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Human skulls were discovered in a burial mound at Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania in the 1880's.
Projections extended two inches above the eye-brows, in a manner that can only be described as Horns, but other than that the skeletons were anatomically normal and correct.

It was estimated that the bodies had been buried around A.D. 1200. The find was made by a reputable group of antiquarians, including the Pennsylvania state historian and dignitary of the Presbyterian Church (Dr. G.P. Donehoo) and two professors, A.B. Skinner, of the American Investigating Museum, and W.K.Morehead, of Phillips Academy, Andover, Massachusetts.

The researchers felt that the skulls where clearly real and found worthy of further research so they were sent to the American Investigating Museum in Philadelphia, where they were later claimed to have been stolen and have of course never been seen again.

This is the only known photograph of the skull:

The researchers who handled the skulls were all credible persons not likely to be fooled by a hoax... not that a hoax in 1880 would have been easily done. The fact that they sent the the skulls to a reputable institution grant even more weight to their authenticity. They discovered more than one skull and skeletal system so it is not likely a genetic folly... So The 130 year old question remains.

What creature is this the skull of??

i was surprised at the number of people who believe it to be Elohim.
http://www.burlingtonnews.net/hornedrace.html
Unfortunately it seems the skeletal system was stolen after sent to a museum in Philadelphia..
So essentially it's a seven foot tall horned being believed to have been buried around 1200 AD according to that article
No idea, but i found some other interesting things that seemed up this alley
http://paranormal.about.com/od/mysteriousremains/a/aa060605.htm
"In 1888, seven skeletons, which had been placed in a sitting position, were uncovered from a burial mound near Clearwater, Minnesota. The highly unusual skulls of these beings had double rows of teeth in both the upper and lower jaws. It was also noted that the foreheads were low and sloping, compared to "normal" human skulls, and had distinctly prominent brows."
"The December 17, 1891 issue of the respected journal Nature reported the discovery of a giant man buried 14 feet within the center of one of Ohio’s mysterious burial mounds. The enormous man’s arms, jaw, arms, chest and stomach were all clad in copper. Wooden antlers, also covered with copper, rested on either side of his head. His mouth was filled with large pearls, and a pearl-studded necklace of bear teeth hung around his neck. Who this man was, or to which race of people he belonged, is unknown"
"In 1879, a burial mound in Brewersville, Indiana yielded another giant skeleton, according to the November, 1975 edition of The Indianapolis News. This one reached 9 feet 8 inches tall! It wore a necklace of mica stone, and a crude human effigy of clay was found standing at his feet. The giant skeleton was examined by scientists from Indiana and New York, and it remained in the possession of Mr. Robinson, who owned the land on which the mound stood. Unfortunately, the curious bones were washed away in a flood in 1937."

What i think is notable is the proximity of the dates.

Who knows what this creature is or where it was from. Some archaelogists state that mankind has risen and fallen and started over a few times. There is inference that civilizations had the ability to genetically engineer beings. Some consider that being the basis of the story concerning Adam and Eve. I have seen the timeline in the past and there were humanoids here prior to their timeframe and in the wilderness (Nod), where the nomadic tribes were located. The problem is when trying to figure it all out it flies in the face of believed tradition of written religious viewpoints. It causes some to get uneasy because some believe these creatures to be evil, perhaps demons or Jinn. They may have nothing to do with what anyone knows about ancient times.

I'm a spiritualist and I have been involved with many channelings but not for years. I was told the Atlanteans were extremely tall, well over 7 feet tall and most much taller. I believe they did do medical research and these beings could have been anything. This still isn't a definitive view because some don't believe Atlantis existed. Perhaps this is why there was creation of the perfect man and woman to get this sort of thing bred out. It would fit with some of the things Cayce has talked about and called abominations in the interbreeding of the Watchers which he states was not just with females but with animals as well and they were bred out of existence over time. Supposedly "God" made it impossible at that time for man to breed with those that were not of their own type. No matter how you try to explain it, it sounds impossible and unbelievable. I doubt it is going to be anything more than a conundrum given the variety of spiritual beliefs on the planet.

just quick clarification: was the entire skeleton stolen or was it just everything but the skull?

my mother in law, I'm telling ya, she was pure evil.

actually, this is the first I've heard or seen anything like this. I would think that there would be some Indian legend of a tribe of with horns, The native Americans where very good at verbal records, Is there any mention of them from the local tribes?

thank everyone for all the good info and ideas.

