Notes

It's that time of year again... to scare yourself silly! Many people believe that ghost stories are only for kids and campfires, yet some are so terrifying that they've lasted the test of time. These ten ghost stories are from various locations and time periods. Are you ready to get scared out of your wits? Start unbuttoning your shirts.

Number Ten: The Ghost of Ancient Egypt
This ghost story was unearthed in Luxor, Egypt, on four pieces of earthenware. A ghost, according to the vases' text, speaks out about his life, claiming that he was surrounded by darkness and forgotten by everyone. The ghost continues to whine about something that occurred in the tomb where he was imprisoned, although it is unclear what brought him there in the first place. Spooky!

Number Nine: The Ghost of Tu-Po
Tu-Po was the Chinese Emperor Hsuan's minister, although they didn't get along. Hsuan demanded Tu-death Po's one day after a disagreement, but he was told that Tu-Po would return to torment him. Hsuan was assassinated three years after Tu-Po. He was struck by an arrow fired by a "apparition" who looked like Tu-Po. Now that's what I call karma in action.

Number Eight: The Ghost of Ancient Athens
Pliny the Younger, a Roman senator who died in 113 A.D., told this account. Pliny claims that there was a mansion in Athens with a spacious room where a spirit liked to rattle around at night. The "rattle" sounded like metal objects colliding, and the ghost appeared to be an elderly, slim man with a long beard. The house was eventually rented for a pittance, and the new tenant confronted the ghost. The tenant eventually dug up the location in the room where he saw the ghost, and what he discovered was shocking: a skeleton of a guy in chains was buried there. The renter arranged for a dignified funeral for the man, and The ghost has vanished.

Number Seven: Damon
Damon was a handsome Greek boy, but his life ended tragically in the year 120 A.D. Damon was approached by a military officer, but he was uninterested. Damon realized that if he didn't act, something awful would happen to him, so he assembled a group of buddies and killed the officer, as well as several other soldiers. Despite the fact that the local council in Damon's hometown had sentenced Damon and his companions to death, Damon had the council members murdered first. Damon and his companions fled the town, but he eventually returned and was murdered in a bathhouse not long after. Unusual phenomena, such as phantoms and strange noises, began to occur when people were in the baths. Are you still not scared? Let's keep going.

Number Six: Arabella Stuart
Arabella Stuart, King James I's cousin, was a strong-willed young lady. Arabella married against the king's desires, and she was imprisoned in the Tower of London. According to legend, visitors to the Tower of London, which is over 900 years old and reputed to be haunted by many ghosts, can still see Arabella walking the hallways, still serving her sentence.

Number Five: The Ghost of Aokigahara Woods
Aokigahara Woods are located at the foot of Japan's Mount Fuji. There must be something wicked there, because several suicide victims have been discovered in these woods over the last 20 years, and it now serves as a spot for troubled folks to take their lives. Officials put up signs warning people not to commit suicide in the woods since the forest has such a dark draw on them. Some people who go to the woods claim to have encountered the ghosts of these suicide victims, and some have even videotaped their encounters on YouTube.

Number Four: The Exorcism of Roland Doe
This narrative takes place in 1949, when a young child named "Roland Doe" was subjected to an exorcism. According to legend, Roland possessed magical strength, proficiency in languages he had never spoken before, and the ability to levitate. Though there is debate about whether any of this is true (many investigators believe Roland was merely a psychologically disturbed youngster), this is the narrative that inspired the cult classic The Exorcist, released in 1973.

Number Three: The Brown Lady of Raynham Hall
This narrative is based on a photograph taken in 1936 at Raynham Hall in Norfolk, England. A stairwell with a white phantasm hovering on it is depicted in the renowned painting. Though some experts believe the image is the product of double exposure, Raynham Hall has a long history of hauntings, and some believe the "woman" in the photograph is Lady Dorothy Townshend, the estate's second viscount's wife. She is said to still wander Raynham Hall clad in brown.

Number Two: The CCTV Ghost
Hampton Court Palace is located in Surrey, England. A figure clothed in very ancient attire and with a skeletal form was noticed on a CCTV camera in 2003. Skeletor was the figure's nickname, and he was seen by multiple people that day, not just on camera.

Number One: The Amityville Haunting
Finally, the legendary Amityville Haunting is our most terrifying ghost story. Ronald Defeo Jr. murdered his mother, father, and four children in 1974. The gun used by Defeo did not have a silencer, and there was no trace of a struggle, which is unusual for these types of killings. A new family came into the residence in Amityville, New York, in 1975. This family was only able to stay for about a month before being forced to leave due to fear. According to reports, the family heard a lot of voices, encountered a red-eyed pig named Jodie, saw strange swarms of flies, and observed a lot of furniture move on its own. The home's new owners claim it's not haunted, but we'll never know for sure.