An exciting new collaboration with Viktor Wynd & The Last Tuesday Society in 2023!

All talks will be live on Zoom but with a ‘Play On Demand’ option thereafter.

February 16th 2023

Spiritual Middens: Decoy, Spirit Trap or Counter-Witchcraft Measure?

An Illustrated Zoom Talk

Archaeologists regularly discover large collections or ‘caches’ of clothing deliberately concealed within the fabric of 16^th & 17^th century buildings.

Much of the clothing is heavily worn, soiled and patched, showing numerous repairs whilst many of the objects have been deliberately broken or ritually ‘killed.’

The term ‘spiritual midden’ was coined for such a collection of objects. A well-documented cache was discovered during the demolition of the Old Plough Public House in Sittingbourne, Kent by two members of the Sittingbourne Museum team. Over 500 objects were recovered which included old & patched clothing, tools& children’s toys.

What do spiritual middens constitute? Foundation deposits? Sympathetic Magic? Apotropaic evil-averting agents? Were they considered to possess a protective function against incoming malevolent forces? Were they created to counter the witch’s familiar?

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April 11th 2023

Incendiary Behaviour: Ritual House Protection Through The Deployment of Pyro-Technology.

An Illustrated Zoom Talk

For the last 25 years archaeologists have been recording historic taper burn marks on Medieval and historic building timbers. They now understood to be the material traces of applied ‘pyro-technology’ – an act intended to protect the buildings from harm.

A taper burn mark can be identified by its ‘tear drop’ shape – not unlike that of a candle flame – being round at the base and narrowing to a point, which is the result of the way the flame was applied to the timber. Its characteristic shape is the archaeological trace of a ‘controlled’ flame having been deliberately applied to a timber element within a building using a taper. A taper is described as a long, thin candle used for lighting fires, whose design was intended to create a long, steady flame.

From the earliest interpretations for taper burn marks, their apotropaic potential has been highlighted along with the belief that they may have functioned as inoculation against fire.

Spatial analysis of each assemblage of burn marks has revealed that concentrations occur predominantly on the fireplace bressumiers (timber lintels) as well as around timber door and window frames – to ward against the unwelcome guest.

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June 13th 2023

A Peck ‘O Trouble: A Little History of Witch Bottles

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August 15th 2023

Ritual Protection Marks & Apotropaic Graffiti in the London Churches

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October 10th 2023

The Devils of Loudun: Demonic Possession & Witchcraft in 17th Century France

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November 7th 2023

‘A Perfectly Good Cat For Want of Breath’: Immured & Mummified Felines

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December 5th 2023

Sole to Soul: Concealed Boots & Shoes In Old Buildings