Sheep in Folklore: From Medical Remedies to Good Luck Charms

Sheep in Folklore: From Medical Remedies to Good Luck Charms

Following on from 2024's theme of the Folklore of Animals, this month we'll examine the Folklore of Agricultural Animals. This week, we'll explore the folklore, legends, and even folk medicine associated with sheep.

Sheep are not native to the UK. Neolithic settlers brought them to Britain from southwest Asia in around 3000 BCE. Sheepskin and other wool textiles appear in the archaeological record from the Bronze Age in northern Europe.

Following the Norman Conquest, sheep became the dominant form of livestock. They primarily provided milk, with meat, wool, and manure secondary products. By the medieval era, the focus switched to wool. Unsurprisingly, they appear in folklore through tales of sheep-stealing, but also fables, like the wolf in sheep's clothing.

Sheep appear in mythology too. The golden ram, Aries, who saved Phrixus and Helle from their evil stepmother, went on to both provide the famous Golden Fleece of Greek myth, and the Aries constellation.

But let's take a look at some of the legends and lore associated with sheep. in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/sheep-folkore/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Buy Icy a coffee or sign up for bonus episodes at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Pre-recorded illustrated talks: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick/shop

Request an episode: https://forms.gle/gqG7xQNLfbMg1mDv7

Get extra snippets of folklore on Instagram at https://instagram.com/icysedgwick

Find Icy on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/icysedgwick.bsky.social

'Like' Fabulous Folklore on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fabulousfolklore/

Jaksot(426)

How does 'Poltergeist' draw on actual poltergeist accounts?

How does 'Poltergeist' draw on actual poltergeist accounts?

Poltergeist marked Hollywood's big-budget engagement with the ghost film in 1982. Produced by Stephen Spielberg and directed by Tobe Hooper, it took the haunted house film and mashed it together with ...

16 Elo 202527min

The Power and Allure of Poisonous Plants with S.A. Lawless

The Power and Allure of Poisonous Plants with S.A. Lawless

S.A. Lawless is an herbalist, gardener, forager, mycophile, outdoor educator, and published author and illustrator, with a long-held fascination with folklore and witchcraft, currently living in rural...

12 Elo 20251h 27min

The Wesley Poltergeist and the Bishopwearmouth Poltergeist Go Head-to-Head

The Wesley Poltergeist and the Bishopwearmouth Poltergeist Go Head-to-Head

Last week, we looked at some poltergeist definitions and whether such definitions are even helpful. Can something as truly bizarre as a 'knocking spirit' be boiled down to a series of checkboxes on a ...

9 Elo 202527min

Poltergeists: Noisy Ghosts or Household Spirits?

Poltergeists: Noisy Ghosts or Household Spirits?

This episode of Fabulous Folklore begins with a reading of the Poltergeist entry from my new book, Ghostlore, before we explore the problem with poltergeists - how do you define one?! From deciding w...

2 Elo 202519min

White Ladies, Ghost Nuns & Spectral Children in Haunted Madrid

White Ladies, Ghost Nuns & Spectral Children in Haunted Madrid

People have lived in the Madrid area since prehistoric times. Occupied by Romans, Moors, and then the Spanish, it has quite the history. Over 6.8 million people live in Madrid. That's less than Paris...

26 Heinä 202520min

Murder Ballads and Dark Folk Music with Katy Horan

Murder Ballads and Dark Folk Music with Katy Horan

In this chat, I'm talking to illustrator Katy Horan about murder ballads, discussing what they are, how they work within folk music, how contemporary musicians have tried to reclaim the tradition, and...

24 Heinä 202550min

The Venetian Legend of the Carvings of Castello

The Venetian Legend of the Carvings of Castello

If you head away from the hustle and bustle of the Piazza San Marco (St Mark’s Square), you’ll head into the stranger, more magical part of Venice. It’s in the tangle of narrow streets and courts that...

19 Heinä 202516min

Dublin Ghost Stories of Phantom Dogs and Mysterious Figures

Dublin Ghost Stories of Phantom Dogs and Mysterious Figures

Dublin is a beautiful city that straddles the River Liffey, famous as the home of Guinness and the National Leprechaun Museum. What you might not expect from the Irish capital is a series of Dublin gh...

12 Heinä 202517min

Suosittua kategoriassa Yhteiskunta

olipa-kerran-otsikko
kaksi-aitia
siita-on-vaikea-puhua
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
i-dont-like-mondays
poks
antin-palautepalvelu
kolme-kaannekohtaa
sita
aikalisa
mamma-mia
yopuolen-tarinoita-2
rss-murhan-anatomia
lahko
loukussa
rss-nikotellen
rss-palmujen-varjoissa
meidan-pitais-puhua
terapeuttiville-qa
ootsa-kuullut-tasta-2