Bunworth Banshee, Fairy Legends and Traditions of the South of Ireland by Thomas Crofton Croker, 1825 This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. This applies to Australia, the European Union and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 70 years.
The Banshee
An Irish malevolent female Faerie that is often connected to a family even though she lives in the woods, bog, or forest. They are known to scream like a howling wind or a screeching of an owl plummeting to its prey when a family member’s death is imminent and will continue onwards long after the death in mourning. This is where the common phrase “scream like a banshee” comes from. Some blame the Keener women who wail in mourning at funerals gave birth to the legend of the banshee. They seem to be attached to families that have the Ó or Mac prefix. They harber omens of death and messages from the underworld. Their main purpose is to warn of death by beginning to wail if someone is about to die. Some say they only warn if someone is about to die in a violent means such as a tragic accident, murder, or catastrophe. They are not always seen, mostly heard, especially at night. Some claim the island winds that Ireland, Scotland, and England experiences howling through the windows, shutters, or glass panes sound like a banshee and is the root of the noise. I can attest every windy night I’ve spent in Ireland, I’ve heard what I imagine to be the wail of the banshee. In fact as I write this, the wind is making such noises coming through the windows and wood work. Another logical explanation is that of the owl – Screech Owls have a similar sound to that of banshees and during their nocturnal hunts are known for their chilling screech.
However there are those that claim to have seen them, and when they do, they often appear as an ugly scary looking hag or old woman. Others claim they shape-shift and while can appear as an old hag, can also appear as a young beautiful woman. In addition to appearing as an old hag, they have been described as wearing grey or white gowns with long pale hair that they brush with a silver comb, though this could come from mixing them up with mermaids says scholar Patricia Lysaght. Some Celtic lore suggests that banshees originated from the death of a wash woman who died in childbirth and is why banshees are often seen washing or preening next to pools or fjords in the forest or along the banks of a spring or river. Though this could be a confusion of them with naiads. They are sometimes described as having winds and being in flight, while other legends confine them to walking the land in the dark of night. Some say they’ve been blended by monks descriptions of them with Lilith. Lilith is often depicted as a voluptuous female with feather like hair, wings, owl-like feet, perched atop two male lions binding them together by their waists. Some legends claim the manifestation of a banshee at first would transform into the Irish battle Goddess known as the Morrigan. She has also appeared in anamorphic forms such as a stoat, hare, hooded crow, or weasel. There are counterparts of the Banshee throughout the Western world, such as in Scotland as the “bean sith” or “bean-nighe” that is often seen washing blood stained armor or clothes of those about to die. Reports of sightings of bean sith and banshees were abundant even as of recent times. They are also found in Welsh mythology, Norse mythology, and American folklore.
A report from Kings James I of Scotland in 1437 claimed he was approached by an Irish seer who was later identified as a banshee. She foretold of his murder at the instigation of the Earl of Atholl. Irish history and mythology tell tales of many prophets who were believed to be banshees that advise the local courts of Irish Kings, and the great houses of Ireland. On Rathlin island, legend describes the banshee’s cry as a “thin screeching sound somewhere between the wail of a woman and the moan of an owl.” In Leinster, there are tales of the “bean chaointe” whose wail is so piercing that it shatters glass. In Kerry, tales report of the scream as a low pleasant singing of a song. In Tyrone, reports as the sound resembling two boards being struck together. They have been said to have cried during the death of Brian Boru. 18th century C.E. American folklore talk about banshee tales in Tar River, North Carolina, though could be the report of a ghoul that was mislabeled a banshee. In South Dakota, a banshee is said to wail upon a hill near Watch Dog Butte. None of the American legends associate the wail with a oracle of death. Bibliography / Recommended Reading:
Description: Chupacabra comes from the Spanish “t?upa?ka??a” from “chupar” meaning “to suck” and “cabra” as “goat”, translating to “goat sucker”. This crypt-id belongs primarily to modern Latin American folklore, even though there have been reports in China, Russia, and other parts of the world. It is found primarily in Latin American or Spanish communities and their associated folklore. It is rumored to attack its victims and drinkings its blood, especially goats, sheep, chickens, or other livestock. Often described to be a bi-pedal creature standing at three feet to a meter tall and covered with short gray hair spiking out of its back. (1995 Puerto Rico report) Descriptions changed by the late 1990’s to a Chupacabra being a four footed creature representing a dog or coyote with mange stalking livestock in rural communities. A modern day rancher’s boogeyman. It has also been described as a very heavy creatures sometimes upwards in size of that of a small bear with a row of spines reaching from the back of the neck to the base of its tail. The reports in Puerto Rico and Mexico show where goats or sheep were found with puncture wounds completely drained of blood. These Chupacabra were described as being bear-like, dog-like, rodent-like, or reptile-like with long snouts, large fangs, leathery or scaly greenish-gray skin and consumed with a nasty odor. Another depiction that is common is description as a reptile-like creature with leathery or scaly greenish gray skin, sharp spines, or quills running down its back, standing from 3-4 feet high, standing or hopping in like fashion of a kangaroo. Reports of it being able to hop upwards of 20 feet have been noted. Many of these characteristics seem to have dog, rat, or panther-like noses and faces, often with a forked tongue and large fangs. They apparently screech and hiss when scared and can be noted to have a sulfuric decaying flesh stench to them. When they screech, it has been reported that their eyes glow an unusual red that causes nausea to the onlooker. Other depictions are that of a manged coyote or strange breed of dog, hairless with a pronounced spinal ridge, eye sockets, fangs, and claws. When Chupacabras bite their prey, they apparently leave three holes in the shape of upside down triangles or through one to two holes, draining their victims of all their blood, not unlike that of the attacked prey of a vampire.
