A young academic visits a secluded country estate and is loaned a pair of unusual, old binoculars. Climbing a local hill to enjoy the landscape, he uses the field-glasses only to see a world radically different from the one he expects: the binoculars do not show the present day, but a desolate, terrifying version of the past. The scene he observes is a sinister landscape steeped in ancient malice, complete with signs of long-forgotten burial sites and the chilling figure of something which belongs to the earth.
From the mind of M. R. James, the acknowledged master who redefined the ghost story for the 20th century and founded the 'antiquarian ghost story' genre, comes a chilling tale where an ordinary view reveals a terrifying truth.
This story is a quintessential example of James' genius for combining creeping dread with a chilling supernatural premise, making it essential reading for fans of classic ghost stories and supernatural fiction, and proving that the past is sometimes only a lens away.