All entries
2,261 entries so far, best known first. 3,022 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
🇮🇸 IcelandYule catJólakötturinn
A giant feline from Icelandic folklore that threatens those without new Christmas clothesFigure · Cursing and harm Living
🇬🇷 GreeceEurynomosΕὐρύνομος
An ancient Greek underworld spirit said to strip corpses down to bone.Being Legendary
🇷🇴 Romania and 2 moreCaloian
A Romanian clay effigy ritual for rain and fertility, featuring a mock funeralRite · Luck and prosperity Fading
🇮🇪 IrelandJack O'The Lantern
An Irish folktale about a deceitful man condemned to wander with a carved lanternFigure · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇳 India and 5 moreSailors' superstitions
A global collection of omens, charms and taboos used by mariners to manage the risks of life at seaBelief · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇷 GreeceHarpyἅρπυια (hárpyia)
Half-human, half-bird creatures from Greek and Roman myth, often seen as storm winds or snatchers of food.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇷 GreeceCampeΚάμπη
A female monster who guarded the imprisoned Titans in Greek mythBeing Legendary
🇷🇺 Russia and 1 moreTelekinesis
A purported psychic ability to move objects with the mind aloneBelief · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇳🇴 NorwayTycho Brahe daysTycho Brahes-dage
Scandinavian folklore dates believed to be unlucky for magic and businessBelief · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇸 IcelandDjákninn á Myrká
An Icelandic ghost story about a dead deacon who returns for his bride on Christmas EveFigure · Cursing and harm Historical
🇫🇷 France and 4 moreEctoplasm
A substance said to be excreted by mediums during séances, later exposed as common household materials.Substance · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreMaternal impression
A discredited theory that a mother's shock or thoughts can mark her unborn childBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇫🇮 Finland and 2 moreTietäjä
A traditional Finnic healer and sage whose power came from memorised spells and deep knowledge.Figure · Healing · Protection Historical
🇷🇸 Serbia and 1 moreVampire pumpkins and watermelons
A Balkan folk tale about ground fruit that turns into vampires.Belief · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreChapeaugraphy
A novelty act using a single ring of felt to form different hatsIllusion · Wonder and entertainment Revived
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreGargoylegargouille
A carved stone waterspout shaped like a creature, used on Gothic buildings to shed rainwaterCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇸🇾 Syria and 5 moreInsufflation
A ritual breath used in Christian rites to drive out evil or invite the spirit.Rite · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇸🇪 SwedenSaleby Runestone
A Swedish memorial stone raised by a husband for his wife, featuring an ancient curse.Text · Protection Historical
🇮🇱 Israel and 1 moreMagical motto
A chosen name used by occultists to separate their spiritual identity from their everyday life.Belief · Power and authority Historical
🇵🇱 Poland and 1 moreKarzełekСкарбник, Кладенец
A Slavic mine spirit that guards treasures and guides miners.Being · Protection · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇪 IrelandLatoon fairy bush
A whitethorn tree in County Clare saved from a motorway by folkloric warnings of misfortuneBelief · Protection Living
🇩🇪 GermanyBuch der heiligen Dreifaltigkeit
A 15th-century German alchemical treatise that aligns chemical work with Christian theology.Text · Change and initiation Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 3 moreKlabautermann
A North Sea ship kobold that aids sailors and signals a vessel's doom.Being · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇵🇱 PolandFrankenstein town gravediggers scandal
A 1606 witchcraft trial in Silesia that may have inspired Mary Shelley's novelBelief · Cursing and harm Historical
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreDogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie
A foundational treatise on ritual magic by Éliphas Lévi, structured around the tarot.Text · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇬🇷 Greece and 3 morePalladium
A sacred image or object believed to guarantee the safety of a city or nationCharm · Protection Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomMaggy Moulach
A Scottish brownie known for her hair and fierce protection of her kinBeing · Power and authority · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇳 India and 1 moreAstral body
A subtle vehicle of emotion and dream said to travel beyond the physical formBelief · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Change and initiation Historical
🇩🇪 GermanyLichtenberg's Avertissement
A satirical poster exposing stage magic as deceptionText · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇵🇱 Poland and 1 morePan Twardowski
