Top 10 Haunted Objects in Museums

Paranormal investigator Zak Bagans opened his very own Haunted Museum in Las Vegas in 2017 which is home to a number of items that supposedly have ghostly histories. One thing that’s housed there is The Dybbuk Box, a wine box that is said to be haunted by a dybbuk, an evil spirit who is supposedly able to possess people. In fact, the box served as the inspiration for the 2012 movie “The Possession.” The item came to fame when it was listed on eBay along with a creepy story about its past and was eventually donated to Bagans for his museum.

Also known as Thomas Busby’s Stoop Chair, this simple wooden chair is said to have been cursed by accused murderer Thomas Busby. Busby was executed by hanging in 1702 in North Yorkshire, but before he died, he allegedly performed something sinister on the chair in question. Over the years, several deaths have been attributed to people sitting in the chair and later dying in suspicious circumstances. It now remains at the Thirsk Museum where it is displayed hanging from the ceiling, making it impossible for anyone (even museum staff) to sit on it.

In around 1590, carpenter Jonas Fosbrooke crafted a giant bed so large that it is said to be able to sleep four couples. The extra-large bed now lives at the Victoria and Albert Museum, but over the years rumors have swirled that the bed is cursed by Fosbrooke’s ghost. He allegedly made the bed to be slept on by nobility, but eventually, commoners began sleeping on it as it traveled from inn to inn. His spirit is said to attack any low-bred person who dares to rest their head on it.

The Traveling Museum of the Paranormal and Occult is home to many objects with dubious pasts, and one of the creepiest is known as the Catskills Crone. As the legend goes, a pair of hikers were trekking in the Catskills mountains when they came across this statue, which has nails hammered into its eyes and a rope around its neck. They took it from the cave where it was found (bad idea) and once they brought it home, they saw an apparition of a woman accompanied by the smell of pond water.

Another object housed at the Traveling Museum of the Paranormal and Occult is referred to as the Dark Mirror. The person who owned this mirror before giving it to the museum bought it at a psychic fair and said they saw “terrible visions” when looking at it. It is alleged that the mirror actually reflects the biggest fears of the viewer. People have reported seeing themselves age and disappear when they look into it. Some visitors to the museum have even reported seeing their own dead bodies when they gaze into the mirror. Yikes.

One of the world’s largest cut diamonds is said to hold a centuries-long curse. The Koh-i-Noor Diamond clocks in at over 105 carats and is part of the British Crown Jewels. The diamond once belonged to Ranjit Singh, who founded the Sikh Empire, but it was eventually taken by the East India company and claimed by the British. The conflict that surrounded the possession of the jewel is said to put a curse on any man who wears it. Luckily, the last few wearers have been women, and they all seem to have remained un-cursed.

Also known as Ötzi, this mummy currently resides at the South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology in Bolzano, Italy. Though this mummy was discovered in the ‘90s, it’s said to be the body of a man who lived around 3345 BCE. “Iceman” is the oldest known mummy from Europe and since he was found has been rumored to hold a terrible curse. This is because several people with links to the mummy have died in tragic accidents. Forensic expert Rainer Henn was on his way to give a lecture about Iceman when he was killed in a car crash. Kurt Fritz, a mountaineer who directed scientists to the body, was killed in an avalanche while the rest of his party survived.

The Royal Scottish Museum is home to an ancient relic that you do not want in your possession. Also known as Woman From Lemb, the Goddess of Death Statue seems to curse every family that owns it. The statue was discovered in Cyprus in 1878 and dates from around 3500 BC. The seven members of the first family who owned it reportedly all died with just six years of acquiring it, and similar fates met the family that followed. Historians lost track of the artifact for a long time, but the third owners eventually donated it to the museum before they could perish as well.

The Hope Diamond is probably the world’s most well-known jewel, and it’s also totally cursed. Since 1958, it has called the National Museum of Natural History home and hasn’t managed to befall anyone with a tragic fate. But before that, many of its owners seemed to perish in odd and mysterious ways. Several of the people who were in possession of the diamond died by suicide, and several were murdered. One was even “torn to pieces by wild dogs” while another was “torn to pieces by a French mob.” Let’s just say we’re happy that no single person is now considered the owner because they’d definitely be doomed.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Robert the Doll
Weird Things Started Happening in the Otto Family When Their Son Acquired This Doll

The Unlucky Mummy
This Mummy Is Said to Have Caused the Sinking of the Titanic

The Cursed Amethyst
This Stone Kept Returning to Edward Heron-Allen Even When He Tried to Get Rid of It

Paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren started their museum for items just like this one. Annabelle the doll served as inspiration for the “Conjuring” movies because of the creepy tale that accompanied her. In 1970, the doll was given as a gift to a student nurse, who noticed eerie things about it and eventually had a medium step in to give an opinion. The expert deemed it to be possessed, a viewpoint that the Warrens agreed upon when the doll eventually found its way to them. We’re happy to have this thing locked up in a glass box!