Autumnisuponus.Itisatimewhenthema ofnaturebeginstohappen:
Leavesturnallkindsofcoloursandfalltoth ground.Plantsbegintogetreadytosleept winterandanimalslikesquirrelsstarthoard theirwinterstoreoffood.Wefeelachillint andtherushisontobringintheharvest.Weget usedtolongernightsandsomeofyoumightbe lookingforwardtoHalloweenordifferentreligiou festivals.
Weareallusedtothisandsometimeswetaketh changingseasonsforgranted.Sciencehastaug uswhatishappeningandwhythingsare changing. Beforesciencegaveusanswerslotsof thesethingswerelikemagic.
BeforeChristianitywasbroughttoBritainthe peoplelivingherewerePagans.Theybelievedin thepowerofnatureandmanydifferentgodsand goddesses.Theythoughtthatgoodthings happenedbecausethegodswerehappywith them.Badthingshappenedbecausethey weren't orbecausesomeonehadputacurseon them.
Peopleturnedtotheirownritualsandpracticesto askforgoodthingstohappen(andsometimesfor badthingstohappentootherpeople).Peoplealso usedcharmsandotherwaysofprotecting themselvesfrombadthings.Wecallthese superstitions.
Therearestilllotsofpeoplewhoarepagansliving aroundtheworldandweallpractisesuperstitious thingssometimeswithoutevenrealisingit!
Let'sinvestigateWitches,Pagans, FairiesandFolklorethrough history.
havehidden7toadstoolsin thisCaseFile.
Thechancesarethateventodayyouhaveseenpeople practisingsuperstitiousthingsandnotrealisedwhattheywere doing.Asuperstitionisanybelieforpracticethatisthoughtby peoplewhodon'tbelieveittobeoddorsupernatural.Theymight thinkthatitissillybuttothepersonwhobelievesit,itisimportant. Itisusuallyconnectedtobeliefsandpracticessurroundingluck, amulets,astrology,fortunetelling,spirits,andpredictingthe future.Therearesomeveryoddthingsthatpeoplestilldo,which arebaseduponsuperstition.
One for sorrow, Two for joy, Three for a girl, Four for a boy, Five for silver, Six for gold, Seven for a secret never to be told, Eight for a wish, Nine for a kiss, Ten for a bird you must not miss.
Thereisanotionthatmagpiescanbring badluck Itisthoughtthatifyousee magpies,thentheywilltellyouwhatyour fortuneis.Thepoemabovesuggeststhat seeingonlyonewillbringyousorrow.You thenhavetofoolbadluckanddodgethe sorrow That'swhyyoumightseeorhear peopledoinganyoralloftheseweird things:
Saluting the magpie and saying, ‘Good morning general’ , ‘Good morning captain’ , or ‘Good morning Mr Magpie, how is your lady wife today?’ Saying ‘Hello Jack, how’ s your brother?’ and tipping their hat. Spitting three times over their shoulder.
Didyouknowthatfearofthenumber13is called“triskaidekaphobia”?
Fridaythe13thisthemostwidespread superstition.OnFridaythe13thpeopleprefer stayingathomeandkeepawayfromdoing anythingimportant,astheyarewaryof accidentsandmishapsonthisunluckyday. Ithasalsobadluckfor13peopletositfor dinnertogether,justlikeJesusandhis12 disciples JesuswascrucifiedonaFriday soFriday13thisaparticularlybaddayfor some.
Ifyouspillsalt,thenyoushouldthrowapinch overyourleftshoulder,becausethat'swhere thedevilsitswhisperinginyoureartodo naughtythings!
Takeacloselookatthisclose upofLeonardo daVinci'spaintingTheLastSupper. Youcan seethatJudasIscariothasknockedoverthe saltwithhiselbow.BecauseJudasbetrayed JesusintheBible,peoplebeganassociating saltwithliesanddisloyalty.
ladders
Walkingunderaladderisconsideredtobe badluckinalmosteverycountrywherethere are...well,ladders. Thesuperstitionisthought tocomefromthebeliefthatthetriangular spacebetweentheladder,thefloorandthe wallwasfilledwithgoodandevilspirits,and thattheyshouldnotbedisturbed.
Tokeepyourfingerscrossedisusuallyused towishforluck.Itisthoughttocomefrom peoplemakingacrosstogethelpor protectionfromGod.
Somepeoplekeeptheirfingerscrossed untiltheyseeadogtostopanybadluck attractedbywalkingunderaladder.
Lancashirehassomeverypeculiarsuperstitions!
