- TrueReels
- Series
- Somerton Man
- Episode 6
Somerton Man: One Body. One Code. No Name.Episode 61:52
The Toes Shaped Like a Dancer's
As the supposed code weakens, the man's extraordinary body and a disputed family connection send the case in new directions.
Watch it in the appThis episode needs All Access, from $4.99 a week.
Transcript
Every label was removed from his clothes. He carried no hat or wallet.
The body was found at Somerton Park beach, December 1st, 1948.
Police were contacted at 6:30 a.m., beginning official response.
Among the evidence, faintly indented letters in a book's back became a suspected code.
Researchers called the marks first letters of words. Authorities accepted no interpretation.
The coroner could not determine the man's identity or cause of death.
The evidence room kept producing objects for examination.
Examination found toes meeting in a wedge, like a dancer's or pointed boots.
His toenails were clean, and his shoes appeared polished that morning or later.
Pronounced calf muscles fit regular boots wear or ballet performance.
The room falls quiet around the questions left hanging.
A man named Robin shared two rare genetic conditions with the Somerton Man. Robin died in 2009, and his DNA was unavailable.
Researchers built a family tree of about 4,000 people.
Later analysis used Robin's wife and daughter's results, not Robin himself.
It suggested American ancestry unlikely via his maternal line.
Police showed Jessica Thomson the plaster bust, and she denied knowing the man.
Even the proposed identification did not settle how or why the man died.
Family connection remained a claim, not a confirmed police conclusion.
The autopsy placed his death around 2 a.m., after witnesses watched him motionless. The beach scene now held a gap no theory could close.
In 1959, a witness reported seeing a well-dressed man carrying another man along Somerton Park beach.
Where it leaves off
In 1959, a witness reported seeing a well-dressed man carrying another man along Somerton Beach on the night before the body was found.
Sources
- Somerton Man - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.orgsecondary
- 'Tamam Shud' and the five other clues that have failed to solve the Somerton Man mystery - ABC Newsabc.net.ausecondary
- Solving the Somerton man mystery: no Russian spy, just a bit of a loner who wrote poetry? | Australia news | The Guardiantheguardian.comsecondary
- Cultural Studies Revieweleceng.adelaide.edu.ausecondary
- THE TAMAN SHUD MYSTERY – OLD CASE, MODERN FORENSICSpromega.com.brsecondary
- Mystery of Somerton man’s identity solved after 73 years, researchers in Australia say | Australia news | The Guardiantheguardian.comsecondary
- Australia’s Somerton man mystery ‘solved’ as DNA points to man’s identity, professor claims | CNNcnn.comsecondary
The whole series is in the app.
Download on the App StoreAll Access is $4.99 a week, $14.99 a month or $39.99 a year. The annual plan starts with three days free.