Sherlock

Sherlock Holmes is a fictional consulting detective created by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Debuting in A Study in Scarlet (1887), Holmes serves as a master of deduction who operates primarily in London and its environs. He is aided by Dr. John H. Watson, a former army surgeon who serves as his friend, flatmate, and chronicler. Holmes’s methods emphasize careful observation, logical reasoning, and the use of forensics, chemistry, and disguise. He rarely uses violence and instead solves cases through conjecture and inquiry, often described as “the game is afoot.”

Holmes’s residence is 221B Baker Street, London, where he investigates a wide range of crimes, from thefts to murders. His chief adversary is Professor James Moriarty, described as the “Napoleon of crime,” although he faces other recurring figures such as Inspector Lestrade and Mrs. Hudson, among others.

In Doyle’s canon, three elements anchor the character: a network of short stories and novels, a distinctive deductive approach, and a partnership with Watson. The four novels are A Study in Scarlet, The Sign of the Four, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and The Valley of Fear. The short stories appeared in the collections The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1892), The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (1894), The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1905), His Last Bow (1917), and The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes (1927).

Holmes has been adapted extensively for stage, film, and television, shaping the modern image of the detective. Notable portrayals include Basil Rathbone’s era of films and contemporary series such as BBC’s Sherlock with Benedict Cumberbatch and CBS’s Elementary with Jonny Lee Miller. The character has had a lasting influence on detective fiction and popular culture, exemplifying deduction and scientific reasoning in crime solving.