''The Sign of the Four'' (1890), also called ''The Sign of Four'', is the second
novel featuring
Sherlock Holmes by British writer
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for '' A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...
. Doyle wrote four novels and 56 short stories featuring the fictional detective.
Plot
On a foggy day in 1888,
Dr. Watson
John H. Watson, known as Dr. Watson, is a fictional character in the Sherlock Holmes stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Along with Sherlock Holmes, Dr. Watson first appeared in the novel ''A Study in Scarlet'' (1887). The last work by Doyle f ...
remonstrates with Holmes about his
cocaine
Cocaine (from , from , ultimately from Quechua: ''kúka'') is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant mainly used recreationally for its euphoric effects. It is primarily obtained from the leaves of two Coca species native to South Ameri ...
usage. Holmes claims he needs a problem to solve and is bored; shortly thereafter, Miss
Mary Morstan
This article describes minor characters from the ''Sherlock Holmes'' stories by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, and from non-canonical derived works. The list excludes the titular character as well as Dr. Watson, Professor Moriarty, Inspector Lestrade, M ...
arrives with a case.
Miss Morstan explains that, in December 1878, her father Captain Morstan had arrived in London, on leave from his post as a convict guard in the
Andaman Islands. He requested her to meet him at the
Langham Hotel, but he was not there when she arrived. Mary contacted Major John Sholto, a former convict guard who had known her father and was now living in England; however, he denied having seen Morstan, and Morstan was never heard from again. Four years later, Miss Morstan answered an anonymous newspaper advertisement, asking for her whereabouts. She then received a large and valuable pearl in the post, a gift repeated once a year for six years. With the sixth pearl, she received a letter asking for a meeting, claiming she has been "wronged". Holmes takes the case, and soon discovers that Major Sholto had died in 1882; within a week of his death, Mary received the first pearl. The only further clue Mary can give Holmes is a map of a fortress found in her father's desk, appended with the words '' "The Sign of the Four: Jonathan Small, Mahomet Singh, Abdullah Khan, and Dost Akbar" ''.
Holmes, Watson, and Mary meet with Major Sholto's son Thaddeus, the anonymous sender of the pearls. Thaddeus explains that Morstan ''had'' visited Major Sholto, to demand his half of a great treasure that Sholto had secretly brought back from
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. The two men quarreled, and Captain Morstan suffered a heart attack and died, striking his head on the
brazen
Brazen may refer to:
* Made of brass
* HMS ''Brazen'', various ships of the British Royal Navy
* Brazen class destroyer, consisting of four Royal Navy destroyers
* ''Brazen'' (TV series), a British television show
* " Brazen (Weep)", a song by ...
treasure box as he fell. Afraid he would be suspected of murder, Major Sholto buried the body and hid the treasure, leaving out a small gold
chaplet studded with twelve pearls. Thaddeus and his twin brother Bartholomew knew nothing of these events, until an unexpected letter from India caused their father to faint, and sicken to his death. On his deathbed, he confessed the truth to them; he was about to reveal to them where the treasure was hidden, when a bearded man appeared at the window and the Major died of sheer fright. The man fled, but the brothers later found a note reading "The Sign of the Four" pinned to their dead father's body. Thaddeus began sending Mary the pearls to make things right, and the brothers searched for the treasure. Six years later, Bartholomew found and withheld it; Thaddeus has contacted Mary so they can both confront Bartholomew and demand their shares.
The party heads to Bartholomew's house, Pondicherry Lodge, only to find that he is dead from a
poisoned dart, and the treasure is missing. While the police wrongly take Thaddeus in as a suspect, Holmes deduces from several clues that there are two persons involved in the murder: a one-legged white man named Jonathan Small, and a very small, tribal
Andamanese
The Andamanese are the indigenous peoples of the Andaman Islands, part of India's Andaman and Nicobar Islands union territory in the southeastern part of the Bay of Bengal in Southeast Asia. The Andamanese peoples are among the various groups ...
accomplice. Borrowing Toby, a trained scent hound, from a naturalist, Holmes traces the pair to a boat landing. Learning Small has hired a steam
launch named the ''Aurora'', Holmes, with the help of the
Baker Street Irregulars
The Baker Street Irregulars are fictional characters who appear in three Sherlock Holmes stories, specifically two novels and one short story, by Arthur Conan Doyle. They are street boys who are employed by Holmes as intelligence agents. The na ...
and his own disguises, traces the boat to a
repair yard. In a police launch, Holmes and Watson pursue the ''Aurora'' when it flees the yard; the islander attempts to shoot a dart at Holmes, and is shot dead himself. Small attempts to flee, running the ''Aurora'' aground, but is captured. However, the brass box is empty; Small, not wanting to surrender the gems, scattered them overboard into the
Thames
The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...
