Magic in Europe
Cunning folk and grimoires, alchemy, runes and seidr, the fairy faith, the witch trials, and the folk calendar of fire and fertility. 783 entries on EveryJaadu so far.
Places of magic
London 18Paris 18Athens 12Delphi 11Dodona 4Edinburgh 4Kraków 4Olympia 4Praeneste 4Prague 4Amsterdam 3Bamberg 3Cairo 3Capitoline Hill 3Cumae 3Dartmoor 3Egyptian Hall 3Eleusis 3Florence 3Logroño 3Lyon 3New York 3Quebec 3Santiago de Compostela 3Trier 3Val Camonica 3Vilnius 3Würzburg 3York 3Zugarramurdi 3
Rites of the region
Midsummer and St John's Eve herbs and firesWalpurgis Night and May Day firesSamhain and Halloween divination gamesFirst-footing at HogmanayWitch bottleKnocking on wood and horseshoe customsThe Sator squareIcelandic galdrastafirMalocchio removal with oil and waterMatiasma and ftou ftou
Countries
🇦🇱 Albania 29🇦🇩 Andorra 1🇦🇹 Austria 31🇧🇾 Belarus 20🇧🇪 Belgium 11🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina 3🇧🇬 Bulgaria 37🇭🇷 Croatia 15🇨🇿 Czech Republic 14🇪🇪 Estonia 28🇫🇮 Finland 37🇫🇷 France 153🇩🇪 Germany 127🇬🇷 Greece 124🇭🇺 Hungary 14🇮🇸 Iceland 47🇮🇪 Ireland 103🇮🇹 Italy 130🇽🇰 Kosovo 4🇱🇻 Latvia 9🇱🇹 Lithuania 18🇱🇺 Luxembourg 2🇲🇹 Malta 2🇲🇩 Moldova 4🇲🇪 Montenegro 3🇳🇱 Netherlands 32🇲🇰 North Macedonia 5🇳🇴 Norway 41🇵🇱 Poland 40🇵🇹 Portugal 16🇷🇴 Romania 42🇷🇺 Russia 112🇷🇸 Serbia 36🇸🇰 Slovakia 4🇸🇮 Slovenia 7🇪🇸 Spain 73🇸🇪 Sweden 80🇨🇭 Switzerland 30🇺🇦 Ukraine 24🇬🇧 United Kingdom 224🇻🇦 Vatican City 1
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
🇧🇪 Belgium and 2 moreHorseshoe
A metal shoe for a horse's hoof and a talisman of good fortuneCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇪🇬 Egypt and 3 moreEx-voto
A gift left in a shrine to mark a vow kept or a miracle receivedCharm · Protection · Healing Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 4 moreFour-leaf clover
A rare plant mutation believed to bring good luck and used as a symbol of fortune.Charm · Luck and prosperity Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 5 moreConcealed shoes
Shoes hidden in building structures as folk charms for protection and fertilityCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 morePrecious coral
A marine skeleton harvested for jewelry and worn as a protective charm in several culturesSubstance · Protection · Healing Living
🇫🇷 FrancePlanchette
A wooden device for automatic writing used in Victorian spiritualist séancesCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Seeing and foretelling Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 3 moreJet
A black gemstone carved into amulets and mourning jewellery for centuriesCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreRelic
An object or body part kept to honor a holy person and mark their connection to the divineCharm · Protection · Healing Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 4 moreCorn dolly
A woven straw figure made from the last sheaf of a European harvest to house the crop spirit.Tradition · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Revived
🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreCaul
A birth membrane kept as a talisman for luck and protection from drowningCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇫🇷 France and 3 moreReliquary
A container for sacred remains or objects, crafted across many faithsCharm · Protection · Speaking with spirits and the dead Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 2 moreCurse tabletκατάδεσμος
A lead sheet inscribed with a binding curse in the Greco-Roman worldCharm · Cursing and harm · Love and attraction Historical
🇬🇷 GreeceOmphalosὀμφαλός
A sacred stone marking the center of the world in Greek myth and oracle practiceCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreAdder stone
A naturally perforated stone used as a protective talisman in European folkloreCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇸 IcelandNábrók
A pair of pants made from human skin, said to generate endless wealth in Icelandic folklore.Charm · Luck and prosperity Legendary
🇮🇹 ItalyCornicello
A twisted horn charm worn in Italy to ward off the evil eye and invite luck.Charm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇪 IrelandLia Fáil
A standing stone at the Hill of Tara used for royal inaugurations in Irish legendCharm · Power and authority Historical
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreWitch bottle
A container filled with personal items and sharp objects to trap harmful magicCharm · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇪 IrelandBlarney StoneCloch na Blarnan
A limestone block in an Irish castle kissed for the gift of eloquenceCharm · Power and authority Living
🇮🇸 IcelandIcelandic magical stavesgaldrastafir
Sigils from Icelandic grimoires believed to hold magical powerCharm · Power and authority Historical
🇮🇸 IcelandHelm of AweǾgishjalmr
A feared helm of Norse myth, and a name for an Icelandic staveCharm Legendary
🇮🇳 IndiaUnicorn horn
A legendary object believed to neutralize poison and cure disease, traded as narwhal teeth for centuries.Charm · Healing · Protection Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomWitch ball
A glass sphere hung in windows to trap spirits and ward off evilCharm · Protection Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreFig sign
A hand gesture used to ward off the evil eye or as an insult in many culturesBelief · Protection · Cursing and harm Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 2 moreSoul cake
A spiced cake given to soulers during Allhallowtide to remember the dead.Tradition · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Luck and prosperity Living
🇮🇪 Ireland and 1 moreBrigid's crossCros Bhríde
A woven straw charm hung for protection, named after Ireland's patron saintCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Living
🇸🇪 Sweden and 3 moreSilver bullet
A folk weapon for monsters and a metaphor for simple solutionsCharm · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 5 moreSator Square
