Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Central Asia yurt night stars
Uzbekistan • 15 days, 14 nights
Central Asia Road Trip: Backroads & Bazaars
from
Caucasus - Geghard Monastery, Armenia
Armenia • 15 days, 14 nights
Caucasus Road Trip: Azerbaijan, Georgia & Armenia
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Al Jazirah Al Hamra Heritage Village
Complejo Cultural Fábrica Imbabura
Guptill's Arena
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Customize your bowl with sliced pork, pork balls, fish cake, and offal.
Rung Rueang
Pasties are an Upper Michigan tradition dating back to mining days.
Lehto’s Pasties
Stock up on picnic supplies with a side of history.
Horton Bay General Store
Take some of Michigan’s produce home with you.
American Spoon
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
Cely’s map is not only accurate, but captures the unique characteristics of Congaree’s trees and waterways.
How One Biologist Drew a Hyper-Accurate, Ranger-Approved Map of Congaree National Park
Though they’re protected inside the park, wolves can be killed when they cross its borders.
Wolves Have a Bad Reputation. One Yellowstone Naturalist Is Trying to Fix It.

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United Kingdom England The Frensham Cauldron

The Frensham Cauldron

This cauldron was said to be hidden inside a church after it was borrowed from a local witch.

Frensham, England

Added By
AdOYo
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
  Simon Burchell
  BableStone
  Simon Burchell
St Mary the Virgin’s Church   Hassocks5489 / Public Domain
Mother Ludlam’s cave   Andrew Bowden / CC BY-SA 2.0
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

In the Surrey village of Frensham stands St. Mary’s Church within which you will find a great copper cauldron said to be used by a local witch. Though a church is perhaps one of the last places you would expect to find a witch’s cauldron, this may in fact be the reason for it being placed here.

Four miles southwest of the church, overlooking the ruins of Waverly Abbey, lies Mother Ludlam's Cave. Once used by Mother Ludlam, a local white witch, the cave is said to contain a great stone that one could knock on and request an item you wished to borrow, being sure to also state when the loan would be repaid or returned. Following this request, Mother Ludlam would tell the visitor to come back on a given day, when they would find their request atop the stone.

The cauldron is said to have been borrowed this way, but when the loan was up, it was not returned. Upon this broken promise, Mother Ludlam is said to have been furious. In fear, the borrower hid the cauldron at Frensham Church, where it remains to this day.

A variation on this legend tells that it was Mother Ludlam herself. The story goes that she hid the cauldron in the church to prevent the devil from reaching it after he had stolen it once before, forming the local Devil’s Jumps hills in his escape. Despite the legends and folkloric locale, however, the cauldron's actual past purpose was most likely more mundane, used as it was large enough to hold ale for all at village celebrations and feasts.

Related Tags

Ao Loves Halloween Local History Churches Witchcraft Witches Artifacts

Community Contributors

Added By

AdOYo

Edited By

Michelle Cassidy

  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

October 4, 2022

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/The-Legend-of-Mother-Ludlam-Surrey-Witch/
The Frensham Cauldron
6 The St
Frensham, England, GU10 3EA
United Kingdom
51.165998, -0.797272
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Waverley Abbey

Farnham, England

miles away

Mother Ludlam's Cave

Farnham, England

miles away

The Pump House

Farnham, England

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of England

England

United Kingdom

Places 2,199
Stories 144

Nearby Places

Waverley Abbey

Farnham, England

miles away

Mother Ludlam's Cave

Farnham, England

miles away

The Pump House

Farnham, England

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of England

England

United Kingdom

Places 2,199
Stories 144

Related Places

  • Witch’s Stick in Finchingfield Guildhall

    Finchingfield, England

    Howe Street Witches Burial

    Inside the Finchingfield Guildhall, two sticks that belonged to alleged witches in the 17th century.

  • Coral Cut looking west

    Palm Beach, Florida

    Coral Cut

    This spooky road cut through a mound of ancient coral might be haunted by a witch.

  • The Moll Dyer rock by the Old Jail.

    Leonardtown, Maryland

    Moll Dyer Rock

    The rock on which Moll Dyer was found frozen to death is said to still bear her handprint.

  • Salem Witch House

    Salem, Massachusetts

    The Witch House of Salem

    The only structure left with direct ties to the Salem witchcraft trials of 1692.

  • Edinburgh, Scotland

    The Martyrs’ Cross

    This metallic cross was most likely the last thing a condemned person would see while on the gallows.

  • Witch Board Museum Baltimore

    Baltimore, Maryland

    Witch Board Museum Baltimore

    This small museum celebrates the history of the Ouija board and its connection to the city of Baltimore.

  • Krakow, Poland

    The Cloth Hall Knife

    Legend holds that this knife serves as a chilling reminder of the deadly rivalry between two local builder brothers.

  • Køge, Denmark

    Defiled Baptismal Font

    This historical font became infamous after a maid was allegedly tricked into urinating in it, leading to her tragic death sentence.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.