Haunted Mummy Case
Origin of the mummy case
There are various versions of the story of the British Museum's haunted mummy case or as it is sometime known, the unlucky mummy. It is said that four rich young men visited Luxor in the 1890's when they were approached and asked if they wanted to buy a mummy-case, complete with its mummy. They could not resist the apparent bargain and drew lots to see who should purchase it. The winner had the object taken to his hotel. Later that day, someone noticed him heading towards the desert. He was never seen again. The three other men took possession of the case but various misfortunes happened to the them as it did to all who came in contact with the mummy-case. However, it eventually found its way to England.
The case at the British Museum
The mummy and it's case were sold to a rich business man but bad luck dogged him so he sold the case and mummy to the British Museum. Bangs and knocks were heard at night emanating from the case which housed it. Cleaners refused to go anywhere near the object. An Egyptologist died while he was attempting to translate the inscriptions. The newspapers got to hear about it and a photographer sent to take photographs, swore that a picture that he took of the haunted mummy-case showed a face contorted in hatred.
The museum eventually sold the mummy contained within the case to an American collector but they kept what was now known as the haunted mummy case. The removal of the mummy from the case caused the problems at the British Museum to cease.
Mummy vanishes
However in April 1912, the mummy itself was secretly taken aboard a passenger liner for its journey to the States. It never arrived.
On the night of 15th April, the liner struck an iceberg and sank taking the mummy and 1,517 passengers and crew along with it. The name of the ship? It was the RMS Titanic!
Fact or fiction!
That at least is the story. Some people say that it is fact, others that it is fantasy. But whatever the truth, if you go to the British Museum and look for exhibit 22542 you will see the coffin lid of the infamous haunted mummy case.
