On the evening of December 9, 1954, farmer Olmiro da Costa e Rosa was feeding his animals by throwing plants of French bean and maize in a field of his property of in Herval Mirim, a location near Linha Bela Vista, 2.5 miles from Venancio Aires, in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
He then heard something making a sound he described as "similar to the sound of a sewing machine", and noticed that the cows in the field were starting to run away.
He thus looked up and saw a man of strange appearance and an unusual object hovering beyond, just some feet above the ground. The object was a bright craft, in the shape of a basin or explorer's hat, it was cream-colored and surrounded by a smoky haze.
He saw two more strange men: one was in the craft with his head and shoulders sticking out an opening, the other was outside, apparently examining a barbed-wire fence.
Da Costa e Rosa had time to observe the men and they were at fairly close range: they were of average height, broad-shouldered, with long blond hair which blew in the wind. Their skin was extremely pale, "cadaver" pale, their slanted eyes were not normal men eyes. They wore light brown coverall-like garments fastened to their shoes, and the shoes seemed very strange to him because they had no heels.
In the surprize, Costa e Rosa dropped his hoe, and the stranger nearest to him came at him, raised a hand, smiled, picked up the hoe, examined it carefully, then placed the hoe in Costa e Rosa's hands. Costa e Rosa was holding a plant of beans ans a plant of maize, and the man took those and started toward the craft.
Costa e Rosa had stood as if paralyzed, but then he thought that they did not seem to mean harm to him, so he walked toward the craft. The man who had taken the hoe and the one in the craft made no move to stop him, but the one at the fence made a gesture which seemed to mean that he should stop; which he did.
Some of the farmer's animals had approached, and the strangers looked at them with great interest. With words and gestures, the witness tried to tell the visitors that he would be happy to make a gift of one of the sheep, but the visitors did not seem interested and did not seem to understand him when he spoke.
Unexpectedly, the visitors went in the craft, and it rose about 30 feet, accelerated suddenly, and flew away into the western sky at high speed.
Costa e Rosa then checked the ground over which the objects had hovered, but he found nothing. He noticed a smell of burning coal remained in the air for some time after the craft's departure.
His story then appeared in the local Press, and in national magazine O Cruzeiro in an article written by famous reporter and ufologist Joao Martins.
Costa e Rosa was apparently questioned for several hours by Porto Alegre authorities, and it was determined that he was almost illiterate and did not read science fiction or the newspapers, that he had never heard of flying saucers. Actually he did not seem to interpret the encounter as extraterrestrial, but thought the men must have been some aviators from a foreign country.
In 2004, a local newspaper who had reported the case back then interviewed the witness's son who was 21 back then, and he confirmed what his father told and gave his opinion that his father had not lied. He added that his father had shouted and was heard by neighbors during the encounters, and that he had nightmares following the encounter. Several other UFO sighting had taken place then in the area, including close encounters of the third kind, the nearest being on the same day only a few kilometers away.
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[Ref. lo1:] CORAL LORENZEN:
Coral Lorenzen indicates that on the evening of December 9, 1954, farmer Olmiro da Costa e Rosa was cultivating his French bean and maize field in Linha Bela Vista, two and a half miles from Venancio Aires, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, when he heard something with the sound of a sewing machine.
The animals in the pasture next to the field scattered and ran, and the witness looked up and saw a strange appearing man and an unusual object hovering beyond just above the ground.
The object had the shape of an explorer's hat, was cream-colored and surrounded by a smoky haze.
Two other men were there, one in the craft, his head and shoulders sticking out, the other examining a barbed-wire fence.
Costa e Rosa dropped his hoe and the stranger nearest to him raised his hand, smiled and picked up the hoe, which he turned in his hands, examining it carefully. Then that man placed the hoe in Costa e Rosa's hands, bent down, uprooted a few plants and started toward the craft.
Costa e Rosa had stood as though paralyzed, but then, assuring himself that they meant no harm to him, he walked toward the craft. The man who had taken the hoe and the one in the craft made no move to stop him, but the one at the fence made a gesture which seemed to mean that he should stop; which the witness did.
