Jacob Shelton

Whether they’re genuine or a hoax, “cursed” objects seem to inspire a morbid curiosity. These supposed curses are typically the result of some tragic event that occurred long in the past, but there’s also an unsettling number of reportedly cursed objects that have cropped up in only the last hundred years.

From haunted dolls to stolen jewels, objects that are said to carry a curse are sometimes as strange as the story behind them. This list covers some of the more well-known cursed items in history, as well as a few that often fly under the radar. Whether or not these curses can be believed, the stories behind them keep the legends alive.

________________________________________

• Photo: Cayobo / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0

Robert The Doll

Robert the doll was a life-size companion to a young boy named Gene Otto in the early 1900s. Several stories about Robert’s origins – and how he became cursed – have circulated throughout the years, but the most common is that Gene’s nanny cursed the doll after a falling out with the boy’s parents.

After the casting of this supposed curse, Gene began talking to Robert as if the doll was a real person. Gene’s parents said they could hear their son speaking to the doll all evening, and that they could even hear the doll responding in a guttural voice. Gene would also claim that Robert was responsible for various mischievous acts around the house.

Today, Robert resides at the Fort East Martello Museum in Key West, FL. Visitors who have taken their picture with Robert without asking permission and those who have made fun of the doll have later reported having terrible bouts of bad luck. Robert even receives letters from past visitors asking him for forgiveness.

• • The Phone Number 0888-888-888

The (allegedly) cursed phone number 0888-888-888 was disconnected after all three owners of the number died within a decade. The original owner, who happened to own a phone company, passed from cancer, although some rumors claim that a rival gave him radioactive poisoning. The number was then passed down to two different men involved in the mafia who were later gunned down on business trips.

The number was subsequently taken out of service, and when people curious about the legend called it, they received a message that the number was “Outside network coverage.”

• • Photo: Juan Francisco Garcia / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

Thomas Busby’s Chair

Thomas Busby was executed in 1702 after murdering his father-in-law and another man in North Yorkshire, England. According to legend, Busby said before his execution, “May death come to anyone who dare sit in my chair.”

After Busby’s death, multiple reports arose of people dying or meeting some other tragedy after sitting in the “cursed” chair. One man was found hanging outside the Busby Stoop Inn after sitting in the chair, and soldiers who sat in the chair during WWII are said to have not made it back alive.

The chair now hangs from a wall in England’s Thirsk Museum so that no one can accidentally curse themselves by sitting in it. The museum also displays a plaque with the stories of the chair’s supposed victims.

• • Annabelle The Doll

Fans of horror films know Annabelle the Haunted Doll from The Conjuring franchise, but the real Annabelle is a seemingly harmless Raggedy Ann doll. According to demonologists Ed and Lorraine Warren, Annabelle is possessed by a demonic energy that attempted to kill its previous owners.

After taking Annabelle into their custody, the Warrens claimed that people who made fun of the doll while visiting their occult museum were met with some sort of misfortune. One man reportedly even crashed his motorcycle after provoking Annabelle.

In 2020, rumors that Annabelle had escaped from her glass case at the Warrens’ museum inspired multiple videos on TikTok, proving the doll still has a loyal following.

• • Photo: Sarah-Rose / Flickr / CC BY-ND 2.0

The Delphi Purple Sapphire

Also known as the “Cursed Amethyst,” the Delphi Purple Sapphire was stolen from the Temple of Indra in 1857 and brought to England by Colonel W. Ferris, who quickly lost his fortune and health. His son supposedly encountered the same bad luck, and a friend took his own life after coming in contact with the gem. After that, seemingly everyone who came in contact with the Delphi Purple Sapphire met some sort of misfortune, such as a singer who lost her voice after acquiring the stone.

The Delphi Purple Sapphire has been on display at London’s Natural History Museum since 2007, and the curator who acquired the gem noted that he ran into a terrible storm while it was in his car.

