Places of magic
437 places: oracles and sacred sites, magic markets, witch-trial memorials, schools and museums, and towns known for a tradition. Each has a note for a respectful visit.
South Asia
Sacred site, Cambodia, 1 entryAngkor ThomSacred site, Cambodia, 1 entryAngkor WatCentre of practice, Uruguay, 1 entryArtigasSacred site, India, 1 entryBhedaghatTown known for a tradition, Nepal, 1 entryBungamatiTown known for a tradition, Bangladesh, 1 entryChandradwipSacred site, India, 1 entryGangotriSacred site, India, 1 entryHirapurCentre of practice, Zambia, 1 entryKalomoSacred site, India, 1 entryKhajurahoSacred site, Nepal, 1 entryKhumbuCentre of practice, India, 1 entryKumbakonamTown known for a tradition, India, 1 entryMalabar CoastSacred site, India, 1 entryMataoliTown known for a tradition, Nepal, 1 entryNamche BazarSacred site, Nepal, 1 entryPatan Durbar SquareSacred site, India, 1 entryRanipur JharialCentre of practice, Brazil, 1 entryRio Grande do SulCentre of practice, Russia, 1 entrySverdlovsk oblastSacred site, India, 1 entryThanjavur districtSacred site, India, 1 entryThiruparankundramTown known for a tradition, India, 1 entryUjjainA city on the Shipra, a seat of astronomers and of Bhairava worship, where one temple's deity is offered liquor.Sacred site, India, 1 entryWestern GhatsSacred site, Sri LankaAnuradhapuraSacred site, IndiaBodh GayaMarket, IndiaByadgiMarket, IndiaErodeSri LankaGalleIndiaGunturTown known for a tradition, IndiaGurgaonIndiaIdukkiSacred site, IndiaJetavana MonasterySacred site, IndiaKamakhya TempleA hilltop temple of the goddess in Guwahati, counted among the great Shakta pilgrimage sites and a centre of Tantric worship.Town known for a tradition, Sri LankaKandyIndiaKannurSacred site, Sri LankaKataragamaA pilgrimage town in southern Sri Lanka shared by Buddhists, Hindus, Muslims and the Vedda, known for vows, fire walking and the god Skanda.Town known for a tradition, NepalKathmandu ValleyA valley where Hindu and Buddhist Tantra overlap, home to the living goddess Kumari and to temples of ritual protection.Market, IndiaKhari Baoli, DelhiSacred site, GreeceKnossosIndiaKochiSacred site, IndiaKodungallur Bhagavathy TempleA Kerala temple of the goddess Bhadrakali, known for the Bharani festival with its oracles, red cloth and loud devotional abuse of the goddess.Town known for a tradition, IndiaKolkataIndiaKozhikodeIndiaLakadong, Jaintia HillsSri LankaMataleCentre of practice, IndiaMayongA village near Guwahati that Assamese popular tradition calls a land of black magic, and which now keeps a small museum on the subject.Sacred site, IndiaMehandipur Balaji TempleA Hanuman temple in Dausa district known across north India as a place where people seek relief from what they believe to be possession.Sacred site, IndiaMidnaporeIndiaMunnarTown known for a tradition, IndiaMysuruOracle, IndiaNechung Monastery in exileThe home in exile of the state oracle of Tibet, who is consulted by the Dalai Lama and speaks in trance.Town known for a tradition, Sri LankaRatnapuraMarket, IndiaSangliSacred site, IndiaSaptagramSacred site, PakistanSehwan SharifA Sindh town built around the shrine of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar, where trance, drumming and healing are part of the daily scene.Sacred site, IndiaTarapithA village in Birbhum known for its temple to the goddess Tara and for the cremation ground beside it, linked to the saint Bamakhepa.Market, IndiaUnjhaTown known for a tradition, IndiaVaranasiThe river city where Hindus bring the dead to be cremated, and a place long tied to ascetics, Tantric lore and the Aghori.Trial site or memorial, BulgariaVarna Chalcolithic necropolisIndiaWayanadTown known for a tradition, PeruYanacodo
Southeast Asia
