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Curse of the Buried Pearl: Ancient Magick and the Many Hazards of Treasure Hunting – Part II

Curse of the Buried Pearl: Ancient Magick and the Many Hazards of Treasure Hunting – Part II

No English translation exists of The Buried Pearl , although it is a rather strange fact that in 1901, the French archaeological mission in Cairo made a regular French edition. Strange, because its...
For Good and Evil: Witch Bottles as Countermagical Devices Through History

For Good and Evil: Witch Bottles as Countermagical Devices Through History

In 16th and 17th century Europe, witchcraft was deemed a serious threat and court records attest to the terror evoked by suspected sorcery. Judges gave serious consideration to the danger posed by...
A gold curse tablet dating back to 4th century AD. Institute of Archaeology, Belgrade

Golden Curse Tablets Found in Ancient Serbian Tombs Invoke Gods and Demons

Archaeologists in Serbia have discovered the first known golden curse tablets in ancient Roman tombs in Serbia. The tablets contain inscriptions in long-forgotten languages with strange magical...
 Detail of the Codex runicus, a vellum manuscript from c. 1300 containing one of the oldest and best preserved texts of the Scanian law (Skånske lov), written entirely in runes.

Runes of Power and Destruction: Reading the Cursed Runestones of Sweden

Runes are often associated with magic and sometimes curses too. For many centuries, they were used as magical symbols to guide people to the knowledge which they believed was created by their gods...
Witch of Endor by Nikolai Ge, 1857.

Ancient Witchcraft and the Spell of the Pella Curse Tablet

In the first half of the 4th century someone wrote a text in Doric Greek idiom. This text became known as the Pella curse tablet. Over the centuries, it became a key object in the argument supporting...
The Cursed Tomb of the Polish King Casimir IV Jagiellon

The Cursed Tomb of the Polish King Casimir IV Jagiellon

When Howard Carter opened the tomb of King Tut and people who were with him started to become ill and die many thought that it was due to the curse of the pharaohs. A similar way of thinking appeared...
Close-up of a curse tablet targeting Demetrios and Phanagora - husband-and-wife tavern keepers who lived in Athens around 2,400 years ago.

Casting Hate: Greek Curse Tablets found in 2,400-Year-Old Grave

A recent study of the writing on four lead tablets shows the importance of staying on your neighbors’ good side in ancient Greece. The artifacts are “curse tablets”, and were created to send bad luck...
The Tereshchenko and Hope Diamonds, two rare, blue, and world famous diamonds.

Dazzling and Dangerous? Examining the History of the Exquisite Hope Diamond

The Hope Diamond is one of the most well-known diamonds in the world. This famous diamond has been on exhibition in the National Museum of Natural History (which is administered by the Smithsonian...
From Mal Corvus Witchcraft & Folklore artifact private collection owned by Malcolm Lidbury.

Weird Witch Bottles, Historic Efforts to Ward Off Evil Spells and Witchcraft

Witch bottles (known also as ‘spell bottles’) are apotropaic devices (things believed to have the power to avert evil influences). These objects are believed to protect their owners from the negative...
The skull of the Neolithic woman excavated in 1855 in Ballynahatty, Northern Ireland.

Researchers Reveal How a Celtic Curse Fell Upon the Ancient Irish 4000 Years Ago and the Importance of Migration to Irish Prehistory

While researchers were analyzing the genes of prehistoric Irish ancestors they discovered that the beginning of a “Celtic Curse” (haemochromatosis) probably arose 4,000 years ago with a wave of...
This silver scroll, revealed digitally by a group of researchers, may be an incantation of an 8th century magician in Jordan. The language is unknown, but the practice of placing magical incantations on scrolls and placing them in containers is well known from antiquity.

Magical Incantation Discovered on Ancient Silver Scroll Written in Unknown Language

We may never know what the magic spell says, but scholars using a CT scanner and new software have revealed an inscription or incantation on a tiny, tightly rolled silver scroll that was written...
Main: The Island of Blå Jungfrun (Flickr). Inset: stone labyrinth (CC BY 3.0) and Stone Age fireplace

Mysterious Labyrinth and Ritual Caves: Archaeologists dig up the Stone Age Past on Swedish Island

In local folklore, Bla Jungfrun Island has long been associated with dark curses and witchcraft. Off the coast of Sweden, the island has a history of bad luck and a reputation for magic, and even now...
Stone ringfort, “Ring of Kerry” in Ireland.

Irish Lore Keeper gives Dire Warning: US Company will be Cursed if Ancient Fairy Fort is Destroyed

Bad luck is sure to befall a US company if it builds a new factory over a fairyfort in Ireland, warns a traditional Irish lore keeper. West Pharmaceutical Services is building a new factory in...
The unbroken seal on Tutankhamun’s tomb, 1922.

Tomb Curses of Ancient Egypt: Magical Incantations of the Dead

Nothing instilled more fear in the tomb raiders of times past, than the possibility of encountering a curse that warned of dire consequences for those that did not heed its warning. In ancient Egypt...
Ancient Roman Curse Tablets

Ancient Roman Curse Tablets Invoke Goddess Sulis Minerva to Kill and Maim

Although the ancient Romans were the first people to have had a fire brigade, they did not have a police force (apart from a night-watch). Thus, victims of minor crimes such as petty theft had to...
Detail of the beautiful rock cut carvings at Tripura. Bas-relief images at Unakoti are from the 11-12th century A.D.

The Mysterious Unakoti Bas-Reliefs: 10 Million Deities and the Curse of a God

Bas-relief or low relief is a type of sculpture in which an image is projected at a shallow depth. This technique is often used in the art of ancient Egypt and other Near Eastern cultures. In...
Bhangarh Fort, India

The ghost city of Bhangarh and the curse of the Holy Man

The abandoned fort of Bhangarh is thought to be the most haunted place in India, so much so that the Archaeological Survey of India has forbidden access to the site between sunset and sunrise, and...
The ‘Unlucky Mummy’ Said to Have Sunk the Titanic

The ‘Unlucky Mummy’ Said to Have Sunk the Titanic

By Tara MacIsaac , Epoch Times Strange occurrences have been said to eddy around an ancient Egyptian artifact, known as the “Unlucky Mummy,” since it was taken from Egypt to Europe in the 19th...
Roman Curse Tablets

Significance of Roman Curse Tablets recognised in Memory of the World Register

A collection of 130 ancient Roman curse tablets featuring gruesome messages of revenge has been added to the UNESCO Memory of the World register of outstanding documentary heritage. Found in the town...
Assyrian Stele - Ancient Curse

Assyrian stele containing ancient curse will not be reunited with its other half

Whoever discards this image from the presence of Salmanu puts it into another place, whether he throws it into water or covers it with earth or brings and places it into a taboo house where it is...
Tutankhamun

Mystery of King Tutankhamun's death solved after more than 3,000 years

It is one of the greatest mysteries of the ancient world – how the Egyptian boy pharaoh Tutankhamun died. Theories have ranged from a violent murder to leprosy and even a snake bite. But now, 91...
The Curse of Chorazin

The ‘Cursed’ city of Chorazin

Woe unto thee, Chorazin! Woe unto thee, Bethsaida! For if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I...
Curse tablet in Jerusalem

Archaeologists Find Ancient Magic Curse Tablet in Jerusalem

Israel Antiquities Authority archaeologists have discovered a 1,700-year-old curse tablet in the ruins of an old Roman mansion in the City of David in Jerusalem. It is believed the words were written...
The Curse of Tutankhamen’s Tomb

The Curse of Tutankhamen’s Tomb: A Scientific Explanation? - Part 2

In 1923, Egyptologists Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon opened the tomb of King Tutankhamen for the first time. It was guarded by a stone inscribed with the ominous threat: “Death Shall Come on Swift...

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