A haunting occurs when a ghost or other supernatural being refuses to move on after death, instead choosing to dwell among the living in some way. Whether you are a believer ghosts or not, some of these reports are undeniably creepy.
We previously took a look at the top Seven Haunted Dolls across the world. Now, we are about to shine the spotlight on everyday objects from mirrors, paintings and more that have seemingly had a spirit or demon attach themselves to it. Read on for seven terrifying cases of haunted objects from around the world.
The Hands Resist Him Painting
Often referred to as “The Haunted eBay Painting,” The Hands Resist Him is considered to be the most haunted works of art in the world. It was found on the site of an old brewery by a couple from California. The couple put the painting up for auction on eBay in 2000, claiming that the characters in the painting sometimes moved on their own. The boy especially, is said to move frequently or sometimes completely vanish from the painting itself, entering the room where the painting was hung. People have also reported feeling sick instantly after seeing the painting for the first time.
Even those who viewed the painting online claimed to feel a sense of unease, dread, or terror when looking at it. One person even claimed that their brand new printer refused to print the photo of the painting, however it worked fine on every other print job.
Eventually it was purchased for a whopping $1,025 by an art gallery in Grand Rapids, MI. When the gallery spoke to the artist, Bill Stoneham, he said it was based off of a photograph his parents took of him and a neighbor when they were children. He was also surprised to hear that his work was at the center of a paranormal investigation, but he did mention that two people who originally displayed and reviewed the painting had died within a year of viewing The Hands Resist Him.
The 2012 horror movie The Possession was based the story of The Dibbuk Box, also known as The Dybbuk Box. It was bought at an estate sale in 2001 by Kevin Mannis, a small business owner from Oregon. It had belonged to a Holocaust survivor of Polish origin, who insisted that the box never be opened, stating she had purposely sealed a dybbuk inside it after performing a séance on a homemade oracle board.
Mannis bought the box and left it at his furniture store overnight. His sales assistant who worked the night shift refused to return to work the next day. She refuses to discuss the events of that evening to this day.
Upon opening the box, Mannis found that it contained two 1920s pennies, a lock of blonde hair bound with cord, a lock of dark hair bound with cord, a small statue engraved with the Hebrew word Shalom, One dried rose bud, a single candle holder with four octopus-shaped legs, and a small, golden wine goblet.
Mannis gave it to his mother for her birthday, and after being left alone with the box for just five minutes his mother suffered a stroke.
Mannis listed the box on eBay, where it was purchased by bidder “agetron”, who then sold it again. The box shifted ownership through a number of other transactions before it eventually ended up in the arms of Jason Haxton. Haxton was the director of the Museum of Osteopathic Medicine in Kirksville, Missouri and had been following blogs regarding the box and bought it for $280.
Haxton wrote The Dibbuk Box, and claimed that he subsequently developed strange health problems, including hives, coughing up blood and head-to-toe welts while his wife experienced bloody, weeping blisters. The final straw, Haxton claims, happened while he and his son were watching television and his son noticed a black flame-like mass in the room with them.
Haxton consulted with a Rabbi to try to figure out a way to seal the dybbuk in the box again. This was apparently successful and Haxton took the freshly resealed box and hid it at a secret location, which he will not reveal. Stating that when he dies he “would like The Dybbuk Box to be buried with me and for it to be finally gone from this world.”
The Anguished Man Painting
This creepy painting was kept in Sean Robinson’s grandmother’s attic for twenty-five years before he inherited it from her. She had always told Robinson that the painting was evil and plagued with suicide, explaining how the artist who created it had used his own blood mixed with the paint, and had killed himself shortly after completing it. She claimed to hear voices and crying when the painting was displayed, and to see the shadowy figure of a man in her house, which is why she locked it away in the attic.
As soon as Robinson took the painting into his home, his family started to experience the same strange events his grandmother had. His wife felt someone stroking her hair when she was alone, his son fell down the stairs and looked up to see the shadow man at the top.
Sean has since taken the painting down and hidden it in his basement, but he is not interested in selling it.
The Myrtles Plantation Mirror
Myrtles Plantation in St. Francisville, Louisiana, is largely considered to be the most haunted home in the United States, as well as one of the most haunted houses in the world.
Perhaps the most haunted item on the premises is a mirror that was added to the home in 1980. Guests of the plantation have reported seeing figures lurking in the mirror, as well as child-sized handprints on the glass. Legend claims that the mirror contains the spirits of Sara Woodruff and her children who died in 1824 of oleander poisoning.
Whenever a family member dies, tradition dictates that you’re supposed to cover all mirrors in the house so that their spirits don’t get lost or trapped, this mirror was not covered, so the belief is that the Woodruff souls are very much present and active within the mirror.
The plantation is now a bed and breakfast and offers historical and mystery tours.
The Haunted Wedding Dress
In 1849, Anna Baker, a girl from a rich family fell in love with a low class iron worker. Anna’s father, Ellis Baker, refused to let her marry her beloved, banishing the young man from their hometown of Altoona, Pennsylvania. Anna, heartbroken and angry at her father, remained bitter until her death in 1914.
Before her father sent her true love away, Anna had chosen a beautiful wedding dress that she intended to wear at their wedding. When the wedding did not occur, another wealthy woman from a local family, Elizabeth Dysart, wore the dress on her own wedding day, instead. Years later, the dress was given to an historical society, and eventually the Baker mansion was turned into a museum. The wedding dress was placed in a glass case in what was formerly Anna Baker’s bedroom. After her death, visitors claim to see the dress move on its own, especially during full moons. The dress sways from side to side, as if an unseen bride is standing in front of her mirror, admiring herself in the gown.
The Women from Lemb Statue
Dating back to roughly 3500 B.C. and carved out of pure limstone, the woman statue was recovered from Lemb, Cyprus in 1878.
Nicknamed the ‘Goddess of Death’, it is believed to represent a goddess, similar to a fertility idol. The statue was first owned by Lord Elphont, and within six years of having the statue in his possession, all seven of the Elphont family members died from mysterious causes.
Owner number two, Ivor Menucci’s family, all passed within four years, as did the family of Lord Thompson-Noel, owner number three. Owner number four, Sir Alan Biverbrook, and his wife and two daughters, went next, but before it finished off the family entirely, the two remaining sons donated the statue to the National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh.
Shortly after the item was placed in the museum, the chief of the section where the statue dwelled suddenly died as well. Although, no museum curator will admit that the statue may have supernatural properties, no one has handled the statue since that first museum worker passed away. The item is now safely under glass and protected from human hands.
The Crying Boy Painting
Painted by Italian artist Bruno Amadio, also known as Giovanni Bragolin, The Crying Boy, is one of a series of paintings featuring tearful children staring out at the viewer. The painting was mass-produced and widely distributed, with copies upon copies being made since the 1950s.
In 1985, stories of prints of The Crying Boy being found in the ruins of burned houses, utterly unscathed began to surface. No fireman would allow a copy of the painting into his home, and people began to speak of the prints as something evil and unnatural.
Steven Punt from the BBC decided to dig deeper and discovered that the varnish coating the prints was fire repellent, accounting for their imperviousness to flames.
