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. 817 entries on EveryJaadu so far.

Places of magic

Rites of the region

Midsummer and St John's Eve herbs and fires Walpurgis Night and May Day fires Samhain and Halloween divination games First-footing at Hogmanay Witch bottle Knocking on wood and horseshoe customs The Sator square Icelandic galdrastafir Malocchio removal with oil and water Matiasma and ftou ftou

Countries

KindTradition Rite Charm Oracle Substance Being Figure Text Illusion Belief

PurposeProtection Healing Seeing and foretelling Luck and prosperity Love and attraction Cursing and harm Cleansing and purification Speaking with spirits and the dead Change and initiation Binding and oaths Power and authority Wonder and entertainment

WhoShamans Folk healers Priests and ritual specialists Witches, sorcerers and cunning folk Diviners and readers Mediums and the possessed Ceremonial magicians and alchemists Households and ordinary people Stage magicians Scholars and sceptics

BeliefHindu and Tantric Buddhist Jain Muslim and Sufi Jewish Christian Sikh Zoroastrian Shinto and Taoist Indigenous and shamanic African and Afro-diasporic Pagan and Neopagan Esoteric and occult Folk and village custom Secular and stage Other traditions

OccasionWeddings and betrothal Festivals Birth and childhood Death and remembrance Harvest, farming and weather New year Initiation and coming of age Illness and misfortune Journeys and voyages Everyday use

StandingLiving Revived Fading Historical Legendary Performed

OrderBest known A to Z Newest Living first

🇬🇧 United KingdomEgyptian Hall A London exhibition hall known for magic shows and Egyptian-style architecture, demolished in 1905.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical 🇮🇹 Italy and 3 moreJoseph Pinetti An eighteenth-century magician who brought illusion to the theatre and pioneered stage advertising.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical 🇫🇷 France and 5 moreBuatier De Kolta A French stage magician known for mechanical illusions and the vanishing chair.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇩🇪 Germany and 2 morePhantasmagoria A horror theatre using magic lanterns to project frightening images in the darkIllusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇫🇷 France and 3 moreAlexander Herrmann A 19th-century magician known for sleight of hand and card throwingIllusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇬🇧 United KingdomDavid Devant English magician and early film exhibitor known for witty stage presentationIllusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical 🇧🇪 BelgiumServais Le Roy A Belgian magician who designed classic illusions and performed in a famous trio act.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇬🇧 United KingdomJohn Nevil Maskelyne A Victorian magician who exposed fraud and invented the pay toiletIllusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇫🇷 France and 5 moreJean Eugène Robert-HoudinJean-Eugène Robert-Houdin A French clockmaker who elevated stage magic into a refined theatrical art.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical

🇬🇧 United KingdomIsaac Fawkes An English conjurer who moved magic from the fairground to fashionable London society.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical 🇩🇪 GermanyMagic Circle of the German Democratic RepublicMagischer Zirkel der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik A national association for stage magicians in East Germany from 1956 to 1990.Illusion · Wonder and entertainment Historical 🇮🇹 ItalyBologna bottle A glass vessel that withstands hammer blows but shatters from an internal scratchCharm · 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.

Alexander Herrmann: Photographer unidentified, Public domain, source
David Devant: Simon Edwards Esq, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
John Nevil Maskelyne: Unknown author, Public domain, source
Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin: Carcharoth (Commons), CC BY-SA 3.0, source
Isaac Fawkes: William Hogarth, Public domain, source
Phantasmagoria: Alphonse de Neuville or A. Jahandier, Public domain, source
Egyptian Hall: Unknown author, CC BY 4.0, source