In a fork of a tree on the lane above [Hothersall] Hall can be found an horrific and grotesque stone head. This was dug up by a man at Hothersall and placed in its present position.
Some say that the head is that of the petrified Hothersall Boggart. Legend says that a demon from Hades had undertaken to oblige a local man with three wishes for the surrender of his soul.
The man's first two wishes were for wealth and great fortune but his third was a crafty move to avoid damnation. He wished the devil to spin a rope from the sands of the River Ribble, which was close at hand. In case of failure he must consent to be laid (buried) under a laurel tree there to turn into stone (for a demon cannot rot, only fuse to granite).
The devil and mate then went to the strand,
In a jiffey they twisted a fine rope of sand,
And dragged it along with them over the land;
But when they brought the rope to be washed,
To atoms it went - the rope was all smashed!
Each time the demon spun a rope the man poured water over the rope and it disintegrated. Eventually he gave up his efforts and accepted his fate, whereby the man of Hothersall escaped the devil's clutches and saved his soul. The devil is understood to have been laid under the roots of a large laurel tree at the end of the hall, and will not molest the family so long as that tree exists. It is rumoured that the roots have to be nourished with milk on certain occasions, in order to preserve its existence, and also to preserve the power of the spell under which the goblin is laid. The laurel here seems to have been invested with the mythical properties of the ash and rowan trees.
captured camera lens focal length aperture shutter speed shooting mode exposure bias metering mode ISO flash image quality RAW converter cropped?
2.59pm on 10/9/06
Canon 20D
EF 17-40 f/4L USM
40mm (64mm equiv.)
f/5.6
1/13
aperture priority
+0.0
evaluative
100
no
RAW
C1 Pro
2x1
comment byKat at 10:54 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2006
fabulous texture!
comment byBrett Admire at 10:57 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2006
Love the texture!
comment byJustin Blanton at 11:05 PM (GMT) on 13 September, 2006
You know, when I first saw this I wasn't too blown away, but after staring at it for a few minutes (and switching to the black theme) I have to say that the focus, crop, and texture are wonderful. Nice shot.
This is a fascinating story of which I was previously unaware. Not quite sure about the photographic merit other than as a record or to illustrate the story. quiet a departure from your norm. But then that is part of your success.
comment bywesley hargrove at 12:06 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
i feel like he/it is being squished. there is so much agony in this picture. awesome job!
comment by m at 12:39 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
scarier than I recall.
comment by Rick at 01:22 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
I'm with Justin; at first I wasn't impressed at all. I switched to Black theme and the shot seemed to jump out of the screen at me!
comment byRichard Houtby at 02:04 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
That is just weird and freaky!!
Definitely a thought provoking image. Thanks for the details.
comment byRamsey at 03:34 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
That is creepy. Not much else to say, I think the head says it all.
comment byGabriel Loeb at 03:44 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
This seems like quite a diversion from the regular Chromasia fare! A fascinating subject and wonderful texture. I hope to see at least a little bit more of this guy.
comment bynavin harish at 06:17 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Great shot and an interesting story. Would like to know how this thing was actually made.
comment byMike at 07:11 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Very striking story. The image grows on you the more you look at it - and definitely best viewed with the balck border.
comment byJohn Zeweniuk at 08:29 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
great fable and the image is quite unsettling, I like how it blends in with the tree in this shot
comment bySteveO at 08:30 AM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Thats ace, i love that story too. Cool.
comment bysensations flux at 02:04 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Wonderful story an photo. thank you
comment byCraig Wilson at 02:37 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Interesting tones and detail.
comment by Rob at 04:00 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
This looks way too dark to me. Maybe it is my uncalibrated monitor at work, but even with the black theme it is awfully dark.
comment bym i k e b at 04:33 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Very creepy. Congrats djn on being added to the photoblogs.org hall of fame.
comment byJohn at 05:24 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Great story and photo. Nice tones. Visually it draws one in to investigate further.
