Special exhibition 2025
Alchemy
The secret science of alchemy already existed in ancient times. It became popular in Europe through translations of Arabic literature in the 12th and 13th centuries. Alchemy combined natural history knowledge with Egyptian magic, Aristotle’s natural philosophy and Gnostic speculation. It was initially practiced in monasteries and at royal courts, but in the late Middle Ages it was considered to be fraudulent or the work of the devil. The most important goal of alchemists was to turn other substances into gold. The first alchemists in Europe were clerics who hoped to transform substances such as mercury, salt or sulphur into gold or silver using incantations, prayers and horoscopes.
Although abstruse theories dominated alchemy, the alchemists gained valuable knowledge in the field of chemistry. However, their efforts to produce gold were unsuccessful, and so they searched for a miracle cure, the “philosopher’s stone”. This stone was to be produced in a lengthy alchemical process, the “opus magnum or magisterium”, and was supposedly capable of transforming base materials into gold. It was also believed to be the basic ingredient for a universal remedy, the “elixir vitae”. Although this stone could never be produced and no other material could ever be turned into gold, alchemy used knowledge from Greek, Roman and Arabic antiquity and developed processes for the production of paints, medicines, acids, alcohol, gunpowder and potash. The alchemists’ experiments also led to progress in glass and metal processing.
In 1323, the general chapter of the Dominican order decided that alchemy was to be condemned. As a result,a lot of literature, equipment and laboratories were probably destroyed. The Pope had already issued a bull in 1317 “against fraudulent alchemists and goldsmiths”. In the 14th and 15th centuries, bans are documented in Germany, England, Italy and France.
Picture: Medieval alchemy, woodcut from Germany
Amulet and talisman
Herbs, animal substances and spells were often used when someone was already ill. The purpose of amulets, on the other hand, was to prevent harm and to protect the wearer. They were used more for mental than physical health, because they not only protected against illness, but above all against visible and invisible enemies such as the evil eye. The owner of an amulet had to carry it with them at all times. Amulets remained potent for a long time and could be used repeatedly. Silver, semi-precious stones, soapstone, animal teeth, shells, mole teeth, roots and seeds were popular ingredients.
Small crosses or relics were considered particularly effective amulets. Many amulets had a decorative character and contained valuable materials. The magical power of an amulet could be enhanced by rubbing or stroking it. Hildegard von Bingen regarded amulets as protection against demons and recommended a snake heart set in metal.
A talisman is similar to an amulet, but some scholars define talismans as objects that always include words or at least letters. In the Middle Ages they were less important than amulets. However, the power of inscriptions was considered to be at least as strong as the power of plants or animals. Carrying the names of the three kings with you, written on a piece of parchment, was said to help against epilepsy.
The word “talisman” did not appear in the German language until the 18th century. In the Middle Ages, people spoke of “zouber, artzeney or angehenke”. A talisman was usually worn around the neck and often consisted of paper with magic formulas in a capsule made of gold or silver, but it could also include precious stones, teeth, claws or fur from animals as well as parts of plants. Magicians, but also priests or monks could enter blessings for a talisman. Contact with a relic could also make a talisman powerful.
Picture: Medieval talismans, from “The Book of Talismans, Amulets and Zodiacal Gems”, by William Thomas and Kate Pavitt, 1922
Analogy spell
The principle of similarity was fundamental to the science of the Middle Ages, especially for the art of healing. It was believed that the walnut, which resembled a brain, was good for the human brain. Plants with leaves that resembled a liver in shape were considered helpful for liver complaints. Red minerals played an important role because they symbolized blood, which was regarded as the carrier of life force and was central to magic and many cults. The idea that there is a connection (= sympathy) between externally similar things and that they therefore influence each other is known as analogy magic, sympathy magic or sympathetic magic.
Such practices are known in all cultures and played an important role in Europe in the Middle Ages. Sympathy magic also includes the assumption that there was a connection between a person’s hair or nails and the person themselves. This could be used to damage the person themselves by acting on the body parts. For example, burning their hair would trigger a fever in the person.
