The Rosenheim Poltergeist case is one of the most well-documented and intriguing paranormal incidents of the 20th century. It occurred in the autumn of 1967 in the Bavarian town of Rosenheim, Germany, specifically in the law office of Sigmund Adam. The events that unfolded over several months challenged conventional explanations and attracted the attention of scientists, parapsychologists, and the media.
In November 1967 the law office of Sigmund Adam, started experiencing unusual electrical and telephonic disturbances. Initially, the phenomena seemed relatively mundane – neon ceiling lights would repeatedly go out, fuses would blow without apparent cause, and there were numerous problems with the telephone equipment. Four telephones would ring simultaneously, calls were inexplicably cut short, and the office’s phone bills rose precipitously.
As the incidents escalated, more bizarre events began to occur. The developing fluid in a copy machine would spill several times of its own accord. Sharp banging noises were heard throughout the office. Light fixtures would begin to swing, and light bulbs that were turned off would sometimes explode. Perhaps most perplexingly, pictures hanging on the walls would rotate, sometimes up to 360 degrees, or fall off their hooks entirely.
The frequency and intensity of these events led Sigmund Adam to seek help. Initially, he contacted the local telephone company and electric utility to investigate the issues. Technicians from both companies examined the office’s equipment but could find no logical explanation for the disturbances. In fact, the telephone company reported an impossibility – their records showed that the time announcement number (0119) was being dialled four to five times per minute, and on some days, 40 to 50 times in a row. This would have been physically impossible given the rotary dial phones in use at the time.
As news of the strange happenings spread, it attracted the attention of Hans Bender, a parapsychologist from the Institut für Grenzgebiete der Psychologie und Psychohygiene (Institute for Border Areas of Psychology and Mental Hygiene) in Freiburg. Bender, along with two physicists, Friedbert Karger and Gerhard Zicha, began a thorough investigation of the phenomena.
The investigators installed electronic monitoring equipment in the office. They recorded large surges in the power supply that coincided with the paranormal events. Interestingly, these power surges only occurred during office hours. They also managed to capture video footage of some of the phenomena, including the swinging light fixtures and rotating pictures.
As the investigation progressed, Bender and his team noticed a pattern. The phenomena seemed to be associated with the presence of a specific individual – a 19-year-old employee named Annemarie Schaberl (sometimes referred to as Anne-Marie Schneider in some accounts). Whenever Annemarie walked down the hall, light fixtures would begin to swing behind her, and the intensity of the phenomena decreased the farther away she was from any given location.
Bender theorized that Annemarie might be unknowingly causing the disturbances through psychokinesis – the alleged ability to influence physical objects with the mind. He learned that Annemarie was experiencing emotional turmoil due to a recent broken engagement and frustration with her job. Bender believed that her repressed emotions were manifesting as psychokinetic energy, a common theory in poltergeist cases.
One of the most striking incidents occurred when a heavy filing cabinet was reportedly pushed across the floor by an invisible force. The movement was substantial, yet curiously, the linoleum flooring showed no signs of damage or scratching that would be expected from such a heavy object being dragged.
The telephone incidents became even more baffling. The investigators attached a test apparatus to the phone and discovered that not only was the time announcement number being dialled repeatedly, but a nine-digit Munich number was also being dialled four times simultaneously. Bender noted that this would require a mechanical influence upon certain springs at millisecond time intervals, suggesting a level of complexity that seemed to rule out simple electromagnetic effects.
After months of investigation, Bender and his team concluded that the phenomena defied explanation in terms of theoretical physics. They observed that the events seemed to be the result of non-periodic, short-duration forces and included both simple and complex occurrences. Most intriguingly, they suggested that the movements, especially those involving the telephone, seemed to be performed by “intelligently controlled forces that have a tendency to evade investigation.”
The case took an unexpected turn when Annemarie left her job at the law firm in January 1968. Almost immediately, all paranormal activity in the office ceased. This correlation seemed to support Bender’s theory that Annemarie was the focal point of the poltergeist activity.
The Rosenheim Poltergeist case gained significant attention in parapsychological circles and the media. It was seen by many as one of the most compelling examples of poltergeist activity due to the number of witnesses, including police officers and journalists, and the amount of data collected by the investigators.
However, as with many paranormal cases, the Rosenheim Poltergeist is not without its critics. Skeptics have pointed out that Bender’s investigation, while extensive, may have omitted key details and avoided exploring more mundane explanations. Some have suggested that the events could have been the result of an elaborate hoax, possibly involving multiple participants.
Despite the skepticism, the Rosenheim Poltergeist remains one of the most well-documented and intriguing cases in the annals of paranormal research. It continues to be studied and debated, serving as a fascinating example of the challenges in investigating and explaining seemingly inexplicable phenomena.
