Glen

Fairy Glens

Fairies' Pool,
Watkins Glen,
New York
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Fairies are often associated with nature and in particular with woodlands, gardens and flowers. It's therefore no surprise that the concept of the magical fairy glen has entered into folklore around the world.

What Is A Fairy Glen?

The name fairy glen has been attributed to almost any forest clearing. Very often these are places of great natural beauty and it appears impossible that they can have been created by chance. Sometimes the glen contains an ancient standing stone or tree (often an oak) or is connected with some other place of power such as a cairn or ley line intersection. Another feature found in many fairy glens is water, in particular a waterfall.

One feature of traditional fairy glens is that they are often difficult to find. Many travellers stumble across them at night, led there by music, the sound of fairies playing or by strange lights in the distance. The next day the glen is nowhere to be found.

A common superstition is that anything that is removed from the glen must be returned or the fairies will take their revenge. It is, of course, inadvisable to eat or drink anything from such a glen if you wish to be sure of returning to the mortal world.

Where they fey folk are believed to live below ground, the fairy glen is often said to contain the entrance to their underworld domain. Very often this is via an ancient tree or stone. In many places it is said that if you place your ear to the ground and listen carefully you can hear the sounds of music and laughter from below.

Figurines

Fairies are a constantly popular theme for artists and collectors alike. There are many fairy collectibles available to buy including a wide variety of figurines and statuettes. Many ranges of fairy figures feature flowers and can be said to have a fairy glen theme.

Perhaps the best known range of collectibles on this subject is the Faerie Glen collection of figures from Munro.