I Just Learned Why Horseshoes Are Really Considered Lucky, And It's Dark

Horsehoe nailed to plankIt probably won’t surprise you to learn that “stealing someone’s thunder” and “spilling the beans” have a pretty unusual relationship to the weather and legumes they describe. Common phrases like “o’clock” and “pardon my French” have unexpected origins, too.But what about superstitions like horseshoes? How come an animal’s foot covering came to mean good luck, so much so that you can still find some nailed to the doors of people’s homes?According to riding wear suppliers at Discount Equestrian, the answer is a little wilder (and darker) than I thought. Why are horseshoes considered lucky?One story, the horse experts said, related to 10th-century monk and bishop St Dunstan and the devil (oh!).“The legend of the horseshoe is closely associated with St Dunstan, today the patron saint of goldsmiths, locksmiths, and jewellers,” they said.“As the story goes, while living as a hermit in Glastonbury, he was visited by Satan, who asked him to use his blacksmithing skills to shoe the devil’s hoof.” The legend says that because St Dunstan recognised the visitor for who he was, he nailed a red-hot horseshoe to his hoof. So, the devil learned to be afraid of the iron symbol and steered clear of houses which displayed them on their doors. Some also believe that nailing seven holes into a horseshoe attached to your door will add to its luckiness. The ‘n’ angle, with the heels pointing down, has been believed to pour blessings on visitors, while the “U” shape may be used to keep any good fortune from spilling out. Iron has long been considered lucky This is not the only factor that goes into the choice, Discount Equestrian said. Horsehoes are made from iron, which was once considered a talismanic metal used to keep witches and other supernatural forces at bay. “The horseshoe is a perfect example of a symbol that has crossed centuries without people really knowing why they use it,” the pros explained.“It combines practicality that iron was once precious, with deep religious folklore about protecting the home. When people hang one today, they’re unknowingly repeating a thousand-year-old superstition.” Related...Photos That Prove Bad Luck Exists In The Worst Possible FormPeople Who Had Run-Ins With Murderers And Are Lucky To Be Alive Right NowHere's Why We Say 'Stealing Someone's Thunder' And I Never Would Have Guessed

Comments

Breaking news

Tommy Robinson protesters caught on camera ‘peeing in hospital bushes’

Metro

Comments

Breaking news

Tommy Robinson protesters caught on camera ‘peeing in hospital bushes’

Prince Andrew ‘could be incriminated’ by new cache of Jeffrey Epstein emails

Mandelson ‘should never have been made ambassador’ says Virgina Guiffre’s family

Why has this quiet Tesco Express in London been crashed into four times?

Nigel Farage Accused Of Talking 'Bullshit' By Albanian Prime Minister

Man wanted by police after house explosion in Bradford leaves multiple people injured

Woody Allen says Jeffrey Epstein ‘couldn’t have been nicer’ at dinners

Pope Leo XIV turns 70 and thanks God, his parents and all those who prayed for him

Marco Rubio arrives in Israel as US demands answers over Qatar attack

Photo highlights from Day 2 of the world athletics championships in Tokyo

Ukrainian drones strike one of Russia's top oil refineries, sparking fire

International students’ college dreams shattered by Trump’s travel ban

I Just Learned Why Horseshoes Are Really Considered Lucky, And It's Dark

Elon Musk Slammed After Telling Far-Right Rally 'Violence Is Coming' To UK

There’s A Reason Boomers Seem So Overreactive – And It’s Not Just Ageing

Donald Trump Just Repeated His Favourite Piece Of Kremlin Propaganda About The Ukraine War

Candace Rivera conned over £1,000,000 from her friends – this is how she did it

Map reveals where UK will be blasted by 55mph winds after Met Office issues warning

Concerns over fluoride levels in drinking water as expert urges Britain to reassess dosage

Urgent warning over illegal weight loss jabs ‘not approved for humans’ offered for sale on TikTok

Bombed, starving and orphaned: The horrific plight of children arriving in Gaza’s hospitals alone

