Want to have children? Have you been trying for years to no avail? Then I suggest that you head on over to Dorset in southern England. Just outside the village of Cerne Abbas, you will find a legendary chalk figure – The Cerne Abbas Giant. It is also called the Rude Man or the Rude Giant due to its exposed phallus.
So why should you visit the Giant if you want to have children? Legend has it that if a childless couple made love (on a certain part of the giant), they would soon have children. Another legend says that if a woman walked around the figure three times, she would keep her lover faithful to her. Oh, just make sure you’re fit enough to do three rounds – this giant is not called a giant for nothing!
The Cerne Abbas Giant’s is thought to be created way back in Ancient times. However, its history has only been traced to the late 17th century. Wikipedia presents one version of its origins:
Some believe that the giant was carved during the English Civil War by servants of the Lord of the Manor, Denzil Holles, and was intended as a parody of Oliver Cromwell. Cromwell was sometimes mockingly referred to as “England’s Hercules” by his enemies. The Hercules connection is strengthened by the recent discovery of an obliterated line perhaps representing an animal skin (see below). The suggestion that the figure is Hercules was first made in 1764 by William Stukeley.
Whoever the Giant may really be, the fact remains that it is one of the more popular sights in that part of England.