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The Haunting of Bishop Museum: A Cautionary Tale of Sacred Stones

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Looking at the exhibitions inside of the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, some claim that some of the guests are not of the living and that ghosts linger.

The Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii, is a treasure trove of Hawaiian culture and history, showcasing artifacts that tell the story of the islands and their people. Also called the Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum, it is located in the historic Kalihi district in Honolulu. 

Read More: Check out all ghost stories from the USA

But among the museum’s many exhibits, there is one that carries a dark and unsettling tale—a tale that serves as a grim reminder of the ancient Hawaiian belief that certain things are best left undisturbed.

History of the Bishop Museum

Before becoming a museum, the Bishop Museum was a boys dorm of the Kamehameha School for native Hawaiian children. After the philanthropist and businessman Charles Reed Bishop’s wife died, he built the museum in her honor on the former school ground. 

Charles Reed Bishop’s wife was actually the Hawaiian Princess Bernice Pauahi Bishop, born into the royal family and was the last legal heir of the Kamehameha Dynasty who united the Hawaiian Islands and ruled until 1872. Bishop wanted a place to show off his late wife’s family heirloom and culture. 

Today it is the largest museum in the state and showcases the heritage his wife belonged to. It also holds the largest collection of Polynesian artifacts, insects and books in the world. 

A Sacred Mistake of the Exhibit

According to local superstition, a heiau—a sacred place of worship and human sacrifice—must never be desecrated. The land and stones of these sites are considered sacred, and removing anything from them is believed to bring severe misfortune. Unfortunately, someone at the Bishop Museum failed to heed this warning.

Bishop Museum: Inside of the Bishop Museum and the Hawaiian Hall. // Daniel Ramirez/Wikimedia

While designing an exhibit meant to replicate a heiau instead of placing a real one there, a museum staff member took the bold and ill-fated step of removing lava stones from an actual heiau to use in the display. Perhaps he didn’t believe the tales, perhaps he didn’t know. The stones, imbued with the spiritual energy of the ancient site, were placed in the museum exhibit, seemingly without consequence—until the next day.

A Mother’s Warning

That night, the mother of one of the museum’s employees experienced a terrifying nightmare. In her dream, she saw blood everywhere, and with a sense of dread, she warned her son not to go to work the next day. She told him that something terrible would happen if he did. But the young man, needing the paycheck, dismissed his mother’s fears and went to work as usual.

Upon arriving at the museum, he was assigned the task of repairing a problem with the roof or some sort of thing hanging from the ceiling. As he worked above the exhibit housing the stolen lava stones, tragedy struck. He lost his footing, plummeted through the roof, and landed directly on the heiau exhibit. His head struck one of the sacred stones with fatal force, and he died instantly.

The Haunting Legacy Inside of Bishop Museum

The museum staff was shaken by the sudden and tragic death, and whispers of the heiau stones’ curse quickly spread. It wasn’t long before rumors of a haunting began to circulate. It is said that they placed the lava rocks back at the temple, but did the angry spirit go back as well? Some say that there still is a menacing spirit lingering in the museum.

Employees and visitors alike have reported eerie occurrences within the museum’s halls—cold spots, flickering lights, and the feeling of being watched by an unseen presence. 

Some claim to have seen the ghost of the young man wandering near the exhibit where he met his untimely end, his spirit forever tied to the sacred stones that should never have been disturbed.

There is a story about a janitor mopping the floor at night and suddenly heard the sound of heavy breathing. When he looked around, there was no one there, even when the breathing sounded like it was breathing down his neck. The janitor wanted to get out of there, but as he was leaving he saw the shadow of someone standing in the corner of the dark and empty museum. He ran out and quit the next day. 

The Ghost of the Hawaiian Princess

There is not only a vengeful spirit lurking in the museum though if we are to believe the rumors. The ghost of Princess Bernice Bishop has also been seen in the museum. People usually claim to see her standing in the shadowy corners, looking at paintings or some of the rare insect species the museum holds. She is said to be a peaceful ghost, not really making the visitors or the staff afraid with her presence.  