Illustration by Michael Lee 2007
History: In 1975 there were animal attacks found with puncture wounds in the town of Moca, Puerto Rico and was originally blamed on the El vampiro de Moca (The Vampire of Moca). Experts originally believed these horrid deaths were done by a local Satanic cult. However, after the 1995 reports of chupacabra, these incidents were backdated as potential Chupacabra attacks. The first documented report in Puerto Rico was in March 1995 stating eight sheep were found dead each with three puncture wounds in the chest area and completely drained of blood. A few months later, the eyewitness Madelyn Tolentino reported seeing the creatures in Canóvanas, Puerto Rico. It was in this area that over 150 farm and domesticated animals were reportedly killed in the same manner. Reports of the beast originate to approximately being reported since the mid 1990’s and were first reported in Puerto Rico. To date (2012), there have been over 200 original chupacabra reports filed in Puerto Rico alone. Early 2004 and 2005 there were numerous reports of Chupacabra from South America, as well as Puerto Rico, and most recently in Mexico. August of 2006, in Turner, Maine came up with a roadkill carcass that looked like an evil-looking rodent-like animal with fangs. This was photographed and witness reports documented. However, reporters claimed that the carcass was picked clean by vultures before experts could examine it. The 2006 report in Russia spoke of a beast that killed animals and sucked their blood. This was the case with 32 turkeys in a Russian village. Nearby in another village reported 30 sheep killed in the same manner. In Cuero, Texas on July 14, 2007 – a odd looking coyote corpse was found, and identified as a mangy coyote, though most of the people dealing with the corpse were convinced it was that of a chupacabra.
Wikipedia commons: Public Domain image
Habitat: Reports of the mythical beast abound especially in Mexico, Puerto Rico, the Southwestern region of the United States as well as China, Russia, and the Philippines since the early 1990’s. They have also been reported in Dominican Republic, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, and Brazil.
Science: Some scientists claim what many believe are chupacabra are simply coyotes with severe mange. The majority of samples turned in for scientific study turned out to be coyotes suffering from very severe cases of mange. Mange is a severely painful potentially fatal skin disease that causes the victim’s hair to fall out and the skin to shrivel. This is believed to be caused by the the parasite known as Sarcoptes scabiei. This is the same cause of scabies in humans (an itchy rash). This mite burrows under the skin and secretes eggs and waste creating the inflammatory response from the host’s immune system. Further, scientists claim that the accusation of the chupacabra attacking livestock is understandable because animals with mange are often quite debilitated and if they have a hard time catching normal prey, they may go for something a bit easier like livestock. Others believe that this legend came out of horror movies or alien-horror tales that in 1995 premiered in Puerto Rico. Movies such as “Species” which opening dates corresponded to the date of the first sightings of these creatures. The spikes reportedly coming out of the back are quite similar to that depicted with the aliens in “Species”.
Evidence: July 2004, a rancher in San Antonio, Texas killed a hairless dog-like creature that attacked his livestock. He called it the “Elmendorf Beast” and after analyzed by the University of California at Davis was believed to be a coyote with sarcoptic mange. Two more carcasses found in the same area that October were defined as the same. Another creature caught in a trap in Coleman, Texas was analyzed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife to be another coyote with mange even though it looked like a cross between a hairless dog, rat, and kangaroo. According to the episode: Lost Tapes: Chupacabra was a tale of the Ramirez family in Sonora Mexico in July 2006 when they got two gifts from family in the States … a video camera from their daughter and a Coyote deal for their family to be smuggled across the border. They were driven down to the border by the Coyote, let out to hike across the desert (husband, wife, and young daughter) for a dangerous 4-day foot journey. In Nogales, Arizona, on 7/7/2006 at 8:29 pm, drone thermals from the US Border security reported 4 illegal immigrants crossing believed to be the Ramirez family, and one with an appearance of a dog chasing and attacking them as the fourth thermal surveillance cam figure. It disappears. Videotape files recorded the attack. Agents Tim Valentine and Martin Santino received the report and responded. 