The mythological monsters of the Netherlands (2025)

This map, created by Neil Parkinson of Púca Printhouse in 2025, shows the monsters of the mythology of the Netherlands.

Among the many myths that the author recovers in this map, some of the most iconic are worth highlighting:

Klabautermann, the sea spirit that dwells in the hulls of ships and helps sailors with their tasks, but whose visible appearance is considered an omen of imminent shipwreck in the North Sea.
Blauwe Gerrit (Gerrit the Blue), the nocturnal spirit of the Veluwe who appears as a blue light and leaps onto the backs of night-time walkers to ride on their backs, growing heavier and heavier until the victim collapses from exhaustion.
Capirussa, the creature of Indonesian origin, with a human head, dog’s ears and tail, and horse’s legs, whose alleged appearance in the River Meuse near Brielle was recorded in a local chronicle from the year 1600 and whose image featured for centuries on that town’s coat of arms.
Elf-Rib (Tientoner), the dog-like water spirit of Noord-Holland that lives in wells and ditches and lies in wait for children who get too close to the water.
Varende Vrouw (The Female Sailor), the female ghost of the sea who appears on stormy nights off the coast of the North Sea as an omen of disaster for ships.
Witte Wieven (The White Ladies), the female spirits of the mist who roam the moors and prehistoric burial mounds in the east of the country, associated with death and divination.
Kabouterkoning Kyrië (King Kyrië the Gnome), the ruler of the kabouters, the gnomes of Dutch folklore, whose underground kingdom is featured in the folk traditions of the south of the country.
Ossaert, the water demon of Zeeland and Gelderland who takes various forms, most often that of a black dog with eyes of fire, and who leaps onto the backs of night-time travellers, never letting go until dawn.
Dwaallicht, the will-o'-the-wisp that appears over the Dutch marshes and peat bogs, attributed in folklore to the soul of an unbaptised child condemned to wander amongst the living, and which, if followed, leads travellers to lose their way in the water.
Bokkenrijders, the band of goat-riders who, according to Limburg folk tradition, flew through the air at night, plundering churches and farms under a pact with the devil, and who trace their origins to a real historical episode of banditry in the 18th century.

Many of the myths depicted are typical of a much wider region than the one in which they are located on the map.

Milhaud Maps

The mythological monsters of the Netherlands (2025)

Sources