Bernice Pauahi Bishop in San Francisco in 1875.

It is mostly right before opening and closing time she appears and the staff working at the museum recognize her as she is in old fashioned clothing as well as wearing her crown and jewels. 

The Bishop Museum’s tale is a haunting reminder of the respect that must be given to ancient Hawaiian beliefs and practices. It stands as a chilling example of what can happen when the sacred is treated with disregard, and it continues to send shivers down the spines of those who walk through its historic halls.

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About – Bishop Museum 

Haunted Bishop Museum 

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The Haunted Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site

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Are there ghosts haunting the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site in Honolulu, Hawaii? Local legends claim that more than one ghost hides behind the curtains after the lights have switched off. 

In downtown Honolulu, the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site stands as a testament to Hawaii’s missionary era, offering a glimpse into the early 19th century when protestant missionaries came from New England. 

Read More: Check out all ghost stories from the USA

The site, home to three meticulously restored houses, includes two of the oldest structures in Hawaii built in the western style. The building of these houses marks the period on Hawaii for the next decades as “the missionary period”. The site was the headquarters of the Sandwich Islands Mission from 1820 to 1863.

The Hawaiian Mission House Historic Site.// Source: Travis.Thurston/Wikimedia

Missionaries in Honolulu

The Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site, built by New England missionaries with the aim of spreading Protestant beliefs, have become focal points for paranormal activity and has become a stop on the ghost walks and haunted tours of the city. 

The Oldest Frame House, Ka Hale La`au (The Wooden House), was erected in 1821. This building is particularly notorious for its spectral inhabitants of the missionaries said to haunt the old houses. The house was originally lived in by the seven family members of Daniel Chamberlain, but it soon grew to a multi-family home for much of its mission history. 

The Chamberlain House: The Oldest Frame House, Ka Hale La’au, built in 1821, is a central feature of the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site, known for its haunted history. Here a picture from 1910.

In addition to the Chamberlain family and the rest of the missionaries, the Ka Hale La’au also housed ailing sailors or orphans as well, with the small parlor serving as a schoolhouse. Question is, who is haunting it to this day? 

The Haunting of the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site

Although all of the houses are from this time period, the Oldest Frame House is often the one said to be the most haunted. The particulars and details about the haunting and fleshed out legends are few and far between. 

Visitors have reported seeing ghostly apparitions of missionary women although who they could be is uncertain as so many people passed through the house throughout the years.

People are also said to have heard the faint, disembodied sounds of children playing. These phantom children are thought to be the spirits of those who once lived and played here. Could it be the children of the missionaries who never got the chance to grow up? Or perhaps it could be some of the orphans who were placed there?

For those who dare to explore the Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site, the experience is a journey through time and the supernatural. The combination of the rich and certainly complex history of missionaries and colonization echoes through the buildings, as well as its haunted rumors. 

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References:

About – Hawaiian Mission Houses 

See The Haunted Side Of Hawaii’s Honolulu On This Unique Tour 

25 Haunted Places in Oahu That Will Make You Squirm – tripcheats.com 

Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives – Great American Treasures 

Hawaiian Mission Houses Historic Site and Archives – Wikipedia 

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The Many Hauntings of the Reina Sofia Museum

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Ominous messages from the ouija board, ghostly nuns and haunts the former General Hospital in Madrid. Now the Reina Sofia Museum houses modern art and paintings by Picasso and Dali, it also houses Madrid’s dark past. 

The Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid, Spain is said to be one of the most haunted places in the country as well as exhibiting one of the best collections of 20th century modern art. 

The museum opened in 1992 and was named after Queen Sofia of Spain and is mainly dedicated to Spanish art. In 2021 it was the most visited museum in Spain and the 8th most visited art museum in the world.  

Read more: Check out all of our ghost stories from Spain

As well as musing at the works by Picasso, Dali among other of the big artists of that time. The most famous art piece inside is definitely Picasso’s Guerica, it is said to be a place to spot a ghost or two as well in the old building that has a very different origin than the fine art museum it is today. 

