A man is left alone in a room, with instructions not to touch the mysterious box on the table; but he does and frightening events begin.
- Written in the Fall of 1933 and first published in the April 1939 issue of Weird Tales.
- This story was part of a letter by H. P. Lovecraft and was not intended for publication. The letter also included the Complete Chronology list of short stories. (source: Introduction by August Derleth for the Arkham House editions of Dagon and Other Macabre Tales.)
| Date | Publication | Publisher | Type | Page | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1943 |
|
Beyond the Wall of Sleep | Arkham House | Collection | 55 |
| 1962 |
|
Dreams and Fancies | Arkham House | Collection | 89 |
| 1965 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 297 |
| 1967 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Gollancz | Collection | 297 |
| 1969 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 297 |
| 1969 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Panther | Collection | 135 |
| 1970 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Panther | Collection | 135 |
| December 1970 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Beagle Books / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| 1971 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 297 |
| 1971 |
|
The Arkham Edition of H. P. Lovecraft | Beagle Books | Omnibus | 135|1.1 |
| June 1971 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Beagle Books / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| 1973 |
|
The Nightmare Reader | Doubleday & Company | Anthology | 271 |
| April 1973 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Ballantine Books | Collection | 135 |
| August 1973 |
|
The Nightmare Reader | Gollancz | Anthology | 271 |
| 1974 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Panther | Collection | 135 |
| February 1974 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Ballantine Books | Collection | 135 |
| 1975 | The Tomb and Other Tales | Panther | Collection | 135 | |
| January 1975 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Ballantine Books | Collection | 135 |
| November 1975 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 297 |
| April 1976 |
|
The Nightmare Reader: Volume Two | Pan Books | Anthology | 117 |
| December 1981 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| January 1982 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| November 1984 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| 1985 |
|
The H. P. Lovecraft Omnibus 2: Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Panther | Collection | 357 |
| 1987 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 287 |
| 1987 |
|
The H. P. Lovecraft Omnibus 2: Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Grafton | Collection | 357 |
| January 1987 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 287 |
| May 1987 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| May 1988 | The Tomb and Other Tales | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 135 | |
| 1991 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 287 |
| March 1992 |
|
The Tomb and Other Tales | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 135 |
| 1993 |
|
100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories | Barnes & Noble Books | Anthology | 135 |
| 1994 |
|
The H. P. Lovecraft Omnibus 2: Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Grafton | Collection | 357 |
| April 1994 | 100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories | Michael O'Mara Books | Anthology | 135 | |
| 1995 |
|
100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories | Barnes & Noble Books | Anthology | 135 |
| October 1996 |
|
The Transition of H. P. Lovecraft: The Road to Madness | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | 376 |
| 1997 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 287 |
| 1997 |
|
100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories | Barnes & Noble Books | Anthology | 135 |
| 2001 |
|
Dagon and Other Macabre Tales | Arkham House | Collection | 287 |
| 2003 |
|
100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories | Sterling Publishing | Anthology | 135 |
| March 2003 | The Transition of H. P. Lovecraft: The Road to Madness | Del Rey / Ballantine | Collection | ||
| 2004 |
|
100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories | Barnes & Noble Books | Anthology | 135 |
| 2008 |
|
The Fiction: Complete and Unabridged | Barnes & Noble Books | Omnibus | 941 |
| June 2008 | The Transition of H. P. Lovecraft: The Road to Madness | Paw Prints | Collection | ||
| January 2011 |
|
The Call of Cthulhu and Other Tales of the Lovecraft Mythos | Prohyptikon Publishing | Collection | |
| March 2011 |
|
The Complete Fiction | Barnes & Noble Books | Omnibus | 941 |
| July 2011 |
|
Eldritch Tales: A Miscellany of the Macabre | Gollancz | Collection | |
| July 2011 |
|
Eldritch Tales: A Miscellany of the Macabre | Gollancz | Collection | |
| July 2011 |
|
Eldritch Tales: A Miscellany of the Macabre | Gollancz / Orion | Collection | |
| 2014 |
|
Complete Collection of H. P. Lovecraft | Ageless Reads | Omnibus | |36 |
| September 2014 |
|
The Complete Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft | Race Point Publishing | Omnibus | |
| July 2016 |
|
The Complete Fiction of H. P. Lovecraft | Chartwell Books | Omnibus | 1014 |
| May 2017 |
|
H. P. Lovecraft: The Complete Fiction | Benediction Classics | Collection | 344 |
| May 2017 |
|
H. P. Lovecraft: The Complete Fiction | Benediction Classics | Collection | |34 |
| October 2017 |
|
The H. P. Lovecraft Collection | Sirius / Arcturus Publishing | Omnibus | |144 |
| 2018 |
|
The H. P. Lovecraft Collection | Sirius / Arcturus Publishing | Omnibus | 144 |
| 2018 |
|
Macabre Stories | Sirius / Arcturus Publishing | Collection | 144 |
| November 2019 |
|
H. P. Lovecraft: The Complete Fiction | Benediction Classics | Collection | 344 |
| March 2020 |
|
Eldritch Tales: A Miscellany of the Macabre | Gollancz | Collection |