To answer some posts....

All of the articles I have seen do not specify the outcome of the rest of the skeletal system. I was under the assumption that only the skull was sent to the American Investigating Museum in Philadelphia. The story I saw also made no mention of the skeletons being giants. I am looking into it but with all thing of this type information has to taken with a grain of salt and a pound of scrutiny.

The Native Americans did use good verbal records as a way of handing down information, and they do have tales of giant humanoids but to my knowledge none with horns. Access to Indian tribal legends are hard to come by unless you talk to a Native American directly in most cases... but I will endeavor to look into this possibility as well.

well it wouldn't be the first species we've ever discovered where we only had one or even a partial skeleton

My theory is that back in those time, people were susperticious and if someone have a birth defect, let say, horn. when that person die, they will bury the body separate from the head. They do this, so the person don't come back. My theory.

Not all birth defects back then were considered evil or wrong. Some where looked upon as favored from the creator whom ever that would have been for them.

This is the first time I am hearing or seeing this, however I do find it fascinating and would love to know more. Could you imagine someone today with those features.

How would you treat them?

Just curious, would it be frowned upon or just simply accepted or perhaps put on a pedestal.

good point... for all we know, this person was treated as a god.
Maybe they thought it was bad luck to bury the head with the rest of the body?

I remember this thing..it was on Mysteries of the unexplained a long time ago.I wish the skulls hadnt gotten lost though.I would love to see tests done on them today...

nice. there may have been people back then that had those characteristics. most people were not alive back then that are now so we dont kno what the people looked like back then.

i do try to be open to possible explanations, but occam's razor would indicate that if its real, it was just a mutation.

would have been hell on the mother if the horns were there when he (she?) was born.
~W~

I would normally tend to agree with that but with the law of parsimony you also have the allotment for complex systems of evolution as well as a single mutation.

the giant legends are prevalent in many societies. this repetitiveness would seem to point to the less random side of Ockham's Razor

Well,some tribes can make skulls grow sertian ways.One tribe actually mutated the new borens head
into a cone shape.now,we all know that bone can grow on bone.as long as its cut right,at an early age..with the childs bones,lets say...that two horn are actuall his or hers finger bones.now,bones can keep growing.
thus,i think this is what happend.they wanted to worship there demon god or creature so badly,that they made a poor child grow horn on his or her head.the skull being so young looking,by the eyes and small mouth and teeth,the child must have died young due to an infection from thoes fake horns.probly why there seems to be an over infected sist(donno how to spell it)inside on the skull in the head.you can see a hole ..as t where the infection ate threw the bone.
On TV,
i seen a show where they thought they found a
mummy of and actual sea creature or mermaid.In the 1920's they didn have a Kat-scan or xray.so they actually thought it was real,skin tests can back as
an animal,and it had real bone.untill NOW...they actually
gave it an X-ray.there was an actual wooden post inside
it to hold the fish part to the monkey part,with INside
stichings.two animals put togeather to rot togeather then mummified.It fooled so many.
what this means,
is that what it looks like,isent what i really is.
if its real,im shure the government wouldnt let this out
for everyone to see.
thus,
a fake.

It is a shame the skeletal remains are not under scrutiny along with the lone picture of this "devil's skull." Based on this picture alone, medically, this could possibly be a form of Exostosis. There is a multitude of genetic variables existing in several bone conditions as well as rare syndromes, many of which are painful and debilitating.

Having horns on top of your head would not be as much a handicap as perhaps other exostosis manifestations elsewhere in this person's body. Hereditary multiple exostoses is a condition where bone spurs or lumps/growths form on the skeleton as a child and can be extremely painful. HME is also an autosomal dominant trait genetically, which means anyone carrying this trait in their family genome has 50% chance of passing it on to their descendents. However, it can also be the result of spontaneous mutation. Spontaneous mutations require some form of environmental stimuli to "activate" the othewise dormant genes.

Deficiencies in biliary copper excretion are often causes in skeletal deformities. Any number of environmental changes could account for such horn formation, but again, it is only conjecture based on a picture. This story reminds me of the legend behind the Cyclops being based on the probable findings of mammoth skulls, where the nasal cavity was thought to be a giant eye socket for a monocular man-eating beast.

