Purkiss, D. (2022) A journey into witchcraft beliefs, English Heritage. Available at: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/journey-into-witchcraft-beliefs/ (Accessed: November 7, 2022).
- Pre-dates Christianity
Ancient greek curse tablets (Katares), "curses that bind tight"; Inscribed tablets that were often left in graves, wells or fountains - where the dead could work their magic.
The figure of "the witch" came from attempts to reconcile figures with Christianity. They didn't reference witchcraft specifically, but led to the creation of the "heretic" witch.
Bertha/Perchta/Befana; the female embodiment of winter who punished disobedient children and rewarded "goodness". Usually portrayed as an old hag and soon, intellectuals noted her resemblance to witches from literature.
Witchcraft in early Christianity:
Believed that the lumps in the ground were the dead and that they were some form of "elf".
"Under the lumps of rock is a beautiful, if sunless land where elves banquet and dance."
It was believed that the dead yearned for life and they may never separate from body/soul (if they are "damned"). The Pagan dead were especially feated, and anyone willing to feed them blood could put them to work. This is believed to be the origin of the "familiar".
Familiars were usually small animals, and a witch would feed it so that it would grudgingly act out her commands.
Familiars may also have come from the Norse fylgia (or fetch) - a person's double which could also shapeshift into an animal form.
Some believed that the familiar was simply a devil (or demon), which took a human or animal form.
Protection against witches:
- Don't let them have the last say in a conversation
- Don't let her give you anything (especially to eat)
- Don't let her cross your threshold
- Witch marks to stop her from crossing the threshold (such as M for the Virgin Mary, or a spiral in which an entity will get lost).
In the 1590's, it was rejected that an old hag could do magic that flouted the will of God. They concluded that it must be the devil who had the power instead.
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