PASTIES AND POLTERGEISTS A HALLOWEEN IN CORNWALL

With Halloween coming up we thought we would tell you a 'ghost story'!

The Knockers are an integral part of Cornish folklore. They would hide, steal, or simply move the personal property of the miners. They could often be heard hammering away deep within the mines (hence their name). Worse still, if suitably antagonised, these malicious creatures might even cause a mine to collapse.

All manner of superstations grew up around the Knockers, and many different methods were used to placate them.

One such method involved the ubiquitous Cornish Pastie, that staple of many a pub lunch and hurried roadside snack, the origins of which are rooted firmly in Cornwall's tin mining heritage.

The Cornish Pastie was developed to provide the miners with a hearty midday meal during their gruelling shifts spent working so deep beneath the ground that ascending for lunch was, quite simply, not an option.

It was quite common for miners to leave a piece of the crust of their meal in a dark corner of the mine as a peace offering to the dreaded Knockers in the hope that it would persuade them to spare the one who had left the offering from any malicious activity.

Now if your not too scared how about setting the scene with one of our Skull bracelets for both men and women - shop here