The Folklore of Warwickshire
@warksfolklore.bsky.social
Exploring the folklore and folk life of Warwickshire. I can also be found at @hilaryrsparkes.bsky.social
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For years I’ve felt that the folklore of Warwickshire has been rather overlooked compared to that of regions. This account aims to go some way to rectifying this.
#folklore
#folklore
The great aunt of #folklore collector FW Bennett kept a piece of human finger bone which had come from a gibbeted man. She used it to cure rheumatism as there was an old belief that rheumatism could be cured by rubbing the bone of a gibbeted murderer on the afflicted area
November 12, 2025 at 8:26 AM
The great aunt of #folklore collector FW Bennett kept a piece of human finger bone which had come from a gibbeted man. She used it to cure rheumatism as there was an old belief that rheumatism could be cured by rubbing the bone of a gibbeted murderer on the afflicted area
On 11 November people gather at dawn at the base of an old cross on Knightlow Hill for the giving of Wroth Silver – dues paid to the lord of the manor for the right to drive cattle across his land. The ceremony is followed by a Wroth Silver breakfast in a nearby pub.
#WrothSilver
#WrothSilver
November 11, 2025 at 8:14 AM
On 11 November people gather at dawn at the base of an old cross on Knightlow Hill for the giving of Wroth Silver – dues paid to the lord of the manor for the right to drive cattle across his land. The ceremony is followed by a Wroth Silver breakfast in a nearby pub.
#WrothSilver
#WrothSilver
Display of poppies at Bubbenhall
#ArmisticeDay
#ArmisticeDay
November 11, 2025 at 7:53 AM
Display of poppies at Bubbenhall
#ArmisticeDay
#ArmisticeDay
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
November’s early darkness enfolds us. The smell of applewood fires and rot is a constant companion at twilight. We hurry between home and evensong, home and pub. Ghosts crowd the lanes, our folklore becomes filled with tales of cold teeth. Winter begins to growl. - #CLNolan
November 9, 2025 at 5:33 PM
November’s early darkness enfolds us. The smell of applewood fires and rot is a constant companion at twilight. We hurry between home and evensong, home and pub. Ghosts crowd the lanes, our folklore becomes filled with tales of cold teeth. Winter begins to growl. - #CLNolan
Found this photo on the 'Our Warwickshire' blog of a group of wounded Belgian soldiers outside a Red Cross Hospital in the Institute, Lower Brailes. 1914
I think it’s important to show those who fought when they were alive rather than just as names carved in stone
#RemembranceSunday
I think it’s important to show those who fought when they were alive rather than just as names carved in stone
#RemembranceSunday
November 9, 2025 at 8:50 AM
Found this photo on the 'Our Warwickshire' blog of a group of wounded Belgian soldiers outside a Red Cross Hospital in the Institute, Lower Brailes. 1914
I think it’s important to show those who fought when they were alive rather than just as names carved in stone
#RemembranceSunday
I think it’s important to show those who fought when they were alive rather than just as names carved in stone
#RemembranceSunday
Time to take your (folk) medicine:
The gall of the wild rose, known in Warwickshire as Fairy’s Pincushion, was carried in the county to help ward off /alleviate rheumatism.
The gall of the wild rose, known in Warwickshire as Fairy’s Pincushion, was carried in the county to help ward off /alleviate rheumatism.
November 8, 2025 at 8:25 AM
Time to take your (folk) medicine:
The gall of the wild rose, known in Warwickshire as Fairy’s Pincushion, was carried in the county to help ward off /alleviate rheumatism.
The gall of the wild rose, known in Warwickshire as Fairy’s Pincushion, was carried in the county to help ward off /alleviate rheumatism.
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
There are many examples of prehistoric barrows and tombs being haunted by men without their heads (see list below). Could they be #ghosts or folk memories of sacrifices linked to some ancient head cult? (It's a doubtful theory but all I could think of for #FolkyFriday !)
#PhantomsFriday #FolkHorror
#PhantomsFriday #FolkHorror
November 7, 2025 at 2:25 PM
There are many examples of prehistoric barrows and tombs being haunted by men without their heads (see list below). Could they be #ghosts or folk memories of sacrifices linked to some ancient head cult? (It's a doubtful theory but all I could think of for #FolkyFriday !)
#PhantomsFriday #FolkHorror
#PhantomsFriday #FolkHorror
The witch in legend of the Rollright Stones on the Oxfordshire/Warwickshire border turned herself into an elder tree. Local lore held that if the tree was cut it bled.
#FolkyFriday
#FolkyFriday
November 7, 2025 at 8:36 AM
The witch in legend of the Rollright Stones on the Oxfordshire/Warwickshire border turned herself into an elder tree. Local lore held that if the tree was cut it bled.
