When you hear the phrase top 10 cryptids, images of hulking beasts, eerie silhouettes, and whispered campfire tales probably spring to mind. From the mist‑shrouded forests of the Pacific Northwest to the murky depths of Scottish lochs, these legendary creatures have fascinated humanity for centuries. Yet, behind many of these myths lie ordinary animals whose odd appearances or strange behaviors sparked the imagination of early observers. Below, we explore ten famous cryptids and the very real critters that likely gave rise to their fame.

Why These Top 10 Cryptids Capture Our Imagination

Each of the following legends started as a genuine sighting, a misidentified animal, or a disease that altered an animal’s look. Over time, stories grew, photographs were doctored, and folklore turned ordinary wildlife into monsters. By matching each mythic being with its plausible biological counterpart, we can appreciate how the natural world fuels our love of the mysterious.

10 Bears

Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch or Yeti, is perhaps the most iconic of all cryptids—a towering, shaggy primate with massive feet that supposedly roams remote forests. Sightings of this “hairy man” surface year after year, and while many hoaxes have been exposed, the allure of an elusive, intelligent hominid persists in popular culture, especially across North America where it rivals UFO sightings for fame.

Most of the evidence that fuels the Bigfoot craze can be traced back to misidentified bears, especially individuals suffering from mange. When a bear loses its fur or displays patchy, thinning hair, it can appear gaunt and eerily human‑like, leading witnesses to believe they are looking at a giant, bipedal creature. Tracks left in the mud that were once touted as proof often turn out to be bear prints, and several “captured” specimens were actually bears with severe fur loss.

Nevertheless, a handful of enthusiasts still cling to the idea that a surviving population of the extinct giant ape Gigantopithecus could be lurking in the shadows. While this hypothesis adds a tantalizing twist, the bulk of sightings can be explained without invoking any unknown primate.

9 Dog With Mange

The Chupacabra, a name that translates to “goat‑sucker,” has haunted the rural landscapes of Puerto Rico, Mexico, and the broader Mesoamerican region for decades. Legends describe a nocturnal predator that drains livestock of blood, leaving behind baffling, puncture‑filled carcasses. The creature’s eerie reputation has made it a staple of modern folklore and a frequent subject of sensational media.

Most documented encounters, however, boil down to dogs or coyotes suffering from severe mange. This skin disease strips the animal of fur, leaving a gaunt, almost skeletal appearance that can look monstrous in low‑light conditions. The resulting discoloration, combined with heightened night activity caused by skin irritation, creates a perfect recipe for a creature that seems otherworldly to an unsuspecting farmer.

8 Rabbits, Shope Papilloma Virus

The jackalope—a rabbit sporting antlers—has hopped its way into American folklore for over a century. While the notion sounds whimsical, it has roots in real, observable phenomena. People roaming fields occasionally spot hares or rabbits with strange growths that bear a resemblance to tiny horns.

These odd protrusions are caused by the Shope papilloma virus (SPV), a contagious pathogen that induces keratinous tumors on the skin of leporids. Infected animals develop horn‑like growths, usually around the head, that can be mistaken for antlers by a startled observer. The virus, while generally benign, creates a striking visual that fuels the myth of a horned hare.

Because the disease is relatively rare and its symptoms can be dramatic, early naturalists likely seized upon these unusual specimens as evidence of a fantastical hybrid, giving rise to the enduring legend of the jackalope.

7 Giant Squid

The Kraken, a monstrous cephalopod capable of capsizing ships, has haunted sailors’ imaginations since the age of sail. Tales of massive, tentacled beasts pulling vessels beneath the waves were once considered pure fantasy, but modern marine biology has uncovered a very real counterpart.

Colossal squid (Mesonychoteuthis hamiltoni) and its close relative, the giant squid (Architeuthis dux), can grow to staggering dimensions—up to 14 metres (about 46 feet) in length and weighing as much as 700 kilograms (1,500 pounds). While these giants rarely attack ships, their sheer size and powerful arms match many of the classic Kraken descriptions, explaining why sailors once swore they’d seen sea monsters.

