Selma of Seljord
CreaturesSeljordsvatnet, Telemark, Norway · Reported since the 1700sUnconfirmed
A Norwegian lake has its own serpent, reported since the 1700s and still searched for with cameras and sonar.
What was reported
Seljordsvatnet, a lake in Telemark, is home in local lore to Selma, a long, serpent-like creature often described with a horse-like head and humps along its back. Reports go back to at least the 1700s.
The town has embraced the legend, and expeditions with sonar and underwater cameras have searched the lake since the 1970s.
Explanations offered
Suggested explanations include otters or elk swimming in a line, waves, floating logs and large fish. Nothing unusual has been found.
- When
- Reported since the 1700s
- Where
- Seljordsvatnet, Telemark, Norway
- Witnesses
- Local people and visitors
- Status
- Unconfirmed
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.