The Coral Castle is a totally atypical construction. Not only for the frustrated love story that inspired it, but also for its novel design and composition. Located one hour from Miami, this beautiful structure of large corals represents an interesting tourist attraction. If you are looking for what to do in Miami, this tour will be an excellent option.

Its creator, Edward Leedskalnin, was an immigrant from Latvia who arrived in the United States heartbroken by the abandonment of his fiancée Agnes Scuffs, just one day before their wedding. In 1923 he acquired a land of 8,000 square meters in the state of Florida, 48 kilometers south of Miami. And incredibly, he paid them at just $10.

The area was abundant in coral rock, material that Edward used to sculpt the sculptures of the castle. According to him, there he would receive Agnes when she returned to his side. This never happened, but the lover continued with the Coral Castle until finishing it 28 years later (GMCVB, 2020).

Mysteries and legends about its construction

Consider that all the sculptures in the castle are still preserved and that they total approximately 1,100 tons. But how did that man manage to lift them without anyone’s help? According to the BBC (2016), when someone asked him “how he had built the castle, he replied that he knew the secrets of the pyramids of Egypt”. Over time, the enigmatic Coral Castle gave rise to the most varied and incredible theories. In fact, several books have been written about this place in which both supernatural and scientific explanations can be found. The undeniable thing is that Leedskalnin, despite his poor training, was a true self-taught and extremely intelligent.

The amazing theories surrounding the Coral Castle

In one of those books you can see pictures of Edward next to a huge wooden tripod with pulleys. This suggests that this was the method used to move the huge stones he extracted from the ground. That is why it is thought that the Latvian knew the physical laws of leverage and knew how to apply them even with his scarce resources (BBC, 2016).

Of course, there are also other less scientific theories. One of them states that the Coral Castle is located in a geographical point that favors magnetism and levitation of objects. This theory is based on the proven fact that Leedskalnin used to do magnetism experiments. In addition, he was a great student of electrical phenomena (GMCVB, 2020).

To add more admiration to this monumental work, several years later Edward undertook another titanic task. In 1936 he acquired land in Homestead, about 40 miles south of Miami, and began the move. For 3 years he moved each of the carved stones of the Coral Castle, then called Rock Gate Park.

A walk through the Coral Castle

In the Coral Castle you will find the incredible sculptures carved in coral rock, surrounded by ornamental plants and flowers. Among them are a coral table in the shape of the state of Florida and a huge obelisk. This sculpture ends in a five-pointed star that is 12 meters long and weighs 28 tons.

You will also discover an original sundial carved into one of the rocks and a heart-shaped table. After moving to Homestead, Edward became interested in astronomy. As a result, he sculpted a telescope to observe the North Star. This sculpture was accompanied by figures of the Moon in the crescent quarter, Saturn, Mars and Venus (BBC, 2016).

During the tour of the Coral Castle you will hear the enigmatic history of Leedskalnin. These audios are also available in Spanish. It is a walk that will be interesting for the whole family, including children. Its tour can be done in approximately two hours.

Where is it located and how to get there?

The Coral Castle Museum was named a historic site in the United States. It is open every day of the week and can be booked for private events. In the gift shop you can find collectibles, natural stones and original souvenirs.

It is located at 28655 South Dixie Highway in Homestead, Florida. From Miami Beach it is reached via Interstate 95. Its hours are Sunday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Bibliography:

BBC News. (2016). Coral Castle: the mysterious Latvian who built an enigmatic castle in Florida and his story of (dis)love. Retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/mundo/noticias-38287459.

Coral Castle Museum. (2020). Retrieved from https://coralcastle.com.

Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau. (2020). The mysteries and ingenuity behind Miami’s Coral Castle. Retrieved from https://www.miamiandbeaches.lat/cosas-para-hacer/atracciones/the-mysteries-behind-miamis-coral-castle.

Radford, B. (2018). The mystery of the Coral Castle explained. Retrieved from https://www.livescience.com/41075-coral-castle.html