Occasional unverified reports of colossal squid dragging boats or damaging gear keep the legend alive, but the scientific record confirms that such gigantic cephalopods do indeed exist, lending a splash of reality to the myth.

6 Both Real And Impossible

Stories of gargantuan spiders that tower over humans have long populated horror movies and campfire legends. In reality, the planet does host some impressively large arachnids, such as the Goliath birdeater (Theraphosa blondi) and various Huntsman species, whose leg spans can reach up to 30 centimetres (about a foot). To many, that size feels truly monstrous.

However, the physics of spider respiration imposes a hard ceiling on how large these creatures can become. Spiders rely on a system of book lungs that exchanges gases through thin membranes, a method that becomes inefficient as body size increases. Even the largest fossilized spiders from the Carboniferous period never exceeded a metre in length, and without a fundamental change in respiratory anatomy, truly colossal spiders remain impossible.

Thus, while we can marvel at the real giants among arachnids, the notion of a spider the size of a housecat or larger belongs squarely in the realm of fantasy.

5 Tartar Sand Boa

The Mongolian death worm, or “olgoi‑khorkhoi,” has haunted the Gobi Desert for generations. Legends describe a massive, blood‑red worm that burrows beneath the sand, capable of delivering lethal electric shocks or spitting corrosive venom at unsuspecting travelers.

Expeditions seeking this fearsome beast have repeatedly encountered a far less terrifying animal: the Tartar sand boa (Eryx miliaris). This sizable, non‑venomous snake resembles a worm in shape and colour, but lacks the supernatural traits attributed to the mythic creature. Its smooth, reddish‑brown scales and subterranean habits likely inspired the exaggerated tales of a deadly desert worm.

4 Owl

The Mothman—a winged, humanoid figure with glowing eyes—has become an iconic American legend, especially after being linked to the tragic 1967 collapse of the Silver Bridge in Point Pleasant, West Virginia. Eyewitnesses described a creature that seemed half‑man, half‑moth, appearing as an omen of disaster.

Closer examination points to a more mundane explanation: large barn owls. These nocturnal birds possess striking, reflective eyes that can appear to glow in low light, and their silent flight and sudden appearances can easily be misinterpreted as something supernatural, especially by frightened observers in remote areas.

While the Mothman myth has woven itself into pop culture, the most plausible sightings align closely with ordinary owl encounters, illustrating how a bird’s natural features can fuel extraordinary stories.

3 Sandhill Crane

The Jersey Devil, a winged, bipedal creature said to haunt New Jersey’s Pine Barrens, has been described as a goat‑headed monster with hooves, a long tail, and an ear‑piercing scream. The legend dates back to the 18th century and has persisted for over two hundred years.

Scholars suggest that the creature’s description matches the Sandhill crane (Antigone canadensis), a tall, long‑legged bird with a large, slightly curved beak and a resonant, trumpeting call that can be unsettling at night. Early settlers, unfamiliar with the bird’s habits, may have exaggerated its appearance and vocalizations, birthing the fearsome Jersey Devil myth.

Despite the legend’s endurance, no credible evidence of a supernatural creature has emerged, and the Sandhill crane remains the most logical, real‑world basis for the story.

2 Manatee And Dugong

Mermaids—half‑human, half‑fish beings—have swum through myth and art for centuries, often portrayed as beautiful, enchanting women luring sailors to their doom. Modern media continues to glamorize these sea maidens, but the origins of the legend are far more grounded.

Two marine mammals, the West African manatee (Trichechus senegalensis) and the dugong (Dugong dugon), exhibit a graceful, serpentine swimming style and possess a vaguely humanoid torso that can be mistaken for a mermaid when glimpsed briefly from a distance. Their smooth, hairless bodies and occasional surfacing to breathe create the illusion of a human‑like figure emerging from the water.

While the myth has been amplified by fabricated documentaries and artistic renderings, the real creatures behind the stories are these gentle, herbivorous mammals—fascinating in their own right, but far less mystical than the legends suggest.

1 Eels, Greenland Shark, And Many More

The Loch Ness Monster, affectionately nicknamed “Nessie,” remains arguably the most famous cryptid of all time. Described as a long‑necked, plesiosaur‑like creature inhabiting Scotland’s deepest loch, the monster has inspired countless photographs, expeditions, and a thriving tourism industry.