The Hospital for the Poor People Sent to Die

Long before it was used as an art museum with famous paintings adorning the walls, the building was used as a hospital. It was built in the 1600s on the orders of King Philip. 

It was the start of unifying hospitals to a general hospital and in the beginning it was also a homeless shelter as well as a hospital. The area they decided to build the grand hospital was known as the Atocha Olive Grove where there already was a hospital for the poor located.

In other words, it was a hospital for the poor people and it was in reality a place where they were sent to die. These types of hospitals had a horrible reputation and were the last place someone wanted to end up as you most likely wouldn’t walk out. 

The New General Hospital in Madrid

It was for a time the biggest institution with thousands of patients that had nowhere else to go. By the middle of the  18th century cared for almost 14,000 patients a year. The hospital always had patients coming in and was always at the limit and over of what they could offer in terms of health service. 

Read more: Check out all of our ghost stories from old hospitals like Hauntingly Beelitz-Heilstätten Hospital, Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital or Hauntings at the Weston State Hospital or the Trans-Allegheny Asylum

It also was always in need of finances and in the end it was mostly financed by charity. And in the mid 17th century the income from bullfights financed many of the general hospitals in Spain.

The place operated as a hospital for almost 300 years before closing down as a hospital in 1969. 

What happened during the time as a Hospital

Who really knows the extent of what went on in the centuries the hospital was in operation. From the morbid medieval methods of medicine, countless of plagues throughout the times, the Spanish Inquisition as well as the Spanish Civil War were it is said the hospital was used as a place of torture and executions.

The Haunting of the Nuns

The people that worked there were mostly nuns, and it is those people who claim to haunt the halls as well as the patients that died. 

One of these events people claimed to have witnessed was the three nuns walking slowly side by side. They had their hands over their shoulders and their rosary at their waist. While walking they were singing a religious song. When they walked to the end og the corridor, they vanished into the thin air and the only thing left was the faint ringing of bells. 

The Bodies Discovered During Renovation

When the place was converted into the art gallery it is today, they did some major renovations of the place. During the renovations in 1982 the construction workers found plenty of human skulls and skeletons together with shackles and chains.  

They were found everywhere around the old hospital, especially in the garden and the surrounding areas.

During another stage of the rebuilding in 1990 they found many skeletons of children as well as allegedly finding three mummified nuns in one of the chapels. 

Atalúlfo the Ghost from the Ouija Board

Ghoulish screams and ghostly shapes wandering the halls are said to be some of the hauntings happening in the former hospital. There are also doors slamming shut seen by the security guards working the night shift. 

The cleaning personnel came in in the early morning and saw figures sitting on the benches in the patio and museum visitors that mistook ghosts for real living people.

Once a group of four museum guards wanted to have some fun in the long night shift and decided to try out a ouija board to test out the rumors about their workplace being true. 

They asked for contact and when asked the board spelled out that his name was Atalúlfo , and he came with a warning. He said he was a patient at the hospital and had been a madman as well as a murderer. When further questioned Atalúlfo said: “In a couple of days you are going to have a great misfortune. Get Ready”.

A couple of days later, one of the guard’s close relatives died in a traffic accident, and they never played the game again. The ghost of Atalúlfo continued to haunt and a guard tried to leave and filed a complaint where he blamed his anxiousness at work because of the disturbances caused by this ghost. 

One former employee even wrote a report after being denied a transfer. According to this report by  Raquel Arrogante Díaz, she had started to experience anxiety as soon as she started working right next to the famous painting of Guernica. She also started to hear voices and started to speak in a little girl’s voice, as if someone was manifesting their spirit through her body.

Paranormal Investigation by the Hepta Group

In 1992 a group of paranormal researchers known as The Hepta Group were allowed by the authorities to investigate these claims that the night guards spoke of. They were led by the well known priest José María Pilón and had an architect, physicists, a journalist and a photographer

The Hepta Group went down in the underground corridors, crypts and investigated the old walls. They came back with many tales, figures in the shadow, locked doors unlocking and opening. Mostly they talked about people in religious attire like a nun and monk in his robe wandering the halls.

