Lecture 17: Witches the shamans of Europe The Devils Flora

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Lecture 17 Witches the shamans
of Europe The Devils Flora
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• Lets begin with the Golden Ass

Apuleius (123-180AD)
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The Golden Asse first novel ever written
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Strega--Striga, and the rise of anti-witch
cult in Europe

• Creation of the witch-image.
• The witch-hunt the Church.

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Malleus Maleficarum "The Hammer of Witches"
("Hexenhammer 1486)

• Defines the nature of witchcraft.
• Women, by their weaker nature and inferior
  intellect, are naturally more prone to the lure
  of Satan.
• Detection, trial and destruction of witches.

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The Witches Sabbath
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Shakespeares witches

• ()
• Scale of dragon, tooth of wolf,Witches' mummy,
  maw and gulf Of the ravin'd salt-sea shark,
  Root of hemlock digg'd i' the dark,Liver of
  blaspheming Jew,Gall of goat, and slips of
  yewSilver'd in the moon's eclipse,Nose of Turk
  and Tartar's lips,Finger of birth-strangled
  baby. (.)

Macbeth" (4.1.5-37)
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Flying Ointments

• Unguentum populeum treatment of pain,
  rheumatism hemorrhoids.
• Little is known about flying ointments because
  no detailed recipes survived. A few lists of
  plants mainly written by early scientists
  doctors.
• Inquisition used them as truth serum and to
  delay death in tortured convicts.

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The Hexing Herbs
Many from the nightshade family
Hyosciamus niger (henbane)
Mandragora offcinarum
Atropa belladona
Alkaloids hyoscyamine, atropine scopolamine
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.. Many other plants
Spurge (Euphorbia spp.) Water-lily (Nymphaea
spp.) Sweet-flag (Acorus calamus) Celery (Apium
sativum) Hemlock (Conium maculatum) Water hemlock
(Cicuta virosa) Monkshood (Aconitum spp.) Lettuce
(Lactuca spp.) Purslane (Portulaca spp.) more
than 100 spp.

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Application Methodsof flying ointments

• Skin
• Vaginal or anal?

• The use of enemas or clysters for administering
  medicines (including henbane) was known in Europe
  long before medieval times.
• The insertion of hallucinogenic substances by way
  of an enema is a fairly common practice in native
  South American cultures.

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Modern experiments with flying ointments
Will-Erich Peukert terrifying flight experience.
Karl Kiesewetter died accidentally when tried a
flying ointment.
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The Devils Flora
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The Devils Flora
Animistic remnants

• Mystical practices

Poisonous hallucinogenic properties of some
plants.
Plants of the Devil
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Devils berries
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Devils apple, Satans testicles
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Mandrake Mandragora officinarum
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References

• Apuleius. The Golden Ass or Metamorphoses.
  translation, notes, preface by E.J. Kenney.
  London Penguin, 1998.
• Emboden, W.A. 1974. Bizarre plants. Magical,
  monstrous Mythical. MacMillan Publishing Co.
• Hansen, A. 1978. The witches garden. Unity Press.
• Malleus Maleficarum 1486. http//www.malleusmalefi
  carum.org/
• Muller-Ebeling, C. 1998. Witchcraft medicine.
  Inner Traditions.
• Thompson, C. J. S. 1934. The mystical mandrake.
  Rider Co.