8:33 pm, Nogales – Arizona: Found the dead bodies of the husband and wife, both with 3 puncture marks/wounds and no blood. As they checked the wash, heard growling in the bushes, believed to be the Chupacabra. They found Ava, the young daughter, unhurt and terrified hiding in the brush. When they brought her to safety, she just kept saying “its out there”. The agents heard noises and found lots of dead animals in the ditch, all drained of blood, and smelling horrendously. The agents pursued the growling and noises, not able to find the culprit. The official cause of death for the Ramirez family was unknown. There are many unexplained death along the border. In 2007 there were reports of 300 sheep dead and drained of blood in Boyaca. Purportedly there was a specimen captured and analyzed by the National University of Columbia. That same year, three animals found dead in Cuero, Texas that resemble the fabled Chupacabra. Phyllis Canion of Cuero, Texas kept one of these corpses heads as evidence of the “chupacabra”. Experts originally cited it as a head of a gray fox with mange. It was run through DNA analysis in November of 2007 and deduced to be that of a mange infested coyote. She reported that nearly 30 chickens on her farm had been taken by these monsters over the years, and this is what made her connect the dots to the carcasses she found as being Chupacabra. The purported “coyote with mange” however had grayish-blue mostly hairless skin with large fanged teeth. In Capiz, Philippines, on January 11, 2008 residents reported eight chickens killed and spotted a chupacabra looking animal attacking the chickens. Back in Cuero, Texas on August 8, 2008 a Dewitt County Deputy by the name of Brandon Riedel took video footage of a Chupacabra-like animal running around the back roads with his dashboard camera, it was the size of a coyote, hairless, long snout, short front legs, long back legs. His supervisor claimed it to be a coyote species that was not unlike the one documented in 2007 by University researchers. This footage appeared on the SyFy channel’s 2011 episode of Fact or Faked: Paranormal files. They cross-checked the video to see if it was faked, and it was not. September 2009, CNN aired a report of video footage of another unidentified dead animal provided by a local taxidermist suggesting it was a Chupacabra or a genetically mutated coyote. This carcass was sold to the Lost World Museum placed on display and being researched by a unknown university. July 2010 had a report of animal control officers in Hood County, Texas killing chupacabras and spotting in several locations. Again, researchers found the coyote-dog hybrid to be a victim of mange and parasites. That same year in December, Nelson County Kentucky produced another corpse of a so-called Chupacabra, killed by Mark Cothren, well photographed and documented by local news. This creature was depicted as having a long tail, large ears, whiskers, and body mass of like that of a house cat. The body was handed over to Department of Fish and Wildlife. July 4, 2011 in Lake Jackson, Texas had another report of a chupacabra in a back yard by Jeff Crabtree. Once news media covered the story and ridiculed him for his claim, he backed down and stated it was a coyote with mange. It was filmed at a later date and experts deduced it was definitely a coyote with mange. Sightings:http://www.technogypsie.com/faerie/?p=22
Folklore Local legends tie the chupacabra in with gargoyles from medieval Europe brought to South America on Spanish Galleons. Others says it is a product of secret government genetic experiments in the Lauga mountains in Puerto Rico on a US army base in 1997 that escaped during an electrical storm. Others claim them to be aliens related to UFO sightings in the same area. Some believe that the Chupacabra was genetically created by mad scientists who turned coyotes into “goat suckers” by means of genetically altered parasites. Another theory is that an escaped troop of rhesus monkeys took over Puerto Rico, some standing up on their hind legs, and that those were the purported Chupacabras. Scientists do back up that there was a group of rhesus monkeys used in blood experiments in Puerto Rico during that time and they could have gotten loose. In New Orleans there is a so-called lover’s lane called “Grunch Road” that is well noted for sightings of “grunches” that seem to share description with chupacabras. In Chile they are called the “Peuchen” and have chupacabra-like characteristics, except also being described as winged snakes. Modern Urban Lore and popularity: Not to only focus on documentaries and news reports, Chupacabra sightings have unleashed numerous films and horror movies of the subject. The X-files episode “El Mundo Gira”; a Bones episode; an episode of Dexter (season 2: “Got your Goat”); Generator Rex episode “Outpost”; the Lost files; an episode of “The Walking Dead” as episode “Chupacabra”; TV series “Ugly Americans” depicting them living in New York; CNN Ed Lavandera “Bigfoot of Latino Culture”; Scooby-Doo and the Monster of Mexico, Chupacabra: Dark Seas; Guns of El Chupacabra; El Chupacabras; Vuelve el Chupacabra; as well as being in mystery novels and scientific books; songs; video games such as “Red Dead Redemption” or “Undead Nightmare”; anime; comic “My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Twilight Sparkle and Flutter shy” get pursued by a chupacabra and fights with its arch enemies vampiric jackalopes; and other media.
References/recommended reading:
CNN: May 2, 2006 “Illegal Immigrants frightened by raid rumors, George Bush”; “The Decider”; “Happy Slapping”.
Discovery News “Chupacabra mystery solved. http://news.discovery.com/animals/pets/chupacabra-mystery-solved.htm. Web site referenced Mary 2013.
Fox News 2007 “Texas Woman Claims to Have Found Mythical Chupacabra”. Associated Press. November 2, 2007.
Lost Tapes: “Chupacabra”. Watched March 2013.
Monster Quest 2008 “Chupacabra”
National Geographic 2010 “Chupacabra Evolution Halloween Science Monsters” http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/10/101028-chupacabra-evolution-halloween-science-monsters-chupacabras-picture/. Web site referenced April 2013.
Radford, Benjamin 2011 “Tracking the Chupacabra: The Vampire Beast in Fact, Fiction, and Folklore.” ISBN 978-0-8263-5015-2
Wagner, Stephen 2007 “On the Trail of the Chupacabras”. “Encounters with Chupacabras”.
