 Who made it? Who put it there? When? Why? How? Nobody knows. There are so many questions still unanswered after a massive totem pole randomly appeared on a clifftop coastal path in Kent. Everything about how the eight foot-tall sculpture came by its new home is pretty much still a complete mystery. It's estimated to have first been erected towards the end of July on the North Downs Way between Folkestone and Dover. Walkers, the wildlife trust and the council alike have all been left utterly bemused by the landmark that now proudly stands overlooking the English Channel. With the name of the Baltic god of thunder Perkūnas carved into the impressive wooden structure, it's even starting to become a bit of a tourist attraction. 'The artwork seems to be a hit with the walkers who have taken selfies and congratulated us on the installation,' said Kent Wildlife Trust area manager Ian Rickards. 'But we had no idea how it came to be there.' The name of the Baltic god of thunder Perkūnas is inscribed on the wooden structure (Picture: Sky News) In Lithuanian and Latvian mythology, Perkūnas is documented as the god of the sky, thunder, lightning, storms, rain, fire, war, law, order, fertility, mountains and oak trees. Dr Francis Young, an Oxford University historian specialising in the history of religion and belief, said the name on the pole is the deity's Lithuanian name. He told The Guardian: 'He's the same as the Slavic god Perun. He's one of the top three or four gods in Baltic mythology but not the most important. He's equivalent to the norse god Thor and also wields a hammer.' But he also said the mystery sculpture seemed to match the descriptions of totems by 15th and 16th-century Christian missionaries in Lithuania, which was the last country in Europe to stop practising paganism. 'Sometimes [the totem] was carved out of a living tree or one that){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
Who made it? Who put it there? When? Why? How? Nobody knows.
There are so many questions still unanswered after a massive totem pole randomly appeared on a clifftop coastal path in Kent.
Everything about how the eight foot-tall sculpture came by its new home is pretty much still a complete mystery.
It’s estimated to have first been erected towards the end of July on the North Downs Way between Folkestone and Dover.