Scientific analyses point to large eels as the most plausible source of many sightings. Eels can reach impressive lengths, possess sinuous bodies, and surface intermittently, creating the illusion of a necked monster. Additionally, occasional sightings of Greenland sharks—deep‑dwelling, sluggish predators—have been misinterpreted as evidence of a massive, unknown creature.

Combined with optical phenomena such as boat wakes, floating debris, and even misidentified birds, the legend of Nessie appears to be a tapestry of ordinary wildlife, human perception, and a healthy dose of myth‑making.

Incredibly, these stories of people who found remarkable artifacts without a metal detector, a map, or hours of research. Was it a need for reorganization, perhaps spring cleaning? Whatever the reason, good fortune was on their side.

This list uncovers ten artifacts of history found by locals and civilians. And begs the question—what better reason to do a more thorough search through your attic or basement?

10 Ancient Greek Crown—Hellenistic Age

Life became a little brighter for a man from Somerset, England, who has since chosen to remain anonymous. The fortunate gentleman inherited a great many possessions from his grandfather, a collector who followed his passion around the world. One of the inherited assets was a cardboard box, stored under the man’s bed. It was forgotten for a decade or longer until, at last, the rough, likely dust-covered box again saw the light of day. Under faded newspaper, the man from Somerset discovered a crown of gold. Unsure of what had been found, he decided to call in the experts.

An appraiser from Duke’s of Dorchester in Dorset, Guy Schwinge, arrived at the cottage. To say he was astonished by the laurel wreath of gold might be an underestimation. The artifact weighed under half a kilogram (1 pound) and was only 20 centimeters (8 inches) across. Schwinge estimated the wreath to be Ancient Greek in origin, perhaps 2300 years old, probably from the Hellenistic Age.

The Hellenistic Age was ushered in by the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and ended with the rise of Augustus in Rome in 31 BC. The exquisite golden laurels of Ancient Greece were granted as prizes for athletes and artists, worn ceremonially, and often left with aristocratic family members after their passing.

After further appraisal, the pure gold crown was estimated to be worth upward of $130,000. The auction by Duke’s of Dorchester was set for June 9, 2016, where it was anticipated the piece would fetch as much as $200,000.^[1]

All from a box left under a bed.

9 Lost Caravaggio Painting

In 2014, a family in Toulouse, France, ascended to their attic to address a water leak. Behind an old mattress against a wall, they discovered a dust-covered, partially water-stained painting. The family, who asked for anonymity, called an auctioneer for an appraisal. Marc Labarbe, the auctioneer, studied the 1.4-meter by 1.8-meter (5-foot by 6-foot) painting and deemed it worthy of further inspection. He took a picture of the painting and sent it to Paris to an appraiser of art, Eric Turquin.

It took five years before Turquin was able to see the painting for himself. Well worth the wait. The painstakingly cleaned canvas had been painted in 1607—Caravaggio’s >em>Judith and Holofernes. In a story from the Old Testament, Judith of Bethulia slipped into the tent of a drunken, or sleeping, Assyrian general, then beheaded him. The painting depicts Judith’s last stroke of decapitation. A Caravaggio, indeed, Turquin agreed—one that had been lost to the world for 400 years. He authenticated the painting, worth up to $170 million.

Doubt surrounded the painting’s authenticity, as a more modest version of the painting was already displayed in the National Gallery of Ancient Art in Rome. However, X-rays and testing revealed brush strokes that were changed before the artwork was completed. Forgeries lack those alterations. Authenticated and restored, the masterwork was set to be sold at auction.

A private buyer bought the painting before the auction, for a price that was also kept private.^[2]

8 Diamond Ring

A woman from Isleworth, West London, attended a car boot sale, or yard sale, where she perused a display of fake jewelry. She bought a large “diamond” ring in 1987 for £10 ($13). It was clouded and rather unremarkable in appearance. She wore it for over two decades before a jeweler inspected the ring more closely. They advised her to have it appraised. The large diamond was real—a 26-carat diamond from the 19th century.

