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Nuckelavee, as depicted by James Torrence

The nuckelavee is a horse-like demon from Orcadian mythology that combines equine and human elements. The name of this most horrible of all the demons of the Scottish islands may have the same root as Old Nick (the Devil). Though accounts describing the creature's appearance are inconsistent, its abilities are well-documented. The nuckelavee's breath can wilt crops and sicken livestock, and the creature has been held responsible for droughts and epidemics on land despite its being predominantly a sea-dweller. In common with many other sea monsters, it is unable to tolerate fresh water; therefore, those it is pursuing have only to cross a river or stream to be rid of it. The nuckelavee is kept in confinement during the summer months by the Mither o' the Sea, an ancient Orcadian divine and the only one able to control it. This mythological creature may have originated as a composite of a water horse from Celtic mythology and a creature imported by Norsemen. (Full article...)

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Detail of an Art Nouveau building in Riga
Detail of an Art Nouveau building in Riga

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Flydubai Boeing 737-800 (A6-FDN)
Flydubai Boeing 737-800 which crashed

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March 23: Fast of Esther (Judaism, 2016); Holi (Hinduism, 2016); Pakistan Day (1956); Day of Hungarian–Polish Friendship in Hungary and Poland

Bhagat Singh
Bhagat Singh

Today's featured picture

Holy Trinity, Sloane Street

Holy Trinity is an Anglican parish church in London, built in 1888–90 on the south-eastern side of Sloane Street to an Arts and Crafts design by the architect J. D. Sedding. Funded by the 5th Earl Cadogan, in whose estate it lay, the church replaced an earlier building only half its size which, at the time of its demolition, was less than sixty years old. Holy Trinity was heavily damaged during World War II but restored by the 1960s.

Photograph: David Iliff

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