think it was at first glance?
This is a Vasculum, a container frequently used by botanists while gathering plant samples in the field. The size and shape of the container allow them to store the plants without damaging them. Indeed, you learn something new every day.
Car Window Breaker
Contrary to what you see on TV or in action movies, car windows are surprisingly tough to break. And while it’s a great thing in most scenarios, there are times, like in emergencies, when it can be an issue. Potentially life-threatening if you need to get out.
You’ll need this trusty little gadget in such situations. This is a car window breaker with a sharpened metal tip designed to break glass. The small tip concentrates all your force into one point instead of distributing it across a wider surface.
Water Gates
It is unbelievable and amazing to think about how human ingenuity has solved complex problems. But situations aren’t as straightforward as we want them to be. A few issues we have now resulted from humans trying to solve previous problems.
A great example is this water gate. This gate opens – as seen in the picture – and allows water to travel through underground tunnels to connected power plants—the gates will then later close to keep the water contained.
A Saildrone
Speaking of creative inventions, the sail drone from Alameda, California, USA, is an interesting one to read about. Saildrone, Inc. is an American-based company established in 2012 that manufactures and oversees many unmanned surface vehicles, like their ocean sail drones.
These sail drones were likely first used for military purposes as early as 1920, primarily used as minesweepers. By the 20th century, their roles were expanded to perform environmental monitoring and oceanography while still capable of military purposes.
Moth Ball Holder
No lie, the first thing that came to mind when we saw this was that it must be a type of garlic press. This is something you’d want to keep as far away from your food as possible because it can cause poisoning.
It is a container for mothballs. This particular one is a Mortemoth, likely the manufacturer’s brand name. You don’t see a lot of them these days. Fun fact, that’s also a disturbing name when you learn that morte means death in French.
A Clock Weight
This next one is likely to confuse most folks today. Well, it will confound anyone who’s never seen old-fashioned mechanical clocks, the big and noisy ones. It’s not a decorative finger guard, paperweight, or an elaborate knife; it’s part of a cuckoo clock.
These weights power the mechanism that makes the cuckoo clock tick. One powers the cuckoo, while the other powers the clock. As one turns the gears, it causes the chain to drop and the cuckoo to pop out. Pretty neat.
Linen Press
For those who aren’t obsessed with your fashion history, we wonder if anyone still alive knows what these were used for. While people online couldn’t come to a mutual answer, the consensus is it’s likely a linen press.
If you didn’t know, linen is notorious for wrinkling, often requiring a lot of ironing to smooth it out. A linen press achieved this by placing the linen between the boards and screwing it together to apply pressure.
Anti-dog Pee Door Protectors
While dogs are amazing – and arguably one of the best companions you could ask for – they can sometimes be mischievous, especially if they are strays. The same holds for unneutered males. They often like to pee on surfaces.
The locals of this Spanish city were annoyed with such behavior that they came up with a creative solution. They found and stuck wooden boards in front of their doors to act as pee guards. Not the best fix, but it works.
Cabbage Slicer
Now, what is this? Is it a knife holder, a weird piece of art, or just a wooden board with bits of metal stuck to it? Surprisingly enough, it’s a vegetable slicer used specifically for shredding cabbage for sauerkraut.
Essentially, it’s the same principle behind using a mandolin – not the guitar; those vegetable slicers you must have seen on cooking shows. While we cannot comment on its effectiveness, we cannot help but feel a little uneasy about it.
Floppy Disk Cutter
Now, we’re sure that next to no one will know what this is, mainly because the object is relatively niche and because the thing you use it on is outdated. No, you’re mistaken, it is not a paper-hole puncher.
This little gadget write-protects floppy disks, allowing you to make a single disk into a double-sided one. For those of you too young to know what a floppy disk is, it’s the original digital data storage device that became obsolete in 2011.
A Cold Box
One of the perks of living in a modern city with lots of old architecture is that you get a glimpse of what housing used to look like. It’s not unusual to find modern apartment buildings with furniture from decades ago.
As you can see, there was once obviously a box of sorts that was painted over. But what is it? Well, it’s a cold box, a fairly common thing from years ago used to store and keep food cold. Think of it as the refirgerator’s ancestor.
Tennis Measurer
We have been told that looks can be deceiving, so bear that in mind as we continue. While this might look like a rather decorative pocket watch, but – no surprise – it is not. It measures the height of tennis nets.
