Episode 78: Witches

Jay walks us through the history of witches.

1. Witchcraft of some sort has probably existed since humans first banded together in groups. (Prehistoric art depicts magical rites to ensure successful hunting!

2. 1400 BC: the Oracle of Delphi was the most important shrine in all Greece. (People came from all over Greece and beyond to have their questions about the future answered by the Pythia.)

3. 700 BC and 100 AD: The Druid tradition is the closest thing to what we perceive to be modern magic / witchcraft.

4. After the publication of the Malleus Maleficarum, Pope Innocent VIII issued a declaration of witchcraft in 1498. (For more than 100 years, the book sold more copies of any other book in Europe except the Bible.)

5. A tour of witches: Hecate, Baba Yaga, Morgan le Fay, Moll Dyer, Bridget Bishop, and more! (Witches! Getting ‘er done.)

Sweet Dreams. XoxoZzzzzz.