All entries
2,158 entries so far, best known first. 3,227 more are on the list to be written. Narrow by region, kind, purpose, practitioner, belief world, occasion or how alive it is.
RegionSouth AsiaSoutheast AsiaEast AsiaCentral Asia and the CaucasusMiddle EastNorth AfricaSub-Saharan AfricaEuropeNorth AmericaLatin America and the CaribbeanOceania
PurposeProtectionHealingSeeing and foretellingLuck and prosperityLove and attractionCursing and harmCleansing and purificationSpeaking with spirits and the deadChange and initiationBinding and oathsPower and authorityWonder and entertainment
WhoShamansFolk healersPriests and ritual specialistsWitches, sorcerers and cunning folkDiviners and readersMediums and the possessedCeremonial magicians and alchemistsHouseholds and ordinary peopleStage magiciansScholars and sceptics
BeliefHindu and TantricBuddhistJainMuslim and SufiJewishChristianSikhZoroastrianShinto and TaoistIndigenous and shamanicAfrican and Afro-diasporicPagan and NeopaganEsoteric and occultFolk and village customSecular and stageOther traditions
馃嚥馃嚱 MexicoCalavera
A sugar or clay skull used in Mexican Day of the Dead celebrations.Charm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚠馃嚦 India and 1 moreDiya啶︵啶ぞ
A small oil lamp used in prayers and festivals across the Indian subcontinentTradition 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚞馃嚙 United Kingdom and 2 moreSoul cake
A spiced cake given to soulers during Allhallowtide to remember the dead.Tradition 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚥馃嚦 Mongolia and 1 moreOvoo芯胁芯芯
A stone or branch cairn used as a shrine and boundary marker in Mongolic folk practice.Tradition 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚚馃嚦 China and 5 moreSky lantern澶╃噲
A paper hot air balloon lifted by flame to carry wishes and blessingsRite 路 Luck and prosperity 路 Protection Living
馃嚝馃嚪 France and 3 moreReliquary
A container for sacred remains or objects, crafted across many faithsCharm 路 Protection 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
馃嚚馃嚦 China and 5 moreJoss paper閲戠礄
Paper burned as money and goods for ancestors, gods and the deadCharm 路 Speaking with spirits and the dead 路 Luck and prosperity Living
馃嚮馃嚦 Vietnam and 2 moreVietnamese numismatic charmsB霉a Vi峄噒 Nam
Coin-shaped charms used for protection, luck, and ritual in Vietnamese cultureCharm 路 Protection 路 Luck and prosperity Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Ovoo: Bouette ., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Diya: Suyash Dwivedi, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Soul cake: Samantha, CC BY 2.0, source
- Vietnamese numismatic charms: Jean-Michel Moullec, CC BY 2.0, source
- Sky lantern: Richy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Reliquary: Attributed to Jean de Toul, also written Jehan de Touyl in one source, CC0, source
- Joss paper: Vmenkov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Calavera: Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0, source