Knucker
Water dragon of Sussex knuckerholes, rooted in Old English lore.
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Knuckers were said to inhabit deep, round pools called knuckerholes, which were often considered bottomless.[1][2] In the Sussex dialect, "knucker" refers to a water dragon that inhabits knuckerholes.[1][2]
Key facts and history
The Lyminster knuckerhole is actually about 30 feet deep, though local legend claims it is bottomless.[3][2] A local story says villagers tied six church bellropes together to measure the Lyminster pool but could not reach the bottom.[3] The knucker is described as having wings and sometimes as a sea serpent.[4] The Sussex Dialect Dictionary defines knucker holes as "springs which rise in the flat lands of the South Downs".[2]
The Lancing knuckerhole was known in 1937 as bottomless and was located near an old inn called the Sussex Pad.[2]
What the cited sources add
That same source records a dialect story in which a dragon named Knucker is fed pudding and later complains it sits heavy on him.[2] The account says that villagers followed a man as far as a bridge but did not go further because "ole Knucker" was lying there.[2]
References
- Wikipedia, "Knucker" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Dragons & Serpents In Sussex" (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Dragons & Serpents In Sussex". facts only, no text reused. sussexarch.org.uk
- Wikipedia, "Knucker" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "the Antonine itineraries", 27 October 2016 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Knucker" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "The-Knucker-Story-and-Pie-recipe", sussexpast, 2011 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Knucker (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Knucker (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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