A Polish sorcerer who bargained with the Devil and ended up on the MoonFigure · Power and authority Legendary
🇯🇵 Japan and 5 moreMythic humanoids
Creatures that blend human and animal traits across global folkloreBeing · Wonder and entertainment Legendary
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreBogle
A Northumbrian and Scots household spirit or ghost known for perplexing people.Being · Cursing and harm · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇸 Iceland and 1 moreBerkanan
A runic letter representing the birch tree across Germanic writing systems.Text Historical
🇫🇷 FrancePetit AlbertSecrets merveilleux de la magie naturelle et cabalistique du petit Albert
An 18th-century French grimoire of natural and cabalistic magic sold to rural householdsText · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇯🇵 JapanLooking taboo
A mythic rule forbidding a gaze that would bring disasterBelief · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇷 Greece and 1 moreHephaestusἭφαιστος
The Greek smith god who forged divine weapons and crafted automata for the gods.Being · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomColt pixie
A scruffy pony spirit from English folklore that leads travellers astrayBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇬🇧 United KingdomBuccabocka
A Cornish sea-spirit and mine-dweller who receives fish offerings from coastal communities.Being · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇦🇱 AlbaniaBardha
An Albanian mythological figure of good luck and fateFigure · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇦🇱 AlbaniaLugat
A shadow-dwelling vampire of Albanian folklore that attacks sleepers and hides in ruins.Being · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇫🇮 FinlandRahko
A Finnish mythic figure linked to the darkening of the Moon and nightmaresBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇪🇸 SpainTrenti
A forest goblin from Cantabrian mythology known for pranks and mischiefBeing · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇫🇷 FranceFarfadet
Small helpful spirits of French folklore that perform chores for foodBeing · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇩🇪 GermanyFeldgeist
German folk creatures tied to crops, weather and harvest ritualsBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇹 ItalyBorda
A blindfolded witch from the Po Valley who drowns children in marshesFigure · Cursing and harm Legendary
🇮🇹 ItalyMazapégul
A mischievous elf of Romagna with a red cap that steals sleep and braids horse manesBeing · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇭🇺 HungaryLidérc
A shape-shifting spirit from Hungarian folklore that brings wealth or illness.Being · Cursing and harm · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇱🇹 Lithuania and 2 moreEglė the Queen of SerpentsEglė žalčių karalienė
A Lithuanian folk tale about a woman who marries a serpent king and turns her family into trees.Figure · Wonder and entertainment Historical
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Mediumship: Harvey Metcalfe, Public domain, source
- Hecate: Henryk Siemiradzki, Public domain, source
- Feldgeist: Zwoelefant, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Farfadet: User:Mattes, Public domain, source
- Bucca: Frederick Whymper, Public domain, source
- Pan Twardowski: Pit1233, Public domain, source
- Astral body: Rad el Baluvar, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Palladium: Marie-Lan Nguyen ( Jastrow ), Public domain, source
- Dogme et Rituel de la Haute Magie: Eliphas Levi, Public domain, source
- Frankenstein town gravediggers scandal: Jacek Halicki, CC BY-SA 3.0 pl, source
- Klabautermann: Anton von Werner, Public domain, source
- Karzełek: Krystian Hasterok, CC BY 2.5, source
- Tietäjä: Robert Wilhelm Ekman, Public domain, source
- Harpy: Unknown, near the Tyrrhenian Group?, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Yule cat: Christine Rondeau, CC BY 2.0, source
- Caloian: Costică Acsinte Archive, No restrictions, source
- Jack O'The Lantern: Bodrugan, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Sailors' superstitions: Siren Painter (eponymous vase), Public domain, source
- Telekinesis: Strobridge Lithographing Co., Public domain, source
- Djákninn á Myrká: Théodore Meyer-Heine / Jules Worms, Public domain, source
- Chapeaugraphy: Penny Pictorial Magazine, Public domain, source
- Vampire pumpkins and watermelons: The original uploader was Ke4roh at English Wikipedia ., Public domain, source
- Gargoyle: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Saleby Runestone: Berig, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Lichtenberg's Avertissement: Georg Christoph Lichtenberg, Public domain, source
- Petit Albert: Albertus Parvus Lucius, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Looking taboo: ArchaiOptix, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Hephaestus: Foundry Painter (name vase), Public domain, source
- Eglė the Queen of Serpents: Huw, CC BY 2.0, source