Mass Hallucination

I wasn't happy with it either. No wonder it was taken off Wikipedia.

In current science, the term 'mass hallucination' makes little sense as a concept. Hallucinations are personal. That does not mean mass hallucinations cannot exist, though. If telepathy is real then people could share hallucinations.

One theoretical possibility is magnetically induced hallucinations which could affect several people (all in the same mag field) at once. Whether the content of those hallucinations would be identical, I've no idea.

In recorded cases of 'mass hallucination', such as religious visions, it seems much more likely that 'mass misperception' is at work.

 I found this in a book called The lore of the Land,

On souther fell in 1747 on mid summers eve a young gentleman was riding across the fell when he felt he was being followed by several other riders, when he got a closer look he witnessed what he said to be a large mounted army. He called his family and they seemed to have been able to watch this spectacle for quite a while.
This was seen again on another mid summers eve and reported by 26 people, when they went to investigate the fell for hoof marks and signs of a large army they could find nothing. They were left unsure of what they had seen and convinced it was a spectral army as there was no way an army of the size they had witnessed could have been on the fell,due to the terrain. In 1821 it was decided that it was just an optical illusion and caused by a mirage. Other case like this one have also been reported at Helvellyn and at Edge hill.

Those are good historical accounts Heeley- and I am sure that teh Souther Fell story appeared in the Gentlemens Magazine around the time of it supoosedly happening.  The problem is I doubt we will ever truly know what was seen unless we get hold of the original witness statements.

Maybe you could recruit some poor brave soul to wander around up there this mid summers eve ? Any volunteer's...

Strange you should say that.  I was half planning to visit Castlerigg this solstice which is close to Blencathra and the Fell.  I'm supposed to be camping as well though, so it all depends on time management.

Are you planning to do Striding Edge again? they have not put a pub on top of Blencathra yet, could have sworn you said that was the only reason you would go up again :-) Might be worth tracking down the sources for the story - like you said I am sure it was Gentlemans Magazine.

Striding Edge? Do you mean Sharp Edge?

He should mean Sharp Edge :)  I'm not sure if Dan has ever been up Blencathra.

Hey, my mistake, should have known, striding edge is a bit out of your league Ian.
I used to know a girl called Blencathra Tomlinson so you may be wrong in your assumption - not to lower the tone any, but then what the hell;-)