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The Rose Window

By H. P. Lovecraft
(mid-1930s ??????)

Rumours about nameless evil in the house before legatee's ancestors bought it in 1758. Nothing definite — villagers dislike to talk of it. Builder probably Edward Crane who lived much in Europe. Mysteriously rich. Disappeared 1723 — house long vacant and shunned.

Very ancient house on Central Hill, Kingsport inherited. Thick walls — date circa 1700 (some parts older). Labyrinthine plan. He has often visited it and felt an odd fear, especially in high-oak-panelled library, but ancestors have never shewn fear. Hard to figure what lies beyond library's N. wall. (Staircase and cupboards.) During repairs, plane wooden front comes off triangular pediment of huge, built-in bookcase in library's N. wall, revealing strangely carved surface with convex glass circle 7" diameter in centre. This was original surface, later covered over. / House a very early classical specimen / case 9 ft high 8 ft wide small step-ladder used for top shelves / circle 8 ft above floor / legatee Dudley Ropes Glover /

Carving very baffling. Possibly just classical conventional designs, possibly something else. Disquieting resemblance under certain lights to huge octopus-like thing — yet not like anything of earth — of which glass circle is a huge, single central eye. Signs in corners of pediment uncomfortably familiar. Glass itself also baffling. Opaque — evidently convex mirror like many in old houses — but curiously devoid of reflective power. Also too high up to reflect anything but top of room. What one sees in it is generally only cloudy light. This light seems to shift oddly, and one acquires a perverse tendency to keep staring at the thing as if one expected something to appear. Suggestion of self-luminousness at night. Cleaning does no good. Owner decides to let it alone. Moves in.

In back garden, ruins of a brick tower 12 ft in diameter. Rumours of evil annual use — lights — signalling — answered. Doorway now bricked up. Ivy-clad. Windowless — 30 ft standing — once 50 with windows and flat railed roof.

Told by father?

Stimulates hereditary memory. Is lens, prism, or mirror reflecting vision from other dimension or dimensions — time or space. Or rather, reflecting obscure rays not of vision but operating on vestigial and forgotten extra senses. Constructed by outside Entities in effort to inspect human world — or rather const. by elder wizard under their direction.

Outer beings peer through it. Influence humans by opening up other senses and dimension-perceptions possibly including hereditary memory. Explains odd dreams of strange horror. Also works through dreams.

Principal effect, perhaps, to hold the attention and make mind susceptible to outside influence.

Supply details of effect on occupant//hered. mem. ? //going for door now closed. //Discovering books in attic//shadowy companion? //wanders around tower//final denouement

In secret room deep black shaft 5 ft. diam. leading down from hole in floor through house and foundations. Swish of the tides heard far below.

Textual Notes

S. T. Joshi has published his reading of the text in H. P. Lovecraft, Collected Fiction Volume 3 (1931-1936): A Variorum Edition. It can also be found in "The Fragments at the Threshold" at the Internet Archive Wayback Machine. Joshi suggests the fragment is from the mid-1930s.

Send comments to jfm.baharna@gmail.com.

The Rose Window

Textual Notes

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