Some of the farmer's animals approached and the strangers looked at them with great interest. With words and gestures, the witness tried to tell the visitors that he would be happy to make a gift of one of the animals, but the visitors did not seem enthused about the offer.
The witness described the visitors with details as he had had time to observe them at fairly close range: They were of medium height, broad-shouldered, with long blond hair which blew in the wind. Their skin was extremely pale, their slanted eyes were not normal looking by earth standards. They wore light brown coverall-like garments fastened to their shoes, and Costa e Rosa added that the shoes seemed very strange because they had no heels.
Suddenly, the visitors gathered into the craft, it rose about 30 feet, accelerated suddenly and flashed away into the western sky at high speed.
After the men had left, he searched the ground over which the objects had hovered but found nothing; but he noticed a smell of burning coal remained in the air for some time after the craft's departure.
Costa e Rosa was questioned for several hours by authorities from Porto Alegre, and it was determined that he did not read science fiction; he actually read with difficulty, and had never heard of "flying saucers." He seemed to believe that these men were visitors from another country.
The incident was reported in the magazine O Cruzeiro by "one of Brazil's outstanding reporter-writers, Joao Martins, who is also a crack UFO investigator."
[Ref. lo2:] CORAL AND JIM LORENZEN:
The authors indicate that in the evening of December 9, 1954, farmer Olmiro da Costa e Rosa was working in his French bean and maize field in Linha Bela Vista, two and a half miles from Venancio Aires, Rio Grande do Sul, in Brazil.
Costa da Rosa heard a sound "like a sewing machine," whereupon the animals in the nearby pasture scattered and ran. He looked up and saw a strange object hovering "just above the ground," which looked like "an explorer's hat."
It was cream-colored and surrounded by a smoky haze. Three "men" were visible to Costa e Rosa: one was in the craft, his head and shoulders sticking outside an opening, and another was apparently examining a barbed-wire fence. Another approached Costa e Rosa, who dropped his hoe in surprise. The man then raised his hand, reached down and picked up the hoe and gave it back to the farmer.
He described the men as of "medium height," broad-shouldered, with long blond hair, extremely pale skin, and slanted eyes. Their clothing was light brown in color and seemed fastened to their shoes, which looked odd to Costa e Rosa, as they had no heels.
He then stooped over, uprooted a few plants and started back toward the craft. Somewhat reassured by these actions, the farmer advanced toward the craft. The man in the object and the one who had picked up the hoe made no motion toward him but the one near the fence made a gesture as if warning Costa e Rosa to stop, which he did. Some of the animals then approached and Costa e Rosa, with gestures, told the strange creatures that he would give them one of the animals as a gift, but they didn't seem interested. Quite suddenly and unexpectedly the two men on the ground boarded the ship, which rose to about 30 feet, accelerated abruptly and flew into the west at high speed.
The farmer was questioned at length by authorities from Porto Alegre and it was determined that Costa e Rosa was a responsible and honest man.
[Ref. gc1:] GORDON CREIGHTON:
Gordon Creighton indicates that in Linha Bela Vista, State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, in the evening of December 9, 1954, farmer Olmira da Costa E Rosa cultivated his maize and French bean plantations at approximately 4 kilometers from Venancio Aires, when he heard something "like a sewing machine" and saw in a nearby field the animals seized of panic. He then discovered an object in the shape of a tropical helmet, cream-colored and wrapped in a fog, which hovered just above ground-level.
Three men of strange appearance were there, one inside the apparatus, another examining a barrier of barbed wire, and another close to the farmer. The astonished farmer let his hoe fall, and the man smiled, approached, picked up the hoe, examined it carefully and returned it to him.
He then leaned, gathered some plants and returned towards the craft with the others, and the apparatus rose slowly until approximately 30 feet, then accelerated and flew away towards the west at high speed.
The farmer was almost completely illiterate and had never heard about the flying saucers. He was able to examine these men at close range and in detail: they were of average size, with broad shoulders, long hair floating in the wind, an extremely pale skin and slanted eyes, and they did not constitute an ordinary vision according to terrestrial standards. They carried light brown combinations attached to their shoes, which did not have a heel. The witness had concluded that they must have been aviators of some foreign country.
Creighton points out the extreme resemblance between these men and the "Venusian" of Adamski, and notes that honesty require that this case, just as the other Latin-American cases of men "with long hair," is studied with a great care, but it does not seem that this was done.
Creighton indicates that the source are O Cruzeiro, of Rio de Janeiro, in 1954, and Coral Lorenzen: The Great Flying Saucer Hoax.
[Ref. jv1:] JACQUES VALLEE:
In his catalogue of UFO landings, Jacques Vallée indicates that on December 9, 1954 Linha Bela Vista Brazil, a farmer, O. da Costa e evening Rosa, observed a stranger standing near a machine shaped like "a tropical helmet," cream-colored, surrounded with haze, making the same noise as a sewing machine. Another man was looking at a fence, and the head and arms of a third one were visible inside the craft. As the witness dropped his hoe, the man smiled, picked it up, and gave it back to him, after which they motioned him to stay away and took off. They were of average height, had broad shoulders, long hair, very white skin, and slanted eyes. They wore brown coveralls ending with shoes without heels.
Vallée indicates that his source is "Lor. I 46; Humanoids 4."
[Ref. go1:] GODELIEVE VAN OVERMEIRE:
Godelieve van Overmeire indicates that on December 9, 1954, in Linha da Vista, Venancio Aires, the farmer Olmira Da Costa e Rosa cultivated his French beans plantations and observed a foreigner, upright close to a machine which was almost on the ground and resembled a tropical helmet of cream color surrounded by a fog. The machine made a noise similar to that of a sewing machine. Another individual examined the barrier, while a third was visible inside the craft, head and arms. As the witness released his fork, one of the men picked it and returned it to him after examination. The unknowns returned in the craft, beckoning with the witness not to approach, and flew away.
They were of normal size, had broad shoulders, long hairs, very white skin and the slanted eyes. They carried brown outfits and shoes without heels.
Godelieve van Overmeire indicates that the source is Charles Bowen, in "En quête des humanoïdes", J'ai Lu, 1974, pages 69 and 114.
[Ref. ar1:] ALBERT ROSALES:
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224. Location. Linha Bela Vista Brazil Date: December 9 1954 Time: evening O Da Costa e Rosa, a farmer, heard something like a sewing machine, and saw a cream-colored object "shaped like a tropical helmet" hovering just above the ground. A man was inside the craft, another examining a fence, and a third close to the farmer. Da Costa dropped his hoe, and this man, with a smile, picked it up and gave it to him. All 3 men were broad shouldered, with very pale skin and slanted eyes, and with long blond hair. They were wearing light brown coveralls fastened to heel less shoes. After plucking a few plants, the men returned to their craft, which rose slowly for 30 ft and then went off at high speed. The witness had never heard of flying saucers. Humcat 1954-139 Source: Hanlon, The Humanoids Type: B and A |
[Ref. gs1:] GAZETA DO SUL:
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In the year of 1954, the Gazeta had published: the extraterrestrials seen in Linha Bela Vista, in the area of Venâncio Aires: the disc descended in the field of Olmiro da Costa e Rosa and the members of the crew, of cadaver paleness and with long hair, took a maize plant and a bean plant, and rejected the sheep offered by the owner of the house. Olmiro is now deceased, his property, in Herval Mirim, before Linha Bela Vista, is occupied today by his only son, Paulo da Costa e Rosa, who at the time was 21 years old. He tells that his father threw corn and bean plants to the cattle, and at this the strange apparatus came down, to 80 cm of the ground, and remained floating and rotating. "It made a noise similar to that of a sewing machine", he said. The cows were the first to see it, and dispersed. According to the description he heard from his father, the object had the shape of a round basin and was of a strong luminosity [ambiguous: compared to, or reflecting] the sun. There were two beings inside, and another who came to the terrified farmer. The latter wanted to approach, but they beckoned to him to stop. Olmiro