All entries
2,161 entries so far, best known first. 3,219 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
🇮🇹 ItalyFortunaFortūna
The Roman goddess of luck and fate, shown with a wheel and a horn of plentyBeing · Luck and prosperity · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇮🇳 IndiaAtharvavedaअथर्ववेद
The fourth Veda of Hinduism, containing spells, healing rites, and domestic rituals.Text · Protection · Healing Historical
🇮🇶 Iraq and 5 moreLove magic
Rituals and spells used to attract, preserve, or end romantic relationships across many cultures.Tradition · Love and attraction · Cursing and harm Historical
🇳🇱 Netherlands and 3 morePig-faced women
A European legend of a woman with the face of a pig, and the charms used to break her curseFigure · Change and initiation Historical
🇻🇳 Vietnam and 2 moreVietnamese numismatic charmsBùa Việt Nam
Coin-shaped charms used for protection, luck, and ritual in Vietnamese cultureCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 1 moreTaoist coin charm道教品壓生錢
Chinese and Vietnamese numismatic charms used for protection and feng shuiCharm · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇰🇷 South Korea and 3 moreKorean numismatic charm열쇠패
Coin-shaped objects used as protective and decorative charms in Korean cultureCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇨🇳 China and 3 moreMarriage coin charm夫婦和合花錢
Coin-shaped amulets from East Asia that celebrate marriage, fertility, and conjugal harmonyCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇱🇹 Lithuania and 2 moreLaumaLaumė
A Baltic fairy-like spirit of the sky, weather, and newborn children.Being · Protection · Healing Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceAstrology and astronomy
Two disciplines that shared a history before splitting into science and divinationTradition · Seeing and foretelling · Power and authority Historical
🇳🇴 NorwayTycho Brahe daysTycho Brahes-dage
Scandinavian folklore dates believed to be unlucky for magic and businessBelief · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇯🇵 JapanHōko這子
A Japanese soft doll used as a protective talisman for mothers and childrenCharm · Protection Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Pig-faced women: DubhEire, CC0, source
- Fortuna: Charles Samuel, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Atharvaveda: William Dwight Whitney / Charles Rockwell Lanman, Public domain, source
- Taoist coin charm: Etnografiska Museet, CC BY 2.5, source
- Marriage coin charm: Scott Semans, CC BY 3.0, source
- Vietnamese numismatic charms: Jean-Michel Moullec, CC BY 2.0, source
- Korean numismatic charm: Unknown author(s)., Public domain, source
- Lauma: Raki_Man, CC BY 3.0, source
- Love magic: Kölner Meister [ 1 ] The artist is an unknown lower Rhenish artist. [, Public domain, source
- Astrology and astronomy: anonymous, Public domain, source