A five-word Latin palindrome found in Roman ruins and medieval churchesCharm · Protection · Healing Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomEvil eye bead (sample)Nazar boncuğu
A blue glass bead hung to turn aside envy.Charm · Protection Living
🇬🇧 United KingdomWitch bottle (sample)
A stoppered bottle set out against curses.Charm · Protection · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 2 moreBulla
A round Roman amulet given to freeborn boys as a mark of status and protectionCharm · Protection · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 1 moreHercules' ClubHerkuleskeule
A club-shaped amulet worn in the Roman Empire and by Germanic peoples as a protective charm.Charm · Protection Historical
🇷🇺 Russia and 5 moreAxe of Perun
Bronze axe-shaped pendants worn in honor of the Slavic god PerunCharm · Power and authority Historical
🇪🇸 SpainDetente bala
A cloth charm worn by Spanish soldiers to stop bullets in the name of JesusCharm · Protection Living
🇬🇧 United Kingdom and 1 moreBirthing girdle
A medieval charm worn during pregnancy to ensure a safe deliveryCharm · Protection Historical
🇸🇪 SwedenKvinneby amulet
An 11th-century Swedish copper plate with a long runic inscription seeking protectionCharm · Protection Historical
🇫🇷 FranceCurse of Vibia
A damaged Oscan lead tablet invoking underworld forces against a named man and his kinCharm · Cursing and harm Historical
🇬🇧 United KingdomFumsup
A small figurine charm believed to bring good luck, popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.Charm · Luck and prosperity Historical
🇮🇹 Italy and 1 morePalladiumΠαλλάδιον (Palladion)
A wooden statue of Athena said to protect cities, stolen from Troy and brought to Rome.Charm · Protection Historical
🇮🇸 Iceland and 2 moreBrísingamen
The enchanted necklace of the Norse goddess FreyjaCharm · Power and authority Legendary
🇮🇪 IrelandLúin of CeltcharLúin Celtchair
A fiery Irish spear that burned its wielder unless quenched in bloodCharm · Cursing and harm · Power and authority Legendary
🇷🇺 Russia and 2 moreBesomвеник
A twig broom used for sweeping, folk magic, and fire responseCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Living
🇬🇷 Greece and 3 morePalladium
A sacred image or object believed to guarantee the safety of a city or nationCharm · Protection Historical
🇩🇪 Germany and 5 moreYellow badgeJudenstern
A marked garment worn by Jews under laws of distinction and humiliation across centuries.Charm · Cursing and harm Historical
🇮🇹 ItalyAlchemical DoorPorta Alchemica
A Roman gate covered in alchemical symbols and legends of transmutationCharm · Power and authority · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇮🇹 ItalyBologna bottle
A glass vessel that withstands hammer blows but shatters from an internal scratchCharm · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇫🇷 France and 1 moreGargoylegargouille
A carved stone waterspout shaped like a creature, used on Gothic buildings to shed rainwaterCharm · Protection · Wonder and entertainment Historical
🇪🇸 Spain and 2 moreHoly ChaliceSanto Cáliz
A cup believed to have held the blood of Jesus at the Last SupperCharm · Speaking with spirits and the dead · Power and authority Living
Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Precious coral: Géry PARENT, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Birthing girdle: Sarah Fiddyment , Natalie J. Goodison , Elma Brenner , Stefania Signor, CC BY 4.0, source
- Curse of Vibia: Franz Bücheler, Public domain, source
- Bulla: Anonymous ( Category:Etruscans ) Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Amniomancy: JC Brand, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Relic: MathieuGuy, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Corn dolly: Renata ( talk ), Public domain, source
- Kvinneby amulet: Ulrik Skans SHMM, CC BY-SA 2.5, source
- Lia Fáil: August Schwerdfeger, CC BY 4.0, source
- Witch bottle: British Museum, Daniel Pett, 2004-10-25 15:27:22, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Blarney Stone: Srleffler, Public domain, source
- Icelandic magical staves: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Hercules' Club: Wolfgang Sauber, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Unicorn horn: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source
- Witch ball: John W. Schulze, CC BY 2.0, source
- Fig sign: Harald the Bard, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Axe of Perun: VoivodeZmey, Public domain, source
- Soul cake: Samantha, CC BY 2.0, source
- Imbolc: Culnacreann, CC BY 3.0, source
- Horseshoe: Cgoodwin, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Silver bullet: Smithsonian Institution, CC0, source
- Sator Square: M Disdero, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Curse tablet: Unknown artist, Public domain, source
- Omphalos: Unknown author, Public domain, source
- Adder stone: Ansgar Koreng, CC BY-SA 3.0 de, source
- Nábrók: Bernard McManus, CC BY 2.0, source
- Cornicello: Antonio Cavallo, Public domain, source
- Palladium: Marie-Lan Nguyen ( Jastrow ), Public domain, source
- Brísingamen: Nils Blommér, Public domain, source
- Lúin of Celtchar: Harold Robert Millar, Public domain, source
- Four-leaf clover: Phyzome under the GFDL., CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Yellow badge: Edited version of original photo by Rama, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Ex-voto: JTSH26, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Besom: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Cox_(artist), Public domain, source
- Reliquary: Attributed to Jean de Toul, also written Jehan de Touyl in one source, CC0, source
- Jet: Thmsfrst, Public domain, source
- Concealed shoes: Edmund Patrick, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Alchemical Door: Sailko, CC BY 2.5, source
- Gargoyle: Bernard Gagnon, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Holy Chalice: Vitold Muratov, CC BY-SA 3.0, source