In the winter of 1855, after a heavy fall of snow, residents across a large area of the county of Devon, in the South West of the UK, awoke to find a mysterious trail of prints in the snow. Looking like an hoof, the single-file line of prints allegedly covered a distance of some 100 miles, ignoring obstructions in their path and continuing over high walls hayricks and even the roofs of houses. No satisfactory explanation has ever been given for the event, which became known as the Great Devon Mystery.
Although the case has been widely reported, interestingly it is not the only time that this has happened. Very similar lines of marks have been found in different parts of the world over the last 175 years or so. It's just that the other cases are much more obscure.
In this episode of The Folklore Podcast, creator and host Mark Norman compares and contrasts cases from 1840 through to 2009.
Episode 48 - LORE OF THE LOCKS
Episode 47 - TALES OF THE LANTERN
Episode 46 - HUSH LITTLE BABY
Episode 45 - AN INTRODUCTION TO NORSE MYTHOLOGY
Episode 44 - GRIND THE CORN
Episode 43 - WOMEN AND FAIRIES AT WORK
Episode 42 - A LIVERPOOL CUNNING MAN AND HIS MAGICAL MANUAL
Episode 41 - WITCH BOTTLES
Episode 39 - CRAVING SUPERNATURAL CREATURES
Episode 38 - MIRROR MIRROR
Episode 37 - ALIEN BIG CATS
Episode 36 - INVESTIGATING GHOSTS: THE ROLE OF FOLKLORE
Episode 35 - THE TRUTH ABOUT HANSEL AND GRETEL
Episode 34 - THE CURSE OF THE CRYING BOY
Episode 33 - GEF! THE EXTRA SPECIAL TALKING MONGOOSE
Episode 32 - SPINDLE, SHUTTLE AND NEEDLE
Episode 31 - OPERA WITCH
Episode 30 - VAMPIRES: A FOLKLORE PERSPECTIVE PART 2
Episode 29: ONCE UPON A TIME
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