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Folklore

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Saint Annes, England

Sand Dunes of St. Anne's

On moonless nights, it's said that you can still hear the church bell of a village that was swept out of the dunes and lost to the rising sea.
At the University of Edinburgh's graduation ceremony, a student is tapped with the Geneva Bonnet.
objects of intrigue

Before Harry Potter’s Sorting Hat, There Was the ‘Medieval Space Bonnet’

Legends swirl around the University of Edinburgh’s mysterious graduation bonnet.
Sarah Thomson May 16, 2024
aliens

Podcast: Gabbing Goblins with Colin Dickey

Author and Atlas Obscura columnist Colin Dickey takes us on a wild, alien-filled ride.
The Podcast Team May 16, 2024
Görlitz, Germany

The Klötzelmönch's Worried Mother Statue

This bust remembers the haunting local legend of a murderous monk.
Rumford, Maine

Paul Bunyan & Babe the Blue Ox

A larger-than-life dedication to the famous lumberjack and his loyal ox.
Panaji, India

Dona Paula's Tombstone

Legends of adultery, love affairs, and charity swirl around this mysterious 17th-century Portuguese woman.
Beginning in the 20th century, the hunt for the deadly wampus cat was on.
cryptozoology

The Child-Eating Wampus Cat Prowling the American South

Hide your dog; hide your children.
April White May 3, 2024
You can use any type of onion to make a calendar, but the Eszlingers prefer yellow.
farms

How to Consult an Onion Oracle

From the Midwest to a tiny town in Italy, the tradition of weather-predicting onions lives on.
Roxanne Hoorn May 3, 2024
The capelobo is said to stalk Brazil's dense rainforests—always looking for its next victim.
cryptozoology

The Blood-Sucking Capelobo Haunts Brazil’s Dense Forests

The humanoid anteater slurps its victim’s gray matter as if devouring termites in a mound.
April White May 2, 2024
Standing no taller than a 10-year-old, the Yara ma tha who watches from the forest canopy—always ready to pounce on its next victim.
cryptozoology

The Child-Eating Bloodsucker of Aboriginal Australian Nightmares

The Yara ma tha who is more terrifying than any vampire.
April White May 1, 2024
animals

Rabbits Are Creatures of the Underworld According to Ancient Fears

From Ancient Egypt to 'Donnie Darko', beware the bunny.
Charis McGowan May 1, 2024
The horse-headed visage of La Siguanaba may just be your last sight.
cryptozoology

Beware La Siguanaba, Latin America's Murderous, Horse-Headed Beauty

Do not follow the woman in white.
April White April 30, 2024
A dingonek has seemingly impenetrable, armadillo-like scales, a powerful tail, and very sharp teeth.
cryptozoology

The Man-Eating Dingonek Lurks Beneath East Africa’s Rivers

The 18-foot-long, dog-headed beast-fish didn't seem so unbelievable to Africa's early white colonizers.
April White April 29, 2024
Warnford, England

Grave of George Lewis

This gravestone tells the tragic tale of its occupant's death.
Artist's impression of the Milky Way.
science

Podcast: Marching Through the Galaxy With Moiya McTier

The award-winning astrophysicist and folklorist takes us on a tour of the Milky Way.
The Podcast Team March 21, 2024
A 1908 edition of the <em>Evening Star</em> newspaper covers mad stones in their various forms, and goes on to explain how scientists have found them to be "worthless."
objects of intrigue

The Tale of the Mad Stone, the One-Time 'Cure' for Rabies

Before vaccines, pseudoscientific folks remedies for the deadly virus involved mysterious animal-vegetable-mineral hybrids.
Colin Dickey March 7, 2024
A white church with four small turrets, two of which appear to twist
Curtea de Argeș, Romania

Curtea de Argeș Monastery

According to a gruesome legend, an architect sacrificed his wife to build this spectacular, 16th-century cathedral.
Skyros, Greece

Vrykolakonisia (Vampire Islands)

The alleged vampires after which these islets are named may have actually been plague victims.