Encyclopedia of Horror Lore

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Dybbuk Box

Categories
Horror Mystery and Lore

Date of Discovery

There is no set year of discovery for the Dybbuk Box as Jewish tails have mentioned it many times through-out various text and from various years. In 1914 a Yiddish play, The Dybbuk, embodied the tail of how the box came into existence, and horror culture has used it ever since. The famous eBay box was auctioned in 2003 which led to the widespread story we all know today surrounding this box.

Name

Dybbuk Box also spelled Dibbuk

Physical Description

The Dybbuk is said to be a disembodied malicious demon that possesses a living person’s soul to gain domain in the mortal world. The box that held the Dybbuk is an old-style wooden wine box that contained various bottles and jars of wine and trinkets.

Origin

                The Dybbuk Box comes from Jewish lore and dates back to the horror story from the Holocaust. There are many tails of these “cursed boxes” through-out time, but the most famous and well-known tale came in 2003. The owner of a furniture shop in Portland Oregon, Kevin Mannis, listed the box on eBay with a fantastic horror story to go with it.

Mythology & Lore

                The famed story of Mannis’s box entails a 103-year-old Grandma bringing the box to America while escaping the Holocaust. When she pasted in 2001 the family sold the box among other things at a yard sale to help with the costs of laying her to rest. Mannis was very interested in the box and was instructed to never open it. Once the box was at his furniture shop strange things began to happen and even caused an employee to quit. The light bulbs would flash and shatter, strange smells, nightmares, doors slamming and moving, as well as a general dark feeling seeming to follow the box. He opened the box to investigate, he found two wheat pennies, two small locks of hair, a statue engraved with Hebrew letters, dried rosebuds, a golden wine cup, and a black cast iron candlestick holder. He gave the box to his mother who died shortly after from a stroke, then the box was giving to other Mannis’s family members who all returned it report the same paranormal experiences he had.

In 2003 the box hit eBay after Mannis couldn’t bare keeping it any longer, Jason Haxton eventually won rights to the box in 2004 with a winning bid of $280. He soon fell victim to the unnerving wrath of the box which lead him to seek help from a Jewish Rabbi to reseal the box and burying it. Haxton recovered his box for a cameo on Ghost Adventures and later went on to publish a book about his experience with the Dybbuk Box.  Now many Dybbuk Boxes are flooding the eBay and Etsy markets with a wide range of prices and tales going along with their demons; however, not all of these boxes are REAL demon holding Jewish boxes many people have found fakes as they become an “in trend” item.  

Modern Pop-Culture References

Books & Literature

Movies

Television Series



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El Campo Cemetery, San Diego, CA

El Campo Haunted Cemetery

This Catholic cemetery was founded in 1849 and remains today as a state landmark in California. The site is said to have around 477 tombs however in 1851 the site was desecrated when a streetcar path was constructed through the graveyard. There are around 18 graves that were paved over in order to create the pathway. This upset many who had loved ones buried at the site and also the spirits themselves. After the site was disrupted stories of ghosts and strange occurrences began. There are stories of car alarms going off for no reason, an unexplained icy chill coming over guests, a ghost of a Native American or possibly Hispanic man has been seen as well as the spirit of a woman wearing 18th-century periodic clothing.

The site has also experienced issues with grave robbers and a fire that destroyed the chapel.

After local petitions occurred there were markers added where the gravesites had been paved over. At first, just crosses were painted in the street but eventually, the city created proper grave markers for the graves that had been displaced. Walter P. Temple filed a lawsuit against the city preventing any further desecration of the cemetery. In 1917 he purchased the land the graveyard was on to begin restoring it.

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Filiko Teras

Date of Discovery

To this day, the Ayia Napa Sea Monster has not been photographed, but according to legend, it has been around since 2nd century AD.

Name

Filiko Teras, also known as the Ayia Napa Sea Monster and the Cyprus Loch Ness. To Filiko Teras translates to “the friendly monster,” which is how this sea serpent is known to local fishermen.

Physical Description

Speculated to be some type of sea serpent or crocodile-like beast.

Origin

Cape Greco, home of Filiko Teras
Photography by Anna Anichkova

Some accounts tell that Filiko Teras is linked to the ancient sea-monster known as the Scylla within Greek mythology.

Despite having an ocean of space to roam, Filiko Teras is only known to frequent Cape Greco, of the Ayia Napa Sea off of the coast of Cyprus—which is an island country in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea. This little area of Cyprus actually used to be a popular tourist destination on the island, but the political powers of rival governments have resulted in an abandonment of this entire coastal tourist destination. Cape Greco is a cape that encompasses a small peninsula in the eastern Cypriot district of Famagusta, it exists in a National Forest Park that is known for its natural beauty and abundant sea caves.

Mythology and Lore

While there is no documented proof that this monster actually exists, there have been countless reports through folklore and various sightings by tourists and locals, which have spurred paranormal truth seekers, such as the hosts of Destination Truth to go searching for the creature. The Ayia Napa Sea Monster has never been reported to have caused any harm, but it has been reported to drag away fishing nets and there have been countless sightings of this creature. The government of Cyprus has begun to search for evidence of this creature’s existence, and tourists continue to flock to the destination on day-long boat trips, in the hopes of spotting this elusive monster. Although speculation attempts to link the sightings of Filiko Teras to the monsters living in Kouris Dam, these reports have been discarded, as the belief is that the monsters of Kouris Dam are far more likely to be crocodiles that had been kept as pets, then unlawfully released.