This brings me back to a crazed David Icke conspiracy theorist named Purple Crow in Vancouver BC when I think of lizard men, or the famous telvision show “V”. The Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp or the Sumter Lizard Man, the Lizard Man of Lee County, or the South Carolina Lizard Man are all titles of a mythological modern-day creature haunting the backwoods and swamps of South Carolina. Native American legend with oral lore from 1972 in the area is claimed that the Inzignanin near Chicora by the South/North Carolina border told of fishy humanoids covered in scales, 5 feet tall, with fairly inflexible tales 18 inches long, and webbed hands. He was first reported being seen on June 29, 1988 and ever since has been popping up in urban folklore. He has been described as a reptilian humanoid cryptid living either in the South Carolina swamps or within abandoned subways or sewers in towns near the swamps. He is described as standing over 7 feet tall, bipedal, muscular, covered in scaly lizard-like skin with dark hair (similar to big foot). He has been said to have only three toes on each foot and three fingers on each hand and maybe flaunting a tail. In June of 1988, a 17 year old boy named Christopher Davis claimed to have been attacked by the creature on his way home from work when he was changing a flat. He claimed the creature tried to grab at his car and climbed onto his roof as he sped off to escape the attack. He claimed the creature damaged his side mirror and scratched his roof. He claimed it was lizard like with red glowing eyes, three big fingers, long black nails, and green rough skin – all green and angry, grunting, and chasing him. That month there were several more reports by others of being attacked, with unusual scratches and bite marks found on cars parked close to the swamp, all within three mile radius of the swamps of Bishopville, South Carolina. Police at the time were perplexed, trying to balance between disbelief and humor to concern and intrigue, thinking it was actually a bear not a lizard man. Two weeks later, the sheriff’s department made several plaster casts of what appeared to be three-toed footprints, measuring 14 inches in length, that were later labelled unclassifiable. They were cited as not belonging or matching any other footprints of any other recorded animal on record. Tourists and cryptid hunters began plaguing South Carolina in search of the beast, with even radio stations such as WCOS offering a million dollar reward to anyone who could capture it alive. On August 5th, an airman from Shaw Air Force base named Kenneth Orr, filed a report with the police claiming to have encountered the creature on Highway 15 and having shot/wounded it. He gave to evidence several scales and some blood. He later confessed to inventing the sighting after being cited for unlawfully carrying a gun and a misdemeanor offense for filing a false police report. 2004 reports of a creature trying to snatch and drag a young girl into the river was blamed on the Lizard Man, but later theorized to have been an alligator. In 2005, the South Carolina Lottery used the creature in their television advertisements, and later that year a woman from Newberry claimed to have seen two Lizard man creatures outside her home. In 2008, Bob and Dixie Rawson, a couple in Bishopville South Carolina reported being attacked and damage to their car with traces of blood and claims that these creatures killed their cats. Police claim it was a wolf or coyote. After investigating the claim, E.J. Melvin, the Lee County Sheriff discovered a dead cow and coyote in a field next to the Rawson homestead. History Channel’s “MonsterQuest” investigated the legend, showing that it was not possible for a canine to have caused such damage on the Rawson’s car, it would have taken over 300 lbs of torgue to cause that kind of damage. By 2010, the show “Destination Truth” investigated the legend claiming the footprints were a hoax and the creature fabricated as a means of tourism, extensive local merchandising, and fandom. Lee County Chamber of Commerce hosts a 5 km Lizard Man run, sells Lizard Man shirts, and a Lizard patrol shirt. Another report in 2011 by a couple claiming to have had their car mauled by something tall with similar damage as the others. Reptilian humanoid creatures have been reported through history – the Greek God of the cold north wind, Boreas was described as a winged man with serpents instead of legs; Crecrops I was a half-man, half-snake mythical king of Athens; Chinese Mythology has reptilian humaoid dragon kings as well as a serpentine figure named Fu Xi; There is the snake God named Glycon who has a human head; The Lord of the Tree of Life from the Epic of Gilgamesh links Ningizzida with the water serpent constellation Hydra; the Chinese Dragon thunder God Shenlong is depicted with a human head and dragon’s body; the Ancient Egyptian God Sobek has a crocodile head; the Aztec God Tlaloc has snake fangs; the Greek “Father of all monsters” Typhon was a man from the waist up with a mass of seething vipers from the waist down; the Zoroastrian God Zahhak grows a serpent on either of his shoulders; The wife of Typhon is a half-woman half-snake Goddess named Echidna; in Portugese and galician folklore there is a snake goddess named Moura with long blond hair and a snake body; and of course MEdusa and the Gorgons in Greek mythology; the Lamia – a Greek female demon as half-woman, half snake; Islamic mythology depicts some djinn as half human and half-serpentine; Indian Naga were reptilian beings living underground and interacting with humans atop; the Genesis creation of the Serpent identified with Satan was known to be either male/female in mythology.
Now that we’re residents of Columbia, South Carolina … its time to look into the legends and lore of these intriguing lands. The Legend of the Third Eye Man was the first to find, whether it be an urban legend or a true creature or spirit, time will tell. Apparently there is a massive network of catacombs and steam tunnels underneath the University of South Carolina. Haunting these halls is supposedly a phantom cyclops. He was first spotted on November 12th, 1949 on the campus of USC. Records state he is a strange looking man dressed in bright silver who was spotted opening a man-hole cover on the corner of Green street and Sumter street, opposite the haunted historic Long street Theater. He became known as “the sewer man” at that point. Six months later on April 7th, 1950 he re-surfaced and was sighted again by a university police office on patrol who discovered two mutilated chickens behind the theater. He reported chicken parts to be strewn all over the loading dock. When he returned to his car to report the scene, thinking it was a fraternity prank, he returned to the scene to find a silver man huddled over the chicken parts. He shined his flashlight on him to find a very disturbing face, grotesque in color and shape, and a third eye in the middle of his forehead like that of a cyclops, staring back at him. He retreated from the scene, called backup, and was laughed at when nothing was found on the docks but a few feathers and chicken bones. By the 1960’s students started hunting down and invading the tunnels. When a fraternity had three pledges down in the tunnels for a challenge, from the basement of Gambrell, they ran into a crippled looking man dressed in all silver and reported the sighting to the police. He charged at the students with a lead pipe, knocking student Matthew Tabor to the ground, suffering minor cuts and shock. The first official man-hunt for this attacker took place coming up with nothing, but that started the tedious task of sealing off many of the entrances to the catacombs and making them off limits. The catacombs do exist, as photos of them are rampant online. Whether or not this mysterious hominid exists is a whole different story. Legend tells that these tunnels link various venues of the government to the USC campus allowing undetected and protected transportation between them, some say even to Fort Jackson. Some say they go back to the days of the confederate war. Many say the Three Eyed Man is also the ghoul that haunts the Longstreet Theatre, and instead of living in the tunnels, he lives in the theater late at night. He has played the terror and villian in many a fraternity initiation through the years.
