The Kingdom of Manannan

I recently flew to the Isle of Man and was pleasantly surprised by the rich folklore that can be found on such a small island. While coming in to land on the island I did notice that there was very low cloud cover, added to this quite often the island is obscured from view from not only the low clouds but also the sea mists which help conceal the island.

Although there is a straightforward reason for this, a large warm landmass in a cold ocean can create a mist which hangs over the island, however, there is another explanation which goes back hundreds if not thousands of years.

According to folklore there once lived a wizard who lived on the Calf of Man, a small island roughly one square mile in area which can be found off the southern tip of the Isle of Man. His name was Manannan from which the Isle of Man reputedly took its name It is said that Manannan was a member of the Tuatha de Dannan, an ancient magical ruling race from Ireland which has been speculated as being the Fairy Folk.

The House of Manannan is an interactive museum which can be found in the town of Peel on the Isle of Man from where this picture was taken.

According to legend the place where Manannan used to live and from where he made the island invisible to passing ships is no longer visible as it is said that the sandbank which had used to be an island presumably close to the Calf of Man now lies beneath 40 fathoms of water. It is claimed that it can be seen once every seven years when Old May Day falls on a Sunday. So if you plan on visiting the Island try to visit on this day and who knows what you might see!