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OCTOBER 18, 1954, ANDIGNE, MAINE-ET-LOIRE, FRANCE, ALBERT GERAUD:

BRIEF SUMMARY OF EVENT AND FOLLOW-UP:

A newspaper reported that two days ago on October 18, 1954, at an unspecified time, Albert Géraud, aged 15, farm worker in Montguillon, was riding his bicycle on the road from Andigné to Saint-Martin-du-Bois, in the Maine-et-Loire department, when he saw a light which changed from green to yellow.

The light descended jerkily and reached the road. Seized by panic, the young man felt his legs were paralyzed.

Having reached the ground, the light revealed itself to be a "transparent saucer releasing a red gleam."

In the inside of the saucer, was a small being of 1 m 20 height, covered with hair from the head to the feet, and with large eyes, which looked at the witness.

The object rose suddenly, causing a violent blow of air in the back of the witness, and it went away in the direction to Lion d'Angers.

The witness was very frightened and remained in prostration during several days.

BASIC INFORMATION SUMMARY:

NARRATIVES:

[Ref. fr1] MICHEL FIGUET AND JEAN-LOUIS RUCHON:

The two authors indicate that on October 18, 1954, at an unspecified time, Albert Géraud, aged 15, farm worker in Montguillon, was riding his bicycle on the road from Andigné to Saint-Martin-du-Bois, in the Maine-et-Loire department, when he saw a light which changed from green to yellow.

The light descended jerkily and reached the road. Seized by panic, the young man felt his legs were paralyzed.

Having reached the ground, the light revealed itself to be a "transparent saucer releasing a red gleam."

In the inside of the saucer, was a small being of 1 m 20 height, covered with hair from the head to the feet, and with large eyes, which looked at the witness.

Suddenly the object rose, causing a violent blow of air in the back of the witness, and it went away in the direction to Lion d'Angers.

The witness was very frightened and remained in prostration during several days.

The authors indicate that the source is Ouest-France for October 20, 1954, page 1.

[Ref. mf1:] MICHEL FIGUET:

("B.B." refers to the book by Barthel and Brucker, see next paragraphs.)

[Ref. bb1:] GERARD BARTHEL ET JACQUES BRUCKER:

The two authors indicate that between Andigné and Saint-Martin-du-Bois, on October 20, 1954, a young farm worker had a strange encounter with a 1.20 meters visitor covered with hairs from the head to toe and with eyes of owl.

They add that "even when it is a bet with buddies, the 'alien mimicry' draws its resources in the feathery fauna of our planet."

[Ref. js1:] JEAN SIDER:

The author indicates that on October 18, 1954 at an unknown hour, in Andigne/Saint Martin du Bois, in the Maine-et-Loire, Albert Gérault, aged 15 at the time, rde y bicycle on the D216 and suddenly noticed a light passing from the green to the yellow, which came down by jerks and reached the road.

Very frightened, he felt paralyzed in the legs.

An object landed, there was a small hairy being inside, hairy from head to feet, with eyes like those of an owl.

The object took off suddenly causing a violent wind that the teenager felt in his back, and it disappeared in the direction of the Lion of Angers.

The young man remained prostrate several days.

The author indicates that Barthel and Brucker had explained the incident as being the result of a "bet" thus a joke, but he rejects this explanation by arguing that they faked their investigations and thus no credit is to be given to this one; and that moreover the same evening a schoolboy in the Ille-and-Villaine lived a similar experience.

[Ref. go1:] GODELIEVE VAN OVERMEIRE:

The Belgian ufologist indicates that in 1954, on October 18, in France, in Andigné/St Martin du Bois "Albert Géraud, aged 15, circulates by bicycle on the D216 and sees a light which passes from the green to the yellow. It goes down by jerks and reaches the road. Seized by panic the witness feels his legs paralysed. The saucer is on the ground, a small being covered with hairs of the head to the feet is inside and looks at Albert: its eyes are large. Suddenly the object rises, causes a violent wind in the direction of the witness and disappears in the direction of the Lion of Angers. Prostrate witness during several days."

The source is indicated as "FIGUET/ J.L. RUCHON: 'Ovni, premier dossier complet...' - Alain Lefeuvre pub. 1979, p. 182, 183".