#FolkyFriday
#FolkyFriday
Not a book on ghost as such but ‘Needles of Stone’ by the dowser Tom Graves has been really influential on my ghost beliefs. In it Graves uses the theory of earth energies/ley lines to explore why certain phenomena like ghosts, ghouls, fairies and UAPs cluster around certain sites
#PhantomsFriday
#PhantomsFriday
November 7, 2025 at 8:22 AM
Not a book on ghost as such but ‘Needles of Stone’ by the dowser Tom Graves has been really influential on my ghost beliefs. In it Graves uses the theory of earth energies/ley lines to explore why certain phenomena like ghosts, ghouls, fairies and UAPs cluster around certain sites
#PhantomsFriday
#PhantomsFriday
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
#PhantomsFriday again of course tomorrow, a week after a splendid Hallowe'en Friday. Follow along on @phantomsfriday.bsky.social or better still, use the hashtag for your own #ghost posts: words, pictures, popular culture, #folklore and #legend & #haunted sites ancient or modern - anything ghostly!
November 6, 2025 at 3:05 PM
#PhantomsFriday again of course tomorrow, a week after a splendid Hallowe'en Friday. Follow along on @phantomsfriday.bsky.social or better still, use the hashtag for your own #ghost posts: words, pictures, popular culture, #folklore and #legend & #haunted sites ancient or modern - anything ghostly!
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
In Slavic #mythology, Ognyena Maria (Fiery Mary) is a #fire goddess & sister to thunder god, Perun. 🔥⚡ Her feast day on July 17th, particularly in Ukraine, is when villagers paid attention to any lightning in the sky, hoping that was an indication of rain for their crops. 💧 #WyrdWednesday
November 5, 2025 at 11:53 AM
In Slavic #mythology, Ognyena Maria (Fiery Mary) is a #fire goddess & sister to thunder god, Perun. 🔥⚡ Her feast day on July 17th, particularly in Ukraine, is when villagers paid attention to any lightning in the sky, hoping that was an indication of rain for their crops. 💧 #WyrdWednesday
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
In Slavic #mythology a Raróg is a #fire demon sometimes depicted as a fiery falcon. According to Czech #folklore it hatches from an egg incubated on a stove for 9 days & nights, then appears either as a fiery falcon or a fire breathing dragon. 🥚 🔥 🐉 #WyrdWednesday
November 5, 2025 at 1:40 PM
In Slavic #mythology a Raróg is a #fire demon sometimes depicted as a fiery falcon. According to Czech #folklore it hatches from an egg incubated on a stove for 9 days & nights, then appears either as a fiery falcon or a fire breathing dragon. 🥚 🔥 🐉 #WyrdWednesday
At Long Marston this version of the well-known rhyme used to be recited by those collecting wood for the village bonfire:
Please to remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder plot
Shall never be forgot
As long as old England is tied in a knot
#WyrdWednesday
Please to remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder plot
Shall never be forgot
As long as old England is tied in a knot
#WyrdWednesday
November 5, 2025 at 9:21 AM
At Long Marston this version of the well-known rhyme used to be recited by those collecting wood for the village bonfire:
Please to remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder plot
Shall never be forgot
As long as old England is tied in a knot
#WyrdWednesday
Please to remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder plot
Shall never be forgot
As long as old England is tied in a knot
#WyrdWednesday
A chilblain cure still current in the 1920s involved dipping hands or feet in urine. Folklore collector JH Bloom noted how this occasionally led to the breaking of chamber pots when people were unable to extricate their feet after soaking them in the receptacle.
#Folklore
#Folklore
November 4, 2025 at 9:10 AM
A chilblain cure still current in the 1920s involved dipping hands or feet in urine. Folklore collector JH Bloom noted how this occasionally led to the breaking of chamber pots when people were unable to extricate their feet after soaking them in the receptacle.
#Folklore
#Folklore
In parts of the county a “simulated” horse’s head covered by a sheet was carried on All Souls Day to frighten the unwary. Folklorist Roy Palmer believed that it represented a demon horse. 🧵
November 3, 2025 at 8:29 AM
In parts of the county a “simulated” horse’s head covered by a sheet was carried on All Souls Day to frighten the unwary. Folklorist Roy Palmer believed that it represented a demon horse. 🧵
Researching lore about childhood ailments in the early 20th C, J.H Bloom found that in Shottery bead necklaces were given to children as protection against sore throats. For poorer families a single bead on a cord was used
#FolkloreSunday #FolkMedicine
#FolkloreSunday #FolkMedicine
November 2, 2025 at 9:49 AM
Researching lore about childhood ailments in the early 20th C, J.H Bloom found that in Shottery bead necklaces were given to children as protection against sore throats. For poorer families a single bead on a cord was used
#FolkloreSunday #FolkMedicine
#FolkloreSunday #FolkMedicine
Got the sniffles, a tickly throat, plagued by persistent warts? My theme this month of folk remedies may be of interest.
First a health & safety warning. Don’t try any of the remedies – unless you’ve sought advice from your GP, a qualified herbalist or reputable cunning person.
#folklore
First a health & safety warning. Don’t try any of the remedies – unless you’ve sought advice from your GP, a qualified herbalist or reputable cunning person.