More info: http://www.mostlyghosts.com/index.php/the-third-eye-man-of-usc/ http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM6JAB_The_Legend_of_the_Third_Eye_Man_Columbia_South_Carolina
Tiveragh Hill / Fairy Hill of Cushendall, Northern Ireland. June 2, 2012: Irish Folklore Quest – Northern Ireland, UK. (c) 2012 – photography by Leaf McGowan/Thomas Baurley
The Tiveragh Fairy Hill Cushendall, Northern Ireland
Legend and lore have it that this very broad-sided hill with steep sides overlooking the small village of Cushendall in Northern Ireland is the gateway to Tir na nOg. A place very well known locally to be haunted by faeries, leprechauns, elves, and pixies … this giant hill is a natural fortress all on its own and easily seen to be claimed as a stronghold by the fae.
Fairy tales mention many stories about it rising on pillars during the twilight evening with a glimmering merriment of faeries frolicking and dining. Many believe that the wee folk live in this hill accessed by a nearby cave. As the warning goes, if ye are mortal, regardless of how appeasing the faerie music may sound, if you wander within, you’ll never be seen again on this plane of existence. Time holds a whole different rhythm in Faerieworlds.
We, however, of fae persuasion, did venture up the hill at the turn of twilight just as the sun went down. We spied the hill with visions of faerie impressions while across the valley atop Ossian’s Grave – the Megalithic tomb believed to be the burial spot of the fabled poet and bard Oisin. Now Oisin was lured into fae, into Tir na nOg, where he lived until he requested to return to the land of mortals to visit his family. Of course due to faerie time, he returned several hundred years later to find them all gone and deceased. He fell off his faerie steed and became a blind old man wandering these fields, eventually dying.
If the faerie tale is accurate, this would be the hill he would have ridden out of, and across the valley would have been his grave overlooking it … curious and more curious. Midway along the way up the base of the hill is one of the most magnificent Faerie Thorn Trees I’ve ever encountered. As usual with these faerie hills, I always find a wee hole just big enough for the Victorian-sized fae to enter within, usually lined with heavy rocks, making it look peculiarly like a miniature mine rather than an animal hole.
We climbed atop as the sun went down, empowered by the feelings of the ancient ones. Archaeologically, though, this may be a massive hillfort. I’m looking for those records and will post my findings here.
And their playing pitch was hardly as big As my Uncle Barney’s potato rig; And me there watchin’ them puck and clout At the back o’ the wall with my eyes stuck out.
When all at once, like the squeal of a hare, A wee voice shouted, “Who’s that up there?” And a bit off a thing about nine – inch tall Came climbing up to the top of the wall.
And he stood there; he stood about pot -size With his two wee fingers up at my eyes, And its God’s own truth that I’m speakin’ mind ye, “Get out o’ that,” says he, “or I’ll blind ye!”
Aye that’s what he said, “I’ll blind ye,” says he, And by Jing what he said was enough for me, Did I run? Aye surely; I didn’t miss – And I haven’t seen Tiveragh from that to this.
~ H.Browne
The Fairy Hill Tiveragh is a fairy hill and near to Cushendall, And nobody goes there at night, no nobody at all. The hill is small, the sides are steep. And I have heard it said That flickering lights go in and out While everyones in bed. And on the top two hawthorns grow, A white one and a red.
~ John Irvine Desmond
~ Yours truly, Leaf McGowan
Tiveragh Hill / Fairy Hill of Cushendall, Northern Ireland
These intriguing fortresses of old have always fascinated me conceptually once I read about them in the many legends and folklore of the Irish Faeries. However, it wasn’t until the last two years that I’ve had the chance to explore these raths of myths and tales in-depth and personally wondering if they are truly gateways into the Land of the Young, Tir Na Nog or the Faerie Otherworld. “Fairy Forts” are the names given especially by the Irish, Cornish, and other residents of the Isles around Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Britain who strongly believe in the faerie folk. This is a localized term for the “raths”, “ringforts”, “lios”, “hillforts”, “rounds”, “earthen mounds”, or circular dwellings found in England, Ireland, Scotland, Isle of Man, and Wales.
Fairy Forts / Ring Forts (People’s Park, Ireland)
Archaeologists will tell you these came to be around the late Iron Age and were used upwards to the domain of early Christianization of the land when the Island’s residents dwelled in circular structures (perhaps “roundhouses”) within earthen banks or ditches that were used for defense. These were believed to have been topped with wooden palisades, stone or wood buildings, roundhouses, or structures. Many archaeologists believe that these were primarily made of wooden structures that would have decayed, which is why none of the structures remained, leaving only vague circular marks in the landscape. These “fairy forts” or “raths” are simply large mounds of earth, clay, grass, hedges, bushes, gorse, and thorn that are circular in shape like that believed to be a round banked enclosure. Archaeology tells us the circular bank was formerly the base for a high fence or wall of sharpened logs, sometimes with or without a water-filled moat. Inside the circular enclosure, more often than not, are round wooden thatched dwellings. Also within this enclosure was kept livestock during bad weather and to prevent raiding. There are believed to be over 40,000 ring forts in Ireland alone. In 2009, a team of four photographers supported by Wales Arts International took a road trip across Western Ireland to record and photograph fairy forts. These can be seen at www.fairyfortproject.com. Actual “Sidhe,” or Hills, are most commonly interpreted as burial mounds, passage tombs, or tumuli. Human remains have been found in these to support archaeology. ~ Some claim the Tuatha de Danann were the “Danes” who were legendary “fort builders.”