• • ‘The Crying Boy’ Painting

One of the more unusual haunted items, The Crying Boy was a painting by Spanish artist Giovanni Bragolin that was mass-produced and distributed in post-war England. Reportedly, many of the homes in which the painting was displayed caught on fire soon after the painting was purchased. In some cases, the only thing to survive the flames was The Crying Boy. Firefighters supposedly began to believe that the paintings were cursed.

In a 2010 investigation into the painting, researchers discovered that the paintings were coated in a fire repellent, which was likely the reason why so many survived the flames.

• • Anna Baker’s Wedding Dress

Translation: “Unrestored love, this girl’s spirit haunts this wedding dress causing this dress to move on its own, etc.”

The historic Baker Mansion in Altoona, PA, is known for a number of hauntings, but its primary claim to fame is the “cursed” dress of Anna Baker.

According to legend, Anna purchased the dress after agreeing to marry, but her father forbade the union. After swearing to never wed, Anna was said to dance around the mansion in her wedding dress, and some believe that the dress still moves around in its glass case as if someone were dancing in it.

Video: YouTube

The Basano Vase

While the origins of the Basano Vase are vague, the most common story claims that a bride received the vase as a gift, then died on her wedding night while clutching it in her arms. The bride vowed revenge when she died, and subsequent family members began dying after taking possession of the vase.

The Basano Vase vanished from the public eye until it was sold at auction for four million lira in 1988. The man who bought the vase reportedly died soon after, and when a doctor purchased the vase, he died three months later. In fact, three months seems to be about as long as anyone can possess the vase before succumbing to its supposed “curse.”

The fate and current location of the vase remain unknown, but it was allegedly placed in police custody after no one else wanted it.

• • James Dean’s Porsche, ‘Little B*stard’

While filming Rebel Without a Cause in 1955, James Dean purchased his now infamous Porsche 550 Spyder, which he dubbed “Little B*stard.” On his way to a race one week later, Dean was driving roughly 85 mph when he hit another car and was killed instantly. Just a week prior, actor Alec Guinness claimed he had seen Dean’s car and had a premonition about an accident.

Following Dean’s untimely and tragic death, his car gained an almost instantaneous reputation for being cursed. After the crash, the car’s engine, transmission, and suspension system were put into two different race cars, both of which crashed in the same race. Only one of the drivers survived. Tires from the Porsche also blew out after being placed on another car, and the car fell on two different people while being exhibited and serviced. The car eventually disappeared in 1960 and hasn’t been seen since.

• • Photo: The Possession / Lionsgate

The Dybbuk Box

The story of the Dybbuk box begins in 2001 when a man purchased it at a yard sale and began experiencing paranormal activity in his home. He ended up selling the box on eBay in 2003, and soon after the sale, the buyer reportedly began experiencing choking sensations and nightmares of an “old hag,” among other terrifying encounters.

The Dybbuk box was eventually purchased by paranormal investigator Zak Bagans, who filmed mist coming out of the box in 2020. Even rapper Post Malone says he experienced a string of bad luck after coming in contact with the box at Bagans’s museum.

• Photo: Robot8A / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

‘The Women from Lemb’ Statue

The Women from Lemb statue was discovered in Lemb, Cyprus, in 1878 and dates back to about 3,500 B.C.E. The statue eventually earned the nickname “The Goddess of Death” after four different families experienced tragedy after owning the statue.

The first owner, Lord Elphont, along with his entire family, died within six years of owning the statue. The subsequent two owners and their families were also wiped out within four years of bringing the statue into their homes. The surviving two sons of the fourth family finally donated the statue to the Royal Scottish Museum in Edinburgh, where it was encased in glass and has not been blamed for any more tragedies.

• • Photo: Kosmik Film Co. / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

The Hope Diamond

The 45-carat Hope Diamond originated in India, where it was supposedly stolen by a priest who was put to death for his crime. The diamond was eventually purchased by King Louis XIV in 1642, but the merchant who sold it to him was soon mauled to death by a pack of dogs.

