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Edward LeedskalninAmerican sculptor, author of Coral Castle
Date of Birth: 12.01.1887
Country:  USA |
Content:
Biography of Edward Leedskalnin
Edward Leedskalnin was an American sculptor and the creator of the Coral Castle, a complex of huge statues and megaliths weighing a total of 1100 tons. He claimed to have deciphered the mystery of the Egyptian pyramids and asserted that he used the same principles to construct his Coral Castle.
Early Life
Edward Leedskalnin was born in 1887 in what is now Latvia. Little is known about his childhood, but some sources suggest that he came from a poor family and only attended school until the fourth grade. Despite this, he was an intelligent boy who loved to read and spent much of his time immersed in books. When he was 26 years old, Leedskalnin became engaged to Agnes Scuffs, a girl ten years his junior. However, just one day before their wedding, Agnes broke off the engagement. Heartbroken, Leedskalnin left for North America.
Life in America
Leedskalnin began working in logging camps in Canada before eventually settling in California and Texas. In 1919, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and moved to Florida in search of a warmer climate. With his savings, he purchased a small piece of land where he would spend the next two decades working on his eccentric project - the Coral Castle. He named his plot of land Rock Gate Park, dedicating his creation to Agnes, the woman who never became his wife.
Working by the light of a lantern at night, Leedskalnin, who was not physically strong, managed to manually carve over 1100 tons of coral. He used whatever he could find, such as old automobile parts, as tools, without the use of specialized equipment. He later bought a larger plot of land and successfully moved his coral blocks to the new location. He began by building a house out of coral and wood, and later constructed a complex of monuments that is now known as the Coral Castle and is a popular tourist attraction in Florida.
Initially, Leedskalnin was a reclusive man who did not open his creation to visitors. However, he eventually decided to allow people to marvel at his masterpiece. He claimed to have solved the mystery of the Egyptian pyramids and applied the same principles to his own castle. The method by which the frail Edward Leedskalnin, who stood at only 152 cm tall and weighed no more than 55 kg, managed to carve massive megaliths weighing several tons each by hand is still a subject of debate. The Coral Castle remains shrouded in mystery, with theories suggesting that Leedskalnin utilized magnetic energy from the earth. Although he never denied using natural magnetism, the secret behind his construction methods died with him.
Later Years and Legacy
In November 1951, Leedskalnin was admitted to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami after suffering a stroke. After 28 days, he passed away on December 7, 1951. The Coral Castle was later completed and slightly modified, and it continues to attract numerous tourists in Florida. Despite extensive study, the mystery of how Leedskalnin single-handedly built the Coral Castle has yet to be fully understood.
