Folklore, by nature, is of dodgy provenance. Yet the unwashed masses gleefully disregard its origins despite complaints from pseudoskeptics. Fakelore, on the other hand, is another ball of wax. Five hundred words later, Dr. Beachcombing lays bare the foundations of both and why academia can only tell the two apart based on one important factor. […]
Much has changed in the last century and a half, but one thing has remained consistent: the desire of certain humans to fleece the estates of their (not so dearly?) departed. In this particular tale from 1869, Beach describes the case of a widow confronted by a n’ere do well who had borrowed belongings of […]
The good Doctor, together with Chris Woodward from Haunted Ohio, has gone on an obsessive journey to discover precisely when fairies were first depicted with wings. More importantly, WHY were they depicted with wings when everything we know about fairies would indicate their actual physical appearance to be the exact opposite of Tinkerbell. Questions aside […]
Any readers who are squeamish be warned: Dr. Beachcombing examines past reports of truly grotesque phantom assaults upon horses and livestock. However gruesome though, it is fascinating and leaves one wondering if there are connections to other strange attacks on cattle over the past several decades. In much easier to digest news, David Weatherly gives […]
Dr. Beachcombing will never be accused of being an Anglophile thanks to this piece in which he wonders why–or even if–Chinese people came to the “anus” that was Roman Britain. Does the science confirm their arrival, or is it just media hype? Another way to pose the question: is it Magic, or Math? The Appeal […]
The Doctor waxes poetic with this post, reminding us that ghosts are often those shadows we conjure in our minds as a result of lives left unlived. Next we head south to see a  300-Year-Old Preserved Corpse Appears to Opens Its Eyes. When you’re finished being underwhelmed, we will travel back in time to 13th […]
If you’re in the habit of taking sandwiches to work, you may find they bring an added bonus beyond lunchtime nourishment. Dr Beachcombing takes a look at an old English superstition that carrying a piece of bread in one’s pocket keeps fairy mischief at bay. Over at Ancient Origins, the social and spiritual aspects of […]
Lots of people pay a premium for haunted accomodations, but how can a tourist be certain a ghost isn’t a marketing gimmick? Dr. Beachcoming learns TripAdvisor has your back. Among the reviews of maid service and bed bugs, TripAdvisor curates an unappreciated, spooky little corner of the internet. If these four tales are representative, there’s […]
Move over, palmistry! It’s time to get naked and let a stranger marvel at the constellation of moles on your skin. The forgotten art of moleosophy goes way back, and Dr. Beachcombing shares more than a few interpretations of mole placement and character. More puritanical is Chris Woodyard’s account of The Man Who Bewitched Clocks. […]
Dr. Beachcombing reminisces about the 1960s when Charles Manson built a sect that pledged follow him to the bottomless pit in Death Valley. This pit, which Manson himself could not locate, was purported to be filled with the last specimens of all enlightened but dying races, and would provide the protection required for the impending […]