In Greek mythology, a crazy thing happened — well, lots of crazy things happened — but here’s one example: A guy named Minos wanted to be the king. To prove he had the gods’ approval, he prayed for a bull, which Poseidon granted him. But instead of sacrificing that particular bull for Poseidon like he was supposed to, Minos wound up sacrificing another bull. This annoyed Poseidon who decided to stir up an embarrassing scenario: He made Minos’s wife fall in love with the bull. In fact, she was so in love with the bull that she had a fake cow constructed, climbed inside of it and then seduced the bull. As a result, she spawned a half-man-half-bull infant named Minotaur who grew up to be rather vicious. Minotaur was kept in Minos’s labyrinth, where he was fed young girls for dinner.  

You’re probably thinking: That’s really messed up, but what does it have to do with underground stomping grounds? Well, many historians believe that though the story isn’t real, the labyrinth is. The tour guides at the palace at Knossos on the island of Crete are likely to tell you that the palace is the labyrinth. And maybe it is. But according to the Independent, a new team of scholars is betting on another spot on the island: the Labyrinthos Caves.

The caves extend for about 2.5 miles and include a confusing maze of tunnels that dead end into cave rooms and chambers. They’re no stranger to curious travelers. In fact, when this particular group of Oxford University scholars entered the cave for research a few months ago, it found dynamite — thieves were planning to blow out a certain section in search of hidden treasure.

Could these caves be the real Minotaur labyrinth? Perhaps. We’ll probably never know for sure. But if you want to get somewhat lost in a cave maze, now you know where to find one.

For more history mystery …
Who was the real Count Dracula?
Who was Rosie the Riveter?
Why was Davy Crockett the king of the wild frontier?
Could Noah’s ark really have happened?