The Owlman (or the Owlman of Mawnan) is an English cryptid — a large, winged, owl-like humanoid creature said to have been sighted around the village of Mawnan in Cornwall, England, in the 1970s, often described as a giant owl-like or man-owl creature with glowing eyes, pointed ears, and clawed feet, the English counterpart of America’s Mothman. The winged owl-creature of Cornwall, the man-owl of Mawnan, the Owlman is England’s famous winged cryptid, the owl-like terror of the Cornish woods.
The Owl-Man of Mawnan
The Owlman is described as a large, winged, owl-like humanoid creature — a great man-sized creature with the features of a giant owl: a large owl-like or man-owl body, large wings, glowing or red eyes, pointed or feathered ears, clawed or pincer-like feet or talons, and a covering of feathers or grey fur — a giant owl-man, a winged owl-like humanoid. It was reported around the village of Mawnan in Cornwall, England — especially around the old church of Mawnan and the wooded area nearby — in a series of sightings beginning in 1976 (with the first famous sighting reported by two young girls who saw a great winged creature hovering over the church tower) and continuing in further sightings over the following years. The creature was seen flying, hovering, perching in trees, and appearing in the woods around Mawnan, terrifying the witnesses (often young people) with its great size, its wings, its owl-like features, and its glowing eyes. As the owl-man of Mawnan, the great winged owl-like humanoid of the Cornish woods, the Owlman is the eerie winged creature of the famous Mawnan sightings.
The English Mothman
The Owlman is often compared to, and called the English counterpart of, America’s famous Mothman — for both are large, winged, humanoid creatures with glowing red eyes, appearing in waves of sightings and terrifying their witnesses, the winged man-creatures of cryptid lore. The Owlman, like Mothman, is a great winged humanoid with glowing eyes, appearing in a famous wave of sightings (the Owlman around Mawnan in Cornwall, Mothman around Point Pleasant in West Virginia), the winged terror of the woods. The comparison — the Owlman as the English Mothman, the two winged, glowing-eyed humanoid creatures of English and American cryptid lore — is often drawn, the Owlman being England’s famous winged cryptid as Mothman is America’s. As the English Mothman, the winged, glowing-eyed humanoid creature of the Cornish woods, the Owlman is the English counterpart of America’s famous winged cryptid, the winged owl-creature of England.
The Cornish Legend
The Owlman became a famous figure of English and Cornish cryptid lore, the winged creature of Mawnan and the Cornish woods. The Owlman sightings of the 1970s — and later reported sightings — brought the creature to fame as England’s winged cryptid, the owl-man of Cornwall, a famous figure of cryptid lore and the popular imagination. The legend is associated with the eerie, wooded, ancient landscape around Mawnan — the old church, the woods, the Cornish countryside with its deep folklore and eerie atmosphere — the perfect setting for the legend of the winged owl-creature. Skeptics have offered various explanations — misidentifications of large owls (such as the eagle owl, a large owl that can appear startling and owl-man-like, especially to frightened witnesses), hoaxes, and the power of suggestion and legend (some suspecting the whole affair to be a hoax or a piece of deliberate myth-making by those involved in its promotion) — and the reality of the Owlman is much doubted; but the legend endures as England’s famous winged cryptid. As the Cornish legend — the winged owl-creature of Mawnan, England’s famous winged cryptid, the owl-man of the Cornish woods — the Owlman is the eerie winged creature of English cryptid lore, the man-owl of Cornwall.
The Winged Cryptid
The Owlman belongs to the family of winged humanoid cryptids — the large, winged, man-like creatures with glowing eyes reported around the world, of which Mothman is the most famous, and which include the Owlman of Cornwall, the Mothman of West Virginia, and the various winged humanoid creatures of cryptid lore (and which connect, more broadly, to the winged beings, bird-men, and winged terrors of folklore and myth around the world). The Owlman is the English, owl-like member of this family — the winged owl-humanoid of Cornwall, distinguished by its owl-like features (the owl-man as opposed to the moth-man), the English winged cryptid. As the winged cryptid, the owl-like winged humanoid of England, the Owlman is one of the famous winged humanoid creatures of cryptid lore, the man-owl of Cornwall, the English counterpart of Mothman, the winged owl-creature of the Cornish woods. As the winged owl-creature of Cornwall — the Owlman, the great winged owl-like humanoid of Mawnan, the English Mothman, the winged cryptid of the Cornish woods — the Owlman stands as England’s famous winged cryptid.
Legacy
The Owlman endures as England’s famous winged cryptid, the large, winged, owl-like humanoid creature of the Mawnan sightings of the 1970s in Cornwall, the English counterpart of America’s Mothman, a famous figure of English and Cornish cryptid lore and the popular imagination, the winged owl-creature of the Cornish woods. As the man-owl of Mawnan — the Owlman, the great winged owl-like humanoid of Cornwall, the English Mothman, the winged cryptid of the Cornish woods — the Owlman stands as one of the famous winged humanoid cryptids of the world and England’s most famous winged cryptid, the eerie owl-man of Cornwall, the winged terror of the Mawnan woods.
