#FolkloreThursday is trending

An onion stuck with pins, wrapped in paper & inscribed with the name John Milton, a Somerset shoemaker, "to bewitch him" (1891), @Pitt_Rivers collections #MuseumsUnlocked #FolkloreThursday

#FolkloreThursday Though one of the common names of the Hydnellum peckii is 'Strawberries and Cream', it is an inedible (though not toxic) fungus. Other descriptive names are 'The bleeding Hydnellum', 'The Bleeding Tooth Fungus', 'The red-juice Tooth', and 'The Devil's Tooth'. https://t.co/4pmPDcgR6s

#DRACULA COOKBOOK 1978 The Count does not eat or drink (wine); this gothic delight imagines what he would have served his guests (Duck's, Blood Soup anyone?) Part 2 gives culinary advice for avoiding vampires, 'recipes to ward off evil' from Romanian cuisine #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/QDQ0lluQ2i

To protect milk from witches and fairies that would spoil or steal it, milking pails were historically made from hazel (C. avellana) which was thought to ward them off. In fact, the wood has antibacterial properties which prevents spoiling. #FolkloreThursday

One tradition surrounding the menhir of Champ-Dolent in Dol-de-Bretagne is that every night the moon nibbles a bit of it away - when it has completely disappeared the world will end. Let's hope the moon continues to eat slowly! #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/hOORp1FpYW

"A strange old death custom, if it ever existed, was the Sin Eater of #Wales. He placed a plate of salt on the breast of the defunct, and upon the salt a piece of bread. He then muttered an incantation & ate the bread, thereby eating up the sins of the deceased" #FolkloreThursday

For this week's #FolkloreThursday #food theme a 'ploughman's lunch' made from English 'local' names for #wildflowers: bread-and-cheese-and-cider (Malva sylvestris), bee bread (Trifolium repens), poor man's mustard (Alliaria petiolata) & apple pie for dessert! (Epilobium hirsutum) https://t.co/zosq5z727Q

Legend: deserters from Napoleon’s army hid in the Paris catacombs & survived on mushrooms that grew in their horses’ manure. Fact: in the 19thc, delicacy ‘Champignons de Paris’ were farmed in the catacombs; the environment gave them their sought after flavour. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/qkUnPVAvMY

White garlic from the allium family. People used these blossoms to ward off vampires (not the bulbs). It's not as mad as it sounds as alliums contain allicin, a form of antiseptic. Though you might need more than TCP to ward off Dracula. #folklorethursday (image by me) https://t.co/L9iXXOQE7D

#FolkloreThursday To offer bread and salt as a welcome is a greeting ceremony in Slavic and some other cultures. Welcoming with bread and salt means that no one will suffer from hunger. Pictures by Zuzana Nováková and Olli Niemitalo. https://t.co/oSojdzpwvt

'The flying carpet' by the Russian artist Viktor Vasnetsov, 1880. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/47VgWiweIh

Honey bee lore - bees should never be bought but exchanged for their future honey. Speak gently & tell them of all family events. Offerings of wedding & funeral cakes are crucial, & deaths mean black mourning cloth on the hive or they will pine away. #FolkloreThursday Img: CB https://t.co/HSzLaHlB3F

In Norse mythology, Sæhrímnir is killed & eaten every night by the Æsir (gods). Although the creature is not referred to as a specific being, scholars suggest the name means “sooty sea-beast”. It is brought back to life to provide sustenance again the next day. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/AkFWe44lAh

#FolkloreThursday Croatian traditional solar bread and the lopars used for imprinting the design onto the bread surface. More in: https://t.co/jQYe8MHbgY https://t.co/DrNLPJyzNX

The fly-agaric is a red mushroom with white spots, which was consumed as a hallucinogenic by shamans. Druids called it the ‘flesh of gods’ and was believed to help the consumer to reach enlightenment & wisdom as well as to receive messages from the Universe. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/y0C6QtuJDA

