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Inviting Sin-Eaters to a Funeral: Fact or Folklore?
Sin-eaters appear in Welsh records back to the 1680s. Though there is some dispute as to whether the custom was genuine, or misinterpreted by an over…
6 years, 3 months ago
Cemetery superstitions: How to avoid bad luck in a graveyard
Cemeteries are either fascinating monuments to social history, or eerie gardens populated by the dead. There are also a plethora of superstitions tha…
6 years, 3 months ago
Roses are Red: The Sinister Side of Valentine's Day Folklore
Sending mean cards? Eating mashed earthworms? Using jack o’lanterns to light medieval love banquets? They’re all surprising yet vaguely sinister ways…
6 years, 3 months ago
Premature Burial: Lived Once, Buried Twice
Fears around premature burial were very real in earlier centuries, leading to the invention of devices like the cemetery bell. But how many of the st…
6 years, 3 months ago
Moths in Folklore: Bringers of Death and Letters
Moths are the darker twin of the butterfly, representing death, bad omens, and...getting letters! They're also linked to urban legends through the fi…
6 years, 3 months ago
Rats in Folklore: Signs of Bad Luck and Harbingers of Doom
Many associate rats with portents of doom or incoming bad luck. But how else do they appear in folklore and superstition?
Find out more about them i…
6 years, 4 months ago
Bats in Folklore: Vampires, Familiars and Death Omens
Bats are fascinating creatures and they're helpful to humans. But they fall foul of old folklore and superstitions about them - people once saw them …
6 years, 4 months ago
Boost your New Year with Twelfth Night folklore!
The presents have long been opened. No one can find anything decent to watch on TV. It feels weird to still say 'Merry Christmas' so we've all switch…
6 years, 4 months ago
What is first-footing and can it improve your year?
It's almost the turn of a new year, and while many of us are thinking of setting resolutions for the year ahead, others are planning how to make it t…
6 years, 4 months ago
A Ghost Story for Christmas
Telling ghost stories at Christmas is a time-honoured tradition, from Charles Dickens and his Christmas Carol, to the BBC adaptations of MR James gho…
6 years, 5 months ago