There have also been complaints about the elevator malfunctioning that they would suddenly start and go up and down, making the security guards think there was a break in. When they went to investigate the elevators, there was no one there when the doors opened. There have also been reports about alarms going off for no reason.

A second investigation by the Hepta group was conducted in 1995. They tried to publish the story and it was published in the newspaper El Diario on April 21 the same year. It didn’t really cause a big stir as the publication of the ghosts in the Linares Palace nearby overshadowed it a bit and the story was slowly forgotten. 

The hauntings continued though with new witnesses constantly seeing ghostly figures, hearing shouts and voices coming from no one. 

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References:

https://www.elespanol.com/reportajes/grandes-historias/20160923/157734813_0.html
Ghosts in the Reina Sofí­a Museum | Bindu Trips
The 5 most Haunted Places in Spain
Hospital General y de la Pasión – Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre

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Wicklow Gaol and it’s Haunting Gates of Hell

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Through the horrible gates of hell at Wicklow Gaol in Ireland they started to imprison Irish Rebels, but then it evolved to everyone that did something criminal, small or big crimes and the prison was an overcrowded hell for those serving time. Many of these unfortunate criminals are said to haunt the prison to this day. 

Today it is a museum, but in the early 18th century it was a harsh prison originally meant to house Irish rebels that opposed the British takeover. When Wicklow Gaol first opened its ominous doors, society was an unforgiving realm where the harsh grip of poverty often determined one’s fate. 

The prison’s foreboding history dates back to 1702, with such a reputation that the gates earned a sinister name, “The Gates of Hell.” Those who crossed this threshold faced dim prospects of emerging unscathed. After it closed down, staff and visitors alike started to notice strange things happening inside of the old prison. Odd things that made them think that Wicklow Gaol were definitely haunted.

The Horrible Conditions at the Prison

The prison housed prisoners through the 1798 Rebellion and the Great Famine from 1845 to 1852 as well as being a holding place before shipping prisoners to Australia. So it’s safe to say that the inmates of Wicklow Gaol experienced the worst treatment that you could find in prisons. 

Many who traversed these gates, though guilty of minor transgressions, found themselves confined alongside rapists and murderers, enduring deplorable conditions as there was little to separate them, and both men, women and children were all stuffed into the same cells. Disease and sickness thrived in the midst of abysmal hygiene, and the most rudimentary facilities remained out of reach.

Wicklow Gaol: Today the old prison is turned into a museum, and believed to be haunted by the former inmates. // Source: Sheila1988/Wikimedia

Wicklow Gaol was originally meant as a place for questioning potential traitors and many torture methods were in place of getting the information from them. The stark execution door and gallows, minus the hangman’s noose, still bear silent witness on the building’s façade.

Read More: Check out all of the ghost stories from Ireland

Occasionally, lifeless prisoners lay beside their living cellmates, left to decompose in their cells, for fear that the guards might fall ill if they tried to remove the bodies. 

Although sporadic reforms aimed to alleviate the suffering within these walls, the old gaol remained a bleak and desolate place until its closure in 1900. Briefly revived to incarcerate political prisoners during the Irish War for Independence as wella s the Irish Civil War, it languished in emptiness for decades until the 1990s, when restoration efforts breathed new life into its shadowed chambers. 

The Ghost of The Children at Wicklow Gaol

Children bore a particularly harsh burden within these grim confines—some were born behind these walls, while others found themselves incarcerated for minor offenses. It looks like not all of the child prisoners were let out.

Apparitions of ghostly children have been spotted on the upper floors of the building, their mournful cries echoing through the corridors of time. Witnesses have recounted unsettling encounters, describing invisible hands tugging at their clothing or a gentle poke on their legs, as if the spectral children sought their attention. 

Among them, a little girl, clad in tattered rags, has materialized in the prison, her presence haunting the hearts of those who dare to tread her spectral realm. 

