The Story of Nefrekepta

Do you like ghost stories? Of course you do!

I think the best ghost stories come from Japan—Lafcadio Hearn's books are just such an amazing treasure trove, and I've both been entertained and educated by the many stories he recounts. (My daughter really likes The Legend of Yurei-Daki and Mujina, though my favorites are perhaps The Story of Mimi-Nashi-Hoichi and The Story of a Tengu... but it's so hard to pick! One should just spend a cozy winter reading all his Japanese books.)

However, I recently stumbled across an ancient Egyptian ghost story that gives Hearn's tales a run for their money. It has everything you could want: magic spells and mummy's curses, treasure hunters and grave robbers, True Love™ and salacious priestesses, games with the dead and the vengeance of gods. I wasn't feeling well this week, so while I was laid up in bed, I took the time to transcribe Gilbert Murray—yes, that one—his very entertaining verse adaptation of the story in the hopes that it might make for entertaining weekend reading for someone.

As always, it is in the public domain and you can find the PDF in US Letter and A4 paper sizes.