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Witchcraft once held sway over many corners of the world. Though it continues to exist in certain regions today, its presence is far less widespread than in the past. What remains prevalent—and surprisingly so—are the magical objects and artifacts crafted by witches, both ancient and contemporary.
While many dismiss these as mere superstitions, there are those who regard them as legitimate magical relics . . . sometimes malevolent, sometimes neutral, but always captivating—especially for those of us here reading!
Though some of these artifacts have faded from popularity, others persist; in fact, some are even still being crafted today. With that in mind, let's explore the mystical realm of witchcraft!
10. Witch Bottles
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Witch Bottle was a popular household item designed to protect against harmful witchcraft. People believed that witches (or wizards, though rarely considered evil) could send spirits—either their own or someone else's—to inflict illness and terror on their victims. So, how could one safeguard themselves from such magic?
The answer, apparently, was more magic. If you found yourself in the crosshairs of a witch’s wrath, you could create this counter-spell device. The process was quite simple: you would urinate in the bottle (or, if you’d already used up your daily supply, fill it with saltwater or wine) and then add pins, needles, nails, some red thread, and a sprig of rosemary.
Once sealed with a cork, the bottle was buried somewhere on your property. When a spirit came to haunt you, the red thread inside would lure it in, the pins, needles, and nails would impale it, and the liquid would drown it. If rosemary was included, it would carry away the spirit, now twice dead. As long as the bottle stayed buried and intact, your home was safe from most harmful spirits.
9. Frog Coffins
According to Finnish folklore, the frog coffin served many purposes. Like the witch bottle, it was often used as a counter-magical tool to “reflect” malevolent magic back at its caster, or as a healing charm. However, unlike the witch bottle, frog coffins could also be an artifact of evil magic themselves. Additionally, they were far more gruesome to create than a witch bottle.
According to folklore, the first step was to capture a frog as red as possible. Then, you would carve a piece of alder wood into a traditional coffin shape, complete with a lid. The next steps varied depending on the frog's intended purpose, but the final preparations always involved binding the frog's back legs with red twine and placing the frog on its back in the coffin. The lid was then closed, and 9 coffin nails were hammered through the center from top to bottom, with the spot over the frog’s heart being the last to be nailed shut. PETA would likely have a strong opinion on this process.
The frog was then buried in a churchyard, and a prayer was recited as you would at a human funeral (no 'celebration of life' poems, please). If everything went as planned—and depending on the purpose for the frog—you would either be protected from evil or be capable of casting it yourself.
8. Raccoon Penis Bone
Appalachian magic is a strange blend of various cultural influences and a good dose of Christianity. This unique fusion has birthed some curious magical practices, one of which is the use of the Raccoon Penis Bone.
When a raccoon dies—whether from old age, hunting, or being struck by a car—the one seeking the magic bone must strip the animal down to its skeleton to retrieve the penis bone (baculum). This bone is then placed in a boiling pot to remove the remaining flesh and fat. Once cleaned, the bone is dried, and its life as a magical object begins. One of its most common uses is as a love token: it is presented to a girl on a red ribbon (there’s that color again!) to be worn as a necklace, symbolizing a declaration of love.
Other uses for the Raccoon Penis Bone include burying it beneath the porch of your crush's house to make them fall in love with you or placing it between your bed and the floor to enhance your libido and stamina. It is also believed to help with a stiff neck.
7. Toad’s Bones
According to English folklore, anyone can become a toad-witch (a powerful witch capable of casting the evil eye) with enough patience, but the journey there is both unpleasant and disturbing. There are two ways to become a toad-witch, neither of which is particularly enjoyable. However, both require one crucial item: a toad’s magical bones.
The first option requires you to catch a Natterjack Toad and kill it. Then, you must carry the toad in your bra (or jockstrap if you are a gender-non-conforming witch) until it decays to the point where only its skeleton remains. Once the toad is little more than bones, you take it to a river, hold it over the water, and wait for Satan to appear and take you under his wing. From that point onward, you are a toad-witch with the power to perform dark magic.
The second option is somewhat less revolting but still gruesome. You still need to catch and kill a Natterjack, but instead of carrying it in your bra, you bury the toad in an ant hill so the ants can strip away its flesh. Once the toad is entirely defleshed, you take its bones to a river and place each one in the water. If a bone floats, it is your magic bone, and it will grant you great magical power.
6. Black Cat Bone
My personal choice for the most dreadful and disturbing magical item on this list, the Black Cat Bone has a dark history in both African and European black magic practices. Known for its ability to make the user invisible, the black cat bone is considered a powerful object, but the method of obtaining it is truly horrific.