An Irish psychic has called her Grace to the Irish Central, a 7 year old who died of gangrene after she broke her leg. She is thought to have been living with her parents in the prison, perhaps during the famine when there were at most 780 prisoners. 

A hooded figure, believed to be the school matron Mary Morris, shrouded in a black cloak, has also graced the gaol with her presence in the schoolroom.

The Ghosts of the Irish Rebellion

Within the confines of Wicklow Gaol, there exists a chilling exhibit that commemorates a pivotal moment in Irish history—the Irish Rebellion of 1798. In this area, multiple witnesses have reported witnessing shadows moving across the cold, stone floors. Bizarre phenomena, such as mysterious mists on the walkways, have left visitors bewildered. 

Read More: Check out all of the Haunted Prisons around the world

Throughout the building, the ethereal forms of several men have been sighted—one seen strolling from cell 19 down the corridor, another glimpsed near the holding cell.

The Friendly Ghost of Wicklow Gaol

On the upper deck of a ship exhibit in Wicklow Gaol, dedicated to the prisoners’ journey to Australia, a ghostly figure has made appearances for those passing by. This friendly specter is often depicted in clothing reminiscent of the prisoners from that era.

Witnesses, including a child, have described a particularly amicable actor within this area. When talking about him to the rest of the staff, they have to tell them that there is no one working as an actor there. There never was. 

The Mystery Smell from Cell 5

Intriguingly, unexplained olfactory phenomena have been experienced in cell 5. At times, a horrible stench fills the space, while on other occasions, the delicate scent of roses wafts through the air. Despite investigations and meticulous cleaning, the origins of these strange aromas remain elusive.

Within the grim walls of Wicklow Gaol, the past persists in an eerie chorus of voices and apparitions. Each shadowed corner conceals another chapter of despair and desolation, inviting those who dare to glimpse the chilling echoes of history that linger within.

The chilling tales of anguish and suffering unfold, reminding visitors of the unfathomable hardships endured by those who were once confined within these cold stone walls. The stories of rebellion and resistance, of bravery and broken spirits, find solace in the air of Wicklow Gaol.

So, if you ever find yourself in the presence of Wicklow Gaol, let the whispers guide you through the corridors of time. Allow the ghosts of the past to awaken a sense of empathy and reverence within you. And may the tales of struggle and resilience continue to echo, reminding us of the power of the human spirit to transcend the darkest of dungeons and embrace the light of freedom.

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References:

Featured Image: Wikimedia

Wicklow Gaol – Wikipedia 

Wicklow’s Haunted Gaol 

Wicklow Gaol | Haunted Wicklow, Ireland | Spirited Isle 

No going back from the ‘Gates of Hell’ at Wicklow’s haunted jail – see video | IrishCentral.com

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The Ghosts Inside of Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense

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Uncover stories of battles and defenses that shaped Hong Kong’s past at the Museum of Coastal Defense. According to the legends, there are also tales of ghosts of the fallen soldiers, and also the ghost of a dismembered woman wearing white. 

Step back in time and explore the enthralling world of coastal defense at the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense (香港海防博物館). Discover fascinating stories of powerful battles, ancient defenses, and history’s impact on this remarkable region as you explore this former coastal defense fort. And if we are to believe the legends, a haunted one at that. 

Read More: Check out all our collection of ghost stories from China

Overlooking the Lei Yue Mun channel near Shau Kei wan on Hong Kong island’s beautiful coastline, the museum is home to picturesque artifacts and historical treasures from across Hong Kong’s long and varied past. 

Centuries of Defense over the Hong Kong Island

The Museum of Coastal Defense was built around an original fort that the British constructed in 1887. During the Second World War, this fort and others like it helped to protect Hong Kong from potential invasion. 

Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense

The area has been used as a fortress of defense for much longer though, as far back as the Ming Dynasty and they have an exhibition titled “600 years of coastal defense”. 

The same goes for the opium wars when Hong Kong became a British Colony as a result of the First and Second Opium wars.

