The Lake Van Monster (Turkish: Van Gölü Canavari) is a lake monster reportedly dwelling in Lake Van, a large alkaline lake in Eastern Turkey.
Description/Morphology
According to witness, the creature measures around fifteen meters long with spikes on its back and appears similar to a Plesiosaur or Ichthyosaurus.
Sightings
There are now more than 1,000 people claiming to have witnessed Following these reports the Turkish government sent an official scientific survey group to the lake who failed to spot the creature.
In 1997 a local man, Unal Kozak, a teaching assistant at Van University, captured the creature on video which was sent for analysis. He has written a book about the monster. Yet his video is under constant criticism, with questions like why it never pans left, possibly because of a boat that may have carried the creature. Or why the monster only goes straight, instead of curving through the water. Even criticism as to why the breathing is not in and out, but a continuous release, much like the effects of an air hose.
Art/Fiction
A 4-meter high statue based on reported sightings has been erected to its honor in Van, Turkey.
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