The Paranormal Database

Basking Beast

Location: Loch Arkaig (Highland) - Waters of the loch
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: October 1857
Further Comments: This creature, with a head like that of a horse and a single hump, rested ten metres from the shoreline, before slowly sinking beneath the water. A legend says that the Jacobites once hid a collection of treasure in the waters of the loch, where it remains.

John's Treasure

Location: Long Sutton (Lincolnshire) - King John's Hole, pool of water halfway between town and King's Lynn (may no longer be present)
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The stagnant pool of water was reputed to be the place where King John's wealth was lost. One report stated that some of the treasure was recovered when the area was partly drained.

Golden Horseshoes

Location: Longstock (Hampshire) - Wooded area on the downs known as Money Bunt
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A horse shod with golden shoes is said to be buried in this area.

Money Coffin

Location: Longtown (Herefordshire) - Longtown Castle
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown - still present
Further Comments: A local myth says that one thousand guineas are buried on this site, concealed within a coffin.

An old woodcut of a cockerel.

Turning Stone

Location: Looe (Cornwall) - Cock-Crow (or Cockcrow) Stone
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Still present?
Further Comments: This hunk of rock rotates three times on hearing a cockerel crowing in the morning. The treasure under the stone should be accessible during this time but hampered by the fact that only one particular cockerel will animate the rock.

Secret Tunnel

Location: Lorrha (County Tipperary) - Friars Lough
Type: Other
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A secret tunnel said to exist between Friars Lough and the village contained treasure hidden by monks.

Edmond Roe O'Kennedy

Location: Lough Derg (County Tipperary) - Annagh Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1975
Further Comments: Edmond was murdered in the sixteenth century before telling anyone where he had concealed his hidden treasure. Since his death, Edmond's shade has appeared to visitors at the ruined site, blood leaking from a large slit in his throat.

Fire Breathing Hound

Location: Lough Derg (County Tipperary) - Castle Biggs
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This abomination with cloven hooves protects a hidden hoard of treasure somewhere near this house.

Ruined Treasure

Location: Marden (Wiltshire) - Area where Hatfield Barrow once stood
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Barrow no longer present
Further Comments: This barrow was destroyed after treasure hunters failed to find evidence of a burial chamber. Stories of a valuable hoard located in the area still exist.

Meg

Location: Meldon (Northumberland) - Between Meldon and Hartington Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: After dark, seven years on, seven years off
Further Comments: Meg of Meldon had a reputation for being a ruthless miser, a canny businesswoman, and a witch. Her ghost was said to travel from the village to her former home, resting for seven years every seven years. Her spirit was once seen in the form of a little dog close to a bridge but was more likely to take the form of a pretty woman or flickering lights of many colours. Another part of her legend says that Meg hid her treasure around the area, within wells, in ceilings, and close to Meldon tower.

No Treasure

Location: Meldon (Northumberland) - Unnamed field containing standing stone
Type: Other
Date / Time: Pre-nineteenth century
Further Comments: James Gillies had three dreams which involved discovering a hoard of treasure buried under a stone. Alas, he told several people of his dream, and when he finally found time to go and look under the stone, all he found was a hole and evidence that the hidden treasure had recently been taken.

Gentle Music

Location: Middleham (North Yorkshire) - Middleham Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: Three children reported hearing a battle coming from outside the castle and seeing a knight on horseback who charged at them. Inside the castle, muffled sixteenth century music has been heard, while there are persistent rumours of buried treasure somewhere in the grounds (which can only be found after running nonstop around the fort nine times and quickly entering the mysterious door which magically opens!).

Coffin

Location: Milborne St Andrew (Dorset) - Cowleaze Barrows
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Barrow still present
Further Comments: One of these barrows (there are three) is said to contain a golden coffin. A storm is said to blow in if anyone starts to dig for it. Some sources mention that headless phantom coffin bearers haunt the area, which may only be visible to the D'Urberville family.

Gold

Location: Minchinhampton (Gloucestershire) - Barrow on common (Hyde Barrow?)
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The barrow here was said to have contained a crock of gold. A ghost also walked the area.