Perhaps the place is best known from the battle on December 8. in 1941 when Japan attacked Hong Kong Island during the Battle of Hong Kong. After the fall of Kowloon, the British fortified their defense to keep the Japanese forces coming over the Devil’s Peak and crossing over the Lei Yue Mun Channel, although they were eventually overrun and ended up under Japanese occupation throughout the war years.  

Haunted Rumors at Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense

So who is haunting this place? First and foremost people believe it is haunted by soldiers that died in the battles that were fought there over the years. 

The ghost of the soldiers is not the only thing that are said to be haunting the place. There have also been reports about a woman in white that are supposedly haunting the halls of the museum. 

Late at night when the security guards are patrolling the museum they have heard distant screams in the corridors. There is also talk about a woman with long hair, but only half a body around in Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defense. 

Visitors are also said to have spotted this ghostly woman wearing all white. 

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Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence

Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence – Wikipedia

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The Legend of the Ghost in the Louvre Museum

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Find out about the Red Man haunting the gardens that has reportedly been seen by visitors to Louvre Museum since before its opening and many strange and haunting rumors started to unfold from this world famous museum. But how many of them are actually rooted in other than fiction and fear?

Since its opening as a museum in 1793, Louvre Museum has had a mysterious supernatural entity lurking within its walls even before they started to bring all the historical artifacts inside. It is the most visited museum in the world and around 15 000 people visit this museum each day, many of them claiming to have seen a ghost or two. 

It is said if you spend 30 seconds looking at each piece of art without any sleep or breaks it takes 100 days to see all the artwork they display to this day inside of the Louvre. The museum is covered in urban legends, everything that Mary Magdalene is buried underneath, That the Mona Lisa is bigger than she is and that the pyramid in the courtyard contains 666 panes of glass like the mark of the beast. 

Read about more Haunted Museums across the world: Here

The History of the Louvre Palace in Paris

The building that Louvre in Paris is in has been a part of French history since 1190 when it was built as a fortress against the vikings by King Philippe Auguste. From the 1300s it worked as the official royal residence and was known as Palais du Louvre and saw kings and queens come and go for centuries. 

Read about more Haunted Castles from the world

The Louvre palace in Paris was the palace where the royal family resided and held court until the sun king Ludvig XIV had built the Chateau de Versailles and moved there in 1682. 

Too much Art from all over the World to See in one Lifetime

Putting all this culture and history into the same building kicks off the dust of the haunting these artifacts bring with them, and many of the haunted rumors in the Louvre come from stories about haunted objects or paintings or cursed artifacts from the ancient world. 

One of the most iconic features of the Louvre Museum is its vast collection of famous paintings, including Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa and The Wedding at Cana by Paolo Veronese. 

Read Also: Cursed and Haunted Paintings

In addition to these celebrated works, visitors can also explore the museum’s numerous galleries filled with masterpieces from ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome; 18th century French art; and many more. Despite being known for its wealth of artworks, the Louvre also holds its place in history as one of Europe’s most haunted buildings.

Reports of visitors experiencing supernatural occurrences have been documented since the museum’s opening in 1793 after the French Revolution and the Royal Academy of Painting and Sculpture decided this was where they would show the masterpieces the nation had to offer. 

Belphegor, Phantom of the Louvre – The Mummy Haunting the Museum

One famous story comes from fiction, just like the pyramid actually contains 673 panes, not 666. It is true that the Louvre Museum has a mummy inside, but the haunted legend that is about the spirit of a mummy at the Louvre comes from fiction. 

Stories about mummies coming back to haunt or leaving curses at those who disturb their graves are plentiful, and the Louvre has one of them. Belphegor was a 1927 crime novel by the French writer Arthur Bernede and was made into a tv-series as well as a film later. 

The Louvre museum actually does have a mummy embalmed and it is the only mummy there is in the Louvre. Throughout the years there have been more mummies displayed at the Louvre, but today this is the only one.  

