Shapeshifting waterhorse strikes a pose in Whalsay
A striking creature from Old Norse folklore has been displayed at a loch in Whalsay - with hopes this will help “promote” the isle’s culture for future generations.
The metal statue of a nuggle , which can also be spelt as “njuggle” or “njugl”, has been placed at Nukra Water (Nykrvatn). The loch was named after the creature due to a long-standing belief it is one of its haunts.
A njugl is a shape-shifting water-horse which is said to haunt mill-burns and remote waters - particularly during the night-time.
It usually appears as a dark, dripping pony with tangled hair and seaweed in its mane. However, it is warned the creature is no ordinary pony as it possesses the power of tricking folk into climbing onto its back before galloping back into the water - vanishing with its rider.
Additionally, the njugl can also appear as a bundle of clothes or a fiery wheel.
The njugl statue was secured in place by Magnus Hutchison who bought it from Shropshire-based furniture store Black Country Metal Works.
Mr Hutchison hoped its introduction to Nukra Water would help keep the story of the njugl alive for future generations to come.
“I’m fiercely passionate about our history and culture. I believe it shouldn’t just live in books - it should be made visible across our old Norse-named landscape,” he said.
“This display is part of a wider effort to revive and promote our own cultural heritage including the stories passed down through the generations before they’re forgotten.”
A plaque placed alongside the loch features a short story from the late John Stewart who tells the tale of a njugl which came to a man from Skaw - the very north-end of the island.
“The njugl came to a Skaw man when he was at the peats, in the form of a bundle of clothes. It carried him over the sea towards Noss, but it took him back when it saw he was not afraid,” the story reads.
“The njugl could change itself into a fiery wheel, it was in this form when it was seen rolling over cliffs.”
Mr Stewart’s daughter Isobel Johnson recalled her father also telling the story of the njugl after making its way over to Traewick.
“My father’s brother was Davie who was married to Helen. She lived at one of the houses at Traewick and my mother was visiting her,” she told this newspaper.
“Dad went over to Traewick that night from Brough. He went over by the loch and over the hill to pick her up. That’s when the story came in his mind.”
A njugl is supposed to be a one-eyed horse, which was exactly what Mrs Johnson said her father had come across that evening.
Read the full story in today's Shetland Times.