.
Small confesses that he was once a soldier of the Third
Buffs in India, and lost his right leg to a
crocodile while bathing in the
Ganges
The Ganges ( ) (in India: Ganga ( ); in Bangladesh: Padma ( )). "The Ganges Basin, known in India as the Ganga and in Bangladesh as the Padma, is an international river to which India, Bangladesh, Nepal and China are the riparian states." is ...
. He then became an overseer on an
indigo
Indigo is a deep color close to the color wheel blue (a primary color in the RGB color space), as well as to some variants of ultramarine, based on the ancient dye of the same name. The word "indigo" comes from the Latin word ''indicum'', m ...
plantation; the
1857 rebellion
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against Company rule in India, the rule of the East India Company, British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the The Crown, British ...
occurred, and he was forced to flee to the
Agra fortress. While standing guard one night, he was overpowered by some
Sikh troopers, who gave him a choice; be immediately killed, or help them
waylay Achmed, a disguised servant of an outlawed
rajah
''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested fr ...
, who had sent Achmed with a box of jewelry to the British for safekeeping. The robbery and murder took place, but the crime was discovered, although the hidden jewels were not. Small and his accomplices got penal servitude on the Andaman Islands.
Many years later, Small learned that Major Sholto and Captain Morstan had lost much money at cards. Small saw his chance, and made a deal with the officers; Sholto would recover the treasure, and in return send a boat to pick up Morstan, Small and the Sikhs so they could all meet and divide it. However, Sholto stole the treasure for himself, returning to England after inheriting a fortune from his uncle. Morstan went after Sholto but never returned, and Small vowed vengeance against Sholto. Four years later, Small escaped prison with the help of an islander named Tonga, whose life Small had once saved. It was the news of this escape that shocked Sholto into his fatal illness. Small arrived too late to hear of the treasure's location, but left the note in the room anyway. When Bartholomew found the treasure, Small only planned to steal it; however, a miscommunication led Tonga to kill Bartholomew before Small could stop him. Small decides the treasure brings nothing but bad luck to anyone who has it; to Achmed and Bartholomew, death; to Major Sholto, fear and guilt; and for Small himself, penal servitude for life.
Mary is left with no treasure, save the pearls; however, she and Watson have fallen in love over the course of the adventure. Watson reveals to Holmes that he has proposed to her and that she has accepted, much to Holmes' annoyance.
Publication history
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Sir Arthur Ignatius Conan Doyle (22 May 1859 – 7 July 1930) was a British writer and physician. He created the character Sherlock Holmes in 1887 for '' A Study in Scarlet'', the first of four novels and fifty-six short stories about Ho ...
described how he was commissioned to write the story over a dinner with
Joseph Marshall Stoddart
Joseph Marshall Stoddart (August 10, 1845 – February 25, 1921), was an American business man, Editor of ''Lippincott's Monthly Magazine'' from 1886 to 1894 and later of the ''New Science Review''.
The son of another Joseph Marshall Stoddart, by ...
, managing editor of the American publication ''
Lippincott's Monthly Magazine
''Lippincott's Monthly Magazine'' was a 19th-century literary magazine published in Philadelphia from 1868 to 1915, when it relocated to New York to become '' McBride's Magazine''. It merged with ''Scribner's Magazine'' in 1916.
''Lippincott's'' ...
'', at the
Langham Hotel in London on 30 August 1889. Stoddart wanted to produce an English version of ''Lippincott’s'' with a British editor and British contributors. The dinner was also attended by
Oscar Wilde, who eventually contributed ''
The Picture of Dorian Gray
''The Picture of Dorian Gray'' is a philosophical novel by Irish writer Oscar Wilde. A shorter novella-length version was published in the July 1890 issue of the American periodical '' Lippincott's Monthly Magazine''.''The Picture of Dorian G ...
'' to the July 1890 issue.
Doyle discussed what he called this "golden evening" in his 1924
autobiography ''Memories and Adventures''.
The novel first appeared in the February 1890 edition of ''Lippincott's Monthly Magazine'' as ''The Sign of the Four; or The Problem of the Sholtos'', appearing in both London and
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
. The British edition of the magazine originally sold for a
shilling, and the American for 25 cents. Surviving copies are now worth several thousand dollars.
