Adder Stone
Also known as "Witche's Stone" & "Hag Stone"
* The Adder Stone *
An adder stone is a type of stone, usually glassy, with a naturally occurring hole through it. Such stones have been discovered by archaeologists in both Britain and Egypt. Commonly, they are found in Northern Germany at the coasts of the North and Baltic Seas.
* Mythical Tale *
Three traditions exist as to the origins of adder stones. One holds that the stones are the hardened saliva of large numbers of serpents massing together, the perforations being caused by their tongues. The second claims that an adder stone comes from the head of a serpent or is made by the sting of an adder. The third is more modern (and much easier to attain). It details that the stone can be any rock with a hole bored through the middle by water. Human intervention (i.e., the direction of water or placement of the stone) is not allowed.
* Irish Mythical Tale *
Serpents, not being present in Ireland, don't often feature in Irish mythology, yet other creatures can form parallels. The legendary druid Mug Ruith was said to have a stone that could turn into a poisonous eel when thrown in the water, this may be a reference to an Adder Stone.
* Russian Mythical Tale *
In Russian folklore, adder stones were believed to be the abodes of spirits called Kurinyi Bog ("The Chicken God"). Kurinyi Bog were the guardians of chickens, and their stones were placed into farmyards to counteract the possible evil effects of the Kikimora (The wives of the Domovoi, the house spirits.) Kikimora, who also guarded and took care of chickens, could often unleash misery upon hens they did not like by plucking out their feathers.
Adder Stone
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-Limited Lifetime Authenticity Guarantee-
The Smoky Mountain Relic Room stands behind the items we sell with a limited lifetime guarantee. We will exchange any item for store credit if the item sold is found by a certified authenticator not to be the authentic artifact, fossil, meteorite, or mineral that we advertised it as being. A letter, specific to the artifact, fossil, meteorite, or mineral in question, from a certified authenticator (in the business under the occupation-specific to the item in question), must be brought in with the item for the return to be acceptable. This guarantee is for the lifetime of the initial purchaser only. See the Relic Room Manager, downstairs inside Smoky Mountain Knife Works, for more information. Original receipt required for exchanges.