With increasing fascination and interest I continue reviewing, organizing and scanning thousands of documents from the Parthenon archive. One of the oldest UFO collections housed at AFU, with many rare and unique items especially from the 1950s and 1960s. I would not hesitate to designate Miss Edith Nicolaisen - founder of the publishing house Parthenon in 1957 – the Mother of the Swedish UFO movement. Her pioneering work inspired thousands of people. There are aspects of her life that still remains something of an enigma, especially the scope and authenticity of her several UFO observations.
The authors, researchers, ufologists worldwide who donate their archives to AFU usually restrict the donated material to documents who are associated with their work and investigations. In the case of Edith Nicolaisen (1911-1986) with have received her entire personal archive including all records from the Parthenon publishing house. From a historical viewpopint this is exceedingly valuable, giving a profound insight into early UFO history.
Because of her extensive university education during the 1930s and 1940s, including medical studies at the University of Copenhagen, Edith´s prospects and future looked very bright. During the severe polio epidemic in Denmark 1952 she participated in the intensive resque and rehabilitation work of the more than 7.000 patients. Because of her valuable work during this period she was on July 7, 1953 rewarded with an invitation to Drottningholm Palace, the private residence of the Swedish royal family. This was followed by an invitation for cocktails, July 8, 1953, to the Danish Ambassador in Stockholm, Knud Aasge Monrad-Hansen.
Invitation to Drottningsholm Palace
Invitation to the Danish Ambassador i Stockholm
In 1954 Edith Nicolaisen was to enter a radically new life journey. Resting in a summer cottage by the Danish coast she read Flying Saucers Have Landed by Desmond Leslie and George Adamski and this book became the turning point of her life. Several years later she described this momentous event in a letter to Basil van den Berg: "The first book I read was that of Leslie-Adamski´s Flying Saucers Have Landed and something in me recognized the truth, however fantastic it all sounded to my intellect and narrow-minded teaching, we all have received. I am a Danish citizen, who in 1954 was faced with the difficult choice either to accept the doors suddenly flung open for an additional three years college-training in USA for a future career under WHO Geneve... or, to volunteer for the SAUCER-cause here in Sweden, which meant to chose the "thorny and stony" road of the lonesome pioneer. After a fierce fight between intellect and heart, the latter gained supremacy." (September 1, 1963).
Edith Nicolaisen 1946
Together with three ladies from the Theosophical Society (Adyar) Edith Nicolaisen founded Parthenon in 1957 and moved from Copenhagen to Hälsingborg, Sweden. In spite of a severe accident, periods of illness and many other obstacles Ediths succeeded in publishing many of the early classics in UFO contactee literature. Here is a list of books published during the first years:
1957
Desmond Leslie, George Adamski, Flying Saucers Have Landed. Swedish edition: Flygande tefat har landat.
Desmond Leslie, George Adamski, Flying Saucers Have Landed. Swedish edition: Flygande tefat har landat.
1958
George Adamski, Inside the Space Ships. Swedish edition: Ombord på rymdskepp. 2nd and 3rd, revised Swedish editions in 1968 and 1973.
George Adamski, Inside the Space Ships. Swedish edition: Ombord på rymdskepp. 2nd and 3rd, revised Swedish editions in 1968 and 1973.
Daniel Fry, The White Sands Incident. Swedish edition: Resa med flygande tefat. 2nd revised edition 1968.
1959
Elisabeth Klarer, I Flew in a Spaceship Over the Drakensberg. Swedish edition: I rymdskepp över Drakensberg.
Elisabeth Klarer, I Flew in a Spaceship Over the Drakensberg. Swedish edition: I rymdskepp över Drakensberg.
Max B. Miller, Flying Saucers, Fact or Fiction? Swedish edition: Flygande tefat: fantasi eller verklighet?
Ray och Rex Stanford, Look Up. Swedish edition: Kontakt med rymdmänniskor.
1960
Daniel Fry, Alan´s Message. To Men of Earth. Swedish edition: Budskapet från rymden. 2nd revised edition 1968.
Beginning in 1954 Edith Nicolaisen lived a life of total dedication to what she regarded as her life mission, inspired by the space people. It was an austere and ascetic life. She became a vegetarian, often living long periods only on fruit juices. Working days often exceeding 16 hours. In a letter to Mrs. Harriet P. Foster, San Diego, USA Edith explained her situation: ”Personally, I have burned my "candle in both ends a little shorter", and it is still my hope, before I shall have to leave my "physical mantel" behind me, worn out entirely from overwork and lack of sleep, to find genuine people of the type, which Alice Bailey called: "The suicide squad" to carry Parthenon´s' information work onward, as long as it will be needed.” (March 12, 1964).
To my knowledge Edith Nicolaisen never claimed personal telepathic messages from the space people, nor any physical encounters. She only mention ”inspiration” and having been ”chosen” for this life task. There are four UFO-observations referred to in her voluminous correspondence. As she very seldom mention details or exact date it is rather difficult finding other sources confirming her sightings. Here is a summary of the most interesting observations from various letters. The observations in the Austrian Alps, Summer 1955, 1956 and close encounter outside Linköping in November 1955 are often described together.