It is a man who lived in the Ptolemaic Period (305 BCE). The mummy is called the Mummy of Pacheri and has been at the Louvre since 1826. His name is either Pacheri or Nenu as the writing is hard to make out and his face is covered with a mask and many attribute the supposed hauntings to the mummy. 

This story has made people actually think that the Louvre is haunted by a vengeful mummy. Or was it the haunting that inspired the novel?

Read the Khonsuemheb and the Ghost of Theban Necropolis for an actual Egyptian ghost story.

The Red Man Haunting the Gardens

Another supposed ghost that is often talked about in connection to the  Louvre is the Red Man of the Tuilerie gardens that are adjacent to the museum. According to this legend there was a henchman of Catherine de Medici who was assassinated because he knew too many of the dark secrets of the royal family. 

After his death he came back to curse the entire royal family and the people living there in the palaces that existed, including those living in the Louvre Palace. 

Read the full story of The Red Man haunting the Jardin Tuileries in Paris

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References

12 things you should know about Louvre: A haunting history | Arts Culture – Gulf News

The Guardian of Egyptian Art

momie d’homme ; garniture de momie – Louvre Collections 

Mummy of Pacheri – Egypt Museum

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The Haunted Natural History Museum in Bergen

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There is not only one ghost story inside of the Natural History Museum in in the cobbled streets of Bergen in Norway. From everything from the ghost of a former zoologist, cursed Egyptian statues and an executed revolutionary, the museum has it all to see at the price of an entrance ticket. 

The Natural History Museum in Bergen, west in Norway, was built at the end of the 1800s at Nygårdshøyden close to the city center in the cobbled streets were it only seems to go uphill. On top of it all, close to the Dragon Top, you find the place that has been operating as a museum since it opened and has several famous collections from all over the world. And some of the artifacts are said to be of the haunted kind.

There have been reports about several strange and disturbing things occuring at the Natural History Museum in Bergen, especially at night time when there is no one around for many years, even from before the museum was built. Several people working as staff claimed to have heard footsteps and seen strange shadows and the exhibitions seems to have a will of its own and moves around when the lights are off and the living has gone home. 

The Resting Zoologist Haunting the Museum

The ones that have looked into the supposed hauntings have usually attributed it to a former zoology worker working at the Natural History Museum in Bergen named James Alexanderssøn Grieg. After he donated his skeleton to the museum after his death, strange things started happening. The people working there have a theory about him needing a place to rest as he was known for working long nights at the museum and frequently sleeping there as well. 

Night at the Museum: The museum is known for having things that looks a bit unnatural outside of its contexts and for some it can get a little scary, especially when the lights are out and the ghosts are out. One of the alleged ghosts is a former worker that donated his skeleton to the museum after he died. Here is from The Whale Hall: Natural History Museum in Bergen.//Source: Adnan Icagic © Universitetsmuseet i Bergen

But there can be someone older that has taken the steps inside the museum as well. Because, even though the museum itself only opened in the 1800s, the location it is built upon has a much longer history. 

Rakkerdammen or the Swamp of the Executed

Outside in the garden belonging to the Natural History Museum in Bergen, there is a small pond known as the Rakkerdammen with only a couple of water lilies to show for its once grandeur. It was here long before the building was made and perhaps it will stay there long after, although it is much smaller now than it used to be. 

Rakkerdammen used to be a swamp that were much larger and it was also the place where they executed people. Rakke means executioner and Dammen means The Pond. Many convicts met their unfortunate end at this place. 

A long time ago, children were warned to not go near the swamp as they were told that the ghost of the executed people would drag them into it. According to the legends, there are some of the executed that are still haunting the place. Perhaps the children are not warned to go close to the pond today, and the warnings have been forgotten.

Rakkerdammen in the Botanical Garden: Outside of the Natural History Museum in Bergen you will find a small pound thought to be haunted by the people that died there when it was used as a place for executions: //Source//May Lis Ruus 29.05.2013

The last execution at Rakkerdammen took place in 1803 when Anders Lysne from Lærdal led a farmers’ revolt against the forced military service. For this he was beheaded at this place. 

