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Showing posts from October, 2017

5 Facts about the History of Witchcraft

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Although when we think about witchcraft in history, we think of the accused being burnt alive at the stake, the victims were generally hung. In truth, burning alive was generally reserved for heretics. For instance, the witchcraft hysteria of the late 17th century known as the Salem Witch Trials, in which Rebecca Nurse was executed; all of the accused were hung. Men were also targeted, not just women. Men were given the titles of wizards, warlocks and/or sorcerers. Throughout history, people have been fascinated with witchcraft. Books on how to detect and what witchcraft were. Even King James I wrote a book about witchcraft.  Modern folklorists still believe that collecting the teeth of babies and young children will protect them against witches. Men who denied being magic were pressed to death with stones, very slowly. Sources: ~ Mental Floss: 10 Weird Facts About Witches ~ World Book: 10 Facts About the History of Witchcraft

The Bog People

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Bog bodies are the carcases of people who died hundreds of years ago but have been preserved in bogs due to certain traits that the peats have such as lack of oxygen, acidic water and low temperature. As a result, the people's bodies have still got their organs and skin intact. Bog people are generally found in Northern Europe.  A German scientist calculated that more than 1,850 bodies had been recovered from the bogs between the years of 1939 and 1965. However more recent studies have unfortunately proved this statistic to be unreliable. The earliest accounts of discoveries of bog people turned up in the 17th century. Then they would be given a swift reburial in the churchyard rather than being examined by archaeologists and scientists. Since the first discoveries, the corpses have seemed to turn up in previous various years.  Some of these bodies have been found with ropes around their necks, signifying that they were killed by strangulation although some have stab...