Necklace – usually a pentacle. Various grimoires, or books of spells make mention of necklaces with magickal properties. Some are quite simple, composed of seashells, acorns, seeds, and wood. Others are made of blue glass beads (of the sort worn even today thoughout the
Middle East as protection against the Evil Eye). Still others contain crescent moons, which are symbols of Diana, the goddess most often associated with the witch cult. It is customary for women witches to wear necklaces of some kind in Circle. Most men also wear talismans or pendants . These represent the ‘cycle of re-birth’.
The traditional priestess’s necklace is made with amber and/or jet. Apart from the amber-and-jet, the necklace can be anything that is felt to be suitable; for a woman, any favourite necklace, particularly if it is an a colour that fits the particular work or perhaps a Goddess symbol; for a man, a solar or Horned God symbol.
Pentagrams, ankhs, Eye of Horus, astrological signs, Yin-Yang symbols, etc. will also do.
Rings – a pentacle ring, etc.
Cuffs – (Bracelets) are given at Degree initiations (in some Traditions)
Crowns – are used only by High Priest and High Priestess and are symbolic of the deities. Modern witches often speak of witch crowns, made of a thin band of silver with a silver crescent moon at the front. In certain covens, the member known as the queen of the witches wears this (as well as the garter) to show her rank.
Watches – NO WATCHES!!
Garter – Used by the High Priestess only. It is worn on the upper left leg. Has one or more silver buckles on it. It is green and can be made from snake skin and lined with blue velvet. The garter as a symbol of shamanistic powers may go back to paleolithic times, for dancers who .seem. to be wearing garters are seen in cave paintings. Margaret Murray speculates that such apparently diverse things as the bride’s garter, the fairy garter conveying magickal poewers, and the Order of the Garter have a common heritage. If garters were symbols of magickal powers in prehistoric times, by medieval times they had also come to represent exalted worldly status. Perhaps the garter symbolized rank in the ancient witch cult, and mythic significance has led it to figure as a magickal amulet in all those
legends and fairy tles. Some writers specify that the garter be green leather, buckled in silver and lined with blue silk. Green is the fairy colour, associated with Robin Hood, the Green Man, and wood sprites. When a High Priestess has had another coven hive off from her own, she is entitled to add a second buckle to her garter and an additional buckle for each new one that hives off.
Girdle – is a wide belt worn by the High Priestess. It is set with specific healing stones.
Ankle Bracelet – worn on the right ankle is the symbol of a female elder.
Necklace of 40 Acorns – is worn by a third degree female witch, in some traditions.
***
Bibliography
Complete Book of Witchcraft - Buckland, Raymond; Llewellyn; 1987
Magic, An Occult Primer - Conway, David; Mayflower; 1972
What Witches Do - Farrar, Stewart; Pheonix; 1983
A Witches Bible Compleat - Farrar, Janet & Stewart; Magickal Childe; 1984
The Symbolic Weapons of Ritual Magic - Highfield, A.C.; Aquarian; 1983
Mastering Witchcraft - Huson, Paul ; Putnam; 1970
Witches - Jong, Erica; Granada Publishing; 1982
An ABC of Witchcraft - Past and Present - Valiente, Doreen;
Pheonix Publishing Co.; 1981
Positive Magic - Weinstein, Marion; Phoenix Publishing Co.; 1981
Suggested ebooks:
Marion Crawford - The Witch Of PragueJohn Musick - The Witch Of Salem
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