Popular Magic: Cunning-folk in English History

Popular Magic: Cunning-folk in English History
ISBN-10
082644279X
ISBN-13
9780826442796
Category
History
Pages
264
Language
English
Published
2007-06-01
Publisher
Bloomsbury Publishing
Author
Owen Davies

Description

Cunning-folk were local practitioners of magic, providing small-scale but valued service to the community. They were far more representative of magical practice than the arcane delvings of astrologers and necromancers. Mostly unsensational in their approach, cunning-folk helped people with everyday problems: how to find lost objects; how to escape from bad luck or a suspected spell; and how to attract a lover or keep the love of a husband or wife. While cunning-folk sometimes fell foul of the authorities, both church and state often turned a blind eye to their existence and practices, distinguishing what they did from the rare and sensational cases of malvolent witchcraft. In a world of uncertainty, before insurance and modern science, cunning-folk played an important role that has previously been ignored.

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