The hooked side – attached behind the larger bulb – is fixed on the net’s top. The smaller ball-shaped end will gradually touch the ground as the net is tightened. The goal is for the ball to reach the grass or court.
Kazoo Membrane
This tiny plastic ring might remind you of something but it is a kazoo membrane, something we would never have imagined to be real or necessary. For those who don’t know, a kazoo is a tiny wind instrument that produces a high pitch sound.
Honestly, it sounds like the annoying buzzing of a mosquito. The membrane is placed onto the air hole and produces sound as air pressure is blown into the instrument, forcing it to vibrate. The kazoo was invented in the 1840s and introduced at the Georgia State Fair.
Tick Removal Kit
When we first saw this next object, we thought it might be some bathroom or beauty accessory. We were quite wrong, but also pleasantly surprised to learn that it is a tick-removal kit. Yes, these things exist, and for a good reason.
Ticks are notoriously potentially dangerous to remove because their heads can be left behind or their bodies popped, leading to infection. This kit solves the problem by allowing you to safely remove the tick using the hook to twist it around and out.
Ultrasonic Animal Deterrent
We hope we weren’t the only ones who thought this weird-looking device looked like WALL.E, the beloved robot from the 2008 film of the same name. It’s an ultrasonic animal deterrent manufactured by HPDFCU, a company we’ve never heard of.
It is a motion-activated animal or wildlife repellent emitting a high-pitched frequency that chases animals away. The exact legality of such devices can be tricky. Using them to chase away pests is fine as long as it doesn’t affect neighboring pets.
Hat Rack Display
It’s not uncommon to go for an open house or to move into a new home and discover that the previous homeowner or tenant has left something behind. Usually, it’s relatively everyday items, like a piece of clothing or boxes.
We can only imagine how confused the new owner or landlord was when they saw this. What you are looking at is a hat rack display. A simple gadget that lets you free up some space by using it to store your hats.
A Ball Mill
While this giant piece of rusted metal might look like a piece of discarded farming gear, it’s a ball mill. It is an industrial piece of equipment used smooth out, pulverize or grind raw materials, such as coal. The pharmaceutical, food, and chemical industries widely used it.
An engine powers the mill and causes rotation by turning gears. Hard metal balls are placed inside the drum of the mill and are used to grind the material thrown inside the drum. It can be easily dismantled once obsolete.
Toothpick Prototype
This rather intricate and impressive-looking object is not a fountain pen or a writing implement. Instead, it appears to be a toothpick prototype patented in 1881. The design allowed the picks to be removed, replaced, and stored in the magazine.
The outer body was made of metal, while the picks were made from “quill, whalebone or other elastic material.” The patent was granted to J. H. Crowell from Rhode Island, USA, although that is all we know of the inventor.
A Cream Separator
Now this one is tough to explain due to the wrong angle of the photo, as well as some missing parts. This metallic disk is part of a manually operated milk and cream separator. We never thought it had something to do with dairy.
Milk is poured into a giant bowl usually placed on top of the machine. When the valve opens and the handle turns, milk pours downwards. Skim milk drains down one spout and cream drains down another. It is quite a straightforward process.
Laptop Storage Holder
It’s always a roll of the dice when it comes to hotels and the quality of their rooms, or at least what you can expect to find within them. Some hotels have more practical designs, and others cotinually try to save a buck.
And then, a few try to develop innovative ideas that help their hotel stand out, such as this. This room has a bedside table with a slot for customers to store their laptops away. We can’t help but think it isn’t very practical.
Temperature Sensor for Humidifier
We’ve already mentioned earlier that new homeowners or apartment renters can always expect to find something odd in older homes that have been renovated and modernized. A good example is this weird metallic-looking thing sticking out of a house.
This is likely the remains of a temperature sensor that connects to a humidifier. We don’t know enough about how the installation process works, so we need the help of experts here. We’d be delighted to learn more about this device.
Water Watchers
While the range of expressions and degree of eye rolls can vary whenever a nearby parent happily states that children are a joy, objects like this next one do make parenthood look fun. This weird and cartoonish green-looking thing is called a Water Watcher.
The Watcher was an initiative by the Australian water company Yarra Valley Water. The Water Watcher aimed to help families become more water conscious and less wasteful, believing that the staring eyes would consciously remind people to be more responsible.
Phone Holder
Due to our – modern people’s – near inability to be without our phones for a lengthy period, many companies have had to redesign their products with that in mind when applicable. Something this person soon realized when they explained their new ski jacket.
