No way!!!! That is fascinating! 😳❤️❤️

The most ancient of trees, the #Yew symbolises death & #Saturn, but also the rebirth of light at the #WinterSolstice. It is Old Magic, dark dreams, Otherworld journeys & connection to ancestors. It is perseverance leading to transformation. It is renewal. #FolkloreThursday

New Year, New Skill ... enroll now for Drawing Classes starting in January! Meet new friends and explore your creativity ... Lancaster & Morecambe College (LMC) #drawingclass #drawing #art #sketch #newyearskill #newyear #newskill #art #artist #creative instagr.am/p/Cl_6UjGKgWl/

The Kirkstone Pass Inn dates back to the 15th Century. The ghost of Ruth Ray haunts the inn, she's said to warn visitors when the weather turns bad, as she froze to death nearby. Then, there's the Grey Lady who is blamed for all the poltergeist activity #FairyTaleTuesday #Cumbria

Lucia Day on December 13 is a celebration of light in the darkness that is the Scandinavian winter. Folklore says that this day marks the beginning of the most dangerous time of the year, when supernatural creatures of all kinds roam around looking for trouble. #GothicAdvent

The plum pudding was banned in England by Oliver Cromwell in 1647, along with the rest of Christmas, as being wicked & sinful. He thought the plum pudding, when it was flamed, harked back to old #WinterSolstice pagan rites. It wasn’t revived until 1714. #LegendaryWednesday

The Norwegian version of Santa's sleigh: A Viking ship pulled by a pig, and filled with 'akevitt' (aquavit), distilled spirit that is served with the traditional Norwegian Christmas dinner.

The ethereal beauty of Amanda Clark's winter scenes ❄️✨

The first edition of The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published privately on 16th Dec 1901, when #BeatrixPotter had 250 copies printed as #Christmas gifts for her family & friends. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was given a copy for his children. #OTD

The Day After Christmas, by Mark Lancelot Symons, c.1931. Bury Art Museum #BoxingDay #HappyHolidays #art

Today we celebrate Boxing Day in the UK, so named because cats spend the day exploring empty boxes discarded from Christmas Day* *This may not be true

If you are the sort of person who likes to know these kind of things…

Today is Twelfth Night. Not only is it a time for taking down Christmas decorations, but Welsh folklore tells us it's also the last night that the Mari Lwyd might surprise you with a visit. I hope you've got some cake and ale left over... #folklorethursday #twelfthnight #wales

La Befana is a kind Christmas witch who delivers presents to Italian children on Epiphany Eve. I hope she is good to them tonight. #Befana #ofdarkandmacabre #winterfolklore

In bamboo forests along the coast of northwest Madagascar, this brightly coloured gecko species was discovered and described in 1990. Phelsuma klemmeri , also known as the cheerful day gecko

The Banana Splits. Whoever created this show was definitely on something stronger than coffee🤯

In Cumbrian dialect, 'wiggen-tree' is the rowan tree. Plant a rowan tree in your garden to ward off evil influence, and provide a home for benevolent faeries #faeries #trees #folklore #cumbria art: Arthur Rackham

#Wassailing the apple trees traditionally occurs on Old Twelfth Night, 17th Jan. The Queen of the #Wassail (‘good health’) toasts the largest apple trees in the orchard with cider-soaked bread. The crowd then drinks to the trees’ health to ensure a good crop. #FairyTaleTuesday

First hill walking for a long few months, easing back in gently with Bessyboot and Castle Crag in the very pretty Borrowdale Valley. Added bonus was lovely tea room in Rosthwaite for an ice cream at the end! 🍦😋 #walking #hills #hillwalking #wainwrig… instagr.am/p/CseXOF5KROz/