Bridges, mountains, caves and rock formations that seem impossible to explain become magnets for folklore On Scotland's uninhabited island of Staffa, Fingal’s Cave is formed from tall basalt columns created by ancient volcanic activity. Paulien Dam/Getty Images

My interest in devil’s bridges began with a murder. Not a real one, but one in a Nordic-style crime series that opened with a body found on a lonely stone bridge called Devil’s Bridge. My curiosity eventually took me to that very bridge, near Aberystwyth in Wales, and to a question: Why are there so many bridges named Devil’s Bridge across Europe?

Numerous bridges in European folklore are associated with the devil. The story usually goes something like this: When a bridge seems impossible to build, the devil offers to finish it in exchange for the first soul to cross, but he ultimately ends up outwitted.

Across Europe, dramatic landscapes and ambitious structures that seemed impossible for humans to create have often been attributed to devils, giants, dragons, saints and other supernatural beings.

“We have long drawn on folklore and legends to make sense of the world around us, especially when faced with something we couldn’t otherwise explain,” says Ceri Houlbrook, a folklorist and archaeologist at University of Hertfordshire in England. “Features of the landscape that stand out, that look or feel different, attract stories like a magnet.”

A deep gorge, a treacherous river crossing or a mountain full of caves could be dangerous, with extraordinary structures demanding explanations beyond human ability. The stories have survived despite geology and engineering that offer evidence-backed answers.

“We all love a good story,” Houlbrook says. “Whether or not we believe that a particular rock was tossed by a giant, or a particular cave housed a witch or a particular hill was formed by the devil, we continue to tell these stories because they entertain, amuse, fascinate, even frighten.”

Here are the legends behind seven structures or natural features found in Europe.

Devil’s Bridge, Aberystwyth, Wales Devil's Bridge Chris Griffiths/Getty Images

The Devil’s Bridge in Wales comprises three bridges, one above another, spanning the Mynach Gorge. The lowest is thought to date to the medieval period, possibly built by monks from nearby Strata Florida Abbey. A second was added in 1753, and the third, an iron bridge, was constructed in 1901. The Mynach Falls drop nearly 300 feet through a narrow ravine before the river Mynach joins the Rheidol.

According to legend, the devil offered to build the bridge in return for the soul of the first living creature to cross it. An old woman fooled him by throwing bread across the bridge and sending her sacrificial dog after it.

The history is less tidy. Michael Freeman, vice president of the Ceredigion Historical Society, says the bridge was known as Pontarfynach, or the Monk’s Bridge, in Welsh. Its association with the devil doesn’t seem to date beyond the early 18th century. The story was not mentioned in print until the early 19th century when English tourists helped publicize it, he says.

“People in the past, who could not understand how seemingly impossible structures were built, ascribed them special powers such as the devil, giants, Samson [of the bible], [King] Arthur, and others,” Freeman says.

Juliette Wood, a folklorist at Cardiff University, says the Devil’s Bridge story is “one of many common legends usually called ‘migratory,’ as it appears in so many places.”

The devil isn’t always as formidable as he sounds. “The ‘devils’ who built these things are not usually demonic so much as ‘ogres, and not very bright ones at that,’” says Wood, pointing to how easily they are outsmarted in these stories.

Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland Giant's Causeway Tourism Ireland

As many as 40,000 interlocking dark basalt columns form a natural pavement along Northern Ireland’s Antrim Coast. Created by volcanic activity around 50 million to 60 million years ago, the remarkably regular, mostly polygonal columns have fascinated visitors for centuries. The landscape looks so constructed that geology doesn’t satisfy as the only explanation.

Irish legend says the giant Finn McCool, or Fionn mac Cumhaill, built a causeway across the sea to confront his Scottish rival, Benandonner. When Finn realized his rival was much larger, he disguised himself as a baby. Seeing the enormous “infant,” Benandonner fled and tore up the causeway behind him. The remnants supposedly became the Giant’s Causeway and Fingal’s Cave, across the Irish Sea.

“As our understanding of geology grew, the stories didn’t die away,” Houlbrook says. “We want to populate our storied landscapes with giants and other supernatural beings.”

Fingal’s Cave, Scotland Fingal's Cave Visit Scotland

On the uninhabited island of Staffa, Fingal’s Cave is formed from tall basalt columns created by ancient volcanic activity, with waves later carving out the cavern. It shares its striking columnar basalt with the Giant’s Causeway, and folklore connects the two through the story of Finn and Benandonner.