Over the following few months in the same year, the novel was then republished in several regional British journals. These re-serialisations gave the title as ''The Sign of Four''. The novel was published in book form in October 1890 by
Spencer Blackett, again using the title ''The Sign of Four''.
This edition included a frontispiece illustrated by
Charles H. M. Kerr. The title of both the British and American editions of this first book edition omitted the second "the" of the original title.
A
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
edition of the book published in 1902 was illustrated by Richard Gutschmidt. An edition published by
George Newnes Ltd
George Newnes Ltd is a British publisher. The company was founded in 1891 by George Newnes (1851–1910), considered a founding father of popular journalism. Newnes published such magazines and periodicals as '' Tit-Bits'', ''The Wide World Magaz ...
in 1903 was illustrated by
F. H. Townsend.
Different editions over the years have varied between the two forms of the title, with most editions favouring the four-word form.
The actual text in the novel nearly always uses "the Sign of the Four" (the five-word form) to describe the symbol in the story, although the four-word form is used twice by Jonathan Small in his narrative at the end of the story.
As with the first story, ''A Study in Scarlet'', produced two years previously, ''The Sign of the Four'' was not particularly successful to start with. It was the short stories, published from 1891 onwards in ''
Strand Magazine'', that made household names of Sherlock Holmes and his creator.
Adaptations
Television and film
There have been multiple film and television adaptations of the book:
}) , , USSR , ,
Igor Maslennikov
Igor Fyodorovich Maslennikov (russian: Игорь Фёдорович Масленников; 26 October 1931 – 17 September 2022)
, ,
Vasily Livanov
Vasily Borisovich Livanov (russian: link=no, Василий Борисович Ливанов; born 19 July 1935), MBE, is a Soviet and Russian film actor, animation and film director, screenwriter and writer most famous for portraying Sherlock ...
, ,
Vitaly Solomin
Vitaly Mefodievich Solomin (russian: link=no, Виталий Мефодьевич Соломин; 12 December 194127 May 2002) was a Soviet and Russian actor, director and screenwriter, best remembered for playing Dr. Watson in a series of Sherloc ...
, -
, 1987 , , TV (film) , , ''
The Return of Sherlock Holmes'' , , US , ,
Kevin Connor , ,
Michael Pennington
Michael Vivian Fyfe Pennington (born 7 June 1943) is a British actor, director and writer. Together with director Michael Bogdanov, he founded the English Shakespeare Company in 1986 and was its Joint Artistic Director until 1992. He has writ ...
, , (''n/a'')
, -
, 1987 , , TV (series) , , ''
The Return of Sherlock Holmes'' - "The Sign of Four" , , UK , ,
Peter Hammond , ,
Jeremy Brett , ,
Edward Hardwicke
Edward Cedric Hardwicke (7 August 1932 – 16 May 2011) was an English actor, who had a distinguished career on the stage and on-screen. He was best known for playing Captain Pat Grant in ''Colditz'' (1972-73), and Dr. Watson in Granada Te ...
, -
, 1991 , , Filmed play , , ''
The Crucifer of Blood
''The Crucifer of Blood'' is a play by Paul Giovanni that is adapted from the Arthur Conan Doyle novel ''The Sign of the Four.'' It depicts the character Irene St. Claire hiring the detective Sherlock Holmes to investigate the travails that her ...
'' , , US , ,
Fraser Clarke Heston
Fraser Clarke Heston (born February 12, 1955) is an American film director, film producer, screenwriter and actor. He is the son of actors Charlton Heston and Lydia Clarke, and has a sister, Holly Rochell Heston.
Heston's filmography includes ' ...
, ,
Charlton Heston , ,
Richard Johnson Richard or Dick Johnson may refer to:
Academics
* Dick Johnson (academic) (1929–2019), Australian academic
* Richard C. Johnson (1930–2003), professor of electrical engineering
* Richard A. Johnson, artist and professor at the University of ...
, -
, 1999 , , TV (series) , , ''
Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century
''Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century'' is an animated television series in which Sherlock Holmes is brought back to life in the 22nd century. The series is a co-production by DIC Entertainment, L.P. and Scottish Television Enterprises and ...
'' - "The Sign of Four" (animated) , , US/UK , , Paul Quinn , ,
Jason Gray-Stanford
Jason Gray-Stanford (born May 19, 1970) is a Canadian film, television and voice actor. He is best known for playing Lieutenant Randy Disher in the Emmy, SAG and Golden Globe-winning TV program ''Monk'' and for voicing the role of Raditz in ''Dra ...
