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The TrialLancashire CountyThe WitchesThomas PottsBeliefs and SuperstitionsDemonologyAnimal FamiliarsImage GallerySourcesHome |
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Image Gallery |
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Witches Flying through the Air
This image is traditionally associated with the Lancashire Witches. All of the women included in the image are old and withered and the Devil is included in a black form with horns, hoofs for hands, and wings. It is interesting to note that even thought the Devil has wings, he still needs a broomstick to fly through the air with the witches. |
Witches and Their Familiars
If you notice the women in this image, they are all old, and in poor health. Their familiars are relatively small animals and seem to not possess the power to harm on their own. The animals appear to be more similar to pets than to the dangerous animals that are described in the Lancashire trial. |
The Witches of Pendle Forest
This image is traditionally associated with the Witches of Pendle Forest and their Trial. It is believed to be from a woodcut that advertised the trial to the illiterate. If one analyzes the image, one can see the Devil in the middle and the examples of image magic that were practiced by the witches being offered to the Devil. This illustrates that the witches are on the periphery and they gain all of their power through the Devil. The familiars flying in the air above the Devil represent the familiars present within the trial. They too, are offered by the Devil, thus removing any agency from the witch herself. |
Devil Baptising a Witch
This is an example of how Demonology was an inversion of Christianity. The Devil baptises the witch to remove the original baptism of God, thus replacing the witch's allegiance to God with an allegiance to the Devil. |
The Chelmsford Witches
This image describes the trial of the Chelmsford Witches, primarily the trial of Joan Prentis. There were three familiars involved with this trial and all three witche were hanged in Essex in 1566. |
Swimming A Witch
Swimming a witch was a form of testing her innocence. If she was innocent, the water would accept her and she would sink to the bottom. If she rose to the top, the water refused her and her guilt was evident. Either way, the accused witch was destined for death. |
Woodcuts Used to Tell the Story of A Witch's Trial
This woodcut is a classic example of how the story of a witch's trial was passed through the literate and the illiterate. This trial involves the bewitching of a ship, the actions of the witch surrounding the cauldron, the witches in custody, and the participation of the Devil. |
The Horrors of Witchcraft
This woodcut describes the horrors that were associated with witchcraft and everything associated with the Devil. |
The Witch and her Canine Familiar
Witch's used their familiars in a variety of ways and in this image the witch is riding her familiar. Normally the witch rode her familiar through the air in a variation of flying. The familiar was used to transport the witch to the Devil or to participate in rituals honoring the Devil. |
The Witch's Relationship with the Devil
The representation of the Devil is the interesting focus of this image. He is presented in male form with a small tail and large horns. It was believed that he operated in that form as punishment for turning against God. He was traditionally presented as being black in color. Kissing the Devil's bare arse was normally a form of illustrating the witch's allegiance to the Devil. |
Witchcraft Activities
In this image you see one witch roasting a young child over a spit the way one traditionally roasts a pig. Also, in the background there are witches surrounding a cauldron with another young child. Witches were reputed to participate in child sacrifice because they needed the innocence surrounding the child to perform part of their magic. |
Punishment of Witches
Because witches were not only breaking the law, but commiting the ultimate sin of turning against God, people enjoyed pondering the torments and eternal fate of those who participated in witchcraft. |
Exposure of the Female Body
The unknown caused a large amount of anxiety in the early modern period, especially the secret folds of a woman's body. This image, with the exposed area involving the woman's genital area, excellently describes the problems associated with how to percieve the female body. |
Illustration of Familiars
This document demonstrates the variability of the familiar. A witch's familiar could take the shape of any animal or object to serve the will of the witch. Is has been reputed to inhabit forms as small as gnats or flys. |
The List of Names in the Lancashire Trial
This is a copy from the Thomas Potts trial record of the list of names of participants in the Lancashire Witch trials. It is an example of a common court document associated with a trial. |
The Devil
The Devil is, again, show with wings, horns, naked, hoofed, and with a tail. He is tormenting the woman in the image and seems to be attacking her child, illustrating a common fear and superstition that the Devil attacked young children. |
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Copyright © 2007 Shannon L. Meyer, University of Nebraska, Lincoln
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