'Fallen angel' found in Russian gravel site sparks statue debate
A bizarre video of a ‘fallen angel’ found by Russian workers in what appears to be a gravel pit is causing quite a stir online.
A new year has commenced with a series of peculiar rumors propagated on video-sharing platform TikTok. First came a rumor the Mona Lisa had been stolen from the Louvre, followed by a resurfaced clip that claims to show Bigfoot hiking across a snowy bridge near Snoqualmie Pass in Washington State.
The latest clip to get the internet buzzing is one of an alleged ‘fallen angel’ found in Russia. The video was first shared to TikTok on January 25, 2023 and has since accrued more than 12 million views.
Found Russian ‘fallen angel’ video goes viral on TikTok
As the video is in Russian, you might be curious to know what the workers who found the statue are saying. They are heard saying they are about 340km (210 miles) from a town called Zeya in Amur Oblast.
Another TikTok user has found a rough translation for the original video into English. They allege the Russian workers make references to “repenting” around the angel statue and talk about an “energy” coming from it. They also allege people with helicopters are on their way to collect the statue.
The statue was found in a gravel pit.
Internet dissects ‘fallen angel’ clip
The comments section on the original video has been flooded with disagreements. Some are convinced the statue is a real fallen angel that has been petrified in stone. Others believe it to just be a statue or an “old movie prop.”
Internet detectives are dissecting the video to assess whether it really is a statue. “If you look at the video, the fabric on its head moves back-and-forth from the wind. It’s not a statue,” one Twitter user commented.
Another pointed out parallels with The Simpsons, propagating the conspiracy theory that the animated show predicts world events.
This isn’t the first ‘fallen angel’ allegedly found in Russia
There is a growing belief among internet users that a real fallen angel has been found in Russia. Funnily enough, a similar rumor was started more than a decade ago.
In 2011, a rumor started circulating that the skeleton of an alleged fallen angel had been unearthed in Russia. It was shared alongside a news segment from the time. As the video was in Russian with no subtitles, many have drawn false conclusions about the body belonging to a ‘fallen angel.’
The news segment actually reveals a young man’s skull alongside the skeleton of a goat or sheep. They explain that the discovery was most likely the remnants of a ritual burial or sacrifice.