#FolkloreThursday In Celtic myths, sharing food with the creatures from otherworld can lead to unintended consequences. In the tale "Connla the Fair and the Elf-maid," the main character eats an apple given to him by a fairy woman, which in turn leads him to shun all human food. https://t.co/qbGKY6CCj2

Spring rolls get their name because they are eaten during the Spring Festival at Chinese New Year. They are believed to bring wealth to those who eat them during the festivities as they are said to resemble bars of gold. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/wmehD80nNI

You must be careful with what you eat... Remember, as Plato said, that those who taste human flesh and blood, turn themselves into wolves. That's the source of many myths and folktales about lycanthropy. Eating or drinking something is a way to become werewolf. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/pRyyzzsovy

Wild bilberries. Called WIMBERRIES in Wales and here in Somerset they're known as WHORTLEBERRIES. They were thought to be good for eyesight - especially night vision - and as recently as WWII, RAF pilots would eat bilberry jam before night time bombing missions. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/pOx37szRXQ

To locate the body of a drowned person, hollow out a loaf of bread and fit it with a lit candle. Set sail at dark & the bread boat will come to rest over the body. (Recorded as Transylvanian Superstition by Emily Gerald, 1885) #FolkloreThursday Digital painting by Hailey Nunley https://t.co/PwjBxFeNbD

Groups of old & poor women used to ‘glean’ whatever grain the harvesters missed & so keep a family in flour for the winter. Though many said Scripture decreed it, enclosure of the land gradually eroded this ancient right. #FolkloreThursday #Food(🎨Clausen) https://t.co/vsR1xxS4UG

"Leprechaun Whisperer" says 238 remaining Irish leprechauns don't have a problem with Covid-19 lockdown. https://t.co/2BahTtk9Qk & https://t.co/E65oZ1aWmy #FolkloreThursday

Тетёрки (pronounced tetyorki) are large ceremonial cookies baked for spring equinox in the northern part of Russia. Etymology, mythology and most importantly recipe 🙂 in: https://t.co/tzoSdPDQtw #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/AXFPNSWBHB

Fantastic opportunity to work on this fully funded @SGSAH collaborative #Gaelic #folklore PhD project with @SabhalMorOstaig and @TobarDualchais #academicjobfairy #jobfairy #gàidhlig #gaelic #folklorethursday @SabhalMorOstaig's media on #FolkloreThursday">https://t.co/kPvp24MH7q

A Cheshire broadside tells how 5 maidservants raised their future bridegrooms by laying out an All Hallows supper. Reading the Lord’s Prayer backwards the door flew open & 5 ghastly gentlemen sat beside them. One girl apparently died from fright… #FolkloreThursday (🎨Finden ) https://t.co/XiTIeeRZdY

In many Slavic countries the last harvested sheaf of wheat was mixed with wild flowers and turned into a wreath, which was then carried home from the field by the most beautiful unmarried girl followed by the other harvesters... https://t.co/U6XoWj35Fb #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/u0D5XysJst

Unicorn Lore: Interpreting the Lady and the #Unicorn Tapestries by @ztevetevans for #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/9ggrD1eaeE https://t.co/r8kN1blsLC

In Appalachian folklore, a seventh daughter, born on Christmas Day, possesses witch-like powers. #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/Tfjbvw4EAI

Hekate’s Supper or Deipnon was/is celebrated the last night of the dark moon, the 1 before the 1st visible sliver of moon can be seen, aka the new moon. A ritual meal of eggs, onions, garlic, leeks, honey or almonds are placed & offered, usually at a crossroads #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/hp34CJzxzF

A FEAST FOR AESCULAPIUS: Historical Diets for Asthma and Sexual Pleasure Madeleine Pelner Cosman a great read on food folklore #FolkloreThursday https://t.co/F3SdH1Q7dZ https://t.co/4w3n9WFm4l