Centre of practice, Indonesia, 3 entriesBaliTown known for a tradition, Indonesia, 1 entryDenpasarIndonesiaBanda IslandsTown known for a tradition, ThailandBangkokTown known for a tradition, ThailandChiang MaiA northern Thai city where Buddhist temples sit beside spirit shrines, and where ancestor and guardian spirits are still given offerings.Town known for a tradition, VietnamHanoiSacred site, VietnamHue and the Hon Chen shrineThe old imperial capital of Vietnam, with a riverside shrine to the goddess Thien Y A Na where mediumship rites are held.Town known for a tradition, IndonesiaJakartaCambodiaKampotMalaysiaKuchingMalaysiaMalaccaSacred site, MyanmarMount PopaAn extinct volcano in central Myanmar, home of the thirty-seven nats, the spirits who are honoured beside Buddhism.Sacred site, IndonesiaParangtritisA beach south of Yogyakarta where Javanese tradition places the court of the Queen of the Southern Sea, Ratu Kidul.MalaysiaPenangSacred site, VietnamPhu Tay HoA temple on West Lake where followers of the Mother Goddess religion, Dao Mau, bring offerings and hold mediumship rites.Market, PhilippinesQuiapoA Manila district around the Black Nazarene church where amulets, candles, oils and charms are sold on the pavement.Centre of practice, PhilippinesSiquijorA small Visayan island that Filipinos have long called the island of fire, a name tied to stories of healers and sorcerers.IndonesiaTernate and TidoreMarket, ThailandTha Prachan amulet marketA riverside Bangkok lane lined with stalls of Buddhist amulets, where collectors, monks and believers trade and examine them under magnifying lenses.Town known for a tradition, IndonesiaUbudA Balinese cultural town where traditional healers called balian work beside temples, and where offerings go out every morning.Sacred site, ThailandWat Bang PhraA riverside Thai temple known for its yearly gathering of people with Sak Yant tattoos, who enter trance before the teacher's image.
East Asia
Town known for a tradition, Japan, 2 entriesNagano PrefectureTown known for a tradition, Japan, 1 entryIshikawa PrefectureSacred site, Japan, 1 entryKii mountain rangeTown known for a tradition, Japan, 1 entryKyotoSacred site, Thailand, 1 entryLim Ko Niao ShrineSacred site, Japan, 1 entryMount IizunaSchool or museum, Japan, 1 entryMount ŌmineSacred site, Japan, 1 entryMount OntakeSacred site, Japan, 1 entryMount YoshinoMarket, United States, 1 entryMulberry StreetSacred site, Japan, 1 entryŌji InariSacred site, Japan, 1 entryOtowa no takiTown known for a tradition, Japan, 1 entryToyama PrefectureSacred site, United States, 1 entryTsubaki Grand Shrine of AmericaOracle, Hong Kong, 1 entryWong Tai Sin TempleA Taoist temple in Kowloon where visitors shake out bamboo fortune sticks and have the answer read by a diviner.Town known for a tradition, ChinaChengduSacred site, ChinaDongyue TempleA Taoist temple of the god of Mount Tai, with judgment halls that show the courts of the underworld.ChinaHanyuanHong KongHong KongSacred site, South KoreaInwangsan and GuksadangA granite hill in Seoul where mudang, the shamans of Korea, hold gut rites at rock shrines and the Guksadang.Sacred site, JapanIse Grand ShrineSacred site, JapanIzumo-taishaThe great shrine of Okuninushi, where Japanese tradition says the gods gather each tenth lunar month to arrange marriages and fates.Town known for a tradition, ChinaLhasaThe old Tibetan capital, with the Jokhang Temple at its centre and a long tradition of ritual protection and oracle consultation.Sacred site, TaiwanLongshan TempleA temple in Taipei that unites Buddhist, Taoist and folk deities, and where worshippers throw crescent blocks and draw fortune slips.Sacred site, ChinaMount LonghuOracle, JapanMount OsoreA volcanic mountain at the northern tip of Honshu where blind women mediums, the itako, call the spirits of the dead each July.Sacred site, ChinaMount TaiThe first of China's Five Great Mountains, where emperors performed rites to Heaven and where pilgrims still climb to a goddess's shrine.Sacred site, JapanSeimei ShrineA small shrine in Kyoto to Abe no Seimei, the Heian court astrologer and onmyoji who became Japan's best known figure of ritual magic.Town known for a tradition, South KoreaSeoulTown known for a tradition, JapanTokyoSacred site, JapanTsubaki Grand ShrineTown known for a tradition, MongoliaUlaanbaatar and the Mongolian ovooThe capital of Mongolia, where Buddhist monasteries sit beside a revived Mongol shamanism and where mountain passes are marked by ovoo cairns.
