Folklore of the Sea: Myths and legends of the maritime world

by Margaret Baker

Filled with the myths and legends of the deep, this new illustrated edition of the cult classic folklore collection reveals the stories that swirled on the open seas, and the customs that remain part of maritime life.




The vivid, often eerie, superstitions, tales and rituals of the sea were the sailors ‘response to danger — immediate and uncontrolled. As a sailing-ship beat for weeks across the Southern Ocean, domain of the albatross, meeting no one in the lonely wastes, her crew felt an urgent need to appease the sea-gods. Even today, with engines, iron or fibreglass hulls, and less credulous seamen, much traditional sea lore has survived, especially in the fishing fleets.




Stories of phantom ships and crews (from the Flying Dutchman onwards), of the perennial sea-serpent, of lonely lighthouses; rituals such as the crossing-the-line ceremonies or blessing the fishing fleet; old weather lore, sailors’ chanties and sea language, taboos and talismans, precautions taken at keel-laying or launching — all these are recorded and interpreted here.




For everyone who enjoys strange stories and the chilly fascination of the unconquered sea, or thrills to watch man pitting himself against merciless elements, this book is a delight and a mine of information. Margaret Baker is unrivalled at collecting traditions of the past and showing the part they have played for generations of men in their daily lives. With brand new illustrations by Philip Harris.

Genres: Folklore, Nonfiction

196 pages, Hardcover

Published May 13, 2025

Reviews

[✨ tweety ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

The sea and its folklore are topics I enjoy a lot, thus this is why I chose to read this book. The illustrated cover also attracted me because it's really great.

I found out that it was first published in 1979, and that this is a revamped edition with illustrations in shades of blue. The cover is amazing a I love it and I found the illustrations beautiful as well. I don't think the original had such illustrations so I believe they were a great addition to this modern edition. I also loved the headings and the text, they gave this book such a modern feel.

The book is divided in eight chapters and I like how it is organized. It starts from the ship and tells you how it was built and what happened when it was transferred to the sea for its first voyage. Then it moves to phantoms that haunted and the talismans the sailors used to protect themselves and the ship. Then it deals with the customs aboard like marriage, death, birth, the legendary sea serpents and other monsters, the weather-Gods and lastly, the language used by the sailors.

The book covers a lot of topics related to main topic and I discovered things I didn't know. The reason I gave it four stars is that, in my opinion, the text should've also been 'revamped' a bit. It would've been nice to add more recent info on the legends today or the shipwrecks. (For example, the Costa Concordia disaster also happened on a Friday 13 and 100 years after the Titanic and this updated info could've added to the lore about the number 13 being unlucky). Also, I think some info were too synthetic for my liking and some were presented in a messy way and should've been better divided into paragraphs.

In general, I liked this book and I think any lover of the sea and the maritime world would enjoy it.

[Annix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rounded up.

[Harrison Root · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool fun facts, but not as extensive as I was expecting. Still a fun read 👏🏻