Blue Ben is a

legend A legend is a genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human values, and possess ...

ary dragon from Kilve in

West Somerset West Somerset was a local government district in the English county of Somerset. The council covered a largely rural area, with a population of 34,900 in an area of ; it was the least populous non- unitary district in England. According to f ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The skull of a

fossil A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

ized Ichthyosaur on display in a local museum is sometimes pointed out as belonging to him. A promontory near

East Quantoxhead East Quantoxhead is a village in the district of Somerset West and Taunton, from West Quantoxhead, east of Williton, and west of Bridgwater, within the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Somerset, England. History Above the ...

, approximately from Kilve, also bears the name Big Ben.

Legend

The story exists in more than one version. Usually, Blue Ben dwells in the shale caves along the Somerset coast, regularly bathing in the nearby waters in order to cool himself after breathing fire. In order to avoid getting stuck in the extensive mud flats between the water and his lair, he built the limestone causeway there to provide him safe passage.

The Devil Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an entity in the Abrahamic religions that seduces humans into sin or falsehood ...

, who had watched Blue Ben for some time, decided to capture him for use as a mount. The Devil rode the dragon mercilessly through the fires of Hell until the dragon escaped. Hurrying to get back to the security of his lair, Blue Ben made the mistake of tramping through the mud flats. He got stuck in the mud, which consumed him. An alternative version of the story says that he lived inland but went to Kilve to cool off.

Skull

In the early 19th century the

Blue Lias The Blue Lias is a geological formation in southern, eastern and western England and parts of South Wales, part of the Lias Group. The Blue Lias consists of a sequence of limestone and shale layers, laid down in latest Triassic and early Jurassi ...

shale formation outside of Kilve was quarried, during which process the fossilized skull of an Ichthyosaur was uncovered, which was said to be the remains of Blue Ben. The skull is now on permanent display in the Wells and Mendip Museum at Wells, Somerset, or the

Museum of Somerset The Museum of Somerset is located in the 12th-century great hall of Taunton Castle, in Taunton in the county of Somerset, England. The museum is run by South West Heritage Trust, an independent charity, and includes objects initially collected ...

Taunton Taunton () is the county town of Somerset, England, with a 2011 population of 69,570. Its thousand-year history includes a 10th-century monastic foundation, Taunton Castle, which later became a priory. The Normans built a castle owned by the ...

References

{{reflist European dragons Somerset folklore