Herearesomethatwerelistedin1851byMrTattersallWilkinsonofBurnley,butwhicharereal, andwhichhavewejustmadeupforfun?
A hot iron put into the cream during the process of churning, expels the witch from the churn; and dough in preparation for the baker is protected by being marked with the figure of a cross.
A crooked sixpence, or a copper coin with a hole through, are accounted lucky coins.
If a person's left ear burns, or feels hot, somebody is saying nice things about them. If the right ear burns, then it is a sure sign that someone is speaking evil of the person.
"'
I'm off!
Warts are cured by being rubbed over with a black snail, but the snail must afterwards be impaled upon a hawthorn. If a bag containing as many small pebbles as a person has warts, be tossed over the left shoulder, it will transfer the warts to whoever is unfortunate enough to pick up the bag.
If a person' s hair, when ithrown nto the fire, burns brightly, iit s a sure sign that they will lliveTong. he brighter the flame lthe onger life, and vice versa.
Tis but a thing of straw" They say, Yet even straw can sturdy be Plaited into doll like me.
And in the days of long ago To help the seeds once more to grow I was an offering to the gods. A very simple way indeed
Of asking them to intercede That barn and granary o ’erflow At harvest time, with fruit and corn To fill again Amalthea’ s horn. (Traditionalpoem,unknownwriter.)
Askanadultwhichwayuptheywouldhangtheirhorseshoefor goodluck.
Hangingahorseshoeopensideuporopensidedownissimplya matterofpreference.Openingupissaidtocollectluckforthosein thehouse,whileopeningdownshowersluckonallwhopass throughthedoorwayunderneath.
Pre Christiansocietiesrealised howvitalcerealcropswerefor theirexistence CornDollies weremadebypeopleinthe countrysidetoaskforfine weather,prosperity,fertilityand thesupplyofseedfornext year’sharvest CornDolliescameinallshapes andsizes.Somcommunities burnedthemforgoodluck, otherskeptthemfortheyear.
There must be lots of things that we do today and don't think about why we do them. Shall we bust some myths about some of our weird and wonderful traditions and superstitions?
People who lived in towns and cities thought that the peasants who lived in the countryside were simple and superstitious. They didn't understand their traditions and were often a bit afraid of them.
When Christianity became the dominant religion, then many thought that the rituals that country folk did went against their beliefs- the devil must be involved.
So, there have been people throughout history who thought that pagan traditions and rituals included worshiping the devil, but this isn't the case.
The devil does not feature in these beliefs at all.
Paganismisanumbrellatermforanyspiritualor religiousbeliefthatisnotamainstreamreligionsuch asIslam,HinduismorChristianity.Paganpeoplemay believeinmanygodsandgoddessesandusually focusonnatureworship.Thereweremanydifferent paganbeliefsinBritainbeforeChristianitybecame thedominantreligion.
InAncientBritainandIreland,therelivedapaganclass ofteachers,religiousleaders,intellectualsandhealers calledtheDruids ThewordDruidcanbetranslated fromancientCeltictomean‘onewhoknowstheoak’. Theoaktreewasasymbolofstrengthandwisdomas theygrowtoenormoussizesandcanlivetobemany hundredsofyearsold.
TheDruidswereoftenassociatedwithsupernatural abilities,theyarethoughttohavecommunicatedwitha varietyofnaturedeitiesandheldhugeamountsof knowledge Druidsstillexisttodayasabranchofwhat wecallneo paganism Theyhaveanature based
Youmighthavewonderedwhypeoplecelebrate Halloweenandwhythisfestivalinvolvesallthings spooky.
Halloween(orHallowe'en,isashortenedversionofAll Hallows'Evening)hasitsoriginsinthepaganharvest festivals,atthistimeofyearassummerfadesand thenightsdrawinthatpeoplewouldharvestcrops andprepareforthewintertocome.Whilethisinitself isn’tparticularlyspooky,itdoesexplainwhypeople stillhavetoffeeapplesandplaygamessuchas applebobbing Applesareripeatthistimeandarein abundancesocanbeincorporatedintotheseason’s festivities
Likewise,largefruitlikepumpkinsandroot vegetablessuchasturnipsareripeafterhavingall summertogrowandwouldbegatherednowtobe savedforwhenlittleelseisavailable Thistradition canstillbeseeninthecommonactofcarvinga pumpkin(someplacesstilluseturnipstomakeJack O’Lanterns),peoplebelievedindoingthis,theJackO’ Lantern’smenacinggrinwillscareoffanynasty spiritsouttocausetrouble.