Central Asia and the Caucasus
Sacred site, Mongolia, 1 entryBurkhan KhaldunCentre of practice, Mongolia, 1 entryKhövsgöl ProvinceSacred site, China, 1 entryOrdos CityAzerbaijanBakuCentre of practice, RussiaKyzyl and Tuvan shamanismThe capital of the Tuva republic in southern Siberia, where shamanic societies were refounded after decades of ban.Sacred site, KazakhstanMausoleum of Khoja Ahmed YasawiA great fourteenth century shrine in southern Kazakhstan to a Sufi poet, visited for blessings and as a lesser pilgrimage by Central Asian Muslims.Sacred site, RussiaOlkhon Island and Shaman RockThe largest island of Lake Baikal, where Buryat people hold Cape Burkhan, called Shaman Rock, to be among the most sacred places in Asia.Town known for a tradition, UzbekistanSamarkandTown known for a tradition, UzbekistanTashkentTown known for a tradition, GeorgiaTbilisiTown known for a tradition, ArmeniaYerevan
Middle East
Town known for a tradition, Cyprus, 2 entriesPaphosTown known for a tradition, Italy, 2 entriesRomeSacred site, Iran, 1 entryBehistunCentre of practice, France, 1 entryBibliothèque nationale de FranceTown known for a tradition, United States, 1 entryCerrillos HillsTown known for a tradition, Turkey, 1 entryConstantinopleSacred site, Egypt, 1 entryDeir el-BahariTown known for a tradition, Iran, 1 entryEcbatanaSacred site, Egypt, 1 entryEl MahasnaSacred site, Egypt, 1 entryGiza PlateauTown known for a tradition, Israel, 1 entryJerusalemSacred site, Syria, 1 entryMeccaTown known for a tradition, Iran, 1 entryNishapurSacred site, Iran, 1 entryPersepolisSacred site, Sudan, 1 entryQustulSacred site, Egypt, 1 entrySinai PeninsulaTown known for a tradition, Greece, 1 entryThebesTown known for a tradition, Italy, 1 entryViterboTown known for a tradition, SyriaAleppoTown known for a tradition, JordanAmmanCentre of practice, IraqBabylonThe ruined city on the Euphrates whose priests kept the records of the sky and the incantations against demons that shaped later magic.Town known for a tradition, SyriaDamascusMarket, United Arab EmiratesDubai Spice SoukTown known for a tradition, TurkeyGaziantepMarket, TurkeyGrand Bazaar and the evil eyeA covered market where glass nazar beads in blue are sold in every size, and where the habit of warding off the eye is on show.School or museum, TurkeyHarranAn old city of southern Turkey where a star-worshipping community, the Sabians of Harran, lived into the Islamic period and kept the study of planetary magic.Town known for a tradition, IranIsfahanMarket, TurkeyIstanbul Spice BazaarSacred site, Saudi ArabiaKaabaTown known for a tradition, IranMashhadSacred site, Saudi ArabiaMeccaOmanMuscatSchool or museum, IsraelSafedA hill town in Galilee where, in the sixteenth century, scholars of Kabbalah gathered and made it one of the centres of Jewish mysticism.OmanSalalah and DhofarTown known for a tradition, YemenSanaaTown known for a tradition, IranTehranTown known for a tradition, SyriaTell BrakTown known for a tradition, SyriaUgarit
North Africa
Morocco, 1 entryEssaouiraSacred site, Libya, 1 entryGhirzaSacred site, Algeria, 1 entryLake TritonisTown known for a tradition, Morocco, 1 entryRabatOracle, Egypt, 1 entrySiwa OasisA remote oasis in the western desert, home to the Oracle of Amun that Alexander the Great consulted in 331 BCE.Centre of practice, MoroccoCasablancaTown known for a tradition, MoroccoEssaouira and the GnawaA walled Atlantic port in Morocco where the Gnawa, descendants of people brought from sub-Saharan Africa, hold their night-long healing rite and a yearly music festival.Town known for a tradition, MoroccoFesTown known for a tradition, MoroccoFezA medieval Moroccan city of saints' shrines, schools and a medina where charms, written talismans and amulet sellers are part of daily life.Market, MoroccoJemaa el-FnaThe great square of Marrakech where storytellers, musicians, snake charmers and herbalists have drawn crowds for centuries.Sacred site, EgyptKarnak and LuxorThe temple complex at Thebes where Egyptian priests performed daily rites, and where heka, the force behind spells, was part of the working of the state.Market, EgyptKhan el-Khalili and the zarA medieval market in Cairo where amulets and incense are sold, and where the zar healing rite is still held for those who believe they are visited by spirits.Market, EgyptKhan el-Khalili, CairoTown known for a tradition, MoroccoMarrakechCentre of practice, MoroccoMarrakeshTown known for a tradition, TunisiaTunis