The cave became widely known after naturalist Sir Joseph Banks visited in 1772. The geometry of Fingal’s Cave gives it an architectural identity, while its acoustics earned it the Gaelic name An Uamh Binn, or Musical Cave, and inspired Felix Mendelssohn’s “Hebrides Overture.”

“If nature couldn’t have formed them and people couldn’t have built them, then how else can we explain them?” Wood asks. “We look to the deep past, to the architects lost in time, who must have possessed such strength or such skill that they couldn’t have been human.”

Mount Pilatus, Switzerland Mount Pilatus Pilatus-Bahnen AG

Rising to 6,995 feet above Lake Lucerne, Mount Pilatus has long been associated with dragons said to possess healing powers.

Adriana Hauri, a researcher at University of Lucerne, says the lake and its surrounding areas were considered extremely dangerous in the Middle Ages. “The topography contributed significantly to the emergence of the dragon legends. The mountain, with its rugged cliffs, gorges and caves, [seemed] the ideal habitat for dragons,” Hauri says.

The stories were later recorded in writing and developed by a succession of chroniclers. Hauri’s research suggests the mythology of Mount Pilatus was also shaped by the scholarly culture of the 16th and 17th centuries, when local traditions and published accounts began to reinforce each other.

The stories include one about the Luzerner Drachenstein (Lucerne dragonstone), said to have been dropped by a dragon flying from Mount Rigi to Mount Pilatus in 1421, and another about a man who fell into a cave and found two peaceful dragons with whom he spent the winter.

Lorelei Rock, Germany Lorelei Rock Julia Lavrinenko/Getty Images

The Lorelei is a steep slate outcrop rising to 410 feet above one of the Rhine’s narrowest stretches. The waterway was historically difficult to navigate here: strong currents, sharp turns and a confined channel made the stretch hazardous to boats.

The modern Lorelei legend took shape in the Romantic period, particularly through the writings of Clemens Brentano and Heinrich Heine. In Brentano’s ballad “Zu Bacharach am Rheine” (1801), Lore Lay dies after despairing over a faithless lover. Heine’s poem “Die Loreley” (1824) transformed the figure into the beautiful woman on the rock whose song distracts sailors until their boats crash. The story also recalls the Sirens of Homer’s Odyssey, whose songs lured sailors toward destruction.

Pont del Diable, Tarragona, Spain Pont del Diable Sergi Reboredo/VW Pics/Universal Images Group via Getty Images

The Pont del Diable, or Les Ferreres Aqueduct, is a Roman aqueduct rather than a medieval bridge. Said to have been built in the first century C.E., it carried water from the Francolí River to the ancient city of Tarraco. It crosses a natural valley on two tiers of stone arches, reaching 712 feet in length and nearly 90 feet tall at its highest point.

According to local legend, the devil built the aqueduct after a bargain with its architect; he demanded the soul of the first person to drink from it. The builder outwitted him by sending a donkey to drink first.

The aqueduct is ancient, but the surviving record of this legend is from modern times. According to a Tarragona publication, the story was passed down through generations before local historian Joan Salvat i Bové recorded it in his 1969 book La ciutat i el Camp de Tarragona (The city and the region of Tarragona).

Houlbrook says the devil’s popularity may partly stem from his flexibility. “He can be cast as anything from the prince of evil to a mischievous trickster character,” she says. In these stories, he can also provide the architectural knowledge needed to create something that seems beyond human ability.

St. Michael’s Mount, Cornwall, England St. Michael's Mount Courtesy of St. Michael's Mount

St. Michael’s Mount is a tidal island with an ancient cobbled causeway that disappears beneath Mount’s Bay when the tide rises. That changing landscape has long encouraged stories of the supernatural.

The archangel Michael is said to have appeared here in 495 C.E., warning fishermen of danger, and the site later became a place of pilgrimage. By the Norman period, it belonged to the Benedictine abbey of Mont-Saint-Michel, with construction of a church and priory beginning in 1135.

The mount also has a less saintly legend. The giant Cormoran is said to have lived on the island, terrorizing villagers by stealing livestock until the young Jack the Giant Killer defeated him. Versions of the story have circulated in English print for centuries. Cornish tradition also casts Cormoran as a giant who helped create the mount, offering a supernatural explanation for the island itself.

The logic behind all stories regarding these landscapes is the same. “We want our landscapes storied and full of magic; we want the features of the world around us to spark imagination,” Houlbrook says.

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