The story was a piece of fiction, but the photo of the "door" featured in Facebook posts truly did show a real location.
On April 3, 2024, the Crazy Abandoned Places Facebook page posted (archived) an interesting picture of what looked to be a door on the side of a mountain. "Drone Pilot Spots Mysterious Door In Mountain - Then He Goes Inside wait till you see what he found inside," the post's caption read. The same image and caption were also recently shared by other users.
Snopes researched the purported truth behind this story and also looked for the origins of the photo. We found answers for both.
'Drone Pilot Spots Mysterious Door' Story
The first comment under the Facebook post led to an article on InfinitMedia.info displaying the same headline, reading "Drone Pilot Spots Mysterious Door In Mountain." The article's subheading and story began as follows:
Drone Explorer Stumbles Upon Mysterious Mountain Portal – An Unforgettable Adventure Unfolds!
In the realm of drone exploration, John, a seasoned enthusiast, found himself on an unexpected journey when his drone captured a glimpse of an obscure entrance atop a neighboring mountain.
Driven by curiosity and a thirst for discovery, John decided to take his exploration to the next level by physically ascending the Rocky Mountain to unravel the mysteries hinted at by the tiny mountain doorway. As his drone soared higher, an astonishing sight awaited him – a small door perched atop one of the tallest hills.
Fueled by a sense of adventure, John geared up, packed his backpack, and embarked on a journey to the summit. However, the path to discovery was not without its challenges. A misstep led to the unfortunate loss of his flashlight, plunging him into darkness and disorientation.
The article then directed users to watch a YouTube video to find out what happens next.
In short, the story in the video tells of a drone enthusiast named John who was flying his drone and spotted a mysterious door high up on a rocky mountainside. He then climbed the mountain, was attacked by an eagle and eventually reached the door. Inside the cave, he found markings on the walls. After being rescued from the mountain, John researched the markings and realized he had stumbled upon artifacts from a long-forgotten ancient civilization. He was later given an award for his discovery.
However, the truth was this story never happened. Some readers might have been able to gather the story was a piece of fiction from the fact John was not given a last name. Also, the video's narrator mentions a town but does not say the name of the location.
This story is a spectacular example of what's known as glurge — defined by Dictionary.com as stories, often sent by email, that are supposed to be true and uplifting, but which are often fabricated and sentimental.
The Photo of the Door
Included with the Facebook posts promoting the story was the striking picture of what looked to be a doorway on a mountainside. This was a real photo, though the image did show signs of having its colors' saturation cranked up. This alteration made the trees appear very green.
The truth was the picture showed a tomb, not a door. The tomb dates back to the 2nd century B.C. and is located in the Turkish province of Corum, according to the Turkish government website kulturportali.gov.tr. A translation of the page from Turkish to English reads as follows:
Laçin Kapılıkaya Rock Tomb - Çorum
It is located in the north-west corner of a rock mass extending towards the north, on a very steep and rugged terrain formed by deep rocky valleys, in Kırkdilim Locality of Laçin District, approximately 27 kilometers north of Çorum. Kapılıkaya is a Hellenistic Period rock tomb dating back to B.C. It dates back to the 2nd century. On the door of the burial chamber, the inscription "Ikezios" and a cross motif colored with ocher stand out. The burial chamber has a square plan and there are figures of the dead carved into niches on the right and left of the entrance.
It is located in Kırkdilim Locality of Laçin District, at the 27th kilometer of the Çorum-Osmancık highway. There is a car park and an observation terrace for passers-by.
A YouTube video from creator IsaSari provides a high-angle drone view of the tomb:
The tomb was quite large, according to another YouTube video captured from the ground by creator Anatolian Leo. We were unable to find information about its exact measurements.
In 2018, an author with the blog The Art of Wayfaring published an article with more details about the tomb, writing, "An inscription above the entrance reads 'IKEZIOS,' though no more seems to be known about who this was." The same author also provided more information in a comment under a Reddit post on the r/UnresolvedMysteries subreddit.