Been at the @gladlib.bsky.social this week to get work done on my #JohnAubrey book. This place is so conducive to writing. I feel a million miles from my normal life and all its distractions.
October 16, 2025 at 8:09 AM
Been at the @gladlib.bsky.social this week to get work done on my #JohnAubrey book. This place is so conducive to writing. I feel a million miles from my normal life and all its distractions.
Looking for something to do over the summer? My co-curated exhibition on #JohnAubrey runs until 19 September @chippenhammuseum.bsky.social, Wilts.
www.chippenham.gov.uk/exhibition-w...
www.chippenham.gov.uk/exhibition-w...
July 29, 2026 at 9:43 PM
Looking for something to do over the summer? My co-curated exhibition on #JohnAubrey runs until 19 September @chippenhammuseum.bsky.social, Wilts.
www.chippenham.gov.uk/exhibition-w...
www.chippenham.gov.uk/exhibition-w...
Delighted to be talking about #JohnAubrey so near his birthplace this Saturday in his 400th anniversary year. 😁
On the menu 🐉🐚👻🌍🌱💍🧙♀️🌩️
On the menu 🐉🐚👻🌍🌱💍🧙♀️🌩️
Still time to book your place on a journey through the amazing world of Wiltshire-born scientist, writer & antiquarian #JohnAubrey with historian & author @lrylandepton.bsky.social Saturday, 6 June at 2pm.
👉Reserve your place by email - archives@wiltshire.gov.uk
🎟️Tickets £10, payable on the day.
👉Reserve your place by email - archives@wiltshire.gov.uk
🎟️Tickets £10, payable on the day.
June 2, 2026 at 9:15 AM
Delighted to be talking about #JohnAubrey so near his birthplace this Saturday in his 400th anniversary year. 😁
On the menu 🐉🐚👻🌍🌱💍🧙♀️🌩️
On the menu 🐉🐚👻🌍🌱💍🧙♀️🌩️
The joy of randomness when searching #archives & #libraries
Looks like a visiting fellowship @bodleianlibraries.bsky.social is proving fruitful.
#johnaubrey #wiltshire
Looks like a visiting fellowship @bodleianlibraries.bsky.social is proving fruitful.
#johnaubrey #wiltshire
I have written something random 😀https://www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-aubrey-lady-salisbury-amp-the-cow-bladders
John Aubrey, Lady Salisbury and the Cow Bladders — Louise Ryland-Epton
Amongst John Aubrey's unpublished works, which comprised everything except a text on the supernatural, was 'A Collection of Approved Receipts'. A list of medical cures.
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk
February 9, 2025 at 9:31 PM
The joy of randomness when searching #archives & #libraries
Looks like a visiting fellowship @bodleianlibraries.bsky.social is proving fruitful.
#johnaubrey #wiltshire
Looks like a visiting fellowship @bodleianlibraries.bsky.social is proving fruitful.
#johnaubrey #wiltshire
Have seen @JohnAubrey mentioned in several churches but he’s buried in #MaryMagdalene @Oxford
November 16, 2024 at 8:45 PM
Have seen @JohnAubrey mentioned in several churches but he’s buried in #MaryMagdalene @Oxford
This contains two of my favourite areas of research #JohnAubrey & #Witchcraft
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
John Aubrey and Tales of Wiltshire Witchcraft — Louise Ryland-Epton
John Aubrey believed in magic. The 17th-century Wiltshire antiquary noted down folk remedies and practical magical techniques used by cunning folk
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk
February 27, 2025 at 3:56 PM
This contains two of my favourite areas of research #JohnAubrey & #Witchcraft
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
At the @gladlib.bsky.social library this week working on #JohnAubrey from who I learned today that churches are ‘despicable all over Hampshire’ and a goose was once inserted into a tunnel under Bradenstoke Priory. It emerged several miles away by a well on the Malmesbury Rd minus its feathers.🪿
November 24, 2025 at 11:02 AM
At the @gladlib.bsky.social library this week working on #JohnAubrey from who I learned today that churches are ‘despicable all over Hampshire’ and a goose was once inserted into a tunnel under Bradenstoke Priory. It emerged several miles away by a well on the Malmesbury Rd minus its feathers.🪿
In 1672 a merchant was asked to look into the existence of Wyverns (2-legged dragons) in Africa. He was given a picture sketched from a heraldic device. He reported back to #JohnAubrey who recorded the findings in his natural history, a work never published in full.
