The Lady of Dozmary Pool
On Bodmin Moor lies a small lake said to be where King Arthur's sword was returned to the Lady of the Lake.
What was reported
Dozmary Pool is a small natural lake high on Bodmin Moor. In Cornish tradition it's one of the places where, after Arthur's last battle, Sir Bedivere threw the sword Excalibur into the water, and an arm rose from the lake to catch it and draw it under.
Local legend also said the pool was bottomless, and that the spirit of Jan Tregeagle, a wicked steward, was condemned to empty it with a leaking limpet shell.
Explanations offered
The pool is actually quite shallow and has been known to dry up in droughts. Several other lakes in Britain claim the Excalibur story, and there's no historical evidence that Arthur existed as the legends describe.
- When
- Arthurian legend
- Where
- Dozmary Pool, Bodmin Moor, Cornwall, England
- Witnesses
- Told in Cornish tradition
- Status
- Legend
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.