The saga began with a digitally altered image—a reclining giant surrounded by a wooden platform and an archaeologist with a shovel thrown in for scale. This “discovery,” born in 2002, found its way to a receptive online audience, perhaps due to its imbued religious connotations.

By 2004, the hoax was circulating worldwide—”Giant Skeleton Unearthed!”—and it experienced a resurgence in 2007. Despite the obvious fakery to most, the tall tale persisted, with a continuous stream of inquiries flooding National Geographic News even five years later.

Messages poured in from around the globe—from Portugal to India, El Salvador to Malaysia—yet all echoing the same question: Is it true?

Fueling the revival of this story were scattered media outlets reporting the find as fact. One notable instance was an article in India’s Hindu Voice monthly in March 2007, claiming a joint expedition by the National Geographic Society and the Indian army had uncovered a giant human skeleton in India.

The narrative continued, stating the discovery was made by a “National Geographic Team (India Division) with support from the Indian army” and that tablets with inscriptions suggested the giant belonged to a race of superhumans mentioned in the Mahabharata.

Editor P. Deivamuthu of Hindu Voice admitted his publication was taken in by the fake reports, prompting a retraction after reader alerts.

Despite efforts to debunk the hoax, variations persisted, including alleged discoveries of giant skeletons in Saudi Arabia. Some narratives even spun the tale to fit Islamic scriptures rather than Hindu ones.

Various websites dedicated to debunking urban legends and folklore picked up on these giant hoaxes shortly after their emergence. Snopes.com, based in California, notably traced the skeleton image back to Worth1000, a site known for hosting photo manipulation competitions.