On
the banks of the river Nidd, near the town of “Knaresborough” in North
Yorkshire, is one of the oldest “entrance charging” tourist attraction
in England. It’s a scary well that was once believed to have been cursed
by the devil, for whatsoever object the dripping waters touched, had
been turned to stone. The leaves of creepers, sticks, even dead birds.
Folks also observed the side of the well looked like a giant’s skull.
Most people escaped it because they thought that they too would be
turned to stone if they touched it. The daring ones started leaving
everyday objects adjacent the waterfall to watch them slowly turn to
stone over just a few weeks.
You can spot a Victorian top hat and a
lady’s bonnet left at the waterfall in 1853 and other trinkets like
teddy bears from in recent times. The initial written reference to the
well was by John Leyland, antiquary to Henry VIII, who stayed the well
in 1538. He wrote that the well was very familiar and visitors drank and
showered under its falling waters, as they were thought to have
phenomenal healing powers. However, around this time, the legendary
soothsayer and prophetess Ursula Southeil, who is better recognized as
Mother Shipton, started to gain fame.
According
to the “Mother Shipton”, a local prostitute daughter was born in a
cave, now identified as Mother Shipton Cave, not far from the cursed
Petrifying Well. Mother Shipton was reputed to be shockingly ugly, even
as a baby, which was attributed to her father being the devil. Since her
juvenile, Mother Shipton distorted body aroused the curiosity of her
neighbors. But Mother Shipton gave them a lot of other things to talk
about with her lyrical prophecies, i.e. “Nostradamus”, Mother Shipton is
said to have prophesied the Great Fire of London in 1666, the defeat of
the Spanish Armada in 1588 as well as the invention of cellular phones.
As Mother Shipton bad reputation grew, so did the notoriety of the
petrifying well. However, in 1630, “King Charles I” sold the land where
the Petrifying Well sits to a local gentleman named “Sir Charles
Slingsby”. By then the well was so renowned that Slingsby began charging
peoples for guided tours around it. In doing so, “Slingsby” mistakenly
created England’s first visitor attraction. Finally, scientific analysis
of the water exposed the magic behind the petrification process. The
water has rich mineral content that precipitates over objects forming a
hard shell of mineral over it in much the same way as stalactites and
stalagmites form in a cave. Is it amazing; however, is the speed at
which petrification occurred. Rather than centuries, little toys like
teddy bears can petrify in just 3 to 5 months. Teddy bears are so
popular because they’re porous which permits water to soak in and
petrify the toy inside out. Other has left personal items such as rings
and clothing, kitchen utensils, and even a bicycle.