Sub-Saharan Africa
Sacred site, Ethiopia, 1 entryHararCentre of practice, Sudan, 1 entryKhartoumTown known for a tradition, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1 entryKinshasaSacred site, Madagascar, 1 entryMatataneTown known for a tradition, South Africa, 1 entryOrange RiverSacred site, South Africa, 1 entryRichtersveldTown known for a tradition, Sudan, 1 entrySennarSacred site, South Africa, 1 entryWonder HoleTown known for a tradition, BeninAbomeyThe royal seat of the Dahomey kingdom, whose palaces hold bas-reliefs and bocio figures, and whose kings were bound up in the Vodun religion.Town known for a tradition, EthiopiaAddis AbabaMarket, TogoAkodessawa Fetish MarketThe largest market of Vodun ritual materials in West Africa, a small area of Lome where heads of animals and dried plants are displayed for practitioners.Town known for a tradition, MadagascarAntananarivoTown known for a tradition, MadagascarAntananarivo and the famadihanaThe highland capital of Madagascar, around which families open tombs of ancestors and rewrap their remains in the famadihana.South AfricaCape Town and the Bo-KaapSouth AfricaDurbanMarket, South AfricaFaraday MarketA muti market near Faraday station where traditional healers, called inyanga and sangoma, and their customers buy herbs, roots and animal materials.Sacred site, ZimbabweGreat ZimbabweThe stone city of the Shona kingdoms, where spirit mediums of the ancestors still speak, and where the Zimbabwe birds were carved.Sacred site, NigeriaIle-IfeThe Yoruba city said to be where the world began, and the home of the religion of the orisha and of the oracle of Ifa.Town known for a tradition, NigeriaKanoKenyaMombasaSacred site, NigeriaOsun-Osogbo Sacred GroveA forest on the Osun river kept for the goddess of fresh water, where annual rites draw followers from Nigeria and the diaspora.Town known for a tradition, BeninOuidahA coastal town of Benin that is the main centre of Vodun, once a port of the slave trade and now the site of the Vodun Festival.Sacred site, NigeriaOuidah (sample)Centre of practice, TanzaniaPemba IslandA Zanzibar island with a reputation across East Africa as a home of healers and sorcerers, a view shaped as much by neighbours' fear as by local practice.MadagascarSambava and the SAVA regionTanzaniaStone TownSchool or museum, MaliTimbuktuA Saharan trading city and seat of learning whose family libraries hold manuscripts on law, astronomy and the use of protective texts.Market, South AfricaWarwick JunctionA transport hub in Durban where the Victoria Street Market and Brook Street stalls sell herbs and roots to Zulu healers and families.TanzaniaZanzibar and Pemba
Europe
Oracle, Greece, 3 entriesDelphiThe Greek sanctuary of Apollo where, for about a thousand years, a priestess called the Pythia answered questions from cities and kings.Town known for a tradition, France, 3 entriesParisTrial site or memorial, Germany, 2 entriesBambergA Franconian city where, between 1626 and 1631, over a thousand people were executed in some of the worst witch trials in Europe.Town known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 2 entriesBidefordSacred site, Egypt, 2 entriesCairoOracle, Greece, 2 entriesDelphi (sample)Town known for a tradition, Italy, 2 entriesFlorenceSacred site, Italy, 2 entriesPalatine HillCentre of practice, Spain, 2 entriesSantiago de CompostelaTrial site or memorial, Hungary, 2 entriesSzegedTown known for a tradition, France, 2 entriesToursTrial site or memorial, Finland, 1 entryÅlandTown known for a tradition, Italy, 1 entryAlgheroTown known for a tradition, Spain, 1 entryAsturiasTrial site or memorial, France, 1 entryBeaujolaisTown known for a tradition, France, 1 entryBloisSacred site, United Kingdom, 1 entryBlythburghTown known for a tradition, Italy, 1 entryBolognaTrial site or memorial, Netherlands, 1 entryBredevoortSacred site, United Kingdom, 1 entryBungayTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryBury St EdmundsSacred site, Italy, 1 entryCapitoline HillTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryChelmsfordOracle, Italy, 1 entryCumaeThe first Greek colony in Italy, home of the Sibyl and a long cave that Roman writers linked to her