1955-1956, Austria and outside Linköping, Sweden
”From the very first time I heard about ”Flying Saucers” coming from other planets, I believed it quite possible - to-day I am convinced! Had , too, the luck to see a ”Flying Saucer" of the Venusian type hovering some hundred meters about my head here in Sweden and last year
”From the very first time I heard about ”Flying Saucers” coming from other planets, I believed it quite possible - to-day I am convinced! Had , too, the luck to see a ”Flying Saucer" of the Venusian type hovering some hundred meters about my head here in Sweden and last year
during my holidays in the Austrian mountains a huge mother ship passed at a distance of about 500 meters and at the same level majestic, soundless and with incredible speed! As it seems as if I belong to those ”elected ones", who always get the toughest jobs to solve in life, I felt it my duty to plant the banner of ”Flying Saucers” on the top of ”Mount Everest" here in Sweden. ”
(Letter to Desmond Leslie, Sept. 18, 1956).
(Letter to Desmond Leslie, Sept. 18, 1956).
”In November 1955 on a moonlit evening between 22-23 p.m. about 15 km south of Linköping while waiting in my car for a train to pass, I suddenly caught sight of a beautiful green-light far above the way-lin´s green signal-light. In order to see better I rolled down the car-pane on the left side and put out my head – and there a few hundred meters above the ground a big bell-shaped ”Flying Saucer” with portholes and landing gears was suspended in the air.. In the clear moonlight it looked like a magnificient silhouette of the world-famous Venusian-scout-design. From one side of the portholes shone a shaft of green light and from the other a shaft of orange light. (The colours and the intensity reminded much about our most beautiful neon-light advertisements.) As I had time to watch this ”silhouette” suspended in the air for 2 á 3 minutes before it disappeaed of sight, I noticed the details as above described. The next day a local newspaper reported that five people south of Linköping had observed a ”Flying Saucer”. The description of the observers tallied with my own observation.”
Letter to Cosmic Brotherhood Association, Yokohama, Japan, March 1, 1962).
Photo by George Adamski, Dec. 13, 1952
”Personally, I believe they are they same Brothers who visited George Adamski at Palomar Hill, for after having contacted G . via correspondence , shortly after a few month for the first time I observed Fl . Saucers at a close distance - the first a Venusian Scout ship - exact of the same form and size as that G.A . photographed on Palomar Hill - later a year after a enormous size of a Space Ship passed my nose at a close distance high up in the Austrian mountains .
I gasped as a 12 year old school child.”
(Letter to George Adamski, Vista, California, March 27, 1963)
”As I have had the opportunity to watch space-ships on many occasions I know that the photos of G.A. are genuine. Particular two occasions, I remember: In 1955 here i Sweden about 15 km south of Linköping I wa tched a Venusian scout-craft with four port-holes howering for several minutes and at a very close distance. And in 1956 while standing on a mountain..plateau in the Austrian Alps, a huge mothership passed silently, but with great speed close to the plateau, both mentioned spacecraftss were of the exact type and appearance as those G.A. took by help of his telescope and Brownie-camera from Palomor Garden… If you happen to have photos of a scoutcraft with four portholes in your files, I should appreciate veiry much to get photoprint in black-white reproduction. Unfortunately only three portholes can be seen on the scout-craft which G.A. took. In O.p.R. he speaks about four portholes.”
(Letter to Desmond Leslie, Jan. 17, 1968).
”Concerning the Venusian-scout-ship with four port-holes! I read with interest what you write on page 373 in ”Piece for A Jig-saw”: ”… in order to suit the format of the book Waveney Girvan trimmed the photo of the scout-ship to size…” It does not sound very convincing, because why didn´t he diminish the photo to right size for block-making fitting the page in the book? The photos of scout-crafts received from G.A. during 1957 for block-making had only three port-holes. But in autumn 1955 about 15 km south of Linköping here in Sweden I watched a Venusian scout-ship of exact the same type and form as that outside the cover of the English edit. Of ”Flying Saucers Have Landed”, and it had four portholes. From one side of the scout-craft a strong neon-like orange light and from the other side a strong green-neon-like light was beaming, as it was very close I had time to watch all the details. Therefore, it would be of interest, if we Adamski-friends could get hold of a photo of a scout-ship with four port-holes. Try to contact Desmond Leslie who visited George Adamski in 1954, he may have among his collection of saucer-pictures a photo-print of the Venusian scout-ship with four port-holes.
(Letter to Leonard G. Cramp, Isle of Wight, Feb. 18, 1968).