The choice of remedies often had to do with “sympathetic magic”. Animals that were known for their strength, ferocity or speed played an important role in this. Male animals such as bulls, rams or stags were said to have greater healing potential than weaker female animals.
The eyes of a vulture, rolled up in the skin of a wolf and worn around the neck, could allegedly strengthen the eyesight – because vultures see very well. The herb “dracontinum”, whose leaves resemble a dragon, supposedly helped against snake bites and worms. Closely related was the doctrine of signatures, which was influential in the late Middle Ages.
The basic idea was that God had created a perfect world, which is reflected in his creation, the cosmos and nature. All phenomena and beings are related to each other. Similarities, relationships and inner connections had to be recognized by humans and interpreted correctly. Signatures could be, for example, the color, smell, taste, character or consistency of a plant. These properties were in turn assigned to elements, planets and properties. The theory of signatures also plays an important role in Ayurvedicand Chinese medicine.
Picture: Two witches conjure up a storm, woodcut, 1498
Astrology
The distinction between astrology and astronomy was not yet known in the Middle Ages, and it was considered certain that the planets influenced earthly processes. In the 12th century, much Jewish and Arabic literature was translated into Latin and, as a result, the interpretation of the stars became popular in Central Europe.
Astrology was counted among the “secret arts” (artes magicae), as were magic and manticism (fortune-telling). The church condemned magic and manticism, but astrology was tolerated and even taught at universities in the 14th century, always closely linked to astronomy. Horoscopes were used to predict the future, but also to interpret a person’s character and were often used by doctors to treat the sick. Court astrologers told fortunes for nobles, clergy and even the Pope in Avignon. They were supposed to determine when the time was right for a project. In the 13th century, scholars at Paris University even claimed that the plague was caused by unfavorable planetary positions.
Horoscopes were created by interpreting:
Sun, moon and the planets Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
The zodiac: the solar orbit divided into 12 parts of 30 degrees each, each part named after a zodiac sign.
The 12 houses: life, gain, siblings, parents, children, health, marriage, death, travel, honors, friends, enemies.
The aspects: Position of the planets in relation to each other.
The characteristics of the planets: according to the four humors doctrine, the planets, like every human being, had certain characteristics, depending on their composition of the four humors, they were considered cold, warm, moist or dry. From the attributed properties, for example, it emerged that Mars stood for activity and Mercury for intellect.
Horoscopes are still popular today and many methods of reading the stars practiced in the Middle Ages are still used.
Picture: Medieval depiction of the zodiac
Letter squares
Letter squares were elements of magic, they were even supposed to be able to keep demons at bay. There were several, the best known and most perfect being the magic square with the SATOR-AREPO formula.
S A T O R
A R E P O
T E N E T
O P E R A
R O T A S
The words make no sense, but they can be read in four directions: from top to bottom, from left to right, from bottom to top backwards and from right to left backwards. It is possibly an anagram for the first words of the Lord’s Prayer in Latin, if they are written in the shape of a cross. The word TENET forms a cross in the middle. There are different interpretations of this phenomenon and no clear solution.
The first evidence of this square was found in a Christian house in Pompeii from the 1st century. In medieval Europe, it was used for various magical purposes, for example, to gain the support of supernatural helpers. Written on a piece of cloth and placed on the belly of a woman giving birth, the magic square was supposed to help with the birth. Whoever carried it with them supposedly won the sympathy of everyone they met. There were different squares of letters for different magical purposes, to tell the future or to make oneself popular with a virgin.
The most famous, late antique magic word is ABRAXAS. In the 2nd century AD, the Egyptian Basilides wrote that this word referred to the primordial being, the supreme god, who in turn had sent the five primordial powers of spirit, word, providence, wisdom and power and even Christ into the world . Many number games were still associated with this word in the Middle Ages.
The magic formula “Abracadabra”, which was first mentioned around 200 AD, is probably also derived from it. Letter magic and alphabet magic were widespread in late antiquity. The magical power of the alphabet is based on the fact that it can be used to describe all phenomena in the world.
