This week’s blog post sees the return of Legends and Lore, a column which features interesting historical and mythological tidbits associated with Ravenwood Castle. This week’s Legends and Lore is written by our Assistant Innkeeper Abby Kutscher.

A visit to Ravenwood Castle is a chance to experience an authentic castle feel – with a few modern amenities like indoor plumbing and microwaves! And what castle would be complete without a decorative hedge maze? Here at Ravenwood we have dedicated our maze to a mythological creature named Pan.

Pan is the Greek god of nature, shepherds and their flocks. In fact, his name comes from the Greek word that means “to pasture”. It is appropriate that Pan oversees shepherds, as he is part goat himself! Pan is typically depicted with a human torso, but the hind-quarters, hooves, and horns of a goat.

According to legend Pan is quite the trickster. One of his most notable acts of mischief was turning a nymph named Syrinx into a reed because she scorned his romantic advances. He then turned the reeds into his iconic flute, which he is rarely seen without.

If you visit our hedge maze and attempt to stroll through it, you will experience Pan’s trickery first hand. Not only has the god of nature used his powers to shrink our hedges to knee high on a nymph, he has also arranged them in a pattern which makes them nigh impenetrable!

On your next visit to Ravenwood Castle be sure to take a moment to visit our decorative hedge-maze. Have a seat on the patio and observe Pan’s nature while enjoying a drink from the Raven’s Roost Pub. If you’re feeling adventurous, hop over the hedges and take a closer look at the statue of Pan himself. And who knows, perhaps you will be inspired to enjoy a bit of mischief yourself!

Jim Reed

Jim Reed is a lifelong gamer who started with the original red box Dungeons & Dragons. After spending 20 years in the corporate world, he decided it was high time that work be fun and struck out on his own. Jim now owns and operates Ravenwood Castle, and spends his days ensuring his guests have as much fun as he does.