'Ghost' Of Condemned Criminal Wearing Hangman's Hood Photographed In Former Prison Cell

Is This The Ghost Of A Condemned Criminal Wearing A Hangman's Hood?

A 'ghost' has been photographed in a former prison where inmates were hanged hundreds of years ago.

The eerie image appears to show the apparition of a condemned criminal wearing a hangman’s hood.

It was taken by amateur photographer James Pykett inside the cells at Nottingham’s Galleries of Justice Museum.

James Pykett believes this picture may reveal the apparition of a man wearing a hangman's hood

The 25-year-old took the picture when he visited the cells in July but only spotted the strange figure when he uploaded it to Facebook last month.

There has been a court at the Galleries of Justice site since the 14th century and jail cells since 1449. Prisoners were once hanged on the steps of the prison.

Pykett, who works as a CCTV operator in Nottingham, said seeing the picture made the "hairs on the back of my neck stick up".

There have been jail cells at the Nottingham Galleries of Justice Museum since 1449

He added: "I believed I could see a shadow and when I zoomed in, I was adamant that I could.

"At first I thought it looked like a guard but then on closer inspection the figure appears to be wearing a hood which condemned prisoners wore when they were hanged.

"I started the Facebook page in July and must have taken over 1,000 photos at 14 different locations since then.

"I am interested in the supernatural, and also in the historical side of these sites.

Prisoners were once hanged on the steps of the prison

"It all started back a few years ago when I spent a night in the cells at the Galleries of Justice.

"That night made me want to answer more questions about the site because it was just really creepy down there, and I have become fascinated with paranormal stuff since then.

"This particular photo was uploaded in July, but it wasn’t until mid-September when I was messing around with pictures, and doing a bit of picture editing, that I tried enlarging the image, and saw that stuff in the photo.

"It's almost more spooky that I didn’t see the ghost in the photo to start with but that it was there in the background all along."

Faye Rollinson, spokeswoman for the Galleries, said: "Visitors say that when they are walking in the cell area they often have a feeling that they are not alone.

"People say they have seen dark figures there."

David Cross, who runs the Nottingham Ghost Walk, said: "Nottingham is one of the most haunted places in England due to historic happenings, including the Norman Invasion."

He said several ghosts are said to frequent the area around Robin Hood’s statue and Lace Market.

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