Halloween’sassociationwithghostsisthoughtto drawfromtheGaelicfestivalofSamhain (pronouncedSOW wen) Thistimewasbelievedto bethetimewhentheboundarybetweentheworldof thelivingandtheworldofthedeadwasatits thinnestandsospiritsandghostswerethoughtto walkamongstlivingpeople.Thiscouldbebecause Samhaincanbeseenasthepointwheresummer meetswinter,andthisperiodofchangeallowsthe deadtodirectlycommunicatewithlivingpeople
Traditionsatthistimeincludesettingadummyfeast. Thisinvolveslayinganextraspaceatamealoreven preparingandservinganentirefeastseenasan offeringtoappeasespirits Itcanbeseenasawayof thankingandhonouringancestorsnolongerliving.
Kissingunderthe mistletoe
MistletoewassacredtotheDruids ofBritain,whobelievedthat mistletoecouldhealailments Mostcommonlyfoundonapple trees,itwasthoughtespecially divinewhenfounduponoaktrees.
RomansandScandinavianswould resolveissueswiththeirenemies undermistletoeasasignof peace.Eventually,thetraditionof kissingunderthemistletoecame aboutinEngland Mistletoewas incorporatedintoadecoration calledtheKissingBoughduring Tudortimes.Itwasmadeofwoven woodenhoopshungwith greenery,andasmalleffigyofthe infantJesuswasplacedinthe middle.Theywereplacedbythe doorwaytoahouseandpeople whovisitedwerehuggedand sometimeskissedastheycame in,toshowpeaceandfriendship
Yuleisthemidwintersolstice celebrationoftherebirthoftheSun God.OnthenightofYule,acarefully selectedlogwouldbebroughtinto thehomeandusingabitoflast year 'slogtosetitalightwouldbe burnedovertwelvedays Itwas consideredbadlucktoallowyour yulelogtototallyburnup Weeat chocolatelogs,whicharemeantto looklikeYuleLogs BritishMid-winterthisyearisat 9:48pmonWednesday21December -thenthedaysgetlonger!
ManyChristmastraditionsseempuzzlingwhen comparedtotheChristianmessageofChristmas.The reasonforthisisthatmanyChristmaspracticesare mucholderthanChrist’sMassitself,datingbacktomuch olderreligioustraditionsandgods.
Let'slookatsomeChristmassythingsthatwethoughtwere justaplainoldpartofChristmasbutareactually reallyinteresting!
Theoriginsofcarolslieinfarmingsuperstition.Performed duringthesummerandatharvesttimeaswellas midwinter(mumming),countrypeoplesangthemasthey wentabout,offeringgoodwishesandblessingson householdsinreturnforfoodanddrinkInmidwinter (aroundthe21December),thecarollersprovidedawassail bowlfullofaleinadditiontotheirsongsandblessings.
InancientRome,Decemberwasthetimewhenpeople deckedtempleswithnewflowersandplants,especially duringfestivalslikeSaturnaliaandBrumalia,whenthey celebratedtheendofharvestandwreathedtheirhomes andpublicbuildings.HollywasthesymboloftheHollyKing, whoatmidwinterbattledwiththeOakKingofthefading summerseason andwon
TheancientCeltictribesofEurope,aswellastheVikings andSaxonsallcelebratedtreesassymbolsoflifeThey wouldtiesmallofferingstothegodstothetree'sboughs (soundfamiliar?).Garlandsalsoformedpartofthe Saturnaliadecorationswiththecircularshapeofthe wreathasanancientsymbolofthecircleoflifeandof protection
OnDecember23,theRomansheldthefestivalofthe Sigillaria,adaywhenmarketsweresetuptosell'sigilla'. Thesewerepotteryfiguresthatalongwithwaxcandles weremadeasofferingstoSaturnAstimewenton,the SigillariamarketsbecameaplacetobuySaturnaliagifts forlovedones.
When the first baby laughed for the first time, its laugh broke into a thousand pieces, and they all went skipping about, and that was the beginning of fairies. And now when every new baby is born its first laugh becomes a fairy. So, there ought to be one fairy for every boy or girl.
J.M.Barrie,PeterPan
ThankstoJ.M.Barrie(whowrotePeterPanandintroducedustoTinkerbell)andDisneymostofus thinkoffairiesaspretty,tinycreaturesthatflitaroundwithdelicatewingsandtinklingbells.They sprinkle fairy dust, grant wishes and even take away our teeth! But history and folklore tell a differenttale
Onceuponatime(sorry,wehadtosaythat)mostpeopledidn’tliketomentionfairiesbyname andsocalledthembyothernames,liketheLittlePeopleortheHiddenPeople Therearehundreds ofdifferentkindsoffairies someareminuteandkindcreatures,othershideousandmean.Some canfly,andtheycanappearanddisappearatwill.