#folklore
November 2, 2025 at 9:45 AM
Got the sniffles, a tickly throat, plagued by persistent warts? My theme this month of folk remedies may be of interest.
First a health & safety warning. Don’t try any of the remedies – unless you’ve sought advice from your GP, a qualified herbalist or reputable cunning person.
#folklore
First a health & safety warning. Don’t try any of the remedies – unless you’ve sought advice from your GP, a qualified herbalist or reputable cunning person.
#folklore
Bridesmaids' dresses get the #Halloween treatment at Lily Rose bridal boutique in Kenilworth.
They do really cool seasonal window displays there.
They do really cool seasonal window displays there.
October 31, 2025 at 8:27 PM
Bridesmaids' dresses get the #Halloween treatment at Lily Rose bridal boutique in Kenilworth.
They do really cool seasonal window displays there.
They do really cool seasonal window displays there.
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
In parts of #Wales it was said that on #Halloween night, phantom pigs were to be found sitting on every stile. Stiles are, of course, liminal places like bridges; neither one place nor another. Similarly, twilight is neither day nor night and is a prime time for hauntings.
#PhantomsFriday #folklore
#PhantomsFriday #folklore
October 31, 2025 at 1:33 PM
In parts of #Wales it was said that on #Halloween night, phantom pigs were to be found sitting on every stile. Stiles are, of course, liminal places like bridges; neither one place nor another. Similarly, twilight is neither day nor night and is a prime time for hauntings.
#PhantomsFriday #folklore
#PhantomsFriday #folklore
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
For #PhantomsFriday, the tomb of the helhest, the hell-horse, in Roskilde Cathedral. Its ghost is said to appear at night to anyone who dares to go near the cathedral. The horse's ghost is three-legged and skeletal with red-burning eyes, and anyone who sees it will die soon.
📷 from 2022
📷 from 2022
October 31, 2025 at 8:09 AM
For #PhantomsFriday, the tomb of the helhest, the hell-horse, in Roskilde Cathedral. Its ghost is said to appear at night to anyone who dares to go near the cathedral. The horse's ghost is three-legged and skeletal with red-burning eyes, and anyone who sees it will die soon.
📷 from 2022
📷 from 2022
In the late 19th C a female ghost was reputed to haunt Shottery Brook. In 1930, folklore collector FW Bennett, noted that he could “personally vouch” that the chance of meeting her kept many youngsters away from the water after dark.
#PhantomsFriday
#PhantomsFriday
October 31, 2025 at 8:21 AM
In the late 19th C a female ghost was reputed to haunt Shottery Brook. In 1930, folklore collector FW Bennett, noted that he could “personally vouch” that the chance of meeting her kept many youngsters away from the water after dark.
#PhantomsFriday
#PhantomsFriday
Folkore of Warwickshire research assistant Ted, aka demon-in-a-snowglobe, is all enthusiastic about tomorrow. He's even got himself a little pumpkin 🎃
October 30, 2025 at 8:21 PM
Folkore of Warwickshire research assistant Ted, aka demon-in-a-snowglobe, is all enthusiastic about tomorrow. He's even got himself a little pumpkin 🎃
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
In the absence of #BookologyThursday, #FolkloreThursday and #FolkyFriday this week, you might like to join us for #PhantomsFriday this #Halloween instead. Any #ghost related posts - eg words, art, #folklore, #legends, haunted places - all will be very welcome. Just use the hashtag to join the feed!
October 30, 2025 at 9:56 AM
In the absence of #BookologyThursday, #FolkloreThursday and #FolkyFriday this week, you might like to join us for #PhantomsFriday this #Halloween instead. Any #ghost related posts - eg words, art, #folklore, #legends, haunted places - all will be very welcome. Just use the hashtag to join the feed!
Reposted by The Folklore of Warwickshire
Jabez Allies, 19thC Worcestershire folklorist, recalled that young boys would carve faces on turnips, turning them into "Hoberdy's Lanterns" - ".. having lighted it up by inserting a stump of a candle, they use to place it upon a hedge to frighten unwary travellers in the night."
#LegendaryWednesday
#LegendaryWednesday
October 29, 2025 at 7:29 AM
Jabez Allies, 19thC Worcestershire folklorist, recalled that young boys would carve faces on turnips, turning them into "Hoberdy's Lanterns" - ".. having lighted it up by inserting a stump of a candle, they use to place it upon a hedge to frighten unwary travellers in the night."
#LegendaryWednesday
#LegendaryWednesday
Seeking protection from witches? Then head to your nearest church as grabbing hold of a church door handle is one form of shielding yourself from maleficent witchcraft
#WyrdWednesday #witchcraft
#WyrdWednesday #witchcraft
October 29, 2025 at 9:19 AM
Seeking protection from witches? Then head to your nearest church as grabbing hold of a church door handle is one form of shielding yourself from maleficent witchcraft
#WyrdWednesday #witchcraft
#WyrdWednesday #witchcraft