The Museum of Witchcraft

A spell is a spoken or written formula that is intended, by magic, to influence or cause an event. Prayers are a form of spell.

The Museum displays a vast collection of spells and charms, many of which were collected directly from their local makers by Cecil Williamson, the previous owner of the museum

The Cornish believed that a witch's spell could be broken if she was scratched above the brow until she bled. In 1887 the Cornish Telegraph reported that a young woman whose children were suffering frm fever had been told by a neighbour that they had been ill-wished. In order to remove the spell, she visited a local sorceress. "I have not ill-wished your children" she protested. "Then I must see your blood" the woman retorted, scratching the other woman on the face until she bled. (Cornish Witchcraft, Kelvin I Jones, 1995)