This strangely shaped black plastic accessory is a phone holder. The plastic edges stretch and clip around the edges of your phone, securing the phone in the center. The design ensures that your phone won’t go anywhere. A lot of people might want this.
Silkworm Cocoons
At first glance, you would wonder why on earth this person is showing a picture of balls of cotton wool inside a glass jar. Well, those are not regular cotton wool balls. What you are looking at is silkworm cocoons.
The cocoon is from a rawer strand of silk that the worm produces and wraps itself within. And while the cocoons look perfectly preserved, the worms are unlikely to be alive due to how long they have been in the jar.
Rotisserie Clamp
Okay, while this next one might not be as fascinating as the others on this list, the story behind the person who found it is worth reading about. The person found this metallic clip after it was removed from their coworker’s dog’s stomach.
Yep, their pet thought it was worth eating. But you can’t blame them after you find out that this is a clamp for a rotisserie chicken. If you had to play detective, the dog probably ate it because it still smelled of food.
A Hanger Cover
We won’t lie to you; we couldn’t decide what this was. Ideas went from a baggy sock to a kind of bra to a peculiar diaper style. It turns out it was none of those guesses. No surprise at all.
This is a hanger cover you would attach to your clothes hanger to prevent suits and finer and more delicate clothing items from getting crease lines while hanging. The thick padding also ensures that no jagged edges will damage the material.
A Chef’s Hat Cookie Cutter
Here is another less exciting entry with a delightful story behind it. This white blub you are looking at results from a cookie shape cutter that the owners have never been able to identify, even though they’ve had it for two decades.
So, the girlfriend of the family’s son took to the Internet to find out what the ‘bomb cookie’ cutter – as the family called it – was. The shape is meant to look like those white poofy chef hats. Did you guess it correctly?
Folding Garment Hanger
Again, this is another entry that is a little hard to figure out unless you have more visual aids to work with. This is a vintage folding garment hanger. The metallic object can open up, allowing long metal arms to fold outwards.
The red leather object is likely a case to put the hanger inside, preventing the hanger from folding outwards while traveling. We’re not sure how effective they were, but it’s an interesting concept and design. Would you consider using this?
Leather Fishing Belt
It took us quite a while to figure out what we were looking at, eventually deciding that it must be a type of bag. And yet again, we were wrong once we learned this was a leather fishing belt.
The pouch on the side is presumably for loose items, bait, and lures. The hole in the center of the belt is where you can place and secure your fishing rod for extra support when you start reeling in a big catch.
Herb Container
The sheer variety of weird and wacky inventions we’ve made will never cease to amaze us. A sentiment this person who posted this next item must have felt when they first spotted this bizarre container, with its grooved branches that open outwards.
This herb container’s design keep herbs fresher for longer in the refrigerator. The theory behind the design is that allowing the herbs to hang vertically makes bacteria breeding less likely than if they were laying on the surface. We’d like this.
A Wash Tamper
First, no, that isn’t a tiny peg-size stereo speaker. This peg-like thing is close to 90 cm in length and almost 2 kg in weight. You are looking at a wash tamper or washing dolly, widely used in the 19th century.
The wash tamper/dolly is the ancestor of modern washing machines. The dolly would be placed into a container of hot water, soap, and clothes and then twisted back and forward to agitate the water and get the soap mixing.
Fishing Outrigger
No matter what, you are guaranteed to find something weird on a beach while going for a stroll, even if it only happens once in your lifetime. This person had their moment when they came across this stone or metal-shaped boat.
Upon further investigation, they learned this is an outrigger, a ship equipment piece for holding fishing lines between it and the boat. It’s believed this specific design would have been used for trawling fish. It isn’t how we imagine outriggers to look.
Old-Fashioned Knife Sharpener
This rather intricate object caught our eye. We initially guessed that it must be a musical instrument or a paperweight. We could be further from the truth. It is an old-fashioned knife or blade sharpener. Talk about the unexpected.
A knife or blade is placed between the two red orbs made of glass and slowly pulled back and forth along it. The glass orbs, which are surprisingly hard, straighten tiny defects along the blade’s edge, making it cut better.
Old Telephone Parts
It’s always a wonder to marvel at how far we have come regarding technological advancements and improvements. Take this hunk of oddly assorted and dusty pieces of metal; would you ever have guessed it was part of a telephone?
Yep, this is what the inside of an antiquated telephone used to look like. Other commenters stated that, while technically correct, it could also be a lineman’s text box used to test for continuity on early telephone lines. And here we were, thinking it was a bell.