Speaking to the Dead: Necromancy in Magic and Folklore
So, what is necromancy and what does it have to do with folklore? Come with me, and let’s enter the peculiar world of death divination…
The Dreaded Headless Horseman and the Legend of Sleepy Hollow
he Headless Horseman captures the imagination like nothing else at Halloween. Regional American history and urban legend influences the interpretation of this apparition more than supposed.
Getting Even in Roman Britain: The Curse Tablets from Bath (Aquae Sulis)
For many residents of ancient Britain, curses involved invoking a god to influence a particular individual according to their wishes
Werewolves that Fish and Fight in Battles: The Scottish Wulver and Irish Faoladh in Folklore
Werewolves. The name alone conjures up nightmarish images from our current pop culture horror films starring this shapeshifting man-wolf.
What Is a Witch? Defining Witchcraft in the ‘Malleus Maleficarum’
The concept of a witch, that is a practitioner of magic, has been part of western folklore for centuries, yet throughout that time it has been subject to continuous reinterpretations.