prophecies.Sacred site, Greece, 1 entryDerveniTown known for a tradition, Estonia, 1 entryDorpatTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryEdinburghSacred site, Greece, 1 entryEleusisTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryExeter AssizesTown known for a tradition, Italy, 1 entryFerraraTrial site or memorial, Norway, 1 entryFinnmarkTrial site or memorial, France, 1 entryFranche-ComtéTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryGallow GreenTrial site or memorial, Switzerland, 1 entryGenevaTrial site or memorial, Netherlands, 1 entryGorinchemTrial site or memorial, Poland, 1 entryGostyńTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryGreat WenhamSacred site, Estonia, 1 entryHaapsalu CastleTown known for a tradition, Germany, 1 entryHamelinTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryHeavitree gallowsSacred site, Ireland, 1 entryHill of TaraTrial site or memorial, Norway, 1 entryHordalandTrial site or memorial, Austria, 1 entryInnsbruckTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryIpswichCentre of practice, Myanmar, 1 entryKachin StateCentre of practice, Russia, 1 entryKaliningrad OblastTrial site or memorial, Poland, 1 entryKasina WielkaTrial site or memorial, Hungary, 1 entryKesmarkTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryKing's LynnSacred site, Japan, 1 entryKinkaku-jiSacred site, Germany, 1 entryKoppelberg HillTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryLancaster AssizesTown known for a tradition, Switzerland, 1 entryLausanneTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryLeamington SpaTown known for a tradition, Switzerland, 1 entryLeukCentre of practice, France, 1 entryLimogesTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryLittleportSacred site, United Kingdom, 1 entryLoch MigdaleTrial site or memorial, France, 1 entryLorraineTrial site or memorial, Sweden, 1 entryMalmöTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryManningtreeFrance, 1 entryMarseilleSacred site, Spain, 1 entryMas Castellar de PontósTown known for a tradition, Italy, 1 entryMilanSacred site, Canada, 1 entryMontmorency FallsTrial site or memorial, Sweden, 1 entryMoraTrial site or memorial, France, 1 entryNeversTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryNorth BerwickThe Scottish seaside town where, in the early 1590s, over a hundred people were accused of plotting with the devil to raise storms against King James VI.Trial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryNorwichSacred site, Greece, 1 entryOlympiaTrial site or memorial, Finland, 1 entryOstrobothniaSacred site, Netherlands, 1 entryOudewaterTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entryPaisleyTrial site or memorial, France, 1 entryPoitiersTown known for a tradition, Poland, 1 entryPoznańTown known for a tradition, Estonia, 1 entryRevalTown known for a tradition, Latvia, 1 entryRigaTrial site or memorial, Norway, 1 entryRogalandSacred site, Czech Republic, 1 entryRožmberk CastleTown known for a tradition, France, 1 entrySaint-Rémy-de-ProvenceTown known for a tradition, France, 1 entrySalon-de-ProvenceSacred site, United Kingdom, 1 entrySamlesbury HallTrial site or memorial, Netherlands, 1 entrySchiedamCentre of practice, Italy, 1 entrySicilyTown known for a tradition, Switzerland, 1 entrySidersTrial site or memorial, Norway, 1 entryStavangerTrial site or memorial, United Kingdom, 1 entrySt. OsythTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entrySutherlandCentre of practice, France, 1 entryThéâtre Robert-HoudinCentre of practice, Italy, 1 entryTorre del GrecoTrial site or memorial, Sweden, 1 entryTorsåker parishTrial site or memorial, Germany, 1 entryTrierThe oldest city in Germany, where the Trier witch trials of 1581 to 1593 may have killed over three hundred and fifty people.Trial site or memorial, Finland, 1 entryTurkuTrial site or memorial, Switzerland, 1 entryValaisSacred site, Italy, 1 entryVal CamonicaTrial site or memorial, Switzerland, 1 entryVaudTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryWhitbyTown known for a tradition, United Kingdom, 1 entryYorkTrial site or memorial, Sweden, 1 entryYstadTrial site or memorial, Poland, 1 entryŻaszkówNetherlandsAmsterdamTrial site or memorial, BelgiumAntwerpSchool or museum, GermanyBavarian State LibraryTown known for a tradition, ItalyBeneventoA town in southern Italy where legend placed the meetings of witches under a walnut tree, giving the Strega liqueur its name.Trial site or memorial, SwedenBohuslänSchool or museum, United KingdomBoscastleA Cornish harbour village that houses the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic, the world's largest collection of its kind.Sacred site, FranceBrocéliandeThe Breton forest of Paimpont, said in medieval romance to be the home of Merlin, Viviane and the fountain of Barenton.Trial site or memorial, IrelandCarrickfergusTrial site or memorial, SpainCataloniaTrial site or memorial, SwedenDalarnaSacred site, United KingdomDartmoorOracle, TurkeyDidymaThe sanctuary of Apollo on the Aegean coast of Turkey, with a vast temple and an oracle that rivalled Delphi.Oracle, GreeceDodonaA remote Greek oracle of Zeus, older than Delphi, where answers were read from a sacred oak.Trial site or memorial, United KingdomDornochTrial site or memorial, United KingdomEdinburgh's Witches' WellA small fountain at the foot of Edinburgh Castle that honours the thousands of people tried for witchcraft in Scotland.Sacred site, SwedenGamla UppsalaThe old religious and royal centre of Sweden, where Norse sources describe a great temple and sacrifices every nine years.Sacred site, United KingdomGlastonburyA Somerset town of Christian pilgrimage, Arthurian legend and modern Pagan and New Age life, below a conical hill topped by a medieval tower.Trial site or memorial, SpainGranadaSacred site, United KingdomGreat ParkGermanyHamburg SpeicherstadtSchool or museum, IcelandHólmavíkA small fishing town in the Icelandic Westfjords, with the Museum of Icelandic Sorcery and Witchcraft.Town known for a tradition, IrelandIslandmageeHungaryKalocsaSpainLa VeraPortugalLisbonUnited KingdomLondonTrial site or memorial, BelgiumNamurTrial site or memorial, SpainNavarreSacred site, IrelandNewgrangeAn Irish passage tomb, built around 3200 BCE, lit by the winter solstice sunrise through a roof-box above its entrance.Town known for a tradition, GermanyNurembergOracle, AlbaniaNymphaionTrial site or memorial, SwedenÖstergötlandTrial site or memorial, United KingdomPendle Hill and LancasterThe Lancashire hill where the 1612 trials began, and Lancaster Castle where ten people were condemned.Town known for a tradition, Czech RepublicPragueA city known for the court of Rudolf II, whose collections, alchemists and astronomers made it a centre of learned magic around 1600.Centre of practice, FranceRennes-le-ChateauA hilltop village in southern France that became a legend of hidden treasure, secret societies and a supposed bloodline of Jesus, none of which has evidence.Town known for a tradition, GermanyRhinelandSchool or museum, SpainSalamancaA university city of western Spain, with a legend of a cave where a devil is said to have taught the black arts.Town known for a tradition, SpainSevilleTown known for a tradition, United StatesSleepy HollowSacred site, United KingdomStonehenge and AveburyThe two great stone monuments of Wiltshire, which have drawn antiquarians, Druids and modern Pagans for centuries.Sacred site, GermanyThe BrockenThe highest peak of the Harz mountains, where German folklore set the Walpurgis Night gathering of witches.Sacred site, United KingdomTintagelA Cornish headland with a ruined castle, tied by Geoffrey of Monmouth to the conception of King Arthur and the wizard Merlin's help.School or museum, SpainToledoA hill city of Spain where Christian, Jewish and Muslim scholars translated Arabic works, and which gained a name as a city of magic.Trial site or memorial, ItalyTrioraA hill town in Liguria where trials for witchcraft began in 1587, and which now recalls the accused with a museum.Trial site or memorial, NorwayVardøA fishing town in far north-east Norway with the Steilneset Memorial, built for the ninety-one people killed in witch trials from 1621 to 1692.ItalyVeniceCentre of practice, United KingdomWhitby MuseumSacred site, United KingdomWindsor ForestTrial site or memorial, GermanyWürzburgA Franconian city where, between 1626 and 1631, the prince-bishop's court tried hundreds for witchcraft, including children and clergy.Trial site or memorial, SpainZugarramurdiA Basque village with a large cave where a witch trial of 1609 to 1614 began, ending in an Inquisition auto-da-fe in Logrono.
