I heard this story a long, long time ago about a house that burned down completely.
Everything was completely destroyed, save for one thing: a painting of a crying boy, which was unmarred.
The story goes that this same event occurred at several other houses.
Apparently, at one point, the legend was so large that a famous national paper (The Sun) called for its' readers to send them the paintings for them to be destroyed. Story goes that a fire destroyed the warehouse where the paintings were being held.
Now, this is all rumor & legend, I can't validate that any of it ever actually happened.
And I do also know that The Sun is basically a tabloid, & should only be read with tongue firmly planted in cheek.
But stories have to start somewhere, so maybe there's something to it.
Or maybe someone just has an very good imagination.
Anyway, I know that the prints were a big hit throughout the 60s & 70s, & a couple of artists were cited.
One of them was a Scottish woman named Anna Zinkeisen.
Her pieces "Childhood", & "Crying Boy" were said to be among the "jinxed" paintings.
The other is a Spanish artist Bruno Amadio, also known as Bragolin, among several other names.
There are said to be about 28 variations on Bragolin's Crying Child theme, some even featuring crying girls.
I found about 12 or so examples at a Dutch site, & every one features a crying child.
And this is the infamous "Blue Boy" that started everything:
So, more than likely, there's no curse after all, but in my experience, a whole lot of people get totally creeped out by these.
And, call me crazy, but now I think I want one.
This one:
But I don't know. What do you think?
Ever known anyone who had one, or had one yourself?
EDITED TO ADD:
Just found this, lol: