As the holiday season creeps up on us, we are all familiar with the iconic Christmas imagery of lighted pine trees, festive wreaths hung on the door, and of course Santa Claus.
But have you heard the legend of the Yule Cat?
Deep in the frozen tundras of Iceland slumbers this mythical beast, and the folklore surrounding the Yule Cat varies slightly from tale to tail.
The first true mentions of the holiday feline come from the first collected work of Icelandic folk tales by Jon Arnason.
It was said that the Yule Cat was a monstrous beast, large and viscious, and it would stalk the Icelandic countryside around Christmastime. Some accounts say that the cat would eat your extra food if you did not receive something new as a present, while other accounts said the cat would literally eat YOU.
Some archeologists believe the Yule Cat dates farther back, and could even be a pet of Saint Nicolas himself.
Even earlier accounts connect the Yule Cat to Gryla, an ogress that eats the misbehaving children of 13th century Iceland and her pet cat would help her round them up. She lived in a cave with her 13 sons, the Yule Lads, and her cat and would terrorize the communities during Christmastime.
No matter what you believe, there are many undiscovered caves in and around Dimmuborgir, the ancient volcanic region of Iceland that some say is home to the Catacombs of Hell, and where the Yule Cat resides to this day.
So why did we put the Yule Cat on a mug?
Well, we love ALL pets at Death Wish Coffee, and seeing as we put the Hellhound on our recent Halloween mug, it felt only fitting to adorn our Christmas offering with the Yule Cat.
Our holiday mug from Deneen Pottery features the legendary feline in all its ferocious fury, er, furry. You get the idea.
We figured that this will also work as a talisman of sorts – you get a brand new mug and therefore the Yule Cat will not eat you. Those are the rules, and this way, we can all enjoy another caffeinated Christmastime.
Because very soon, there will be an EPIC battle between two pets that you will not want to miss…