Highwayman

Location: Moulton St Mary (Norfolk) - Callow (or Caller) Pit
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A phantom highwayman would ride around this pit before heading towards Callow Spong (where he would vanish). The pit itself was said to be the home of the Devil, who dragged one man down into its waters after he tried to fish out a chest of coins.

A guardian bull protects the treasure.

Giant's Gold

Location: Murroe (County Limerick) - Garranbane, aka Giant's Grave
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: One myth says that alongside the giant's body is a golden hoard. The last time anyone tried to dig it up, a phantom bull could be heard, scaring the diggers away.

Looks Like Stormy Weather

Location: Mynyddislwyn (Gwent) - St Tudor's Grave mound
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: When a man tried to find the hidden hoard of gold contained within the manmade mound, a huge storm blew up scaring the (would-be) thief away.

Guiding Light

Location: Nannerch (Clwyd) - Moel Arthur Hill
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: An unearthly ball of light is said to periodically appear on the hill to lead treasure hunters to a mass of treasure buried somewhere here. However, once the digging site is reached, a violent storm will spring up and drive the would-be raiders away. The hill is another contender for the final resting place of Boudicca.

Old postcard showing Netley Abbey in Hampshire.

Blind Peter

Location: Netley (Hampshire) - Netley Abbey ruins
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 31 October (reoccurring) Grey Ladies seen
Further Comments: On Halloween three misty women appear and walk along the ruin's walls. The sounds of bells can also be heard on this night. Another presence is Blind Peter. He is less fussy on the date he appears and just wanders around the ruins of the abbey. Finally, there is a legend that a secret underground passage was sealed after the last man to enter it emerged shortly after, screaming 'block it up!' before dropping dead - the passage may be connected to the tales of treasure buried on site.

Norwich Castle, Norfolk.

Old Lady in a Black Dress

Location: Norwich (Norfolk) - Norwich Castle
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1820 onwards
Further Comments: The earliest ghost sighting here dates to 1820 when a few prisoners were scared 'half to death' by something indescribable. In 1844 the Devil, dancing away on the walls, was seen by two witnesses. More recently, staff at the castle museum have reported watching an old lady wearing black float around the grounds. It is unclear if this sighting relates to the old ghost story of Martha Alden, who was executed for murdering her husband in 1807 and took to haunting the castle hill. Finally, there are rumours that the hill on which the castle stands conceals the grave of an old king, together with his hoard of silver and gold.

Golden Coffin

Location: Notgrove (Gloucestershire) - Long Barrow
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The long barrow was said to conceal a coffin made from gold. Nothing was found when the stones were exposed, and now the site has been (badly) covered up.

Golden Coffin

Location: Ogbourne St George (Wiltshire) - Barrow
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Early twentieth century?
Further Comments: A barrow in this area was thought to contain a golden coffin. When treasure hunters tried to dig into the barrow, their tools broke and were prevented from completing their task. The barrow was also said to contain a nest of vipers.

Oliver Cromwell at Madame Tussauds.

Could be Cromwell

Location: Old Basing (Hampshire) - Basing House ruins
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The jury is out on whether this shade is that of Oliver Cromwell, who is responsible for destroying the building, or that of a former family member looking for lost treasure (in the form of a golden calf). In addition, the ruins are also home to several phantom monks and a Puritan on horseback that gallops up the driveway only to vanish near the church.

The ghost of Birchen Bower.

Madame Hannah Beswick

Location: Oldham (Greater Manchester) - Birchen Bower (building no longer stands, but replaced by Ferranti Works), Bower Lane, Hollinwood
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Weather Dependent: clear nights. Last seen 1950s
Further Comments: Though the building no longer stands, the ghost of Beswick was also said to haunt her former lands, watching over the gold that she had buried to protect it from thieves and soldiers. The shade reportedly stands tall, wearing a black silk dress and frilly cap, although sometimes she was headless. According to legend, her presence grows stronger every seventh anniversary of her death (in 1758), and she was also seen on clear nights. During the 1950s it was claimed that 35 Ferranti workers had seen her on different occasions.

Golden Coffin

Location: Orchardleigh (Somerset) - Murtry Hill Long Barrow
Type: Legend
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This is another location where a golden coffin is reputed to be buried.