Predicting the future
Magic, astrology, and divination (the prediction of natural events through interpretations) were part of the artes magicae. Divination was considered witchcraft and was associated with black magic. The difference between magic and divination mainly lies in the fact that magic was intended to influence the future, whereas divination merely attempted to glimpse the future.
The theory of the four humors, which shaped all areas of medieval thought, was also crucial for interpreting the future. Therefore, the four elements—air, water, earth, and fire—played an important role. Aeromancy interpreted the wind, clouds, fog, rainbows, and thunder, as well as the orbits of the sun and moon. Geomancy predicted through earth or sand formations, while hydromancy focused on water, such as the shapes of waves. Prophecies related to fire, its sounds and colors, the flight of sparks, or smoke, fell under pyromancy.
But in addition to these main branches of divination, there were also numerous special methods. In alectryomancy, grains were placed over letters, which were then picked up by a rooster. The letters it uncovered were important. Another method to predict the future involved randomly opening Bible pages. Divinations were made using crystal balls or mirrors, and the reading of a person’s future from the lines of their hands was practiced. In arrow oracles, arrows were drawn from a quiver, each marked with a symbol. Divining rods were used, and dream interpretation was popular, with numerous treatises dedicated to this subject. A widespread method was reading the future from the shoulder blade of a ram, ox, horse, donkey, or even a human. The Germanic tradition of rune sticks continued, and in the late Middle Ages, dice were used for predictions. Names were used for divination through complicated calculations, assigning numbers to letters.
According to Thomas Aquinas, divination, like other magical arts, was the work of demons, although he struggled to argue against it in relation to the prophecies of the saints.
Pichture: Diagram of a magic circle to summon the spirits of the air
Dracontology
Until the early modern period, it was considered a fact that dragons existed. Ancient accounts, Nordic mythologies, Old English and Germanic legends described dragons that could look different—some resembled snakes, while others had wings. Dragons played an important role among the Vikings. It was believed that dragons could arise from the bodies of slain soldiers on the battlefield, just as maggots can form from corpses. Hildegard of Bingen also mentioned dragon’s blood as a healing remedy.
In Germanic heroic sagas, swords were hardened with dragon’s blood, and only with them could one slay a dragon. Since it was impossible for blacksmiths in the Middle Ages to obtain dragon’s blood, various authors recommended using worm’s blood to harden swords—this referred to the “worm juices” from grubs or earthworms.
In antiquity, it was taught that one could produce indestructible materials such as glass, which would not break, with dragon’s blood. Various substances were referred to and traded as dragon’s blood in the Middle Ages, including the red mineral cinnabar, as well as the resin from the dragon tree, which grew on the island of Socotra (now Yemen). Many tales surrounded dragon’s blood. Allegedly, gemstones could be dyed with it, and glass could be softened. If gold leaf was dissolved in the heated, liquid resin, it created a golden ink.
According to the ancient author Pliny, dragons possessed a herb with which they could revive their kind.
In the early Middle Ages, the dragon symbolized sin and heresy. Saints famously defeated it in legends, and it was said that it could be driven away by the sign of the cross or a prayer. In paintings, the devil would appear in the form of small dragons emerging from a possessed person. In the High Middle Ages, the dragon became a popular foe for proud knights and a frequent figure in courtly romances. In these tales, the dragon’s traits often passed on to the victor, and some heroes would eat its heart.
first picture: dragons in Conrad Gessner’s snake book (1587)
second picture: Ulisse Aldrovandi: Historia monstrorum (1640)
Magic and Superstition in the Middle Ages
The fear of diseases and misfortunes drove people in the Middle Ages to resort to magical practices as a form of prevention. Illness often meant death in the Middle Ages. Plagues ravaged the population mercilessly, and many women died in childbirth. Wars and famines also claimed countless victims. Moreover, small farmers, who made up the vast majority of the medieval population, were dependent on the weather. Droughts or floods, hailstorms, or early frost could destroy their crops. Plant and animal diseases threatened the existence of the rural population. Desperate, people turned to magical practices and superstitious rituals to make their risky existence safer or to find healing and support in times of need.