The diamond was stolen during the French Revolution and disappeared for decades. When it reappeared in the 1800s, the Hope Diamond was blamed for a number of misfortunes, including murder, suicide, loss of fortune, and other tragedies. Some even claim that Marie Antoinette’s death can be linked to her possession of the Hope Diamond.

• • ‘The Hands Resist Him’ Painting

William Stoneham painted the now-infamous The Hands Resist Him painting in 1972 based on a childhood photo of himself. The painting depicts a sullen-looking boy next to a baby doll with hollowed-out eyes who is holding a strange remote. In the background, mysterious hands reach for the boy from behind the glass panes of a door. The painting is considered to be creepy on its own, and after three people reportedly died after coming in contact with it, rumors of a curse began to spread.

After disappearing for about 15 years, the painting ended up on eBay, with the sellers warning potential buyers that the painting was haunted. They even claimed that the boy would come out of the painting and scare their child. The painting was sold to a buyer in Michigan for just $1,025. Whether or not the painting has caused any more trouble is unclear.

• • Photo: Zossolino / Wikimedia Commons / CC-BY-SA 4.0

The Terracotta Army

In 1974, the Terracotta Army was discovered during a dig in a communal farm village in China. The 8,000 statues were meant to guard the burial place of Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China in 221 B.C.

The farmers feared that Buddha would punish them for unearthing the emperor’s final resting place, and unfortunately, this fear seemingly came true: The government seized the site’s land following the excavation and tore down homes in the small farming villlage, prompting rumors of a curse. Several of the farmers who initially found the statues died relatively young, and both had already lost their homes and livlihoods after their village was destroyed to accomodate tourists.

• • Photo: 120 / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

Ötzi The Iceman

Since the discovery of this perfectly preserved ice age warrior in 1991, sevens deaths have been attributed to the curse of Ötzi the Iceman. Some claim the warrior’s spirit seeks revenge for being disturbed after being encased in ice for thousands of years.

The hiker who discovered Ötzi, the team who took him from his icy grave, and the reporter who covered the story are some of the alleged victims of the iceman’s curse. Scientist Konrad Spindler, a leading expert on Ötzi, is also considered a victim, since he perished shortly after joking about the curse and calling it “rubbish.”

• • Photo: Chris Light / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

The Myrtles Plantation’s Mirror

The Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville, LA, is considered one of the most haunted homes in the US, with multiple sightings and photographs of supposed spirits backing up the claim. A mirror in the home is thought to be cursed, and some believe it holds the spirits of a mother and her children who died in the home after being poisoned.

While the story’s validity is debated, numerous witnesses have seen the woman and her children peering out of the mirror, and a child’s handprint continuously reappears in one corner, despite multiple cleanings and re-silverings.

• • Photo: A.Aruninta / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

Maori Warrior Masks

These ancient masks were worn by warriors of the Maori tribe in what is now New Zealand and are said to contain the spirits of fallen warriors.

According to legend, pregnant women are prone to being cursed after looking at the masks, and the supersition surrounding the curse is so strong that the Museum Te Papo in Wellington even has a sign advising pregnant women not to come in contact with the masks.

• • Photo: AlinavdMeulen / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 4.0

The Koh-I-Noor Diamond

The controversial history of the Koh-i-Noor Diamond dates back thousands of years and is said to bring about great wealth – but also great misfortune – to those who own it. Specifically, the diamond is said to curse men, and folklore states, “Only God or woman can wear it with impunity.” Legends of the diamond involve men turning on one another, as well as bloody battles over the diamond that end in death.

The diamond ended up in the hands of the British royal family in the 1800s during colonization, and ever since, only female monarchs have worn the gem, including Queen Victoria and the Queen Mother, Queen Elizabeth.

ranker.com