By Tim Binnall
A strange Ebay listing that is garnering attention online offers up the chance to buy a purportedly cursed painting that its current owner says has ruined his life. The post for the unsettling artwork (which can be seen here) popped up on the popular auction website over the weekend with the worrisome title "BEWARE CURSED Vintage Painting Dolls Art Creepy Eerie WARNING 1967." In the ad, an individual going by the pseudonym 'Dan Smith' explains that he acquired the artwork, which depicts two spooky-looking dolls, at a flea market and was warned by the woman who sold it to him that "no good can come from this painting." The allegedly beleaguered man then proceeded to share a rather colorful tale of woe which seemingly confirms those words of caution.
According to the man, "it didn't take long before I hit what seemed like an epic losing streak" that began the very night that he brought the painting home with him. That evening, the feeling of a bug crawling across his face woke him up and he quickly discovered that his apartment was, in fact, infested with insects. Understandably unable to get back to sleep and having not connected the incident to the painting, the man hung the artwork on a wall in his home. However, he soon found himself staring at the painting in a mesmerized state, recalling that "time rolled on and I don’t even remember blinking."
In the days that followed, Smith lamented, he was stricken by "sickness, loneliness, sleeplessness and uneasiness," until he concluded that "the only difference in my life since everything grew so dark around me was buying that painting," which led him to put it up for sale online. As for why he simply didn't destroy the artwork, the man mused that setting it on fire "could rid the world of the wickedness brought about by the piece, but it could just as easily unleash the evil." Rather than risk such a predicament unfolding, he wrote, "’d rather sell it to some poor soul who doesn’t believe this story, or, even scarier, some brave soul who does."
While the man's initial asking price for the painting was a mere $50, the lengthy and rather well-crafted account of his life being torn asunder by the 'cursed' painting apparently struck a chord with people online as the story of the strange sale wound up garnering headlines around the world. In turn, bidding for the artwork has actually begun to skyrocket with the current price now being a staggering $1,725. Considering that he may wind up collecting a sizeable sum of money from the sale of the painting, one wonders if the man will reconsider his belief that the painting is cursed and, instead, celebrate his good fortune at having come across the creepy artwork.