Sotheby’s in London authenticated the jewel, which then sold for an incredible £656,750 ($850,000).^[3]

7 Gold Lacquer Chest

In 1970, a French shell engineer browsing lacquerware bought a 1.5-meter-long (5-foot) chest for £100 ($130), which today would be about £1300 ($1600. He resided in South Kensington for sixteen years, using the chest to prop up his television. When he retired and was able to return home to the Loire Valley, the chest became a bar. And there it sat until his passing when the house was emptied, and its contents were appraised. To the appraisers’ amazement, the television stand turned bar storage was a treasure missing since the 1940s.

The Victoria and Albert Museum had searched for the chest through collectors and auction houses, a search that spanned half a century. Strangely enough, the artifact was less than a mile away from the museum. The cedar and gold lacquer chest was crafted in the 1600s, a masterpiece by a master crafter, Kaomi Nagashige of Kyoto/Kyote, Japan. It remained with the Dutch East India’s Japanese office until it was sold in 1658.

The buyer was a Minister of France, Cardinal Mazarin, who left the chest to his family for generations. From France, the chest traveled to England, where it was bought by the English novelist William Beckford. In 1882, the chest was sold to Sir Trevor Lawrence, a surgeon and art collector who died in 1913. It resided with a Welsh coal mine owner, Sir Clifford Cory, until 1941 when the chest was lost to history. Except, Zaniewski, a Polish doctor living in London, had bought. Zaniewski sold it to the French shell engineer in 1970, who kept it until after 1986. Only then was it seen by brothers and auctioneers Phillippe and Aymeric Rouillac.

Nagashige’s masterwork was auctioned on July 9, 2013. It was bought by the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam for £6.3 million ($7.75 million).^[4]

6 Shakespeare’s Last Play?

John Stone, a scholar of the University of Barcelona, was browsing the Royal Scots College’s library, Salamanca, when he noticed a book of English plays. Within the pages of plays, he found William Shakespeare’s The Two Noble Kinsmen. Published in 1634, written from 1613 to 1614 with playwright John Fletcher, the play was completed before Shakespeare returned to his home in Stratford-Upon-Avon. It was possibly the last play Shakespeare wrote before he died in 1616.

The Two Noble Kinsmen remains one of the lesser-known works of Shakespeare. The edition was bound in leather, the original binding from the 1600s. Shakespeare may have written Acts I and V, though that is still debated by scholars. While the book has not been sold, to give an estimation of worth, Shakespeare’s First Folio was sold by Christie’s auctioneers in 2020 in New York for more than £7.33 million ($9 million).^[5]

5 Painting in a Kitchen, Cimabue

Cimabue, or Cenni di Pepo, was an artist of the Italian Renaissance. He was born in Florence and was a painter in the 14th century. Cimabue didn’t sign his eleven pieces of artwork painted on wood; only those eleven are accredited to him. One of them was found in France, hanging in a house in Compiègne. The woodwork painting was only 26cm x 20cm (10″ x 8″), but it was a masterwork even so—known as Christ Mocked.

The house’s owner, a woman who remains anonymous, then 90 years old, considered it mere religious kitsch. In other words, worthless. It had been in the kitchen for decades; no one in the family knew where the painting had been acquired.

In 2019, the owner of the house decided to sell and move. They called auctioneers from the auction house Acteon in Senlis, France. Philomène Wolf arrived at the house. With only a week to appraise the contents of the house, Wolf saved the “worthless” work from the trash bin. It was sent to be further appraised at the Cabinet Turquin in Paris.

Turquin’s determined the art piece to be a Cimabue. In fact, the small painting was from 1280, part of a diptych, or a set of painted wooden panels, that portrayed eight scenes of the “passion and crucifixion of Christ.”

Philomène Wolf estimated the painting to sell for about $400,000. Turquin’s expected an auction offer of nearly $7 million. To everyone’s utter stupefaction and glee, the painting sold for nearly $27 million.^[6]

4 Chess Piece in a Drawer

A walrus-ivory chess piece, nicked, faded, and worn, was found in a Scottish family’s kitchen drawer. Their grandfather, an antique dealer, had purchased it for £5 ($6) in 1964 in Edinburgh. As stated by the family, neither their grandfather nor any other member of their family knew it was of any value. After finding the chess piece, the grandchildren brought it to Sotheby’s in London.

