Curses!

Was anyone else severely disappointed to find out that the curses of mummy's tombs in Egypt weren't true? NOT that I want anyone to die, but I found the whole curse idea quite fascinating. I remember in second grade writing a report on the burial process used by the Egyptians. My writing was about an inch tall, but I made sure I got the part in there about the brains being pulled out through the nose. That was quite fascinating too at that age (okay, still is). Anyway, back to curses. The legend surrounding the mummy's curse started with Tutankhamen. Within four years of opening the tomb, eleven of the people associated with the discovery had died.

In movies and books today, curses are a dime a dozen. If I pick up a book and read about an old family curse... well, back on the shelf it goes. I think curses are interesting, but very few people know how to come up with a good, solid, old fashioned curse. Something that scares with it's possibility. Something that's believable. Something that is just plain creepy.

There's one other curse I find quite interesting. This is the curse of the Hope Diamond. This curse dates back to 1642 when, legend has it, a Frenchman stole it from a statue of a Hindu goddess (note: never steal a priceless relic from a goddess - you've been warned!). A trail of death and bad luck followed the diamond until it was deeded to the Smithsonian in 1949.

I know that myths, legends and curses seem to grow over time and the events surrounding them are exaggerated, however, stop and think about the possibilities. What kind of story could you craft about a curse that grows stronger with time?

Here's a picture of the beautiful diamond. Why no mummies? Because it's almost four in the morning and I don't want to dream about them.