To acquire this bone, a black cat must be placed alive into a pot of boiling water precisely at midnight. The cat is then boiled until the flesh disintegrates and the bones are left in a shredded state. Once the bones are separated from the stew, each one is placed into the witch's mouth, one by one, until their personal assistant confirms that they have become invisible.
The bone can also be used to bring a lost lover back into your arms, although I’d advise against revealing the method you used to achieve this.
5. Gris-Gris Bags
Louisiana, especially New Orleans, has long been associated with witchcraft and voodoo. Among the many magical items crafted and sold in the area, the gris-gris, pronounced Gree Gree, stands out as the most famous.
A gris-gris is created by taking a square piece of cloth and filling it with various ingredients. The number of items inside the bag can vary, but it will always be an odd number, either between 1 and 9, or 13. The specific items depend on the purpose of the gris-gris, but common components include small bones, gofer dust, colored stones, herbs, and spices.
The ingredients are arranged on the cloth, which is then gathered at the corners to form a bag. The neck of the bag is tied shut, or sometimes sewn closed, and the gris-gris is consecrated with salt, water, incense, and briefly held over a flame.
Once completed, the gris-gris is considered active and ready to be used for its intended purpose, whether it’s for luck in gambling or something far darker, like murder.
4. The Hand Of Glory
If you're a fan of Harry Potter, you're probably familiar with this eerie object, which once appeared on the shelves at Borgin and Burkes. While it may seem like pure fiction, several of these items exist, remnants of mystical traditions in 19th-century Europe.
To create a genuine hand of glory, a man, usually condemned for theft, must first be hanged. After his death, one of his hands—right or left—is severed while he is still dangling. The hand is then placed in a barrel containing a mix of salt and saltpeter (potassium nitrate) to dry out. Meanwhile, fat from the hanged man is rendered into a candle. Once the hand has been mummified, the candle is inserted into the hand, turning it into a sort of macabre candleholder.
When lit, the candle is said to send everyone in the house into a deep sleep, allowing the thief holding the hand to freely rob the home. The flame is believed to be impervious to water, extinguishable only by blood or milk.
You won’t find this item just lying around at Walmart, but with some persistence, you might find one for sale online. The one shown here is an authentic specimen from a museum.
3. Hidden Shoes
Like many other items on this list, hidden shoes were believed to protect homes from evil forces, such as ghosts, demons, and witches. There wasn’t a specific ritual for using them; you simply took a child’s shoes and hid them within the nearest wall. Experts suggest that this was done because children, being seen as pure and innocent, provided a protective barrier against malevolent entities when their shoes were concealed within the walls.
In one house located in Western Creek, Tasmania, no less than 40 shoes were discovered hidden within the walls, chimney, and attic. Along with these shoes, hats and toys were also found, believed to serve the same protective purpose, and even a dried cat was found.
Unfortunately, no records remain to reveal the identity of those who lived in the house, but considering the immense effort taken to hide so many anti-witch items, they must have been either deeply frightened or incredibly cursed.
2. Alder Horse
Besides safeguarding their homes from witches, Europeans were also concerned about the well-being and happiness of their horses.
When a new stable was built, a life-sized horse would be carved from alder wood. The horse was given a smaller stable of its own, along with a basket filled with barley and mercury. A blanket made from the skirt of a new mother (preferably after it had been removed from the woman) would be draped over the horse. Finally, eyes would be painted on the horse using the new mother’s blood, and the entire miniature stable would be buried underground, with the real stable for the horses being built on top.
This ritual was believed to ensure that the horses, much like the alder horse, would remain warm, well-fed, happy, and healthy.
1. Dried Cats
It appears that Europeans had a habit of concealing peculiar items around their homes. Just like the witch bottles, dried cats were thought to offer protection from evil, and they are exactly as they sound.
A cat, regardless of its size or color, would be killed and positioned in a threatening pose. The body was then placed in a barrel and packed with salt, similar to the preparation of a hand of glory. Once the cat was fully dried, it was removed from the salt and sealed into a wall in the maker’s home.
Along with the cat, it was common to find a dried rat or bird. This ritual offering was believed to protect against not just witches and evil spirits, but also pests, diseases, and bad luck. It was even thought to have the miraculous power to repel Tinder (or Grindr) dates.
Dried cats can still be discovered in British homes and cottages today, some even found 400 years after being sealed in walls! While some may have ended up there by accident when an inattentive builder was in a rush, many were deliberately placed for magical reasons.