Passage Tomb – Slieve Gullion Forest Park
However, this is disputed by many folklorists and archaeologists, as most of the forts took on Gaelic names. According to Archaeology, the forts are attributed to various times and races. Legend even attributes them to belong to the Firbolgs, Tuatha De Danann, the Celts, and the Vikings, as well as mythological individuals such as Aenghus, Eerish, Eir, Farvagh, Cuchuallain, Midir, Croaghan, ‘Lachtna (820-840 C.E.), Brian Boru (980-1014 C.E.), and King Conor (1242-1269 C.E.). Places throughout the Isles are named after faeries, banshees, and other beings or myths surrounding them. tells a different story opposing the archaeologists’ perspective. The land’s myths, legends, and lore tell that these ring forts were “fairy forts” blessed and protected with Druidic prayers, spells, and magic to protect the “faeries” that lived within or under them. Those who believe in Faeries do not alter or trespass on them.
Legend states that the Tuatha De Danann and Fir Bolg had originally inhabited Ireland as a mythical race of magical folk who dominated Ireland. Around the time of the Iron Age (oddly enough corresponding to archaeology’s dating of raths), when the Milesians came to Ireland and defeated the Tuatha De Danann, the Tuatha was forced to relocate to the Other World, A Faerie dimension, or down below the hills, to Middle Earth as an agreement that only the Milesians ~ the humans ~ could dwell above ground. The Faeries, the “Good Neighbours” had to move underground or to their “Faerie Isles”. They were to retreat into the hills or mounds called “sidhe” which became a word for the “faeries“. These were often described as circular barrows or ringforts. These “hollow hills” have traditionally become known as the home of Faeries. “Sidhe” in Gaelic means “people of the hills.”
According to the Book of Armagh, they are the Gods of the Earth known as the Tuatha de Danann. Sometimes seen as God/desses, other times as Druids or sorcerers, and on an odd occasion as aliens, the Tuatha have rich mythology firmly embedded into Irish lore. Some Irish call them the “Sidheog”. To many Christian groups, faeries are believed by some to be fallen angels who are too good ever to be allowed in Hell and too devilish to be accepted into Heaven. From these myths, these defensive forts were seen to be the domain of the Tuatha De Danann as entrances to their world. They are to be respected and avoided because of respect and fear of “war” retaking place between faeries and humans. The actual mounds are also seen as potential burial or sacred resting places.
As Archaeology has found many burials within such mounds, such as at Newgrange and Tara, hillforts and mounds are avoided out of superstition. A good farmer wouldn’t even mess with the moat, the walls, cut brush from it, remove stones, or damage it. If they did, hard luck and even death could follow. Most respected on these “fairy forts” were the white thorns, the ash, the gorse, or the “sceach” around its boundaries never to be cut for that would most likely lead to death. In MacCraith’s “Triumphs of Torlough” the “fairy forts” are labelled as the lodgings of appalling apparitions. Many stories of the hills lit up by strange lights at night. Sometimes, this is described as the hill rising up on pillars, opening to the night sky, revealing brilliant lights of Faeries processing from one hill to another, especially during Lammas tide (August 2nd through 7th). November 11th, during Hollantide, is when the Manx fear their Hogmen or Hillmen the most as it is the time these particular Fae choose to move from one hill to another.
Hill of Tara
Irish lore and ghost stories tell much about the supernatural stature of “Fairy forts.” Many believe “leprechauns” live in them and hide their pots of gold within the mounds as expressed in Rudyard Kipling’s 1906 novel “Puck of Pook’s Hill”. In addition to the Ringforts, Dolmen were considered faerie homes or dwellings. A legend tells of a lady who lived in one and became deranged, thought her lover was a dragon, and jumped at him. Many unexplained phenomena take place in or around the fairy forts. Local lore tells tales of a man who tried to blast down a dolmen resulting in a septic hand while the dolmen remained unscathed; the local astronomer who tried to blast the Inchiquin Barony dolmen was severely injured with his hand as well; a Templenaraha oratory demolition (which was in a ringfort) collapsed a calf shed onto its occupants for building the unstable structure; the 1840 tale of workmen at Dooneeva who were trying to level earthworks in a fairy fort had apparently turned up dead (though his mystic wife ran to a “fairy spot” to work magic to bring him back to life); The Lissardcarney and Ballyhee fairy forts in Templemaley Parish were always known to be faerie strongholds with troops of faeries garrisoned within them (1839 stories); Songs were reputedly heard from the Cahernanoorane in Inchiquin and Liskeentha near Noughaval; tales of faeries haunting the Tobersheefra holy well; the 1892 tale of Nihill a farmer who wrecked and removed the out wall of a triple stone fort near Quin leading to his father stricken with acute pain and only recovering from it when the work was stopped; a landlord losing the use of an eye from the dust of an explosion when blasting a rock in an earth fort being removed in northeast Clare; and in 2011 developer Sean Quinn found financial ruin after he moved a fairy fort.
