King Bladud

Length 8–12mm

This beetle helps to recycle and decompose dead matter. The male and female beetles work as a pair, burying small, dead animals and feeding the rotting flesh to their babies. It is very unusual for both male and female beetles to care for their offspring, so the Sexton beetle is a remarkably caring parent.

See more of Marian’s insects at buzzandscuttle.com

Looking for young inventors because no-one wanted to spend time with me in case they caught my illness. I spent time observing nature, contemplating the mysteries of the universe, and experimenting with plants to find a cure. I gave the skin condition to my pigs but then I noticed that the sores on the pigs – who loved taking mud baths – were healing and their skin became smooth. So I joined in with the mud baths, and hey presto I was cured, the elephantitis had gone. It was a kind of magic. “This is, indeed, a holy place,” I shouted to my pigs.

You have a mythical status in Bath, but there is no historical evidence for your existence, so we’re hoping you can nail down some facts. Look, anyone who was a king in the 9th century BC is going to have myths surrounding them. I’ll try and clarify where I can but remember that rhetoric, logic and spirituality can be just as powerful as facts.

You have impressive family connections: your father Rud Hud Hudibras was another legendary king of the Britons and King Lear was your son.

Yes my father ended the civil war and restored peace to Briton. And founded Kaerreint, which you call Canterbury. My son’s name was Leir actually. And Goneril, Regan and Cordelia were my grandchildren. Goneril and Regan were brats, but I was fond of Cordelia.

What is it with the pigs?

Wasn’t there a Greek God of Pigs? Do you think Geoffrey of Monmouth stole the idea for his Historia Regum Britanniae which tells some of your mythical story?

The Bath Young Inventor of the Year competition is looking for the most innovative and imaginative inventions proposed by young people from 8–17. The Museum of Bath at Work is working with 44AD Gallery to collect the best ideas and will award a trophy, created by local engineering company Cross Manufacturing, to the most interesting. In the past these have included an umbrella that catches water to make tea, a coffee pot which tells you when the coffee has brewed and a hearing aid that can tune into radio stations and podcasts. As well as an overall winner, there are awards for 8–11 year olds and 12–17 year olds. Entrants can invent anything they want, but are encouraged to think about describing the invention, drawing a sketch, explaining its purpose and how it can be made. The deadline is Friday 8 September. 44ad.net/invent-it-award-2023.html

I do have an association with pigs and much has been made of this. But to be fair this was just one phase of my life. I’ll have you know that I was educated in the Liberal Arts in Athena studying with the great teachers and philosophers where I learnt to question my own assumptions and became aware of the steps you take when thinking and making judgements. I never lost my love of learning.

We understand you caught a nasty case of leprosy when you were in Athens. Yes, but it was called elephantiasis. Pliny said it was introduced to Hellas by the armies of Alexander and Pompey. It wasn’t much fun. My eyebrows swelled, I lost lots of hair and my knees and elbows were so painful. My sores were treated with cobra venom, and also with the internal organs of snakes and scorpions. None of this worked so I went back to Briton, then called the Tin Islands, down the Atlantic Coast, via Scandinavia.

Weren’t you still feeling poorly? Too right. And when I got there I was banished because of the elephantiasis, but being a legend I escaped and went into hiding.

So when did the pigs happen?

I got a job as a swineherd in Swineswick (you call it Swainswick) in 863 BC

An outrageous question! Yes Eubuleus was the demi-god or hero of the sacred swine of the Eleusinian Mysteries. Geoffrey might have taken some liberties with his stories, but pigs were special in Hellas, sacrificed for the purification of the sacred field, the sanctuary, and the house of the priestess. This was done because of their association with dirt and therefore evil spirits, and with fertility. And those mud baths meant that I magicked up the hot springs and built a temple at Kaerbadum (Bath) around them after I became King! Pigs…dirt…mud… healing in the hot springs... It’s quite logical. And I’m not a God of Pigs. I am a King who built the great city that you are constantly talking about.

But wasn’t that the Romans?

No. They profited from my discovery.

The story goes that you dedicated Kaerbadum to the goddess Athena. Yes it does.

Did you ever manage to fly?

Absolutely. I consulted with the spirits, made feathered wings, took flight from the Temple of Apollo in Trinovantum (London) and soared through the air… for a while. It didn’t end well unfortunately and was the end of my earthly life. But my myth has lived on. My spirit looks kindly on the stories that have flourished around my name.

Favourite person of Bath?

John Wood the Elder was a modern, visionary designer who recognised my worth.