(voice) , ,
John Payne (voice)
, -
, 2001 , , TV (film) , , ''
The Sign of Four
''The Sign of the Four'' (1890), also called ''The Sign of Four'', is the second novel featuring Sherlock Holmes by British writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle wrote four novels and 56 short stories featuring the fictional detective.
Pl ...
'' , , Canada , , Rodney Gibbons , ,
Matt Frewer
Matthew George Frewer (born January 4, 1958) is an American-Canadian actor, singer and comedian. He portrayed the 1980s icon Max Headroom in the 1985 TV movie and 1987 television series of the same names.
He became prominent when playing role ...
, ,
Kenneth Welsh
Kenneth Welsh, (March 30, 1942 – May 5, 2022) was a Canadian film and television actor. He was best known as the multi-faceted villain Windom Earle in ''Twin Peaks'', for his roles in the films '' The Day After Tomorrow'', ''Adoration'', '' S ...
, -
, 2014 , , TV (series) , , ''
Sherlock'' - "
The Sign of Three
"The Sign of Three" is the second episode of the third series of the BBC television series '' Sherlock''. It was written by Stephen Thompson, Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat and stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman a ...
" , , UK , ,
Colm McCarthy , ,
Benedict Cumberbatch
Benedict Timothy Carlton Cumberbatch (born 19 July 1976) is an English actor. Known for his work on screen and stage, he has received various accolades, including a British Academy Television Award, a Primetime Emmy Award and a Laurence Oli ...
, ,
Martin Freeman
Martin John Christopher Freeman (born 8 September 1971) is an English actor. Among other accolades, he has won an Emmy Award, a BAFTA Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, and has been nominated for a Golden Globe Award.
Freeman's most not ...
, -
, 2014 , , TV (series) , , ''
Sherlock Holmes'' - "
The Adventure of the Cheerful Four" ( ja, 愉快な四人組の冒険, translit=''Yukai na yoningumi no bōken'', label=none) , , Japan , ,
Kunio Yoshikawa , ,
Kōichi Yamadera (voice) , ,
Wataru Takagi
is a Japanese actor and voice actor from Chiba Prefecture. He is affiliated with Arts Vision. He is best known for his roles in ''Detective Conan'' (as Genta Kojima and Wataru Takagi), '' After War Gundam X'' (as Garrod Ran), '' Slayers Try' ...
(voice)
Radio
A radio adaptation of the story was broadcast on New York radio station
WGY on 9 November 1922. The cast included Edward H. Smith as Sherlock Holmes, F. H. Oliver as Dr. Watson, and Viola Karwowska as Mary Morstan. It was produced as part of a series of adaptations of plays, so it is likely that the script was based on an existing stage adaptation of the story (one was written by John Arthur Fraser in 1901 and another by Charles P. Rice in 1903).
A six-part adaptation of the novel aired in the radio series ''
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
''The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes'' is a collection of twelve short stories by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle, first published on 14 October 1892. It contains the earliest short stories featuring the consulting detective Sherlock Holmes, w ...
''. Adapted by
Edith Meiser
Edith Meiser (May 9, 1898 – September 26, 1993) was an American author and actress, who wrote mystery novels, stage plays, and numerous radio dramas. She is perhaps best known for bringing adaptations of Sherlock Holmes stories to radio in the ...
, the episodes aired from 9 November 1932 to 14 December 1932, with
Richard Gordon as Sherlock Holmes and Leigh Lovell as Dr. Watson.
The book was adapted by
Felix Felton
Robert Forbes Felton (12 August 1911 – 21 October 1972), known professionally as Felix Felton, was a British film, television, stage and voice actor as well as a radio director, composer and author.
Radio work
In his earlier years Felton cons ...
for the
BBC Light Programme
The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 1. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the ...
in 1959.
Richard Hurndall
Richard Gibbon Hurndall (3 November 1910 – 13 April 1984) was an English actor. He is best remembered for replacing William Hartnell in the role of the First Doctor for '' Doctor Who's'' 20th anniversary special '' The Five Doctors''.
Caree ...
played Holmes and
Bryan Coleman
Bryan Coleman (29 January 1911 – 4 July 2005) was a British film actor and television actor.
In 1954 he appeared in William Douglas Home's comedy ''The Manor of Northstead'' in the West End.
Selected filmography
* '' Conquest of the Air'' ...
played Watson.