February 4, 2025 at 7:33 PM
In 1672 a merchant was asked to look into the existence of Wyverns (2-legged dragons) in Africa. He was given a picture sketched from a heraldic device. He reported back to #JohnAubrey who recorded the findings in his natural history, a work never published in full.
Transcribing #JohnAubrey-
‘In the parabolical vaulture at Wokey hole & in the Caverns at Chedar Rocks &c doe hang down from the Vauture petrifications like Icecles’.
Loving Aubrey’s turn of phrase! 😁
‘In the parabolical vaulture at Wokey hole & in the Caverns at Chedar Rocks &c doe hang down from the Vauture petrifications like Icecles’.
Loving Aubrey’s turn of phrase! 😁
December 10, 2024 at 3:08 PM
Transcribing #JohnAubrey-
‘In the parabolical vaulture at Wokey hole & in the Caverns at Chedar Rocks &c doe hang down from the Vauture petrifications like Icecles’.
Loving Aubrey’s turn of phrase! 😁
‘In the parabolical vaulture at Wokey hole & in the Caverns at Chedar Rocks &c doe hang down from the Vauture petrifications like Icecles’.
Loving Aubrey’s turn of phrase! 😁
Today is #Candlemas so here is a little Wiltshire folklore from #JohnAubrey. ‘In south Wiltshire the constant observation is that if droppes doe hang upon the hedges on Candlemas day, it will be a good pease-yeare. It is generally agreed on to be matter of fact.’
February 2, 2026 at 7:16 PM
Today is #Candlemas so here is a little Wiltshire folklore from #JohnAubrey. ‘In south Wiltshire the constant observation is that if droppes doe hang upon the hedges on Candlemas day, it will be a good pease-yeare. It is generally agreed on to be matter of fact.’
A reminder that there is only one week left to apply for @bodleianlibraries.bsky.social Visiting Fellowships. I have a David Walker Fellowship for 24/25 & so excited to be at the Bodleian soon for my project #JohnAubrey & the Pursuit of the Natural World. 😁
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/csb/fellowsh...
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/csb/fellowsh...
Bodleian Visiting Fellowships in Special Collections
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk
November 22, 2024 at 6:03 PM
A reminder that there is only one week left to apply for @bodleianlibraries.bsky.social Visiting Fellowships. I have a David Walker Fellowship for 24/25 & so excited to be at the Bodleian soon for my project #JohnAubrey & the Pursuit of the Natural World. 😁
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/csb/fellowsh...
www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/csb/fellowsh...
Today is National Bird Day.
According to #JohnAubrey in 1685 'The Niall [or Woodpecker]..To this day the Country-People doe divine of Raine by their cry: clank, clank, clank: which noise of theirs is a signe of Raine. Their tongue is a strange thing; which they can draw-out of great length..
According to #JohnAubrey in 1685 'The Niall [or Woodpecker]..To this day the Country-People doe divine of Raine by their cry: clank, clank, clank: which noise of theirs is a signe of Raine. Their tongue is a strange thing; which they can draw-out of great length..
January 5, 2025 at 1:56 PM
Today is National Bird Day.
According to #JohnAubrey in 1685 'The Niall [or Woodpecker]..To this day the Country-People doe divine of Raine by their cry: clank, clank, clank: which noise of theirs is a signe of Raine. Their tongue is a strange thing; which they can draw-out of great length..
According to #JohnAubrey in 1685 'The Niall [or Woodpecker]..To this day the Country-People doe divine of Raine by their cry: clank, clank, clank: which noise of theirs is a signe of Raine. Their tongue is a strange thing; which they can draw-out of great length..
