Rabbits are often associated with spring, even in the Americas: the Centzon Tōtōchtin, the Four-Hundred Rabbits of Mexica myth, are rabbits who, during the revival of spring, meet and have debauch drunken parties with fermented fruit drinks. #LegendaryWednesday

The Green Man stirs in April. Half-folklore, half-leafy chaos, he represents the wild rise of nature. He is also your excuse for forgetting your responsibilities and turning your backyard into a moss-covered throne. #FairyTaleTuesday #FairyTaleFlash 🎨Phil McDarby

🌱"Wormwood leaf aplenty, Honour Armindeni Day, Drink the tables dry and eat, And be not afraid of plague!" (old Romanian folk song) Ahead of #MayDay #FolkloreSunday #Im4Ro

The only appearance of a unicorn in a medieval Welsh legend is a surprisingly savage creature that attacks any human it finds and drinks lakes dry, killing all the fish. Peredur (the Welsh Sir Percival) slays it, but then discovers it's the pet of a fairy lady. #FairyTaleTuesday

🦄#Fairytaletuesday 🦄 Young woman with a #Unicorn by Raphael circa, 1505-1506 Galleria, Borghese, Rome, Italy. 🦄#FairytaleFlash ✨

The jade rabbit, a companion of the Moon Goddess Chang’e, is a healer&a herb-picker. He makes immortality pills with a pestle for immortals; he sets foot on Chinese mystical mountains to collect herbs that help mortals remove their pains. Hence he was given a folk name Tu'erye.

Thank you all for your wonderful posts today. Next week’s theme as we head towards #WalpurgisNacht at the end of the month is: THE LORE OF WOMEN - WITCHES, WARRIORS, MOTHERS & MORE! Bring your posts to the hashtag #FolkloreSunday for a repost after 10:30 am BST. Maude xx

In medieval lore, Tempestarii (or Tempestarius (singular)) were weather-making magicians who dwelt among the common people and possessed the power to raise or prevent storms at will. #FairytaleTuesday 🧵

Sometimes etymology hints at ancient supernatural beliefs which are otherwise lost in shadow. In Old English, the word for “to dream” was mǣtan, which originally meant to paint. Instead of “I had a dream” you said “Mē mǣtte swefn,” literally “A dream was painted for me.”

Easter witches or påskkärringan are a traditional feature of Swedish folklore. Witches fly out of their chimneys on Maundy Thursday, riding on broomsticks to meet the devil on the blue hill of Blåkulla, where they hold their wicked sabbaths and work black magic. #FolkloreSunday

In Chinese #folklore, the legendary "bone-gazing mirror" (照骨镜) was said to reveal a person’s bones, veins—even their hidden illnesses. Stories claim Qin Shi Huang once possessed it, using it not for healing, but for control. He would hold it to his concubines’ chests, and if

In the Myth of Li Shou, part of Chinese mythology, cats were originally in charge of the world and could talk to better manage things. However, they preferred to enjoy themselves and delegated world management to humans! #mythologymonday #TellAStoryDay #catlore 🎨Xu Beihong

In Welsh folklore’s Battle of the Trees, the magician Gwydion animates forest trees to form an army against the Otherworld’s king, Arawn. Each tree fights with unique traits: the oak is strong, the alder leads, and the willow is cunning. Victory depends on uncovering the

#FairyTaleTuesday The eve of May 1st is Walpurgisnacht celebrating St Walpurga, an 8th century English abbess & missionary. She performed such miracles as curing the sick & calming stormy seas on her journey to Germany. Holy oil emanating from her tomb is said to heal the sick.

The Scots Gaelic for red deer is 'fiadh ruadh'. In the Highlands people once called them ‘faerie cattle’ as they believed faeries milked them #folklore #faeries #Scotland art: Echoes from the Golden Grove by Annie Stegg

In the mist-laden lochs of Scotland, there dwelleth a spirit of dread – The Kelpie, a shape-shifter of darkest intent. Cloaked oft in the guise of a splendid steed, it lures the unwary to mount its glistening back. Yet, once astride, the rider finds themselves bound by its

Jack in the Green is an English folk custom, part of the May Day celebration. People are covered in a framework of green foliage and then marched in a procession with musicians. It began in the 18th century, though some folklorists equate it with earlier imagery. #FolkyFriday

In Scots Gealic lore, 'cait sìth' is a faerie cat, a faerie that takes the shape of a black cat with a distinctive white spot on it's chest. also: 'lucha sìth', the 'faerie mouse'; 'cu sìth', the 'faerie dog'. #caturday #folklore #Scotland

Marble head of a ruler, possibly Sauromates II, king of the Bosporan Kingdom, 2nd century AD. Currently on display at the Acropolis Museum in Athens.

A monumental Greek bronze tragic mask, most likely dedicated as a votive offering at a sanctuary in ancient Piraeus. The large mask displays attributes of the work of Silanion, a famous sculptor active in the 4th century BC. Piraeus Archaeological Museum