Folklore Fantasy Fiction
Aconitum, referred to as ‘aconite’, is part of the Ranunculaceae family, or the buttercup family.The Aconitum genus contains around 100 species, each of which is poisonous. Records of its use date back 3000 years (Mitcheson 2024: 19). The Anglo-Saxons apparently called it ‘thung’, which meant poison plant (Gilliam 2008: 4). The plant also gained the [ ] The post Aconite Folklore: From the…
Foxgloves are one of the most enchanting wildflowers you might encounter in a shady woodland. With their deep pink flowers on spikes that can grow as tall as a person, they certainly arrest the attention. Even their name is evocative, with a smattering of legends to explain where ‘foxglove’ came from. Yet as pretty as [ ] The post Folklore of Foxgloves: Witches Thimbles and Dead Men s Bells…
When we talk about poisonous plants, your mind might leap to the celebrities, like foxglove, aconite, or belladonna. You may not immediately think of cuckoo pint (Arum maculatum). It’s native to the UK and surprisingly common. I’ve equally found it in botanic gardens and city centre flowerbeds. Poisoning caused by this plant is thankfully rare, [ ] The post Cuckoo Pint or Lords-and-Ladies: The…
I’ve covered three British herbalists so far on this blog, and each has made a notable contribution to the development of botany and apothecary practice in Britain. This week, we’re going to meet Maud Grieve, whose contribution took a different form. Yes, she wrote a lot about plants. She wrote A Modern Herbal, in fact. [ ] The post Maud Grieve: A Herbalist in War Time appeared first on Icy…
Last week, we met William Turner, who revolutionised English herbals in the 16th century by publishing the first one in English. This gave more people access to the herbal knowledge he felt people should have although it s likely he intended for physicians and apothecaries to use it. This week, we re going to meet Nicholas [ ] The post Nicholas Culpeper: Apothecary to the Masses appeared first on…
Herbalism has seen a boom in interest in recent years as people seek to find closer relationships with nature and create ways to supplement their wellbeing. The practice has a long history all over the world, with many cultures offering their own uses for the plants and trees that grew in their region. Having such [ ] The post William Turner: Meet the Father of British Botany appeared first on Icy…
If you’re interested in herbalism or plant lore, chances are that you’ve perused a herbal or two in your time. Culpeper s Complete Herbal: A Compendium of Herbs and Their Uses, Annotated for Modern Herbalists, Healers, and Witches is a particularly well-known title, even if the contents have been surpassed with scientific advancements. Yet did you [ ] The post Elizabeth Blackwell: Pioneering…
Storytelling is something we all do on a daily basis, whether we’re aware of it or not. Maybe we’re telling a funny anecdote about something that happened on the way to work. Perhaps we’re recounting how we first met the bride during a wedding speech. Or how about retelling our favourite folk tale to help [ ] The post Folklore and Storytelling: A Narrative Match Made in Heaven appeared first on…
Visionary film director and stage magician Georges Méliès is perhaps the earliest filmmaker who saw the visual potential of folklore. Among others, mermaids, sirens, ghosts, devils, and sorcerers are plentiful in his films. True, many of these figures become important for their centrality to the ‘tricks’ his films became famous for. Meanwhile, his films became [ ] The post Folklore and Cinema: The…
Musical instruments appear scattered throughout various folktales. A drum lies at the centre of the Tedworth Drummer story. Pipers and drummers try to follow underground tunnels, only to mysteriously vanish. But what of the musical instruments themselves? What folklore or stories swirl around the physical items? A listener requested the folklore of musical instruments some [ ] The post The…