Riding home at twilight to Broad Chalke, Wilts #JohnAubrey saw a point of light expand into a glowing sphere ‘as boies blow bubbles with soape’. His horse shied. In a few seconds it vanished. He noted, in his natural history ‘it may be this, that which they call a blast or blight in the countrey.’
January 18, 2026 at 8:27 AM
Riding home at twilight to Broad Chalke, Wilts #JohnAubrey saw a point of light expand into a glowing sphere ‘as boies blow bubbles with soape’. His horse shied. In a few seconds it vanished. He noted, in his natural history ‘it may be this, that which they call a blast or blight in the countrey.’
I have loved researching #Folklore since I came across the tale of a C19 urine burner in Bremhill, Wilts and the local tradition of passing babies through a cleaved Ash tree at Beltane. But this #FolkloreThursday I focus on #witchcraft & #JohnAubrey.
www.wiltshirehistory.org/news/john-au...
www.wiltshirehistory.org/news/john-au...
John Aubrey & Tales of Wiltshire Witchcraft — Wiltshire Victoria County History
John Aubrey believed in magic. The 17th-century Wiltshire antiquary noted down folk remedies and practical magical techniques used by cunning folk (the practitioners of white magic which communities t...
www.wiltshirehistory.org
November 28, 2024 at 8:50 AM
I have loved researching #Folklore since I came across the tale of a C19 urine burner in Bremhill, Wilts and the local tradition of passing babies through a cleaved Ash tree at Beltane. But this #FolkloreThursday I focus on #witchcraft & #JohnAubrey.
www.wiltshirehistory.org/news/john-au...
www.wiltshirehistory.org/news/john-au...
It is my last week working on #JohnAubrey in Ox. 😔
This is Merton College. According to Aubrey, when he was a scholar, he sang under its gate & a certain note would return a ‘loud humme’.
I don’t know c17 musical notation to understand precisely what saying, but I am sure it was very clever.
This is Merton College. According to Aubrey, when he was a scholar, he sang under its gate & a certain note would return a ‘loud humme’.
I don’t know c17 musical notation to understand precisely what saying, but I am sure it was very clever.
February 25, 2025 at 9:52 AM
It is my last week working on #JohnAubrey in Ox. 😔
This is Merton College. According to Aubrey, when he was a scholar, he sang under its gate & a certain note would return a ‘loud humme’.
I don’t know c17 musical notation to understand precisely what saying, but I am sure it was very clever.
This is Merton College. According to Aubrey, when he was a scholar, he sang under its gate & a certain note would return a ‘loud humme’.
I don’t know c17 musical notation to understand precisely what saying, but I am sure it was very clever.
I have images to collate for a 📕
But I’m desperate to write a blog about two ‘conjurors’ 🤹🪄🧙♂️who lived under a hill in 17th century Gloucestershire. Another anecdote buried in a #JohnAubrey manuscript that makes me want to go down a rabbit hole for the rest of the day. 😭
But I’m desperate to write a blog about two ‘conjurors’ 🤹🪄🧙♂️who lived under a hill in 17th century Gloucestershire. Another anecdote buried in a #JohnAubrey manuscript that makes me want to go down a rabbit hole for the rest of the day. 😭
July 1, 2025 at 11:15 AM
I have images to collate for a 📕
But I’m desperate to write a blog about two ‘conjurors’ 🤹🪄🧙♂️who lived under a hill in 17th century Gloucestershire. Another anecdote buried in a #JohnAubrey manuscript that makes me want to go down a rabbit hole for the rest of the day. 😭
But I’m desperate to write a blog about two ‘conjurors’ 🤹🪄🧙♂️who lived under a hill in 17th century Gloucestershire. Another anecdote buried in a #JohnAubrey manuscript that makes me want to go down a rabbit hole for the rest of the day. 😭
Next in my #Halloween countdown (I missed doing one yesterday) is a story of magic from 17th century #Gloucestershire. 3/6
Many of these stories are gleaned from the manuscripts of #JohnAubrey. I happen to have a book coming out about him in 2026 😁
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/the-con...
