Lot No. 249

"Lot No. 249" (published in 1892) is a short story written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The story tells of an Oxford college student who, through the use of Egyptian magic, reanimates an ancient Egyptian mummy (called "Lot 249" for its number in an auction sale), which he then sends to attack all the people against whom he holds a grudge. Written in the wake of the late-19th-century fascination with Egyptology, "Lot No. 249" was the first story to depict a reanimated mummy as a sinister, predatory figure and had a profound influence on the horror movie genre throughout the 20th century.

Synopsis

Abercrombie Smith, a medical student at Old College, is called to the rooms of his neighbour and fellow student Edward Bellingham. Bellingham, a fanatical Egyptology student, has fainted from a severe shock. As Smith uses his medical skills to revive Bellingham, Bellingham's friend William Monkhouse Lee (to whose sister Bellingham is engaged) explains that Bellingham has a curious obsession with an Egyptian mummy that he purchased from an auction sale. Bellingham keeps the mummy in his room.