Folktales - Atlas Obscura
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Folktales

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Tokyo, Japan

Kimi-Chan

This sculpture bears a tragic backstory that may have inspired a hauntingly beautiful children's song.
Built sometime around the sixth or seventh century, this ring fort is tucked between hills and farms in a remote corner of northwestern Ireland.
fairytales

What Is a Fairy Fort?

In Ireland, fears about disturbing the fair folk have saved thousands of these mysterious ancient structures.
Sarah Durn February 2, 2023
The rougarou, the Cajun cryptid said to haunt Louisiana's wetlands, is the mascot of a conservation effort for its traditional habitat.
monsters

The Rougarou, Beast of the Louisiana Bayou, Gets a Makeover

One man hopes to turn the wolfish cryptid into a mascot for saving the state's imperiled wetlands.
Joel Balsam October 19, 2022
Atlanta, Georgia

The Wren’s Nest

The home of a 19th-century author who brought African-American folktales to the mainstream is now Atlanta’s oldest house museum.
Closeup of the sculpture
Munich, Germany

Wolfsbrunnen

Oddly enough, a pair of Wolfs funded the construction of this Little Red Riding Hood sculpture.
The misty cloud forests of Costa Rica's Cerro de la Muerte are home to several endangered species—including, say locals, spirits charged with protecting the mountain.
mountains

In Search of Nímbulos, Guardians of Costa Rica's Mountain of Death

Believers say the otherworldly protectors of Cerro de la Muerte's cloud forests face an uncertain future.
Trevor Ritland and Priscilla Palavicini October 6, 2021
Deloraine, Australia

Jimmy Possum Chair

A faceless folk hero and his legacy of comfortable, expertly-crafted chairs lives on in a small Tasmanian town.
Sedia del Diavolo
Rome, Italy

Sedia del Diavolo

According to local folklore, this Roman sepulcher was once a throne for the Devil.
Permanently Closed
Dublin, Ireland

Táin Bó Cúailnge Mosaic

This colorful and fiery mural depicts the Irish folk story of the beloved hero Cuchulain.
The moat.
Nottinghamshire, England

Fountain Dale

This muddy wooded valley and the ancient structures it hides are said to be the favored haunt of the legendary Friar Tuck.
Roche Abbey Ruins
Maltby, England

Roche Abbey Ruins

Legend has it the famous Robin Hood would attend mass at this 12th-century Cistercian abbey in Sherwood Forrest.
Bass Reeves, wearing his iconic push broom mustache.
crime

The Best Trick U.S. Marshal Bass Reeves Ever Pulled on a Criminal

A particularly glorious example of "fake it 'til you make it."
Eric Grundhauser August 8, 2017
A scene from Beauty and the Beast, aka ATU tale type 425C.
literature

The ATU Fable Index: Like the Dewey Decimal System, But With More Ogres

"The Wolf Dives Into the Water for Reflected Cheese," and other highlights of folktale categorization.
Cara Giaimo June 14, 2017
200-year-old skeleton of The King of All Whales
An Hải, Vietnam

Lang Tan Temple (Temple of the Whale)

Home to what locals claim is the largest whale skeleton in Southeast Asia, which is worshiped yearly.
The new tower, just like the old one
Gmina, Poland

Zabytkowa Dzwonnica (Cloud Demon Repelling Tower)

This tower in a small Polish village uses the power of a sacred bell to ward off mischievous weather spirits.
Woman Hollering Creek.
Saint Hedwig, Texas

Woman Hollering Creek

A tiny waterway named after a ghost story.
Footprints
Kgatleng, Botswana

Matsieng Footprints

Local legend has it that the first humans were created in the pools here, leaving their footprints behind in the rock.
at iceland's christmas house
holidays

Iceland's Yule Lads Are Like 13 Demented Santas and They Are Amazing

Before they were mischievous but friendly characters who came to lick your spoons, they were terrors.
Jaya Saxena December 9, 2015