Many of these stories are gleaned from the manuscripts of #JohnAubrey. I happen to have a book coming out about him in 2026 😁
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/the-con...
The Conjurors of Birdlip Hill — Louise Ryland-Epton
There was once a conjuror who lived under a hill called Birdlip in Gloucestershire.
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk
October 29, 2025 at 8:39 AM
Next in my #Halloween countdown (I missed doing one yesterday) is a story of magic from 17th century #Gloucestershire. 3/6
Many of these stories are gleaned from the manuscripts of #JohnAubrey. I happen to have a book coming out about him in 2026 😁
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/the-con...
Many of these stories are gleaned from the manuscripts of #JohnAubrey. I happen to have a book coming out about him in 2026 😁
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/the-con...
For no reason other than my obsession with the topic, I have decided to count down to #Halloween 🧙🎃👻 with a suitable daily blog. Stuff I’ve been excited about over the year, sometimes related to #JohnAubrey & his pals. My book on Aubrey is out 2026. 😁 1/6
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/involun...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/involun...
‘Involuntary’ Witches: The Case of Lee & Snigg — Louise Ryland-Epton
In 1832 an article titled ‘Anecdotes of Witchcraft in Wiltshire’ appeared in the Gentleman’s Magazine . The piece was copied from a manuscript of 1686 penned by an unnamed individual, but now identif...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk
October 26, 2025 at 6:10 PM
For no reason other than my obsession with the topic, I have decided to count down to #Halloween 🧙🎃👻 with a suitable daily blog. Stuff I’ve been excited about over the year, sometimes related to #JohnAubrey & his pals. My book on Aubrey is out 2026. 😁 1/6
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/involun...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/involun...
From my 1st week in Ox I learnt that 1. #JohnAubrey used flyleaves of books to make notes. 2. 👇 in 1676 was late sending Aubrey a soil sample as he had been poisoned by a ‘barberous & revenful’ woman who wanted him dead. Given his history trying to prosecute local ‘witches’ I can’t help wondering…
February 2, 2025 at 5:37 PM
From my 1st week in Ox I learnt that 1. #JohnAubrey used flyleaves of books to make notes. 2. 👇 in 1676 was late sending Aubrey a soil sample as he had been poisoned by a ‘barberous & revenful’ woman who wanted him dead. Given his history trying to prosecute local ‘witches’ I can’t help wondering…
Ever wondered 🤔 what a fake sleep preacher & a false leper may have in common? 😔 Then #JohnAubrey is here to help 🥳 All is revealed in my latest blog. 😁https://www.wiltshirehistory.org/news/the-fake-sleep-preacher-and-the-false-leper-the-salisbury-impostures-of-dr-heydock-amp-walter-raleigh
The Fake Sleep Preacher and the False Leper: The Salisbury 'Impostures' of Dr Heydock & Walter Raleigh — Wiltshire Victoria County History
John Aubrey loved stories. His most famous work, Brief Lives, is replete with gossipy biographical portraits. This fascination for personal flaws, scandal and a good story spilt over into his Natural ...
www.wiltshirehistory.org
December 27, 2024 at 2:47 PM
Ever wondered 🤔 what a fake sleep preacher & a false leper may have in common? 😔 Then #JohnAubrey is here to help 🥳 All is revealed in my latest blog. 😁https://www.wiltshirehistory.org/news/the-fake-sleep-preacher-and-the-false-leper-the-salisbury-impostures-of-dr-heydock-amp-walter-raleigh
Next in my #Halloween 🎃 countdown is very odd - what happened when a cloud entered a church during divine service in 1652 and wreaked havoc 4/6
This story began like others in the unpublished writings of #JohnAubrey.
I will be publishing a book in 2026.
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/death-b...
This story began like others in the unpublished writings of #JohnAubrey.
