In Tennyson´s epic poem Idylls of the King, Lyonesse is the place where the final, epoch-shattering battle between Mordred and King Arthur takes place. In the older Arthurian romances, Lyonesse is the birthplace of Sir Tristan, and it is supposed to have bordered Cornwall in the southwest of England. No historical evidence of Lyonnesse has been found, and the academic consensus seems to be that the French author of the Prose Tristan got his British geography catastrophically wrong, and that he really meant Lothian in Scotland. There are, however, those who believe that Lyonesse was a real realm which once reached from the Scilly Islands to Land´s End. The people of Penzance and southwestern Cornwall certainly seem fond of stories about sunken lands, church bells in the deep, and drowned forests. According to family legend, the ancestor of the local Trevelyan family was a sole survivor who rode across the causeway to Cornwall as Lyonesse crumbled into the sea behind him.
posted on Sep 27, 2008 - View this thread

"Women and children, first," is a familiar cultural refrain, with its popular roots in the gallant sacrifice made by the male contingent aboard the doomed Titanic. Their sacrifice has inspired poetry, sculpture, male social clubs, and, of course, cinema. Yet, this sacrifice of near-mythic scale was in some respects a myth, with survival statistics skewing well in favor of men of higher social and economic class than children (and, to a lesser extent, women) of lower status.
posted on Aug 25, 2008 - View this thread

In an intriguing blog entry the mysterious jasminembla muses about the man in the moon, and his relationship with thorns, linking finally to a most remarkable collection of sourced and footnoted Victorian Moon Lore authored by a Rev. Timothy Harley, 1885. In the "Man in the Moon" section, we learn that, indeed, the man in the moon has been traditionally linked with thorns, variously being exiled to the moon for stealing a bundle of brambles, strewing brambles on the path to church to hinder the pious, or cutting wood on the Sabbath, among other infractions - and that this folktale has existed since at least 1157, when an English abbot asks, in Latin, "Do you not know what the people call the rustic in the moon who carries the thorns? Whence one vulgarly speaking says, "The Rustic in the moon / Whose burden weighs him down / This changeless truth reveals / He profits not who steals." Furthermore, no less a personage than Shakespeare has mentioned the thorny situation of the poor man in the moon... and most interesting, perhaps, the rather convincing theory that the bramble-burdened man in the moon may very well be an older "Jack" of Jack and Jill fame, who did not steal, but was stolen by the moon, along with his sister.
posted on Jun 26, 2008 - View this thread

"Cultures at the far edge of the world" (YT) and "The worldwide web of belief and ritual" (YT). Two TED talks by anthropologist and explorer Wade Davis (previously) on the diversity of the world's indigenous cultures and their beliefs, and the richness of the "Ethnosphere," which he describes as "the sum total of all thoughts and dreams, myths, ideas, inspirations, intuitions brought into being by the human imagination since the dawn of consciousness." [Via Mind Hacks]
posted on Jun 21, 2008 - View this thread

The Devil's Tramping Ground is a barren circle in the forest in North Carolina. As a result of nothing having grown within the circle for at least the last hundred years, it has become the subject of some of that state's oldest legends. John Harden, a journalist, newspaper editor and author said of that place "... the story is that the Devil goes there to walk in circles as he thinks up new means of causing trouble for humanity. There sometimes during the dark of night, the Majesty of the Underworld of Evil silently tramps around that bare circle; thinking, plotting, and planning against good, and in behalf of wrong. So far as is known, no person has ever spent the night there to disprove this is what happens.". No person until you came along and played this neat interactive flash movie, that is.
posted on May 29, 2008 - View this thread

Quantum Mechanics: Myths and Facts (pdf), a recently-updated paper on the Cornell arXiv peer-review site. By Hrvoje Nikolić of the Rudjer Bošković Institute in Croatia.
posted on Feb 25, 2008 - View this thread

