Mention alchemy to most people and they’ll either think of the philosopher’s stone. Or they’ll think about turning lead into gold. Alchemy was actually a worldview, according to the oldest texts written in Greek. They came to Europe via the Middle East after being translated into Arabic. Robert Allen Bartlett makes the claim that alchemy […]
folklore
John Dee: The Magician and the Devil in Manchester
What does an Elizabethan mathematician, a northern pre-industrial town, and Beelzebub have in common? Answer? They all appear in the tale of John Dee and the Devil in Manchester. Dee, immortalised in the opera Dr Dee by Blur’s Damon Albarn, is a fascinating figure in Britain’s occult history. He even inspired a deck of oracle cards, The […]
What were the three types of water nymphs in ancient Greece?
For the past three weeks we’ve been looking at mythology related to water and the sea. Our final aquatic jaunt will be to meet the three groups of water nymphs in ancient Greece. They are the Naiads, the Nereids, and the Oceanids. Just to make things more complicated, you also have undines. Wikipedia lists naiads, […]
Are the mermaids of folklore as vicious as legends suggest?
Mention ‘mermaids’ to most people and they might think of Ariel, the red-headed Little Mermaid of Disney’s 1989 classic. Or, if they’re old enough, they might think of Daryl Hannah in Splash! Or maybe they’ve been keeping up with the casting news for Disney’s live-action remake of The Little Mermaid. Congratulations to Halle Bailey for […]
Are selkies as dangerous as mermaids and sirens?
Selkies appear alongside mermaids and sirens as sea dwelling folk that humans might encounter. But are the selkies as dangerous as their singing counterparts? At the most basic level, selkies are shapeshifters. They take the form of seals in the sea and humans on land. Tales of the selkie appear most often in the Orkney […]
How To Make A Fairy Friendly Garden
The notion of fairies at the bottom of the garden is nothing new. It’s partly inspired by the now infamous Cottingley fairies, created by a pair of bored sisters using a camera and fairy illustrations. The notorious fake photos of the Cottingley fairies sold for £20,000 in October 2018. But the lure of fairies in […]
