Featured Image Credit: Robert Och/Getty / The Action Lab/YouTube
This ancient Aztec Death Whistle will strike fear into anyone with its call, as it makes what many call the 'most terrifying sound in the world'.
While much of ancient history holds discoveries that will amaze us, these wonders are more than likely to terrify us too.
Every fascinating hidden Mayan City is countered with the 'most dangerous object ever', and this particular Aztec tool might take the cake as the scariest of the bunch, despite its initially innocent appearance.
First discovered in 1999 in the clutches of a sacrificial victim (bad start already) the Aztec Death Whistle is argued to be over 500 years old and produces a horrifying shriek when used.
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The Action Lab on YouTube have managed to recreate the Death Whistle's sound through the use of 3D printing, and it's human-like scream is something you have to hear to believe.
It's believed that the Death Whistle's ability to produce this terrifying sound is due to its inner construction, which somewhat mirrors the shape of the human larynx.
This allows the whistle to produce a sound around the frequency of 1 kHz, which has been shown in studies to be the same frequency as screams induced by fear.
It's use is presumed to be to scare off animals and other human beings, and we can guarantee that after hearing it's shriek you can understand why it would have been so effective.
Social media seems to be on the same wavelength when it comes to the whistle too, as many have expressed their fear after hearing the sound it produces.
One user jokingly hypothesizes that "that scientist must've gotten the biggest jump scare ever," whereas another user explains that they "really didn't expect the simple, small whistle to be the most spine tingling and realistic one."
A post on the r/Unexpected subreddit also showcases the Aztec Death Whistle, and one commenter proposes what is definitely nightmare fuel for many:
"Just imagine hearing this at night in a deserted place."
Truly the stuff of nightmares.
Something like this has actually happened though, as the sound of a replica Death Whistle was heard late at night through some unlucky homeowner's doorbell camera.
It wasn't expressly confirmed that the scream did come from the whistle, with some theorizing that it was instead just an animal, but it goes to show really how creepy it can be when heard in the wild, and it's definitely something we hope to never encounter in real life!
