The Adventure of the Dancing Men

The Adventure of the Dancing Men is a short story by Arthur Conan Doyle featuring Sherlock Holmes. The story begins with a series of strange dancing men drawings that are delivered to Watson's home, which leads to a complex case involving espionage and murder.

By Sir Arthur Conan Doyle · First published 1903 · Genre: Mystery, Detective Fiction, Crime Fiction · 11,394 words

First lines

Holmes had been seated for some hours in silence with his long, thin back curved over a chemical vessel in which he was brewing a particularly malodorous product. His head was sunk upon his breast, and he looked from my point of view like a strange, lank bird, with dull gray plumage and a black topknot.

"So, Watson," said he, suddenly, "you do not propose to invest in South African securities? "

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What this Textopian page supports

The Adventure of the Dancing Men is listed on Textopian as a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, dated 1903 CE.

This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.

• Work type: Short story
• Author: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Date: 1903 CE
• Language: English
• Genres: Mystery, Detective Fiction, Crime Fiction, Adventure, Short Story
• Length: 11,394 words
• Structure: 1 section, 229 paragraphs
• Reading fit: Fairly Easy (7th Grade)

Good citation fit

• Work identity for The Adventure of the Dancing Men by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
• Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
• Readability and classroom-planning context
• Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph

Similar titles

• The Adventure Of The Golden Pince Nez by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Musgrave Ritual by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Five Orange Pips by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Adventure Of The Veiled Lodger by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Adventure Of The Three Gables by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• The Valley Of Fear by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Genres

• Mystery — The book is part of the Sherlock Holmes series, which involves solving complex cases, highlighting the mystery genre.
• Detective Fiction — This is related to the story's main premise where the detective, Sherlock Holmes, solves cases.
• Crime Fiction — The story often involves crimes that need to be solved, making it part of the crime fiction genre.
• Adventure — The protagonist often goes through various adventures to solve his cases, including this one with the dancing men.

Tags

mystery · detective · Sherlock Holmes · Watson · cipher · crime · investigation · puzzle · Victorian · suspense · clue · encryption

More by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

• The Parish Magazine (1914)
• The Great Brown-Pericord Motor (1914)
• The Holocaust of Manor Place (1901)
• The Debatable Case of Mrs. Emsley (1901)
• The Love Affair of George Vincent Parker (1901)
• The Disintegration Machine (1927)
• The Bully of Brocas Court (1914)
• The Brown Hand (1914)
• All works by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle