I hope Fitzcoraldo won’t mind me reiterating the folklore he’s recorded, because I was fascinated with the extra bit I found out. Apparently the story originally comes from something written by William Newburgh – and considering he died in 1198, that’s proof that the story is pretty old. Often tales were only written down in the Victorian era, and then you can say they’re only Victorian romanticism – but this time it suggests that stories with the same themes and motifs go back a long way. It’s interesting that the Gypsey Race should get first billing. The ‘unknown material’ of the goblet is also interesting and even reminds me of modern tales of alien abduction rather than fairy abduction.