#folklore

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Mother Shipton's Cave, in Knaresborough, Yorkshire, has a curious habit of turning items to stone. If you hang an object under where a spring seeps over an outcrop of rock, it can turn to stone in just a few weeks. The mineral-rich waters have petrified numerous teddy bears, but also Victorian top hats, broomsticks, socks, shoes, a toy lobster, a cowboy hat of John Wayne's, a handbag of Agatha Christie, Queen Anne's shoes and a Victorian parasol. Local legend claims Mother Shipton - a famous prophetess and enchanter - was born in the cave.

A large outcrop of rock surrounded by trees and ivy and dripping with the waters of the spring. Numerous petrified items are hanging from it, including a toy lobster, a shoe and a model of a head.

The Cerne Abbas Giant is a figure of a naked, club-wielding man cut into a chalk hillside near the village of Cerne Abbas, Dorset. Several ideas have been put forward to explain the carving. One theory claims he represents the Celtic god Nodens, who was also sometimes depicted naked and carrying a club. Some claim the figure is Roman - depicting the hero Heracles - while others believe he's a Civil War satire on Oliver Cromwell. Some think the giant dates to the Dissolution of the Monasteries and is supposed to satirise the last abbot of Cerne Abbey. This abbot was said to be prone to two deadly sins. One, the sin of anger, is symbolised by the club raised above the giant's head. The second sin is represented by his other 'raised club'.

Figure of a naked giant carved into a steep, green hillside. The giant is outlined in white due to the chalk beneath the turf. The giant has a large erect penis and is waving a club over his head.

Kinder Scout, the highest point in Derbyshire, is sometimes seen as a kind of inland Bermuda Triangle, where planes crash or vanish in mysterious circumstances. Apparently, over 50 have gone down in the area since World War II and the moors are littered with aircraft debris. Some even claim to have seen UFOs crashing there. Locals speak of frequently hearing planes going down and
are prepared to believe they are phantom aircraft. Hikers often talk of feeling spooked by the place.

The mountain of Kinder Scout - a large, flat-topped protrusion - seen from the Pennine Way. The photo shows bleak moorland on a dark, overcast day. A paved path runs in the direction of the mountain.

In 1954, in the Gorbals, one of Glasgow's poorest neighbourhoods, a rumour spread through the schools that a vampire with iron teeth was hiding out in the city's Southern Necropolis. Hundreds of children armed themselves with axes, staves and knives and searched the vast Victorian graveyard for the fiend, who they accused of having killed and eaten two boys. They hunted among the headstones, angels and gothic mausoleums, as fiery flashes from a local iron works lit up the scene in apocalyptic colour. The search for the Gorbals Vampire would make the national press and even have questions asked in Parliament. My article: https://www.davidcastleton.net/gorbals-vampire-glasgow-southern-necropolis/

A sculpted female figure in Glasgow's Southern Necropolis, entangled with ivy.

Greetings, Myth Lovers! In celebration of we are asking for your favourite and podcasts this week. Do you listen to any myth-themed that you enjoy or are you creating one yourself? Tell us about the and why we will love it and use the hashtag for boosts. See you soon! 🎙

@mythology @folklore @TarkabarkaHolgy @juergen_hubert @curiousordinary @wihtlore @FairytalesFood @bevanthomas @FinnFolklorist @Godyssey @GaymerGeek @starrytimepod @ljwrites

Photo of a white marble bust wearing headphones in front of a lavender-coloured background.

It's said the people of the Isle of Portland, Dorset, have traditionally had a fear of rabbits, with some older residents even refusing to utter the word. This fear apparently comes from the area's heritage of quarrying Portland stone. If a burrowing creature appears in a quarry, you can be sure the ground is pretty soft somewhere - raising the possibility of workers getting buried under tonnes of rock and soil. It's even claimed that posters for the 2005 Wallace and Gromit film 'The Curse of the Were-Rabbit' had to be altered for the locality.

A light-furred rabbit seated on a patch of grass.