TheoldestfairiesonrecordinEngland(thisdoesn'tmeanthattheydidn'texistbeforethen,itjust meansthatthisisthefirsttimewethinkthattheywerewrittenabout)werefirstdescribedbythe historianGervaseofTilburyinthe13thcenturyinhis'BookofMarvels'.
TheToothFairywasfirstwritten aboutinaround1200.Inmedieval Europe,itwasthoughtthatifa witchweretogetholdofyour teeth,itcouldleadthemtohave poweroveryouSo,ifthefairies tookawayyourteethyouwere protectedfromthewicked witches.
Lancashireboggartscouldbeareal nuisance Tocalmthemdownyoulaid asaucerofmilkorplantedholly,which waswell knownforscaringawayevil andmischievousspirits.Youcouldalso hangahorseshoeonthedoorofyour houseorleavingapileofsalttokeep themaway. Someboggartswereso horridthattheirtalesaretoonastyto tellhere.
Theseareguardianfairies. Theyareusefulonesanddo houseworkandoddjobs aroundthehouse Theterm "hobgoblin"comesfrom"hob" ("elf")awordthatcanbe tracedtoabout1530
Marshgasmakesflickering flamesthathoverover marshygroundThisgaveus thebeliefinJack-o-Lantern. JackoLantern,orWill-o theWisp,isahighly dangerousfairythathaunts marshyground,luring unwarytravellersintothe bog!
livinghereanditwasaplacedividedbymoneyandreligion.SomepeoplewereCatholic andotherswereProtestant,fewwererichandmostwerepoor.Generally,peopleonthe differentsidesdidn'tgeton.
Thosewhowereheavily religioussawpeoplewhoweredifferentasbeingdangerous,maybeevenworkingforthe devil!
madeapactwiththedevilinexchangeforpowers.Ifyourcowwasill,ithadbeencursed. Iftherewasplague,itwasbecauseofacurse.Iftheturnipsdidn’tgrow,itwasbecauseof acurse...
Mostpeoplewhowereaccusedofbeingwitcheswereold,poor,singlewomen,theywere ofteninnocentmedicine makersandmidwives.Menandchildrenwereaccusedofbeing witchestoo Ifyoudidn'tlikeyourneighbour,itwaseasytogetridofthembytellingpeople thattheywereawitch.Itdidn'tjusthappenhere,butalloverthep America.
Itdidn'thelpthatKingJamespubli abook,Daemonologie,in1597say washisrighttotortureandkillwitc (maleandfemale)whowere threateninghispositionwiththeir wickedways.No onetrustedanyo anymoreandifyoulikedtoenjoyy privacy,ortoldyourneighbour's childrentostopbeingnaughty,the chancesaretheywouldgohome telltheirMumthattheysawyou practisingwitchcraft yourdayswo benumbered!
she be too ugly or too
she be too poor or richer than sthey hould be.
she liveth by herself or hath a icat.
she hath a birthmark.
her hair be black, ginger, blonde, bor rown.
she doth not worship God.
she hath knowledge of herbs mand edicine.
she floateth or if she sinketh in iwater.
she doth not weigh much, thus she rcan
England'smostfamouswitchtrialhappenedrightherein Lancaster.Intheautumnof1612,twentypeople,including sixteenwomenandgirls,werecommittedfortrial,andmostof themtriedforwitchcraft.
Thesepeopleallcamefromremoteandwildplacesin Lancashire,aroundPendleHillandSamlesburynearPreston. Theywereverypoorandsomeofthemmadealivingbegging. Othersweretraditionalhealers,usingamixtureofherbal medicineandtalismansorcharmswhichtheywouldsellfor pennies.Thismadethemobvioustargetsforpeopletoaccuse themofwitchcraft.Wehavealreadylearnedhoweasythat couldbe.Neighboursturnedonneighboursandevenchildren turnedontheirownfamilies
SixoftheLancashirewitchescamefromtwofamilies,each headedbyawomaninhereighties.Thefirst,Chattox,was describedas"averyoldwitheredspentanddecrepitcreature, hersightalmostgone Herlipseverchatteringandtalking:but nomanknewwhat"Thesecond,Demdike,wasdescribedas"a veryoldwoman,abouttheageoffour scoreyears*,andhad beenawitchforfiftyyears."Thetwooldwomenhatedeach otherandsomeofthechargesweremadeagainsteachother. Somethinkthatitwasbecausetheirfamilieswereincompetition witheachother,tryingtomakealivingfromhealingand begginginaplacewherefewpeoplelived.
