“The Monopoly Guy Does Not Have a Monocle”: People Share Mind-Boggling Examples of the Mandela Effect

This article was originally published on Techytwist.com

Have you ever been certain that something was true—I mean, absolutely certain that you remember hearing or seeing something—only to find out that you were completely wrong? Even weirder, have you ever met someone who also made that exact same mistake? If so, you’ve experienced what’s called the Mandela effect: when multiple people all share the same mistaken idea or memory. Is it, as some people claim, a glimpse into an alternate dimension? Or just a weird quirk of how our brains work? Let’s be honest; the latter is definitely more likely. But still, it’s always strange and just a little unnerving to find out you share a false memory with a group of total strangers. We’ve collected examples of the Mandela effect from all over the web. Read on and see if you share any of these mistaken ideas and memories with your fellow netizens.

#1: A Portrait Is Worth a Thousand Words

When I read this next one, I actually had to go Google it to see if it was true. If you had asked me before I saw this post, I would have sworn up and down that it was“Portrait,” not “Picture.” Maybe we just got confused because “picture” and “portrait,” in this sense, mean the same thing?

By the way, if you haven’t read this book and you’re wondering if you should, let me warn you ahead of time: the concept of the novel is a lot more interesting than the novel itself. You will have an equally enjoyable experience if you just read the Wikipedia article about it, and it will save you a lot of time.

#2: A Subtle Smile

Confession time: I don’t get the fuss over the Mona Lisa. I like DaVinci’s work, but I don’t think the Mona Lisa is his best. There are better paintings in the Louvre. Heck, there are better paintings in the same room in the Louvre where the Mona Lisa is stored. And yet, if you go there, everyone is crowded around the Mona Lisa and ignoring everything else in there.

I don’t get it, and I don’t get the obsession over whether she is smiling or not. She has a hint of a smirk on her face and depending on which feature you focus on and probably which mood you are in, sometimes you think she is smiling, and sometimes you don’t. It’s not that complicated. Man, imagine what great things we could get done if we took all of the brainpower that’s been spent on thinking about the Mona Lisa smile and focused it on something important.

#3: This Is My Spare Hat Pocket

Many of these examples have been about people being convinced that something should be in an image when it isn’t: people are just inventing the existence of something. This one is much more understandable: this person just misinterpreted what she was seeing.

If I’m honest, I’ve never thought too hard about what’s sticking out of his back pocket, but if I’d been pressed to guess, I probably would have thought it was a handkerchief too. After all, who sticks a hat in their pocket? Not anyone who’s wearing women’s pants with tiny pockets, I’ll tell you that much.

#4: A Cornucopia of Confusion

The following is one of the most widespread examples of the Mandela effect: do you remember the Fruit of the Loom logo having a cornucopia in it? If you do, you’re not alone: so do I and pretty much everyone else who’s aware of this popular, affordable underwear brand.

Frequent references to the cornucopia pop up in pop culture, from album covers to South Park episodes. There are references to it in newspapers. Even the logo’s designer remembers it. But apparently, every single one of us is wrong. There has never been a cornucopia in the logo. Kind of blows the mind, doesn’t it?