Researchers at Sotheby’s knew the rook was world-famous. It was one of 93 chess pieces from the famous Lewis Chessmen. Five of those Viking artifacts, 900 years old, are still missing. They were originally found on the Isle of Lewis, Outer Hebrides, Scotland. The rook had been lost for nearly two hundred years.

The auction house estimated the piece to be worth £1 million ($1.3 million).^[7]

3 (Another) Painting in an Attic, Van Gogh

In 1910, a Norwegian industrialist, Christian Mustad, bought Sunset at Montmajour, which he believed to be painted by the Dutch Post-Impressionist painter Van Gogh. A French ambassador to Sweden convinced Mustad that the painting was a forgery. It was banished to the attic of Mustad’s Norwegian house, where it remained until 1991. The inheritors of the house brought it to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. They were told the painting was a forgery, mainly because it was unsigned. Van Gogh signed his paintings with his first name, Vincent, and sometimes hid the signature within the painting.

In 2011, the painting was reassessed by the Van Gogh museum. Though it took two years, Sunset at Montmajour was finally accredited to the master painter. It had been completed near Van Goh’s house in Arles, France, on July 4, 1888, only two years before the artist’s death. A letter from Van Gogh to his brother, Theo, revealed that the painting hadn’t been signed because of the artist’s disappointment with the piece. “It was well below what I’d wished to do,” Vincent wrote, which led to the painting’s authentication.

The Van Gogh Museum chemically analyzed the paints from the Sunset painting. The pigmentation of the paints was the same as those used by the artist. Scans of the canvas were matched to other paintings of Van Gogh’s from that month—Van Gogh painted 2,100 pieces in his lifetime. He wrote about many of them to his brother, who had been responsible for selling the artwork. The artist only sold one painting in his lifetime, the Red Vinyard, for 400 Belgian francs, $400.

An anonymous owner bought, Sunset at Montmajour. Its sale price is unknown, though in 1987, the famous Vase With Fifteen Sunflowers sold for nearly $33 million. The most famous Van Gogh, Starry Night, is worth hundreds of millions.^[8]

2 The Garden Planter

It was 1982 when a Northumberland family bought a house near Hadrian’s Wall, Newcastle, England. Their dilemma: what to do with the 2.1-meter (6′ 9″) “trough” in their backyard? They decided to use it for planting… for thirty years—until they saw a similar structure for sale at an auction house. Upon inspection of the garden planter, a copper plate on the back read, “Bought from Rome in 1902.” Carved into the front were the Three Graces from Greek mythology: charm, beauty, and creativity.

Experts were called for an appraisal, including Guy Schwinge, of Duke’s auction house in Dorset, England. The family was told their planter was a 2,000-year-old sarcophagus of Carrara marble from the 1st or 2nd century AD. It may have been taken from a mausoleum, the resting place of an affluent Roman.

The sarcophagus was lifted from the property and brought to Dorchester, where it was auctioned. While the auction price is unknown, a similar sarcophagus sold for over $130,000.^[9]

1 The Ancient City in a Basement

A man in Turkey was in the middle of renovating his basement when he knocked down a wall to reveal the discovery of a lifetime. It was 1963 in Cappadocia when the basement wall came down and uncovered a room that led to a tunnel. Where did the tunnel lead? Almost 61 meters (200 feet) underground—to an entire ancient Byzantine-era city of stone. Scholars debate the date, ranging from 2000 BC for the Hittites, 700 BC for the Phrygians, or AD 780–1180 for the Christians. It may have been in use up to the 1920s as a refuge from natural disasters and war.

The city was called Derinkuyu: 18 levels of inhabitable space, all of which could be individually blocked off with rolling stone doors. Deinkuyu connected to other underground cities through tunnels that spanned miles and had more than six hundred entrances. Twenty thousand people, or more, would have thrived, with food storage rooms, including those for livestock, stables, schools, kitchens, chapels, wineries, and wells. Also, tombs and a dungeon were found.

Derinkuyu became a tourist attraction in 1969, open to the public.^[10]