Another tale tells of a cow that grazed in a fairy fort and was found with broken legs whose owner then ate its meat only to find the cow in the fairy fort a year later. The farmer was told by the faeries they substituted an old stray horse to make him believe it was his cow as they needed his cow’s milk, and they then let him take his cow home afterwhich he became very prosperous for the loan. Another tale tells of another farmer who couldn’t understand why none of the cows would enter the fairy fort on their property, and upon investigation by his son, found an old fairy in the fort who asked the man to help him get a young human girl to become his wife. The farmer’s son would not give a young girl to the old fairy but instead married the girl himself, leading to rage from the old fairie, who destroyed the farmer’s property. Outraged, the farmer’s son and the girl rode to her parent’s house to tell her three brothers. Her brothers then went to the fort to dig for the old fairy’s house, upon finding his sizeable flat stone, he begged them to save him his home, which they did in exchange for restoring for what he had taken. Some ringforts are more dangerous than others, such as in the case of the Croaghateeaun stone ring wall near Lisdoonvarna. One of the most modern cases of faerie wraith damaging faerie forts was believed to be the invocation of an ancient curse of the Hill of Tara when the government destroyed sites by the construction of the M3 Motorway. In 2007 the Minister for the Environment, Dick Roche supposed befell against bad financial luck after signing a order to destroy the Lismullion Henge. By Faerie wraith, he lost his job, was demoted, and held up by an armed gang in the Druids Glen Hotel. The Minister for Transport, Martin Cullen, afterward nearly got sucked out of a helicopter when the door fell off. A falling tree at Rath Lugh seriously injured the Chief Health and Safety officer. A worker was killed while being trapped at Fairyhouse, where there have been many accidents on that particular stretch of road. There is much concern about being taken by the fairies.
Fears from stories like these may be responsible for the incredible preservation of these forts, hills, raiths, and mounds across the countryside. In many areas, the raiths and fairy forts are protected by Irish law for heritage preservation, preventing construction or building within 30 meters of them. However, the Irish government and more giant corporations somehow skirt these laws often when they find the need to destroy them for construction projects or building motorways.
Drumdowney Fairy Fort in Ireland
Littering the landscape are also pathways that some call “fairy paths.” Some align these with what they believe to be mystical geo-magnetic gridlines called “leylines”. Many believe these connect together using faerie sites or faerie forts. Many old buildings in Ireland are missing parts of the structure out of the belief that part obstructs a faerie path. Other faerie sites include mounds, isles, wells, and faerie trees or bushes. These sites are often dressed and adorned with “rags” or “wishing trees” with offerings to faeries for blessings.
Today, many believe that milk, butter, and/or honey offerings would appease the Good Neighbours at these places. However, not much histories or archaeological record make that proved to be true. This seems to come more from Swedish folklore in “elf mills,” which is found in the covers of more than one of these structures and large bullauns or basins at others. Modern belief is to leave out food and drink for the faeries, often on plates and cups at the faerie forts. Evidence of this is found at Inchiquin and Moyarta Baronies and on the Shannon bank where the slopes were thrown out and clean plates, water, chairs, and a well swept hearth was left for the faerie guests. Fairy forts, isles, and mounds are not the only doorways to the land of Tir Na n’Og believed to exist. Cave entrances in Ireland are also believed to be passages as well. Two of the most famous are Lough Gur in County Limerick and Rathcrogan in County Roscommon. One of Ireland’s famous fairy forts is at the Knocknashee mountain. Here it is believed, that if you make a wish, turn around three times with your eyes closed, and if you wind up facing Knocknashee when you open your eyes, the wish will come true. A “fairy” amusement park for kids is also at the base of this mountain dedicated to the “faeries.”
Some say the entrance to the Otherworld will appear if you walk nine times clockwise around the fairy fort, mound, or isle during the full moon. Invitations into the faerie domain can be prosperous or fateful. Such invitations, especially food and drink offers, should be taken carefully by humans. Some legends warn that partaking of food and drink will lead to perpetual enslavement and a loss of time, space, or continuum.
Some myths state that after the Tuatha de Danann lost the battle with the Milesians, in addition to being forced underground, they were shrunk in size and stature. They are often described as “human-like” in appearance, sometimes with animal features, paler skin tone, and green eyes. Throughout the history of Ireland, faeries, especially as personified as belonging to the Tuatha, litter the landscape. Some families claim that their ancestors crossed the fae, and thereby invoked neverending hauntings by Banshees. The banshee is often depicted as a Irish female faerie that comes out at night drawing a comb through her long silvery hair screaming and wailing, mainly when predicting the death of one of their family members. Some lore suggests that the Banshee haunts families with surnames preceded by an O’.
The earliest writer of describing faeries was in 1014 C.E. while describing the terrors of the battles between the Norse and Irish speaking of a “bird of valor and championship fluttering over Merchad’s head and flying on his breath” as well as flying dark and merciless bodbh screamingly fluttering over the combatants while the bannanaig or styrs, idiots, maniacs of the glens, witches, goblins, ancient birds, and destroying demons of the air and skies arose to accompany the warriors in combat. A 1350 C.E. writer wrote about the 1286 C.E. King Torlough returning from a successful raid ravaging the English lands around the mountains of eastern County Limerick and northern Tipperary where he was greeted by a lovely maiden in” modest, strange in aspect, glorious in form, rosy-lipped, soft-taper-handed, pliant-wavy-haired, white-bosomed” appearance as the “Sovereignty of Erin” to rebuke the chief for letting de Burgh dissuade him from attempting the reconquest of all Ireland thereby vanishing in a lustrous cloud within an area graced with fairy forts, dolmen, and tumuli. It is also here that it was written that the soldiers of Donchad were also disturbed by phantoms and delusive dreams of lights shining on the fairy forts. Poetry took over describing these battles and the soldiers witnessing the “waves of Erin” groaning “the deep plaint resounded from the woods and streams” as shades were seen and hollow groans heard while gazing at the hills and forts.
