Witch's ladder
Encyclopedia
A witch's ladder is a fetish
, in folk magic
or witchcraft
that is made from knotted cord or hair, that normally constitutes a spell. Charms are knotted or braided with specific magical intention into the cords. The number of knots and nature of charms varies with the intended effect (or "spell
").
which was demolished in 1878. Six brooms, an old armchair and a ‘rope with feathers woven into it’ were found in the space that separated the roof from the upper room and was inaccessible from the interior of the house. The brooms had handles so decayed they snapped under pressure, but these had been replaced so they could be used. The chair and rope were stored in a ware- house. Due to the investigations of local antiquarians, (Abraham Colles & E.B. Tylor) the find was published in the Folk-Lore Journal. This article detailed the responses to local enquiries, but was followed by a number of letters to the journal which expressed a range of opinions as to the function of the rope.
received news of the Wellington find whilst in Italy, he investigated and found that the witches there used a similar form, called a "witches garland"; the item was made of cord, and contained black hen
feathers. The malediction
was uttered as each knot was tied in and the item was placed under the victim's bed, to cause the ill fortune (see Part 2, Chapter 5 of Roman Etruscan Remains for more details).
Leland's version differs from that found in Somerset in that the feathers were knotted into the cord rather than braided, and the cord was to have hairs of the victim braided into it. The feathers were plucked from a live black hen one by one and inserted into the knots as they are made in the cord. Leland also claimed that intrinsic to the witch garland was the placing of an image
of a hen or cock (made of cotton
or similar) next to the garland, upon which a cross of black pins is made. The whole is then hidden in the mattress of the one you are bewitiching. Leland says the curse is lifted by finding the hen & wreath (garland), and throwing the whole lot into running water
; the bewitched is then taken into a church whilst a baptism is being carried out, where they must repeat a certain spell before bathing in holy water
.
, included an extensive article on the witch's ladder in his novel "Curgenven" published in 1893. In his account the ladder was made of black
wool
, with white
and brown
thread, and at every two inches it was tied around cock
's feathers. The maker would weave into it aches and pains and other aliments intended for the victim. The ladder was then thrown to the bottom of Dozmary Pond, located on Bodmin Moor
. They believed that as the bubbles rose to the top of the pond
, the curse
was released.
The witch's ladder can be created a section at a time or all at once. Either way, special chants are spoken during the creation process to empower the talisman to do its creator's bidding. According to an article, The Witches' Ladder http://groups.msn.com/FullMoonParadise/witchesladder.msnw, an example of a witch's ladder chant and knot placement is as follows:
According to the article, "At the tying of the last knot, all the energy is directed into the cord and its knots, with a final visualization of the object of the work. The power has been raised and is now 'stored' in these knots in the cord." This is often referred to as cord magick, knot magick or string magic.
Once finished, the beads or knots of the witch's ladder enable a witch to concentrate on repetitive chants or incantation without having to keep count. This enables the witch to focus will and energy on the desired goal.
spell over a person by tying the knots and then hiding the cord, and the only way to undo the spell was to find the secreted cord and untie each knot.
Today, Wiccans and Neo Pagans use witch's ladders primarily in healing
, binding, and wish-granting rituals. They can also be used to "bind the thirteen moons of the year," purportedly to allow the witch to better work weather and nature magic, and to open the doorway to the Faery realm.
Knot spells have been created for cutting pain, binding love, and traveling safely. The string or cord can be made out of almost any material, but natural fibers such as hair, wool, hemp and cotton are preferred. Although ladders are often created for as part of a specific spell, many wiccans keep a personal ladder. In this case, the knots or beads are used to keep track of repetition in a spell or prayer, similar to Rosary beads.
Fetishism
A fetish is an object believed to have supernatural powers, or in particular, a man-made object that has power over others...
, in folk magic
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
or witchcraft
Witchcraft
Witchcraft, in historical, anthropological, religious, and mythological contexts, is the alleged use of supernatural or magical powers. A witch is a practitioner of witchcraft...
that is made from knotted cord or hair, that normally constitutes a spell. Charms are knotted or braided with specific magical intention into the cords. The number of knots and nature of charms varies with the intended effect (or "spell
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
").
The Wellington Witch Ladder
The first recorded witch ladder found was in an old house in Wellington, SomersetSomerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
which was demolished in 1878. Six brooms, an old armchair and a ‘rope with feathers woven into it’ were found in the space that separated the roof from the upper room and was inaccessible from the interior of the house. The brooms had handles so decayed they snapped under pressure, but these had been replaced so they could be used. The chair and rope were stored in a ware- house. Due to the investigations of local antiquarians, (Abraham Colles & E.B. Tylor) the find was published in the Folk-Lore Journal. This article detailed the responses to local enquiries, but was followed by a number of letters to the journal which expressed a range of opinions as to the function of the rope.
Charles Godfrey Leland
When Charles Godfrey LelandCharles Godfrey Leland
Charles Godfrey Leland was an American humorist and folklorist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was educated at Princeton University and in Europe....
received news of the Wellington find whilst in Italy, he investigated and found that the witches there used a similar form, called a "witches garland"; the item was made of cord, and contained black hen
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
feathers. The malediction
Malediction
Malediction is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or unhappiness will befall another person or persons, a magical phrase or word uttered with the intention of bringing about evilMalediction may also refer to:...
was uttered as each knot was tied in and the item was placed under the victim's bed, to cause the ill fortune (see Part 2, Chapter 5 of Roman Etruscan Remains for more details).