Theoi Greek Mythology is an internet encyclopedia with over 1500 pages on various characters from classical myth, covering everything from famous gods and goddesses to obscure nymphs, titans and monsters. If the confusing familial relations of the Greek gods vex you, there are 10 different family trees to help you make sense of it all. There's also an extensive library of ancient works concerning classical mythology and a bibliography should you long for more to read. Last but not least, Theoi has a gallery of over 1200 artworks from antiquity, which I have been happily browsing for a good while.
posted on Feb 14, 2008 - View this thread

Mockumentaries based on myth are pretty popular. There's Max Brooks' World War Z, (zombie warning), being turned into a movie. Along the same lines is the favorite Federal Vampire and Zombie Agency. Animal Planet and Discovery got into the game with a wild potential future, dragons, and even a couple projected alien worlds based on work by Barlowe.
posted on Sep 24, 2007 - View this thread

Orpheus and Eurydice, the acid-tinged, animated music video version.
posted on Apr 22, 2007 - View this thread

Make your own myth or legend online using Story Creator 2.
posted on Apr 10, 2007 - View this thread

World Tales : See folk tales, myths and legends from around the world, brought to life by twenty Australian animators.
posted on Jan 2, 2007 - View this thread

Ancient tsunami devastated Mediterranean possible root of flood myths and current major religious belief.
posted on Nov 30, 2006 - View this thread

"I'm not a Christian, and I have my doubts about being Jesus' descendant,' says garlic farmer Toyoji Sawaguchi. "Somehow I just can't picture Jesus, a great man, as my ancestor.' Bucolic Shingo, formerly Herai, a tiny village in northeast Japan, is believed by some to be the final resting place of Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Photos of His grave can be found here.
posted on Nov 19, 2006 - View this thread

Becoming Mary Poppins - A look at the original author P. L. Travers, Walt Disney, and the differences therein. Via the New Yorker.
posted on Sep 2, 2006 - View this thread

Auroras have had many explanations throughout history. Now, science has answered many questions, thanks to spending a lot of time in Antarctica taking time-lapse films.
posted on Aug 15, 2006 - View this thread

Journal of Mythic Arts - an online journal for the exploration of myth, folklore, and fairy tales, and their use in contemporary art. A smattering from the archives: Shape-Shifters; Old Wives' Tales; Wolf's Heart.
posted on Aug 12, 2006 - View this thread

Every state must have its enemies. Great powers must have especially monstrous foes. Above all, these foes must arise from within, for national pride does not admit that a great nation can be defeated by any outside force. That is why, though its origins are elsewhere, the stab in the back has become the sustaining myth of modern American nationalism. Since the end of World War II it has been the device by which the American right wing has both revitalized itself and repeatedly avoided responsibility for its own worst blunders. Indeed, the right has distilled its tale of betrayal into a formula: Advocate some momentarily popular but reckless policy. Deny culpability when that policy is exposed as disastrous. Blame the disaster on internal enemies who hate America. Repeat, always making sure to increase the number of internal enemies.

Stabbed in the Back !
posted on Jul 15, 2006 - View this thread

Contrary to popular belief, Vikings did not wear horned helmets, if the Viking Answer Lady is to be believed. Apparently, the whole kerfuffle was instigated at least in part by these guys.
posted on Jun 6, 2006 - View this thread

The truth about Kitty Genovese. They say she was the woman stabbed to death before 38 witnesses who did nothing. They "didn't want to get involved." To many, her name rings synonymous with "public apathy" and the "bystander effect." Unfortunately, the details - and the meat - of her case are largely misunderstood. None of that, however, diminishes the tragedy of her death, not only for her family and friends, but also for her lover.
posted on Jun 5, 2006 - View this thread

In case you forgot here's the lineup for the St. Louis Wolves: 1b:Who; 2b:What; 3b:I Don't Know; ss:I Don't Give a Damn; lf:Why; cf:Because; rf:Yesterday; p:Tomorrrow; c:Today
posted on Apr 3, 2006 - View this thread

Of course santa is real, even NORAD tracks him. With large corporate sponsors and a long list of b-class celebrities (except for Mickey Rooney), how could any child doubt that santa exists. How can mass societal lies be any good for children? Does it teach them that everyone lies and is it the reason that most adults do?
posted on Dec 25, 2005 - View this thread

Master Manole built the Curtea de Arges Monastery. According to legend, he couldn't complete the work without sacrificing someone dear to him, and his hubris upon completing the work lead him to a tragic end. It's a touching story, and now you can play the game.
posted on Dec 18, 2005 - View this thread

"A Helpful Hand" - Penn & Teller call Bullshit! on the "bestselling book in the world," the Holy Bible. (link is to entire episode approx 29mins - *language, flash)
posted on Dec 14, 2005 - View this thread

The star who never was. Part rock and roll history and part cautionary tale, the story of Marcus is too compelling to ignore. Well.... maybe not, but it's worth the read.
posted on May 16, 2005 - View this thread

Illusions, Delusions, and Confusions: Mythical Geography in Antique Maps, courtesy the Philadelphia Print Shop. (via tui)
posted on Jul 30, 2004 - View this thread

Cry God for Harry! England and Saint George!
posted on Apr 23, 2004 - View this thread

Ancient Greek mythology for aspiring young pagans.
warning: educational friday flash fun for the geeklings!pre-emptive comment: it's now friday in oz :)
posted on Apr 15, 2004 - View this thread

Centauromachies, Amazonomachies, Gigantomachies and Gorgo.
posted on Jan 25, 2004 - View this thread

The Ballad of Mulan in Chinese calligraphy by, er, Mi Fei; also translated into English. Via the Mulan FAQ.
posted on Dec 26, 2003 - View this thread

The adorable haggis. Think nothing of the myth of sheep and oatmeal.
posted on Dec 6, 2003 - View this thread

ESA astronaut, Pedro Duque writes "I am writing these notes in the Soyuz with a cheap ballpoint pen. Why is that important? As it happens, I've been working in space programmes for seventeen years, eleven of these as an astronaut, and I've always believed, because that is what I've always been told, that normal ballpoint pens don't work in space... and here I am, it doesn't stop working and it doesn't 'spit' or anything. Sometimes being too cautious keeps you from trying, and therefore things are built more complex than necessary." From Snopes: Fisher spent over one million dollars in trying to perfect the ball point pen before he made his first successful pressurized pens in 1965, which NASA uses. [via GearBits]
posted on Nov 4, 2003 - View this thread

The Bunny Man. Never mind the witch...here's the D.C. region's other scary legend (Washington Post).

Insist upon the original. Accept no substitutes. Read label carefully. Effectiveness not guaranteed.
posted on Oct 31, 2003 - View this thread

The Flight of Ducks. An 'online documentary' about a 1933 expedition to Central Australia (containing culturally sensitive material).
What are songlines? 'Songlines, or Yiri in the Walpiri language, are tracks across the landscape created by Mythical Aboriginal ancestors when they rose out of the dark Earth and travelled, creating mountains, valleys, waterholes - all the physical features of the land ... '
Songlines art.
New York Songlines. Walking tours of Manhattan streets.
posted on Apr 20, 2003 - View this thread

Myth Dispelled: Shoe Size, Penis Size Not Linked. I guess there's no need in buying my shoes two sizes too large any longer (pardon the pun). Damn you scientists!
posted on Sep 30, 2002 - View this thread

Its existence has been debated many times, although on the front cover of today's Oxford Mail was a new picture that is speculated to be an authentic image of the Lochness Monster. Could the legend of the Loch Ness Monster be proven true? Whether or not Nessie exists, fishermen are trying to net it, swedish spies are hunting for it, scientists are listening for it, the tourists are on the watch and a witch is trying to provide magical protection. Take a peek yourself and you may see Nessie...
posted on May 27, 2001 - View this thread