[Ref. 134:] ALBERT ROSALES:

POINTS TO CONSIDER:

Here is again a case of the 1954 French saucers flap that the duet of self-proclaimed "rationalists" Barthel and Brucker seem to have treated oddly, in an almost laughable manner.

Let's note that, significantly, they were mistaken in the date, giving that of the publication of the newspaper reporting the encounter instead of the date of the encounter - the sort of error they used to blame on ufologists.

But even more interesting: whereas, ironically, they are the only to mention that the entity had the eyes of an owl, which is the probable key of the case, instead of deducing that it was perhaps a confusion in which a young 15-year-old farm hand, perhaps impressionable or little educated, had mistaken an owl for a creature of space, in the night, they ensure us without any other sort of information that it was "a bet between buddies."

But bet about what? A bet what the young man would make a confusion in the evening? Prophecy, then, undoubtedly. A bet that one of the "buddies" disguised in owl would be called a Martian by the victim buddy? Does this hold any water? I don't think so.

Knowing how often these two authors purely and simply invented explanations suiting their needs, which in other cases was proven, contrary to Michel Figuet who became a "skeptic" except when it came to the "investigations" by Barthel and Brucker, I do not believe one second that this encounter had anything to do with a "bet between buddies", and I much rather suspect that the testimony is sincere, and that only the interpretation of the entity could be erroneous, an owl sometimes looking quite impressive, especially by night and especially if the witness had just seen or believed to see one of these much-spoken flying saucers that filled the newspaper at the time in France.

An owl passed by in the night at an unspecified distance by a teenage might well appear to him as being a rather small creature, covered of "hair" - i.e. feathers - with eyes like those of an owl.

This being said, I also see that this explanation can be put forth only if the account given by Figuet apparently based on the journalistic source was very distorted by the journalistic source: it is indeed specified that the creature was inside the saucer. Perhaps was this saucer, said to be "transparent", only some gleam of some car's headlights? But headlights that change color? Who knows? Not me, therefore I cannot really conclude.

Region of anger, the terrain heights. The blue line indicates the road segment between Saint-Martin-du-Bois above and Andigné below, a 6 kilometers segment where the sighting is said to have taken place.

2007 satellite picture of the area between Saint-Martin-du-Bois and Andigné. The blue line is next to the road segment.

LIST OF ISSUES:

EVALUATION:

Extraterrestrial beings or confusion or hoax.

BIBLIOGRAPHY AND REFERENCES:

* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.

• [---] ? Article in the newspaper Ouest-France, Bordeaux, France, page 1, October 20, 1954.
• [fr1] * "OVNI, Premier Dossier Complet des Rencontres Rapprochées En France", book by Michel Figuet and Jean-Louis Ruchon, Alain Lefeuvre publisher, France, pp 182-183, 1979.
• [bb1] * "La Grande Peur Martienne", book by Gérard Barthel and Jacques Brucker, Nouvelles Editions Rationalistes publisher, France, page 77, 1979.
• [mf1] * "Catalogue Francat Des Rencontres Rapprochées En France - Listing 800", catalogue by Michel Figuet, France, 1982.
• [js1] * "Le Dossier 1954 et l'Imposture Rationaliste", book by Jean Sider, Ramuel publisher, France, pages 208,259, 1997.
• [go1] * "Chronologie OVNI", compiled by Godelieve Van Overmeire, Belgium, circa 2000, at users.skynet.be/sky84985/afin54.htm
• [---] ? "*U* Computer Database", compiled by Larry Hatch, USA, 2002.
• [ar1] * "1954 Humanoid Reports", compiled by Albert Rosales, circa 2001, at www.ufoinfo.com/humanoid/humanoid1954.shtml
• [lc1] * Base OVNI France, website by Luc Chastan, France, circa 2005, at baseovnifrance.free.fr/detobs.php?numobs=1119
• [ud1] * "18 Oct 1954 - St Martin-Du-Bois, France", web page by the UFOdna website, circa 2008, at www.ufodna.com/uf16/uf2/162601.htm

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This page was last updated on June 6, 2009