The Scylla

A Painted Vase of the Scylla at the Louvre in Paris, France
Photography by Jastrow

This ancient mythological creature of Greek origin has been depicted in mosaics one, in particular, remains in the House of Dionysus, in a Roman villa from the 2nd Century AD that still stands in Paphos, Cyprus which is only a short way away from the most frequented location of sightings for the Filiko Teras. Interestingly enough, the Scylla, despite its modern link to Filiko Teras is depicted as a gigantic creature with the torso and head of a woman, with six snarling dogs protruding halfway from its midriff, and a tail that resembles that of a giant serpent. While the paintings always illustrate exactly six heads, all of the original authors of these initial sightings, including Gaius Julius Hyginus, states that the Scylla actually possessed, “more heads than the vase-painters could paint,” and whoever was unlucky enough to encounter this creature was immediately killed.


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Geiser Grand Hotel

Categories
Haunted Places

Date of Establishment

The Geiser Grand Hotel was originally opened in 1886 in the height of the gold frenzy in Oregon. The Grand still operates to this day even after a few reopenings and change of owners, the latest of which was in 1993.

Name/Name & Location

The Geiser Grand Hotel opened in Baker City, Oregon, which was known as the “Queen City of the Mines,” due to the Gold Rush happenings within the region. The hotel also became known as “the Grand” for short because of the advanced technology and beauty it held within its walls.

Physical Description

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An Italianate building containing technology that was ahead of its time: an elevator, a 4th story clock tower, a 200-foot corner cupola, a 2nd-floor balcony overlooking marble floors, crystal chandeliers, Honduran mahogany paneling, and stained-glass ceilings. All of these components made this hotel a grander of its time for all the wealthy and high society figures to flock to.

The Lady in Blue was also known as “Granny” Annabelle, a beautiful Victorian woman dressed in a blue gown is one of the hotel’s most known spirits. She was a permanent character making grand entries down from her room 302 and having her own reserved chair at the bar each night.

Origin

Opened in Baker City the hotel has stood for years and in 1906 was named the “the most fortunate place in the country” by a newspaper article. Ever since it’s 1902 reopening The Lady in Blue was a prominent figure at the Grand, which lead to the first tales of ghosts roaming the grounds after her death.

Mythology and Lore

The Lady in Blue has been a staple of siting’s at the Grand, multiple people have reported seeing her descending the staircase, sitting at the bar, and disappearing into the wall through-out the hotel. She is suspected of moving guests’ jewelry and items, nibbling snacks from their rooms, or down at the bar pinch the rears of those who sit in her chair. There are other well-known spirits to call the Grand home as well. There is a saloon girl in a red laced bustier who hangs about the balcony, a cowboy who chats with bar-goers, a little girl wandering the 3rd floor, and flappers from the 1920s. Many of the guests and workers have reported wide-ranges of experiences with the ghosts of the Grand, as well as paranormal groups who investigate the hotel regularly. Ghost Hunters and Atlantic Paranormal Group (TAPS) are two teams that see the Grand regularly and continue to collect data and do studies on the building and its spirits. The Grand also does daily ghost tours at the hotel to educate and tell the tales of the ghosts that stay at the Grand.

Modern Pop-Culture References

Books & Literature

Coast to Coast Ghosts: True Stories of Hauntings Across America (2012) page 156

Television Series

Ghost Hunters (2013 Season 2 Episode 5)

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Golden North Hotel, Skagway, AK

Categories
Haunted Places

Date of Establishment

            The Golden North Hotel was built in 1898 to provide accommodations to ‘gold-rushers’ making their way through the city of Skagway every week. In 1908 the hotel was moved, then another story was added to it, as well as the dome.

Name

Golden North Hotel is also known as the Golden North to local Skagway residence.

Physical Description

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            The Golden North Hotel was beautiful off white, 3 story building, with large windows and golden trimming. On the roof, there was a large golden-colored dome clearing marking its place on

Origin

            The origin comes from the height of the rush when a prospector Klondike Ike was staying at the hotel with his beloved fiancé Mary. Mary took residence in Room 23 while awaiting Ike’s return from the goldfields with hopefully their new fortune.  This is where legends split for dear Mary; some say she grew ill with pneumonia and died. Other variations say that Mary grew sick with worry when her lover didn’t return, locking herself away from the town and passing away alone. Hotel staff found her in Room 23, and for years since have reported experiences with her spirit.

Mythology and Lore

            The true nature of ‘Scary Mary’ also comes with a variety of reported sightings. Some claim to see a woman roaming the halls and watching from windows while others hear strange noises, feel colder then one should in Alaska. Some guests reported waking up in the middle of the night choking as well.

            They are another Supernatural event claiming a room at the Golden North, this is Room 14. Staff and guests have reported mysterious lights ‘sparkling’ and also ‘twinkling’ around the room. There’s also an orb about the room that visits guests and workers. None of these “lights” have an apparent source, all reports state they are non-threatening to the viewer.  

            Though the hotel officially closed in 2002, the Golden North did let guests take a turn at staying in the ‘haunted rooms. Room 23 was on the 3rd floor toward the northwest corner, and Room 14 is believed to be on the 2nd floor. The build is currently the Frontier Excursions & Adventures but features the Golden North sign.



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