North America
Town known for a tradition, United States, 1 entryBostonSacred site, United States, 1 entryGobbler's KnobSacred site, United States, 1 entryHermitage plantationSacred site, United States, 1 entryLower ManhattanCentre of practice, United States, 1 entryPunxsutawneyCentre of practice, United States, 1 entryQuarryvilleTrial site or memorial, United States, 1 entrySalemThe Massachusetts town where, in 1692 and 1693, twenty people were executed or died after witchcraft accusations, and which now both remembers them and sells witch tourism.Trial site or memorial, United States, 1 entrySalem TownTown known for a tradition, United States, 1 entrySalem VillageTown known for a tradition, United States, 1 entryYoung TownshipCentre of practice, IndiaAdyarCentre of practice, United StatesAppalachian folk magicThe southern mountains, where a tradition of Scots-Irish, German, Cherokee and African American folk healing and sign-reading has been kept by families.United StatesBaltimoreSacred site, United StatesBear ButteA mountain at the edge of the Black Hills that is sacred to the Lakota, Cheyenne and many other nations, where prayer and vision seeking continue.Centre of practice, United StatesCassadagaA small Florida community founded in 1894 as a Spiritualist camp, which today has resident mediums and a hotel.Sacred site, United StatesCass LakeSacred site, United StatesCongo SquareA park in New Orleans where, under early nineteenth-century rules, enslaved and free Black people gathered on Sundays to sing, dance and trade.Trial site or memorial, United StatesFairfieldTrial site or memorial, United StatesHartfordUnited StatesHatchTown known for a tradition, United StatesLas VegasThe world's busiest city for stage magic, where resident shows have run for decades and the audience knows it is being fooled.Centre of practice, United StatesLily DaleA lakeside community in western New York that has been a centre of Spiritualism since 1879, where registered mediums give readings.Town known for a tradition, CanadaMontrealUnited StatesNew OrleansTown known for a tradition, United StatesNew Orleans: Marie Laveau and the cemeteriesA city where Louisiana Voodoo grew from West African, Haitian and Catholic roots, and where the tomb of Marie Laveau is the best known place.Town known for a tradition, United StatesNew York CityCentre of practice, United StatesPennsylvania Dutch CountryA region of south-east Pennsylvania where German-speaking settlers kept hex signs, powwowing and a book of charms.Centre of practice, United StatesSan DiegoCentre of practice, United StatesSedonaA red-rock town in Arizona where a New Age industry of vortex tours, crystals and readings grew from the 1980s, on land with a long Native American history.Trial site or memorial, United StatesWethersfieldTrial site or memorial, United StatesWindsor
Latin America and the Caribbean
Town known for a tradition, Argentina, 1 entryCorrientesTown known for a tradition, Argentina, 1 entryGreater Buenos AiresSacred site, Italy, 1 entryLipariSacred site, Greece, 1 entryMilosSacred site, Mexico, 1 entryPachucaCentre of practice, JamaicaAccompongA Maroon town in the hills of Jamaica, founded by descendants of escaped Africans, whose heritage includes a spirit tradition called Myal and Kromanti dance.Town known for a tradition, PeruArequipaBrazilBelemSacred site, HaitiBois CaimanA wooded site in northern Haiti, said to be where a Vodou ceremony in August 1791 launched the revolution that led to Haitian independence.ColombiaCartagenaCentre of practice, MexicoCatemacoA lake town in Veracruz known across Mexico for its brujos, who hold a gathering each year on the first Friday of March.Sacred site, GuatemalaChichicastenangoA Maya K'iche' town in the Guatemalan highlands where the church steps are used for Catholic and Maya rites, with incense burned and candles lit.Centre of practice, ChileChiloeAn island group in southern Chile, rich in tales of sorcerers, the ghost ship Caleuche