Description

Physical Evidence for Ritual Acts, Sorcery and Witchcraft in Christian Britain investigates the physical evidence for magic in medieval and modern Britain, including ritual marks and designs, concealed objects, amulets hung about the person and home, and the equipment of folk magicians. The Subject has been largely neglected by mainstream historians and archaeologists, and the contributors to this volume represent the current leading experts in each part of it, and often the pioneers of study f it. Between them, they show how ample and convincing the evidence is, and how it forces us to reconsider the history of ritual and religion in Britain since the Middle Ages and admit to the existence of a whole dimension of activity which has hardly been considered before. It should therefore have importance to those interested in British history in general across this large span of time.

Ronald Hutton is Professor of History at Bristol University, UK and the author of many books and essays on the history of religion and magic.

John Billingsley, Independent Scholar, UK Tabitha Cadbury, Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery, UK Matthew Champion, Freelance Archaeologist, UK Alexander Cummins, University of Bristol, UK Owen Davies, University of Hertfordshire, UK Timothy Easton, Independent Artist and Sculptor, UK Dinah Eastop, University College London, UK Ian Evans, University of Newcastle, NSW, Australia Brian Hoggard, Independent Scholar, UK M. Chris Manning, Dovetail Cultural Resource Group, USA June Swann MBE, Northampton Museum, UK