Looking for authentic Halloween decorations this year?
I've done some research and have three historically-accurate recommendations: You could cut up an old boot, mummify a cat or fill a bottle with nails and urine. They're no pumpkins, but the goal of these sometimes macabre items was less about bringing the spook than keeping it away. These are items used historically to ward off witches and malevolent forces.
From the 1500s onward, Europeans and later Americans concealed such objects under floors, behind walls and in other inaccessible nooks, to protect a building’s inhabitants from the dark arts. Today, centuries later, the artifacts are being found and provide physical evidence of past people’s supernatural beliefs.
Although historical documents discuss witches and magic, written sources represent the views of the literate minority — a slim slice of popular opinion. By studying concealed cats and other anti-sorcery devices, archaeologists get a glimpse at the lives of the other 99 percent.