In 1963, the story was dramatised by
Michael Hardwick
John Michael Drinkrow Hardwick (10 September 1924 in Leeds, Yorkshire − 4 March 1991), known as Michael Hardwick, was an English author who was best known for writing books and radio plays which featured Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's creation Sherlo ...
for the
BBC Home Service as part of the
1952–1969 radio series, with
Carleton Hobbs
Carleton Percy Hobbs, OBE (18 June 1898 – 31 July 1978) was an English actor with many film, radio and television appearances. He portrayed Sherlock Holmes in 80 radio adaptations in a series of Sherlock Holmes radio dramas (1952–1969), ...
as Holmes and
Norman Shelley
Norman Shelley (16 February 1903 – 21 August 1980) was a British actor, best known for his work in radio, in particular for the BBC's ''Children's Hour''. He also had a recurring role as Colonel Danby in the long-running radio soap opera ''T ...
as Watson.
''
CBS Radio Mystery Theater
''CBS Radio Mystery Theater'' (a.k.a. ''Radio Mystery Theater'' and ''Mystery Theater'', sometimes abbreviated as ''CBSRMT'') is a radio drama series created by Himan Brown that was broadcast on CBS Radio Network affiliates from 1974 to 1982, a ...
'' aired a radio version of the story in 1977, starring
Kevin McCarthy
Kevin Owen McCarthy (born January 26, 1965) is an American politician, serving as House Minority Leader in the United States House of Representatives since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served as House Majority Leader under spea ...
as Holmes and Court Benson as Watson.
''The Sign of the Four'' was adapted for radio by
Bert Coules
Bert Coules is an English writer, mainly for the BBC, who has produced a number of adaptations and original works. He works mainly in radio drama but also writes for TV and the stage.
Early years
Bert Coules worked in radio drama for ten years, ...
in 1989 as part of
BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
's complete Sherlock Holmes
1989–1998 radio series, with
Clive Merrison
Clive Merrison (born 15 September 1945) is a British actor of film, television, stage and radio. He trained at Rose Bruford College. He is best known for his long running BBC Radio portrayal of Sherlock Holmes, having played the part in all 64 ...
as Holmes,
Michael Williams as Watson, and featuring
Brian Blessed
Brian Blessed (; born 9 October 1936) is an English actor, presenter, writer and mountaineer.
Blessed is known for portraying PC "Fancy" Smith in ''Z-Cars'', Augustus in the 1976 BBC television production of '' I, Claudius'', King Richard I ...
as Jonathan Small.
In 2016, the story was adapted as an episode of the American radio series ''
The Classic Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
''Imagination Theatre'' is an American syndicated radio drama program airing on FM and AM radio stations across the United States. It features modern radio dramas. The program first aired in 1996. Originally produced by Jim French Productions, t ...
'', with
John Patrick Lowrie
John Patrick Lowrie (born June 28, 1952) is an American actor, musician and author best known for voicing the Sniper in ''Team Fortress 2'' and various characters in '' Dota 2''. He has played Sherlock Holmes in the radio series ''The Further A ...
as Holmes and Lawrence Albert as Watson.
Stage
Paul Giovanni's 1978 play ''
The Crucifer of Blood
''The Crucifer of Blood'' is a play by Paul Giovanni that is adapted from the Arthur Conan Doyle novel ''The Sign of the Four.'' It depicts the character Irene St. Claire hiring the detective Sherlock Holmes to investigate the travails that her ...
'' is based on the novel. The Broadway premiere featured
Paxton Whitehead
Francis Edward Paxton Whitehead (born 17 October 1937) is an English actor, theatre director and playwright. He was nominated for a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award for his performance as Pellinore in the 1980 revival of ''Camelot''. He has h ...
as Holmes and Timothy Landfield as Watson. The 1979 London production featured
Keith Michell
Keith Joseph Michell (1 December 1926 – 20 November 2015) was an Australian actor who worked primarily in the United Kingdom, and was best known for his television and film portrayals of King Henry VIII. He appeared extensively in Shakespeare ...
as Holmes and
Denis Lill
Denis Lill (born 22 April 1942) is a New Zealand-born British actor. He is best known for his roles in '' Survivors'' as Charles Vaughan, ''Only Fools and Horses'' as Alan Parry, ''Outside Edge'' as Dennis Broadley and as Consultant General Sur ...
as Watson.
References
External links
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*
*
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sign of the Four, The
1890 British novels
Sherlock Holmes novels by Arthur Conan Doyle
History of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands
Novels about the Indian Rebellion of 1857
Fiction set in 1888
Novels set in the 1880s
Victorian novels
Works originally published in Lippincott's Monthly Magazine
Epistolary novels
Treasure troves
Dogs in literature
British novels adapted into films
British novels adapted into plays
Novels adapted into radio programs
British novels adapted into television shows