The Crying Stone of Ilesi
Beside a road in western Kenya, a great rock shaped like a head weeps water from its 'eyes', even in the dry season.
What was reported
The Crying Stone of Ilesi is a tall column of rock with a large boulder balanced on top, like a head on a body, rising beside the Kakamega–Kisumu road. Water trickles down from the 'head' and stains the rock below, like tears.
Among the Luhya, it's linked with stories of a woman who wept for the children she lost, or with the spirits of the land; people say it cries harder in times of trouble, and once came to it to pray for rain.
Explanations offered
The 'tears' are water from a spring or a rain-fed pocket in the rocks seeping out at the join between the boulder and the column. The site is a protected landmark and a stop for travellers.
- When
- Told for generations
- Where
- Ilesi, Kakamega, Kenya
- Witnesses
- The Luhya people, and travellers on the Kisumu road
- Status
- Mostly explained
Famous cases are real, widely reported events. Each file sets out what witnesses said and the explanations that have been offered, without taking a side.
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