Welsh artist spots ghostly figure in Bannau Brycheiniog

Molly Stubbs

An artist whose work is inspired by myth, magic, and folklore has come across a ghostly phenomenon on top of a mountain in Bannau Brycheiniog. 

John Abell posted a reel to Instagram showing a spectral figure, surrounded by a prism of light and mist as he reached the top of Cribyn. 

Alas, the supernatural occurrence has a logical explanation, and John is far from the first to have seen it appear. 

The ghostly figure, known as a Brocken Spectre, is a result of one of the rarest weather phenomenon on the planet.

 

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A post shared by John Abell (@crwydrojohnabell)

According to the Met Office, a Brocken Spectre is: “A large shadow of an observer cast onto cloud or mist. It is named after the German mountain on which it was first noted.

“When an observer stands on a hill which is partially enveloped in mist and in such a position that their shadow is thrown on to the mist, they may get the illusion that the shadow is a person seen dimly through the mist. The illusion is that this person or ‘spectre’ is gigantic and at a considerable distance away from them.

“The sun shining behind the observer projects their shadow through the mist, while the magnification of the shadow is an optical illusion which makes the shadow on nearby clouds seem at the same distance at faraway landmarks seen through the cloud.

“The term ‘Brocken Spectre’ was coined in 1780 by Johann Silberschlag, a German pastor and natural scientist who frequented the Harz mountains. The term has been popularly used throughout literature, mentioned in works by Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Charles Dickens and Lewis Carroll amongst others.”

John posted the reel with the caption: “Dydd Gogoniant! Ro’n i’n cofio dydd heulog arall, dyma’r diwrnod welais i Brocken Spectre uwchben Cribyn.” (Glory Day! I remembered another sunny day, this is the day I saw Brocken Specter above Cribyn.)

Fittingly, John’s work draws heavily from Celtic mythology, and the Brocken Spectre was long believed to be the manifestation of the “Big Grey Man” (Am Fear Liath Mòr) of Ben Macdui, a ghostly figure said to haunt the Scottish mountain of the same name. 

The painter and printmaker, who studied at Camberwell College of Art, returned to his home county of Rhondda Cynon Taf soon after graduating, called back by his love of Welsh culture, myth and landscape. 

His works are held in private and public collections worldwide, including the V&A; the National Museum of Wales; the British Museum, and Columbia University Library, New York, finds inspiration on his walks around Wales.

With John’s latest exhibition at London’s Arusha Gallery titled Cariadon y Mynydd (The Mountain Lovers) it seems there was no better person to witness the Brocken Spectre on top of Cribyn.