I will be publishing a book in 2026.
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/death-b...
Death by Golden Thunderbolt — Louise Ryland-Epton
In the archives of the Royal Society is a 17th-century scientific paper by the natural philosopher John Aubrey, in which he describes extreme weather events. One of the most extreme was the 'tempest a...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk
October 30, 2025 at 12:11 PM
Next in my #Halloween 🎃 countdown is very odd - what happened when a cloud entered a church during divine service in 1652 and wreaked havoc 4/6
This story began like others in the unpublished writings of #JohnAubrey.
I will be publishing a book in 2026.
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/death-b...
This story began like others in the unpublished writings of #JohnAubrey.
I will be publishing a book in 2026.
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/death-b...
Still time to book your place on a journey through the amazing world of Wiltshire-born scientist, writer & antiquarian #JohnAubrey with historian & author @lrylandepton.bsky.social Saturday, 6 June at 2pm.
👉Reserve your place by email - archives@wiltshire.gov.uk
🎟️Tickets £10, payable on the day.
👉Reserve your place by email - archives@wiltshire.gov.uk
🎟️Tickets £10, payable on the day.
May 29, 2026 at 5:07 PM
Still time to book your place on a journey through the amazing world of Wiltshire-born scientist, writer & antiquarian #JohnAubrey with historian & author @lrylandepton.bsky.social Saturday, 6 June at 2pm.
👉Reserve your place by email - archives@wiltshire.gov.uk
🎟️Tickets £10, payable on the day.
👉Reserve your place by email - archives@wiltshire.gov.uk
🎟️Tickets £10, payable on the day.
Are dragons real? 🐉 Or more precisely that type of dragon called a wyvern? In his c17 Natural History #JohnAubrey looked into the subject and it’s the topic of my next blog in the run up to the publication of this work (in full for the 1st time) in June 😁
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
John Aubrey’s Natural History, Part 3: Dragons — Louise Ryland-Epton
Are dragons real? The question crossed the mind of John Aubrey. A founding fellow of the Royal Society, he was an exponent of astrology, curious by the supernatural but seemingly sceptical about the e...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk
January 29, 2026 at 11:02 AM
Are dragons real? 🐉 Or more precisely that type of dragon called a wyvern? In his c17 Natural History #JohnAubrey looked into the subject and it’s the topic of my next blog in the run up to the publication of this work (in full for the 1st time) in June 😁
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
www.louiserylandepton.co.uk/blog/john-au...
Think you know #JohnAubrey?? Just wait to see what Kate Bennett, @chippenhammuseum.bsky.social & I have in store next year.
🐉👻🔭⚗️🪴⛲️🖼️🙋♀️🪺🌳📚🧮
🐉👻🔭⚗️🪴⛲️🖼️🙋♀️🪺🌳📚🧮
May 29, 2025 at 3:17 PM
Think you know #JohnAubrey?? Just wait to see what Kate Bennett, @chippenhammuseum.bsky.social & I have in store next year.
🐉👻🔭⚗️🪴⛲️🖼️🙋♀️🪺🌳📚🧮
🐉👻🔭⚗️🪴⛲️🖼️🙋♀️🪺🌳📚🧮
"How these curiosities would be quite forgot, did not such idle fellows as I am put them down!"
400th Anniversary ✒️ #JohnAubrey, English historian (Brief Lives) and philosopher, was #BOTD 12 March 1626. #History #Philosophy
400th Anniversary ✒️ #JohnAubrey, English historian (Brief Lives) and philosopher, was #BOTD 12 March 1626. #History #Philosophy
March 12, 2026 at 4:17 AM
"How these curiosities would be quite forgot, did not such idle fellows as I am put them down!"
400th Anniversary ✒️ #JohnAubrey, English historian (Brief Lives) and philosopher, was #BOTD 12 March 1626. #History #Philosophy
400th Anniversary ✒️ #JohnAubrey, English historian (Brief Lives) and philosopher, was #BOTD 12 March 1626. #History #Philosophy