I can speak from first hand while sleeping in homes near such forts, that the winds making noises through the shutters and windows, along the rocks and bushes, whisper and cry like a siren in angst. These are the same described in faerie tales of the forts and beings coming up from the underground caverns, streams, hills, and forts. Sightings of Faeries have dwindled significantly from the 18th to the 20th centuries. Though many Irish today still have stories of their parents and grandparents telling them of faerie abductions, sightings, or wrath. Some say the movement of Faeries causes the dusty whirlwinds along the roadside or in the fields. Some places are still reputed to be “fairy hotspots” to this day.
Drumdowney Faerie Isle
One such is the low earth mound at Newmarket-on-Fergus, where one apparition has reliably manifested for the last ten years. This one appears as a little old man dressed in green walking on Ennis road, thought to be a leprechaun perhaps. Much of modern legend has mutated into actual individuals today who claim to have faerie blood, kindred, or to be faeries living amongst humans. This has led to many novels, books, and movies in the 20th century addressing this new lore. This however is not completely new, as many through history have claimed to be of Faerie lineage. A Faerie monarch in Clare was the “Donn of the Sandhills” near the Doogh castle near Lehinch, is listed as a fairy prince named Donn within a list of the divine race of the Tuatha De Danann and family of the Dagda, lineal descendant of the ancient Ana, Mother of the Gods. He was addressed with a political petition in 1730 by Andrew MacCurtin, a well known Irish scholar and antiquarian for neglecting the gentry and praying for any menial post at his court. He was never answered, lived under the hospitality of the Kilkee MacDonnells and the Ennistymon O’Briens. Donn’s heartless conduct supposedly met poetic justice as he lacked a sacred bard and became forgotten through history.
Changelings are another case and another type of faerie within the “Fae” races that are commonly found in folklore and mythology. History worldwide refers to them or some derivative of the belief. Most of the folklore make faeries out to be extremely malevolient towards humans. Much of legend suggests that faeries are envious of humans, often wanting to steal the secrets of their magic, even to the point of changing out human infants with faerie children called “changelings.” The changeling would look “identical” to the stolen child. The only way to tell if it wasn’t your child is if the personality suddenly changed inexplicably. This led to many folk customs, beliefs, spells, and practices to protect children from faeries. Sometimes, these were as simple as dressing up boys to look like girls, placing iron in the child’s bed, dropping a small drop of human urine on a child, keeping dirty water in the house, protective charms, and various woods, herbs, or stones.
Bibliography / References:
Boards.ie: ~ Fairy Forts. Website referenced January 2012. www.boards.ie.
Dunnings Pub: Folklore. Website referenced January 2012. www.dunningspub.com.
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Canada’s Loch Ness Monster Caught on Tape? | ABC News Blogs – Yahoo! News.
A possible sighting of Canadas version of the Loch Ness monster at a lake in British Columbia has stirred up the legend of the sea creature long-rumored to reside there.
A man visiting British Colombias Lake Okanagan claims he filmed video of what could only be the elusive monster, known to locals as Ogopogo. The 30-second video shows two long ripples in the water in a seemingly deserted area of the lake.
It was not going with the waves, Richard Huls, who captured the scene on camera during a visit to a local winery, told the Vancouver Sun. It was not a wave, obviously, just a darker color. The size and the fact that they were not parallel with the waves made me think it had to be something else.
Ogopogo is the Canadian version of Scotlands famous Loch Ness monster. The first recorded sighting of the alleged creature in Loch Ness was nearly 1,500 years ago when a giant beast is said to have leaped out of a lake near Inverness, Scotland, to eat a local farmer. Since then, the legend has taken on a life of its own through first-person accounts of those who claim to have seen it and in public imagination.
As with Loch Ness, the Ogopogo phenomenon dates back hundreds of years and is believed to have its origins in native Canadian Indian folklore with a creature called Nha-a-itk. The locals would not cross the area of the lake where they thought the monster resided without an offering to feed the monster if attacked.
Ogopogo is most commonly described as a 40- to 50-foot-long sea serpent. There have reportedly been thousands of sightings of the monster through the years, including a marathon swimmer in 2000 who claimed he saw two large creatures in Ogopogos likeness swimming with him at times. The lake has been searched and no concrete evidence of the monster has turned up. Still, the legend of the lake monster lives on.
So, is the latest video just a ripple in the water or something more? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.
Chupacabra Sighting Times Two
by Mike Krumboltz
Jul 14, 2010
A barn in Hood County, Texas, has become ground zero in the hunt for the chupacabra. Earlier this week, animal control officer Frank Hackett shot and killed what was unquestionably one of the ugliest creatures to ever walk the planet. That much we know. What’s less clear is whether or not the departed creature was the elusive goat-sucking beast. Interestingly, that wasn’t the only chupacabra sighting around Hood County. A second creature was spotted and killed several miles away. Both appear to be either hairless coyotes, extremely ugly dogs, or, who knows? Maybe the thing they call el chupacabra. In the wake of the discovery, Web searches on “chupacabra sightings” and “chupacabra texas” both roared to life, as did Web lookups for “chupacabra translation” and “chupacabra definition.” According to Virtue Science, the name literally translates to “goat sucker.” Legend states that the beast would attack goats and suck their blood. Think of them as a less sexy version of “Twilight”‘s infamous vampire Edward Cullen. Officer Hackett was careful not to say whether or not this is really the mysterious beast. He’s going to wait for the DNA tests before he makes up his mind. There is one thing he does know: “It wasn’t normal.” And another officer on the scene commented that she’d “never seen anything like it.” Below you can watch the locals discuss their findings, but beware. The images of the creature are quite nasty.
