Fans reenact Sherlock Holmes death scene at Swiss waterfall

Members of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London traveled to Switzerland's Reichenbach Falls on 3 May to reenact the confrontation between Sherlock Holmes and Professor James Moriarty. The society members wore Victorian capes, deerstalker hats and period gowns during the event.

They followed part of the route described in the 1893 story "The Final Problem" and traveled through Switzerland in vintage buses before boarding a cog railway to the waterfall.

Background of the original story In the original story, Holmes disappears over the edge of the falls with Moriarty, leaving Dr. John Watson to discover a farewell letter. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle intended the scene to permanently end the detective series because he believed the stories overshadowed his historical writing.

Readers at the time cancelled magazine subscriptions, wore black armbands in mourning and protested the character's death. Conan Doyle later brought Holmes back in "The Adventure of the Empty House," revealing that the detective had staged his death.

Museum and cultural legacy The Sherlock Holmes Museum at 221B Baker Street has drawn visitors since it opened in 1990. The museum displays items including Holmes' violin, chemistry set and a revolver inside a hollowed-out book. The stories, written between 1887 and 1927, established conventions of modern detective fiction such as forensic deduction and logical analysis.

They have been adapted for stage, screen and comic books worldwide. A new prequel series titled "Young Sherlock" was released earlier this year on Amazon Prime.