To me this is not a scary image but rather an image of an immense pain.
comment bydjn1 at 10:31 PM (GMT) on 14 September, 2006
Thanks all.
comment by andrew g at 02:41 AM (GMT) on 15 September, 2006
wow this is an absolutly amazing shot. it is really interestilng on how i t look so life like. this picture also has great contrast between the areas. i played doulble take with this image more then once. the picture also makes you think.
well overall a great shot
comment bySysagent at 04:53 PM (GMT) on 17 September, 2006
He looks like I sometimes feel...
Nice shot to back-up the story, remind me where Hothersall lodge is?
comment by alva gobat at 02:32 PM (GMT) on 21 October, 2007
obaaa soo sppoooookkyy oo la la im cominn 2 hunt 4 uu
muhahahhaahha
The following is an extract from this page ...
In a fork of a tree on the lane above [Hothersall] Hall can be found an horrific and grotesque stone head. This was dug up by a man at Hothersall and placed in its present position.
Some say that the head is that of the petrified Hothersall Boggart. Legend says that a demon from Hades had undertaken to oblige a local man with three wishes for the surrender of his soul.
The man's first two wishes were for wealth and great fortune but his third was a crafty move to avoid damnation. He wished the devil to spin a rope from the sands of the River Ribble, which was close at hand. In case of failure he must consent to be laid (buried) under a laurel tree there to turn into stone (for a demon cannot rot, only fuse to granite).
Each time the demon spun a rope the man poured water over the rope and it disintegrated. Eventually he gave up his efforts and accepted his fate, whereby the man of Hothersall escaped the devil's clutches and saved his soul. The devil is understood to have been laid under the roots of a large laurel tree at the end of the hall, and will not molest the family so long as that tree exists. It is rumoured that the roots have to be nourished with milk on certain occasions, in order to preserve its existence, and also to preserve the power of the spell under which the goblin is laid. The laurel here seems to have been invested with the mythical properties of the ash and rowan trees.
camera
lens
focal length
aperture
shutter speed
shooting mode
exposure bias
metering mode
ISO
flash
image quality
RAW converter
cropped?
Canon 20D
EF 17-40 f/4L USM
40mm (64mm equiv.)
f/5.6
1/13
aperture priority
+0.0
evaluative
100
no
RAW
C1 Pro
2x1
fabulous texture!
Love the texture!
You know, when I first saw this I wasn't too blown away, but after staring at it for a few minutes (and switching to the black theme) I have to say that the focus, crop, and texture are wonderful. Nice shot.
This is a fascinating story of which I was previously unaware. Not quite sure about the photographic merit other than as a record or to illustrate the story. quiet a departure from your norm. But then that is part of your success.
i feel like he/it is being squished. there is so much agony in this picture. awesome job!
scarier than I recall.
I'm with Justin; at first I wasn't impressed at all. I switched to Black theme and the shot seemed to jump out of the screen at me!
That is just weird and freaky!!
Definitely a thought provoking image. Thanks for the details.
Very scary :) I love it
That is creepy. Not much else to say, I think the head says it all.
This seems like quite a diversion from the regular Chromasia fare! A fascinating subject and wonderful texture. I hope to see at least a little bit more of this guy.
Great shot and an interesting story. Would like to know how this thing was actually made.
Very striking story. The image grows on you the more you look at it - and definitely best viewed with the balck border.
great fable and the image is quite unsettling, I like how it blends in with the tree in this shot
Thats ace, i love that story too. Cool.
Wonderful story an photo. thank you
Interesting tones and detail.
This looks way too dark to me. Maybe it is my uncalibrated monitor at work, but even with the black theme it is awfully dark.
Very creepy. Congrats djn on being added to the photoblogs.org hall of fame.
Great story and photo. Nice tones. Visually it draws one in to investigate further.
To me this is not a scary image but rather an image of an immense pain.
Thanks all.
wow this is an absolutly amazing shot. it is really interestilng on how i t look so life like. this picture also has great contrast between the areas. i played doulble take with this image more then once. the picture also makes you think.
well overall a great shot
He looks like I sometimes feel...
Nice shot to back-up the story, remind me where Hothersall lodge is?
obaaa soo sppoooookkyy oo la la im cominn 2 hunt 4 uu
muhahahhaahha