July 6th, 2009 16 notes

The Story: An adventurous young woman takes a trip to the rain forests in Guatemala. When she gets back home, she notices that a bug bite on her cheek isn’t healing. Instead of going to a doctor she puts some ointment on it. It itches, but she tries to forget about it. A few days later her cheek is red, swollen and itching like crazy, so she finally gives in and scratches it. Pop! The skin bursts and hundreds of tiny spiders crawl out.

How It Spread: Versions of this tale have been circulating since the 1960s. The location varies with each telling—sometimes it’s Mexico, other times it’s Spain, Central America, South America, or Africa. In some variations the young woman dies or goes insane, and sometimes the wound bursts open after a doctor tries to lance what he thinks is a boil. Fear of insects (especially spiders) is probably what keeps the story going.

The Truth: Good news! According to experts, no species of spider is capable of laying eggs in your cheeks. So where does the story comes from? One possibility: it’s a modern incarnation of a 19th-century German fable in which a woman makes a deal with the devil, a deal that he seals by kissing her on the cheek. When she reneges, a black boils begins to grow on the spot where he kissed her. A few days later, it bursts open and hundreds of tiny spiders come out.