To any passing motorist, Pantybwci, a meeting point of minor roads
on the B4331 between Bronwydd and Pontarsais looks innocent enough but little do they know that in the 19th and
early 20th Century, the very name Pantybwci struck fear in the hearts of the local inhabitants.
For there, it was claimed lived the 'Hwch in Chains' - a feared supernatural manifestation of
a sow in chains which terrorized passers-by.
No-one knows when the legend started but it probably derives from Celtic Halloween
beliefs.
Whatever its origins and ridiculous as it sounds today, there are still people living in the
village who remember taking a long detour rather than walk past the spot and risk encountering the malevolent
spirit of the sow in chains! |