was then paralyzed, with its hoe and its plants in the hand. The unknown cam to him, took the hoe from his hand, examined and returned it, but he took the plants. He returned towards the disc, which disappeared in the sky. Olmiro shouted, and was heard by the neighbors. He had nightmares caused by these unusual visitors and awoke shouting. "My father did not listen to the radio, nor did he read the newspaper", the son tells. "It is not as if he could have been influenced to invent things. He told what he saw", he guarantees. In the following week, his neighbor Pedro Moraes, two kilometers away, told a very similar story. Paulo remembers that Pedro looked after a hen which had twelve chicks when the animal suddenly ran away, trailing its brooded with her. He looked up and the disc was there, floating right in front of him. But there no was direct contact. Paulo believes that the experience of the neighbor was not influenced by his father. "He admitted that it could have influenced him, but insisted that the hen had not heard this story." Until now, in spite of numerous stories, no visit of the extraterrestrials was proven. |
[Ref. ni1:] NICAP WEBSITE:
In the occupants catalogue, the website indicates that on December 8, or 9, 1954, in Linha Bela Vista, Brasil a farmer working in his field heard a sound like a sewing machine and saw a disc-shaped craft hovering nearby. The animals in the field scattered as it landed. Three beings of medium height were visible, one stayed in the craft, the other two approached the farmer who dropped his hoe. One being picked the hoe up handed it back to him. The alien then uprooted some plants. The farmer spoke to the being, but it did not seem to understand. The website indicates the case was investigated by Dr. Fontes, APRO.
The sources are indicated as Randle/Estes, FOV pg 272; Lorenzen, UTWS.
The case investigated by Doctor Fontes of APRO ([ni1]) is not this one, but that of Pedro Morais the same day 2 kilometers from there.
The witness is unfortunately a single witness, which does not exclude that he invented the story, a story with no corroboration by hard evidence. But on another side, the opinion of his son should not be forgotten, and there is little sense in thinking that he was inspired by the inventions encounters with Venusian from Adamski whereas he did not even think that the visitors were extraterrestrials but thought that they was some foreign aviators.
Because of the qualification of these visitors as "men", one could actually wonder whether they were the people who came by helicopter. But the description of the craft does not correspond, the detail of the eyes does not correspond, the long hair are quite at odds for aviators at that time, they seemed not to talk, and their actions, such as examining a fence are just as weird. A craft rising 10 meters before being propelled, with a sewing machine noise, does remind of an helicopter, but the shape of basin does not match, so the report must have been very deformed by third parties if it were a helicopter, without counting that helicopters in that area in 1954 are all the same improbable.
The argument that the witness did not read is hardly relevant; it was not necessary to read the newspapers or science fiction to have heard about flying saucers at that time when they were seen everywhere in the country. It is thus possible that it was not true that the farmer never heard about that.
If a decent investigation report had been written and published, if the authorities of Porto Alegre had published their conclusion and a detailed report, if the Press sources were available, one or the other answer might come out reinforced. In the absence of such items, it appears quite difficult to me to claim certainties on this case.
| Id: | Topic: | Severity: | Date noted: | Raised by: | Noted by: | Description: | Proposal: | Status: |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ufology | Severe | December 27, 2007 | Patrick Gross | Patrick Gross | No available investigation report. | Help needed. | Opened. |
| 2 | Ufology | Severe | December 27, 2007 | Patrick Gross | Patrick Gross | Press sources of the time not available. | Help needed. | Opened. |
| 3 | Ufology | Severe | December 27, 2007 | Patrick Gross | Patrick Gross | Single witness case. | - | - |
Extraterrestrial beings or hoax.
* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.
| Main Author: | Patrick Gross |
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| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Created/Changed By: | Date: | Change Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | December 27, 2007 | Creation, [lo1], [lo2], [gc1], [jv1], [go1], [ar1], [gs1], [ni1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | December 27, 2007 | First published. |