Despitethis,itwassuggestedthatallofthewitchesand warlockswereworkingwitheachotherandthatregular meetingswouldtakeplaceatthehomeofDemdike.
WhenElizabethDevicestoodtrial,oneofthekeywitnesseswas her9 year olddaughter,Jennet Shesaidthathermotherhad heldmeetingswithwitchesattheirhouse,andthatherbrother wasawitchtoo.DuringthetwodaysofJennet’stestimony,the jurybelievedeverythingshehadsaid.Asaresult,mostofher familyandneighbours,10intotal,werehangedatGallowsHill, Lancaster,nearwhereWilliamsonParkistoday
Jennet’stestimonyimpressedlawmakerssomuchthatthey changedthelawstoallowchildrentotestifyagainstwitches everywhere.20yearslater,Jennetfacedaccusationsof witchcraftherself However,timeshadchangedinEngland Althoughthejuryfoundherguilty,thecourtssetherfree
*Ascoremeanstwenty So,fourscoreyearsmeansthatshewas4x20 =80yearsold
image:SirJohnGilbert,“The LancashireWitches"
thewholetrialwasrecordedat thetimebyamancalledThomas Pottsandwasprintedinabook called'TheWonderfulDiscovery ofWitchesintheCountyof Lancaster'
10peoplewereexecutedatLancasteron the20thofAugust,16I2,forhaving 'bewitchedtodeathbydevilishpractices andhellishmeansnofewerthansixteen inhabitantsoftheForestofPendle'. Today,weseetheLancashirewitchtrialsas apowerstrugglebetweendifferent religiousgroups,whoputfearintopeople's mindsandledtothedeathoftheseand otherinnocentpeoplethroughout Lancashire,Britain,andtheWorld.
Anne Whittle alias Chattox Anne Redferne, daughter of Chattox Elizabeth Device, daughter of Demdike James Device, son of Elizabeth Device Alison Device, daughter of Elizabeth Device Alice Nutter Jane Bulcock John Bulcock, son of Jane Bulcock Katherine Hewitt, alias Mould-heels Isabel Robey
Myth: People accused of being witches were dunked in water. If they floated, they were guilty and if they sank and drowned, they were innocent - dead but innocent.
We’veallheardthisstoryhaven'twe,andwewonderedifsomeone accusedofbeingawitchwouldevergetafairtrial.Iftheyfloat,then they’reawitchandweexecutethem.Iftheysink,they’renotawitch but...theydrown.BUTapparentlythewitchfindershadabitmoresense thanwegivethemcreditfor,andanyonewhosankwasactuallypulled outofthewaterandsentontheirmerryway.
Theseshapescansometimesbefoundonoldbuildings TheyarecalledApotropaicMarks (pronouncedapp o trow
spiritualprotection,astheyaredesignedto'wardoff'evil.Thinkofthemastheoppositeof acurse acurseisdesignedtobringdownbadluck,anApotropaicMarkwasdesignedto dojusttheopposite andkeepanobject,spaceorpeoplesafefromharm.
GooutandaboutandseeifyoucanfindanyApotropaicMarksanywhere.
Madefrombone,theringis bezel-cut,meaningthatitisall formedfromonepiecewiththe ladylyingflatagainstthefinger. Itdates,wethink,frombetween 1600and1700.Verylittleis knownaboutthering.Whatwe doknowisthatitisincredibly rare.Itcametothemuseumin the1970saccompaniedbya smallnotestatingthatitwas foundingroundbehind propertiesonMarketStreet, Lancaster,withitshead snappedoff.
Theringcouldbeaprotectivecharmworntodeflectevil spiritsorplague.Itwasmadearoundthetimethatthe LancashireWitchesweretriedatLancasterCastleandwas foundalongwhatmighthavebeentheroutethattheywere takentobeexecuted.
Itcouldbeinremembranceofalovedonewhohasdied,or morelikelycreatedbyayoungman,perhapsasoldieror sailorasagiftforhisgirlfriendorwifewhenhereturnedhome afteryearsawayTokenslikethiswereadeclarationoflove: thoughwithherheadsnappedoff,perhapsshedidn'tfeelthe sameway!
all be very
MyfirstisinMouse
House
MysecondisinLeaf,yetnotinFeel
MythirdisinSage,butnotinSafe
MyfourthisinWish,andnotinWash
MylastisinCalm,yetnotfoundinBalm