and a legendary society of warlocks.GuatemalaCobanTown known for a tradition, PeruCuscoThe old Inca capital in the Andes, where offerings to the earth, called despachos, and to the mountain spirits, called apus, are still made.Sacred site, CubaEl CobreThe basilica of the Virgin of Charity, patron of Cuba, who is honoured by Catholics and by followers of Santeria as Oshun.GrenadaGrenada, Isle of SpiceSacred site, PeruHuancabamba and Las HuaringasA town in northern Peru known as a place of healers, near the Huaringas lakes, where curanderos hold night-long healing rites.Centre of practice, MexicoHuautla de JimenezA Mazatec town in the mountains of Oaxaca, where the healer Maria Sabina was the best known guide of mushroom ceremonies, and where outside visitors have caused harm.Town known for a tradition, PeruIquitosA city on the Peruvian Amazon, reached only by boat or air, and the centre for ayahuasca tourism and traditional plant healing.Sacred site, BoliviaIsla del SolAn island in Lake Titicaca that Inca tradition named as the birthplace of the sun and the first Inca, and where Aymara communities still live.JamaicaKingston and JamaicaMarket, BoliviaLa Paz Witches' MarketA street market in the Bolivian capital, where Aymara women sell llama foetuses, herbs, amulets and miniature offerings for the earth.Town known for a tradition, PeruLimaCentre of practice, ChileMapuche lands: TemucoThe capital of Araucania in southern Chile, close to Mapuche communities whose spiritual leader is the machi, usually a woman, and whose rites include the nguillatun.Town known for a tradition, MexicoMeridaTown known for a tradition, MexicoOaxacaMexicoPapantlaTrinidad and TobagoPort of SpainTown known for a tradition, MexicoPueblaSacred site, CubaReglaA district of Havana across the bay, home to the shrine of the Virgin of Regla, who is honoured as Yemaya in Santeria.Town known for a tradition, BrazilRio de Janeiro: Iemanja and UmbandaA city where Umbanda, a Brazilian religion of the twentieth century, is practised, and where people greet the sea goddess Iemanja at Copacabana each New Year's Eve.BrazilSalvador da BahiaTown known for a tradition, BrazilSalvador de BahiaThe Brazilian city with the largest number of Candomble terreiros, the communities of an Afro-Brazilian religion, many of them centuries old.Sacred site, HaitiSaut-d'EauA waterfall in central Haiti where Catholic and Vodou pilgrims gather in July to bathe, pray and honour a vision of the Virgin Mary and the spirit Ezili Danto.Sacred site, HaitiSouvenanceA Vodou sanctuary near Gonaives in Haiti, where a major festival takes place each year around the Catholic feast of the Assumption.GrenadaSt George's
Oceania
Sacred site, New Zealand, 1 entryHokianga HarbourSacred site, New Zealand, 1 entryLake WaikaremoanaCentre of practice, AustraliaAlice Springs and the Central DesertTown known for a tradition, AustraliaCairnsTown known for a tradition, AustraliaHobartSacred site, United StatesPu'uhonua o HonaunauA sacred refuge on the Kona coast of Hawaii where, under the old kapu laws, people who had broken a rule could be absolved by a priest and return home.Town known for a tradition, New ZealandRotoruaA geothermal town in New Zealand's North Island, home to Te Arawa Maori, with marae, carving schools and living traditions of mana and tapu.Centre of practice, VanuatuTannaA Vanuatu island where the John Frum movement, born in the late 1930s, is still practised, with a yearly ceremony each 15 February and a belief in a leader who will return.FijiTaveuniCentre of practice, Papua New GuineaThe Sepik RiverA great river of northern Papua New Guinea, whose villages built spirit houses and carved figures for initiation, and where fear of sorcery and accusations of witchcraft remain a serious problem.Sacred site, AustraliaUluruA great sandstone monolith in central Australia, sacred to the Anangu, who hold that it was formed in the Tjukurpa, the time of creation, and who ask visitors not to climb it.