Poland scrambles jets and shuts airport amid drone strike threat in Ukraine

Mandelson appointment ‘worth the risk’ despite Epstein ties due to his ‘singular talent’, minister says

Shocking moment Tommy Robinson fans 'pee'd in bushes' of hospital grounds

Met Office warns Scots of ‘intense bursts of rain' today in storm update

'Brilliant' Hisense TV with 'amazing' picture now 'lowest price in 30 days' on Amazon

Magic mushroom compound leaves patients free of depression symptoms five years on

Urgent police search to find three missing schoolgirls

Romania scrambles jets after Russian drone 'breaches airspace' - as Zelenskyy warns of war 'expansion'

'Bella Ciao' to 'OwO' - what the messages on bullets in Charlie Kirk case may refer to

Trump's top diplomat seeks answers from Israel on way forward in Gaza after Qatar strike

Preppy style is back for autumn and these work-appropriate fits are Gossip Girl approved

Kate Middleton enters 'time of change' as she's poised with royals to woo Trump

MasterChef paralympian wanted to 'give up' after amputation now longs to join Strictly

Inside hellhole jail where Charlie Kirk murder suspect Tyler Robinson could live

Donald Trump reveals plans to ‘quickly’ end war in Ukraine in ‘letter to world’

Inside £6.35m nuclear war bunker that doubles as extravagant party mansion

Virginia Giuffre's family say Mandelson should never have been US ambassador over Epstein ties

Galaxy chocolate fans left asking 'what's the point' over its new product

How much do you need to earn to be rich? This is Money podcast

Moment Tommy Robinson protest march turned savage: Unconscious man has to be dragged to safety by police as thugs batter horses

British family reveal how they sold their home in 24 hours and left the UK - with just one backpack each - and they now live on a budget of just £35-a-day

Thomas Skinner's fling Amy-Lucy O'Rourke shares post about 'narcissists, crybullies and victims' after he admitted they had an affair following his wedding to wife Sinead

Tragic story of champion horserider who hanged herself in a park while celebrating first wedding anniversary at luxury spa

Israel welcomes US diplomat Marco Rubio days after President Trump rebuked country over surprise Qatar strike

Britain's first contactless wedding: Newlyweds shun traditional presents for their big day but install contactless card machine at their reception to let guests tap in and pay for their honeymoon

Is Cornwall getting its comeuppance? Ungrateful locals complained tourists turned seaside towns into 'hell on earth'... but now visitor numbers have plummeted to lowest for a DECADE

Italian chef at exclusive five-star hotel in Rome reveals how to cook the perfect pasta dish - and explains where you're going wrong

Starmer knew Peter Mandelson had a 'strong relationship' with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein but risked making him US ambassador anyway because of his 'talents', admits Cabinet minister

Stick to Manchester, Andy! Starmer ally slaps down ex-Labour minister Burnham amid talk of a return to Westminster to topple embattled PM

Hunt for the dodgy detectorists: Police search for illegal metal detectors who targeted medieval abbey in Cotswolds looking for treasure

Britain's asylum seeker 'golden triangle': The three northern towns which house the most illegal migrants in private accommodation

NATO scrambles war planes in Romania and Poland after Putin flies military drone over Romanian territory in latest Kremlin test of Europe's mettle

Legoland and Alton Towers are 'old and tired' with unreliable rides - and need to 'vastly improve' to compete with Universal and new £600M French park

Rock band James say they are 'disgusted' Tommy Robinson march used their hit song Sit Down and say protests are the 'antithesis' of 'where we stand'

Emma Heming admits husband Bruce Willis' move to second home has allowed her to 'get back to being his wife' as she reveals how couple have developed 'our own language' as his dementia progresses

Rare ladybird recorded in the UK for the first time

Nepal's interim PM to hand over power within six months

'Crawford conquers Canelo to become the face of boxing'

Inside a ‘Hell on Earth’ in Oklahoma