”If you find a photo-print of a Venusian-Scout-ship – the Adamski-type with four portholes, please let us know, as all the photoprints which we received from G.A. for the mentioned two books had only three portholes. Personally, I know that G.A. is right, when he speaks about four portholes, as I have seen a Venusian-space-craft (of exact the same type and form as that reproduced on the cover of the English edit. Of ”Flying Saucers Have Landed”) at a very close distance about 15 km south of Linköping here in Sweden in 1955 – and it had four portholes.”
(Letter to Gray Barker, March 9, 1968)
”Since my first contact with G.A. in 1954, I knew that he had seen and photographed the type of spaceships as reproduced in his book: ”Inside the sp.sh.” because I have watched the same types at a very close distance both here in Sweden and in the Austrian mountains. So in spaite of all the fierce attacks on G.A. I do know that his photos are genuine.”
(Letter to Ingo Swann, United Nations, New York, April 18, 1969).
”The mentioned photo of the scout-ship taken by Tahalitha at Merlin, means a treasure to me too, due to the fact that in November 1955 on my way to Stockholm a scout-ship of exact the same appearance manifested above my head 15 km south of Linköping while waiting in my little car for a train to pass, it was late in the evening – and may be, in order to draw my attention, - a strong green light was beaming from one side of the craft and a strong orange light from the opposite site. Later I understood it meant a greeting and an encouragement from our Brothers to overcome all adversities and difficulties which the information-work about the UFOs and the Brothers messages to man of Earth would cause here in Sweden, indeed beyond imagination and description. Thanks to these greetings and encouragements in critical hours, I got the needed inner strength to face and to overcome the adversities of all sorts and to continue the new-age-information-work of Parthenon during the latter 17th years here in Sweden.”
(Letter to Daniel and Tahalita Fry and Kerttu Campbell, Jan. 10, 1975).
Photo by Tahahlita Fry, Merlin, Oregon Nov. 1968
The close encounter with the scout-ship in November 1955 is of special interest as Edith mentioned that a group of people had also observed this craft and that this was mentioned the day after in a local paper. I have always surmised that it must have been a local paper published nearby the observation site but it could of course have been published in any local Swedish paper. Nothing has been found in the local papers of Östergötland but If I could find the article and it would confirm Ediths observation that would certainly be finding the smoking gun. I any of my UFO colleagues and friends in Sweden would like to check local papers, November 1955 it would be greatly appreciated.
October 24, 1957, Hälsingborg, Sweden
”I woke up early that morning with anticipation and joy at heart – without knowing what was going to happen that day – before two silver discs passed our window here. When the first one passed about 8 o´clock I wore no glasses and therefore could not see it clearly – and I felt a great disappointment – about 20 minutes later another disc caming rolling along an invisible line. – when I appeared on the balcony and sent them my greetings of welcome and vawed my hands to them it stopped and lingered a while before it shot off in the far distance. This greeting on the day PARTHENON started its work here in Sweden has been my light and hope thorugh all difficulties during this winter.”
(Letter to George Adamski, Palomar Terraces, California, November 11, 1958).
”The following incident ascertains that it was not a self-appointment or an imagination!
On the 24th of October l957, the day PARTHENON started its new-age-acitivity here in Sweden, distributing the first "Flying Saucer-books, in the morning between 8:-8.30 a.m. a large SILVER DISC with sharp contours from which surface the October sunlight was reflected from its surface, - came rolling along an invisible line and stopped at a short distance in front of our balcony wobling for some minutes - a time enough to get thoughts of greetings before it shot away at an immense speed disappearing into the 4th dimension. This incident had been foretold one and a half year ahead by a highly spiritual-minded lady during my stay in Stockholm: "The day you start PARTHENON's NEW-AG-wo rk here in Sweden, you will
get a greeting from our VENUSIAN friends!”
(Letter to Tarna L. Halsey, Los Angeles, June 6, 1966).
Together with Parthenon co-workers leaving for the DUIST UFO congress in Wiesbaden 1972. From left: Ronny Hellborgssson, Edith Nicolaisen, Ebbe Johansson, Pia Ringstrand, Hellborg Johansson
1969, Malung, Sweden
”At the time I was on the point of giving up a 12 years` pioneering work here in Sweden, once more Parthenon´s friends from space manifested themselves on the physical plane as they did on the 24th of October 1957, the day Parthenon started its information work here in Sweden. On my arrival in the evening just at sunset at Malung, a town in the northern part of Sweden, a silver-disk hang suspended in the air and when I ”complained” telepathic that it was difficult to see the brim due to the dusk a few seconds after the thoughts had been received, the whole brim was glowing with light. Later when I entered my room in a remote hotel-annex, it got filled with light and blessings beyond words – and something extraordinary happened, which I prefer to related orally. This experience gave me the encouragement needed to continue.”
(Letter to the Findhorn Community, Oct. 17, 1970):
There are still hundreds of documents to review in the Parthenon archive and thousands of letters to peruse. Hopefully I will find some more clues regarding the observations and the remarkable life of the UFO pioneer Edith Nicolaisen.
(Letter to the Findhorn Community, Oct. 17, 1970):