Along with former workers at the museum and revolutionaries, there are also reports about the ghost of a monk haunting the church exhibition area. Who this monk is suppose to be or from were he originated from is uncertain, but the story goes that he shows himself in the darkest of nights.

The Haunted Egyptian Statues that Moves

Perhaps the strangest thing happening at the Natural History Museum in Bergen is the moving statues that are believed to be the most haunted, and the little statues even made the national news because the staff working in the museum was so freaked out by them.  

Inside the Natural History Museum in Bergen they have a huge collection of Egyptian artifacts they started collecting as soon as the museum opened. Some of them are 3000 year old statues that are concealed inside a glass case that is the location of the haunting. 

Restless Statues in the Museum: The ushabti or shabti was a funerary figurine used in ancient Egyptian funerary practices. Ushabtis were placed in tombs among the grave goods and were intended to act as servants or minions for the deceased, should they be called upon to do manual labor in the afterlife. The figurines frequently carried a hoe on their shoulder and a basket on their backs, implying they were intended to farm for the deceased. They were usually written on by the use of hieroglyphs typically found on the legs. They carried inscriptions asserting their readiness to answer the gods’ summons to work. Source// The NRK article of the Shabti at The Natural History Museum in Bergen

The Natural History Museum in Bergen opened the exhibition in 2001 and the staff noticed soon after opening that something strange was happening with the statues. When the guard at the museum came to work, he kept noticing strange things happening. Allegedly they turn and move around inside the glass, but the staff have no idea how it is happening. 

The glass the statues is locked and no one have been close to the statues at all except the staff working there. Still, they kept moving, bit by bit until it became so noticable the staff couldn’t ignore it any longer. One of the statues has moved over five centimeters and turned towards the door. Three of the total seven statues are about to turn. 

The staff at the Natural History Museum in Bergen tried to speculate how this can be explained by something else than the supernatural. 

Maybe there are vibrations in the floor, but why is it just on this floor and in this glass case they move? asked Saure, one of the staff. Perhaps someone was pulling a prank, but they knew everyone that had access to them. And when you know the history of the little statues, you know they have a rumor of being haunted.

The Runaway Shabtis at the Natural History Museum in Bergen

The statues in question are shabtis , or death helpers and had, according to legend, magic powers. They were put in the coffins together with the mummies with the idea that they would work for the dead one in the coffin when they reached the death realm. Rich people had maybe over 300 shabtis statues buried with them, while poor people had maybe one or two, if any. 

But what exactly are they? Many believe that the Egyptians used these statues to entrap souls of servants or family to make them more manageable to travel with them to the afterlife. That is why the shabtis is thought in many ways to carry the souls of servants of the rich.

Read Also: More haunted stories from Egypt like: Khonsuemheb and the Ghost of Theban Necropolis

The shabtis statues were brought up from the basement of the Natural History Museum in Bergen where they had been gathering dust for over 100 years. 

But it isn’t just the shabtier statues that are restless inside their glass cases. There is also a female God figure in wood that appears to have turned 180 degrees and facing towards the wall in the case. Specks of dust show she has moved many centimeters already, although other figures in the same glass case have not moved at all. Is this also a case of vibration of the class cage solely?

The Natural History Museum in Bergen is not the only place where the shabtis statues have exhibited strange things when left alone. Hans Frode Storaas, responsible for the Egyptian collection at the Natural History Museum in Bergen, said he was contacted by many having experienced the same.

People from all over the world contacted him about similar experiences with the shabtis. And several merchants in Egypt wouldn’t have them exhibited in their shop because of strange things happening. He told this to the NRK broadcast site in 2012. 

So if you have a look at the Egyptian collection of the museum, don’t only look at the huge statues, mummies and coffins in the collection. Have a look at the smaller ones instead and see if there is a trail of dust that shouldn’t be there.

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References

Her er Norges mest kjente spøkelser – NRK Vestland

Dødens hjelpere spøker – NRK Vestland

https://www.ilovebergen.net/bergen/the-most-haunted-places-in-bergen/