Leland's version differs from that found in Somerset in that the feathers were knotted into the cord rather than braided, and the cord was to have hairs of the victim braided into it. The feathers were plucked from a live black hen one by one and inserted into the knots as they are made in the cord. Leland also claimed that intrinsic to the witch garland was the placing of an image
Image
An image is an artifact, for example a two-dimensional picture, that has a similar appearance to some subject—usually a physical object or a person.-Characteristics:...
of a hen or cock (made of cotton
Cotton
Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....
or similar) next to the garland, upon which a cross of black pins is made. The whole is then hidden in the mattress of the one you are bewitiching. Leland says the curse is lifted by finding the hen & wreath (garland), and throwing the whole lot into running water
Running Water
Running Water may be:* Running Water, Tennessee, former name of Whiteside, Tennessee* Running Water, South Dakota, a community in Bon Homme County, South Dakota* "Running Water" from the 1983 album The Present...
; the bewitched is then taken into a church whilst a baptism is being carried out, where they must repeat a certain spell before bathing in holy water
Holy water
Holy water is water that, in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Oriental Orthodoxy, and some other churches, has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects; or as a means of repelling evil.The use for baptism and...
.
Sabine Baring-Gould's "Curgenven"
Reverend Sabine Baring-GouldSabine Baring-Gould
The Reverend Sabine Baring-Gould was an English hagiographer, antiquarian, novelist and eclectic scholar. His bibliography consists of more than 1240 publications, though this list continues to grow. His family home, Lew Trenchard Manor near Okehampton, Devon, has been preserved as he had it...
, included an extensive article on the witch's ladder in his novel "Curgenven" published in 1893. In his account the ladder was made of black
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
wool
Wool
Wool is the textile fiber obtained from sheep and certain other animals, including cashmere from goats, mohair from goats, qiviut from muskoxen, vicuña, alpaca, camel from animals in the camel family, and angora from rabbits....
, with white
White
White is a color, the perception of which is evoked by light that stimulates all three types of color sensitive cone cells in the human eye in nearly equal amounts and with high brightness compared to the surroundings. A white visual stimulation will be void of hue and grayness.White light can be...
and brown
Brown
Brown is a color term, denoting a range of composite colors produced by a mixture of orange, red, rose, or yellow with black or gray. The term is from Old English brún, in origin for any dusky or dark shade of color....
thread, and at every two inches it was tied around cock
Cock
-Ornithology:* the male of most species of bird, but especially** A Rooster or cockerel, the male of the domestic fowl or chicken, Gallus domesticus*The English name of several species of bird incorporates the word cock, such as...
's feathers. The maker would weave into it aches and pains and other aliments intended for the victim. The ladder was then thrown to the bottom of Dozmary Pond, located on Bodmin Moor
Bodmin Moor
Bodmin Moor is a granite moorland in northeastern Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is in size, and originally dates from the Carboniferous period of geological history....
. They believed that as the bubbles rose to the top of the pond
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
, the curse
Curse
A curse is any expressed wish that some form of adversity or misfortune will befall or attach to some other entity—one or more persons, a place, or an object...
was released.
Witch's ladder types
One example of a modern witch's ladder is a string of 40 beads or a cord with 40 knots. Sometimes feathers, bones, and other trinkets are braided into the string as symbols for a desired spell effect. An earlier version of a witch's ladder consisted of a rope or cord of three, nine, or thirteen knots.The witch's ladder can be created a section at a time or all at once. Either way, special chants are spoken during the creation process to empower the talisman to do its creator's bidding. According to an article, The Witches' Ladder http://groups.msn.com/FullMoonParadise/witchesladder.msnw, an example of a witch's ladder chant and knot placement is as follows:
According to the article, "At the tying of the last knot, all the energy is directed into the cord and its knots, with a final visualization of the object of the work. The power has been raised and is now 'stored' in these knots in the cord." This is often referred to as cord magick, knot magick or string magic.
Once finished, the beads or knots of the witch's ladder enable a witch to concentrate on repetitive chants or incantation without having to keep count. This enables the witch to focus will and energy on the desired goal.
Witch's ladder uses
It was believed that witches of old cast a deathDeath
Death is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
spell over a person by tying the knots and then hiding the cord, and the only way to undo the spell was to find the secreted cord and untie each knot.
Today, Wiccans and Neo Pagans use witch's ladders primarily in healing
Healing
Physiological healing is the restoration of damaged living tissue, organs and biological system to normal function. It is the process by which the cells in the body regenerate and repair to reduce the size of a damaged or necrotic area....
, binding, and wish-granting rituals. They can also be used to "bind the thirteen moons of the year," purportedly to allow the witch to better work weather and nature magic, and to open the doorway to the Faery realm.
Knot spells have been created for cutting pain, binding love, and traveling safely. The string or cord can be made out of almost any material, but natural fibers such as hair, wool, hemp and cotton are preferred. Although ladders are often created for as part of a specific spell, many wiccans keep a personal ladder. In this case, the knots or beads are used to keep track of repetition in a spell or prayer, similar to Rosary beads.
External links
- Wicca Haven Wiccan Literature and Sacred Text
- Chris Wingfield Witches' Ladder: the hidden history Pitt Rivers Museum: 'The Other Within' project