Great post Severus, thanks for sharing...:)

yes but thats one complex mutation, I can't believe its not a hoax

There in lies the problem and the debate... if the story is to be taken at face value then one can assume that an educated person would not go threw the hassle of authenticating or for that matter stealing a hoax.

Well, if historical account of missing artifacts are to be had...this skull is most likely in a private collection or buried deep within the basement of the Smithsonian or some other prominent museum. Considering the day and age this find surfaced, it would not be a far-fetched "assumption" that the skeletal remains of this particular individual(s) would be as mysterious to the scientists of the day as did the curious malformations of Joseph Merrick...aka...the Elephant Man.

Again...rare diseases are most complex...

http://rarediseases.about.com/cs/proteussyndrome/a/031301.htm

I would suspect a hoax, because in those times hoaxes where very popular means to draw attractions, of course the claim that the "remains" had been stolen is convenient to the tale.

The picture looks like a clay sculpture spliced onto a partial cranium. I doubt the picture is even turn of the century.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1256398/Chinese-grandmother-grows-devil-horns.html

Never say never?

that is one horn. and it is a medical anomily.

I would have to agree with Dabs, especially since so far none of her 7 children have horns, and the horned skull pictured in this thread wasn't the only one.

Sadly there is a condition that is common and painful called bone spurs and people get spurs in the neck and shoulder region too. it is from Calcium issues in the body

That sounds like a blastyblast, especially if they get released into the bloodstream.
The thing about animals growing horns, though, is that they're made of compressed hair, which later has to be sharpened into a usable formation. The horns on the skulls themselves seem to be far too brittle near the points to be usable =/ as any animal with a horn would know, you dont want extremely sharp points, because that makes it easier to chip and break.

One thing i've been wondering... It's been noted that the goats with horns have elongated skulls because of it (Which is most notable in Lancelot the Unicorn, with the single horn which gives the frontal lobe more room to grow) are smarter.
Wouldn't a more intelligent race of humans or whatevers be more capable of securing their place in future generations?

I can't help but think it could be a hoax. It remind's me of the missing link skull hoax in the UK the Piltdown man that proved to be part human and part Orang-utan skull.

But its not unusual for our ancestors to change the looks of a person, like the Incan's who deformed the skulls of infants to make them look like a UFO astronaut.

This is the first have heard of this though as far as the Native American thing goes I can find out about that if you would like me too. My family is half Native American and I can ask around to my relatives and see if they know of anything like this.

In all do actuallity it is possible that it could be anything. This I feel is one of them times that you can let your mind wonder and come to your own conclusions. However, could it be the skull of a demon? Its possible. I think that it sucks that we don't get to see them more often

it is interesting though i do wish that we had an idea of what it is though instead of guessing and making up ideas about what it is

Silverhawk has great info about it.
Allow me to add another link about people with horns:

http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/the-7-horniest-people-on-earth.html

Exostosis might be the cause of the deformation of the skull.The strange fact is that in all the pictures you can see the horns don`t have a symmetrical position. In the picture Severus posted they are smooth and symmetrical and that is strange for an accidental symmetry.

I must add the voice of a historian here. My main area of research deals with the Victorian period and it was quite common to concoct hoaxes for the public. Even reputable researchers and scientists of the time were often involved. Science, archeology, history... these subjects were nothing like we understand today. Consider the 'science' of Phrenology later used by the Nazis... people were quick to believe these things. If someone could find an oddity, or curiosity as they were called, his fame would be secured for years. This skull very well could be a most significant find... or perhaps not. Shall we call it a matter of faith?

Thank you Dragonrouge...:) You are correct in observing the symmetry..it would be most unusual and as Ecovampire has pointed out, this surfaced along with so many others during the same time period. With no body of evidence...literally...it is merely fantastical conjecture to rule it otherwise as a different "species" of human.

That's the thing about missing evidence..all you have left is a picture and notations from many in the field who may have also tried boosting their own standing and reputation from an obvious, "earth-shattering" find.

1. i have to point out its only a pic of one skull the pic looks too good to be from the 1800s

2. if they only found one skull there it could be a genetic anomaly

3. if they some how proved in the 1800s that it wasnt a genetic anomaly then they would have evidence and there would of been findings of more then one skull found and they would all not be sent to the same place and they would be kept in safe places to prevent from being stolen i mean comon people wasnt stupid

so in all conclusion well played off hoax good job to those who pulled it off