In the Middle Ages, there were different healing methods, some of which dated back to antiquity. Much of the medical knowledge, as well as occult rituals, came from the Arab world, especially after the 12th century, following the Crusades, when Arab influence was strong. The Arabic magical book Picatrix became legendary in medieval Europe. In it, a distinction is made between theoretical magic (knowledge of the heavens and planetary gods) and practical magic (the use of natural forces from plants, animals, and minerals). There were also connections with the Jewish world, and magical ideas of the Celts and Germans mixed with the medieval Christian worldview.
A late antique work on natural history, the Physiologus, was also very influential. It attributes miraculous properties to plants and animals, for example, it was believed that the blood of a ram could dissolve diamonds. Magical practices that focused on occult forces inherent in nature were, in a sense, a branch of natural science. A plant that could cure diseases was thought to have received this special property from the cosmos.
The belief in the power of demons was closely tied to religious concepts; they were considered “evil spirits” that could be summoned. The following definition can be applied: if an extraordinary power came from God, it was not considered magic in the Middle Ages. However, if demons or occult forces from nature were involved, it was considered magic or sorcery.
Even the fine arts contained magical elements, and music was also attributed with magical powers. According to medieval belief, music and images possessed healing powers.
Picture: British Library – Addition 10292 f. 87: Merlin gives a letter to Pendragon and Uther
Witches in the Middle Ages
In many ancient pagan cults, the image of the harm-witch and the herbalist witch already existed. In some African countries, the belief in witchcraft remains alive to this day. The legendary European witch hunts took place in the early modern period, not, as is often mistakenly assumed, in the Middle Ages.
Under Charlemagne, belief in witches was still punishable by death, and some early (Christian) Germanic folk laws also imposed penalties for it. In the 13th century, the first witch convictions occurred through the Inquisition, but initially, its efforts were directed against heretics (those who deviated from the official religious doctrine), and the death penalty was rarely imposed. Instead, the goal was to achieve the conversion of the accused. The state Spanish Inquisition, established in the late 15th century, even explicitly rejected witch hunts. It was only in the course of the 15th century that the image of the witch cult with specific rites and the theory of a powerful witch conspiracy slowly took shape. The mass persecution in Western and Central Europe is a phenomenon of the 16th and 17th centuries.
At the beginning of the early modern period, there were societal upheavals, and against this backdrop, the hysteria of the witch hunts emerged. Often, the persecution came from a hysterical population rather than the Church. The influential book Malleus Maleficarum (The Hammer of Witches) was first published in 1487 and was spread in 30 editions until 1669. It claimed that women were inherently evil and susceptible to the temptations of the Devil. Midwives and women knowledgeable about herbs were quickly suspected when diseases or deaths occurred.
Especially in times of crisis, such as during the Thirty Years’ War (1618-1648) and during catastrophes like plagues and storms, scapegoats were sought. Three-quarters of the victims were women, and even children were accused. Persecutions occurred in both Protestant and Catholic regions, although they were rare in the Catholic countries of Ireland, Italy, Portugal, and Spain. Countries with strong centralized power were probably less vulnerable.
The hysteria spread explosively, especially in the Holy Roman Empire, England and Scotland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Poland, and Lorraine. Recent research suggests that 40,000 to 60,000 people fell victim to the persecution mania. Personal reasons such as envy or a desire for revenge often played a role, and in the 17th century, even nobles were accused. The 15-year-old Veronika Zeritschin is believed to have been the last victim, dying in 1756 in Landshut.
Picture: The “Malleus Maleficarum” was influential in the witch trials in the 17th century.
Cats
Through the discovery of bones, it is known that cats were live walled up in medieval buildings. Whether they were meant as sacrifices or as protection against evil forces is unclear. In France, it was customary to place a cat in the foundation of churches. It was likely intended to symbolically bury Satan and evil. In a house in Birmingham, built in the 13th century, a cat was even found walled up together with a mouse.
While in the early Middle Ages, cats were still valued household companions and attitudes toward them were positive, Christian authors contributed to their demonization over the centuries. From the 13th century onward, the image of the cat changed. It was now considered the embodiment of lust and sin, and even a demon or the devil. Cats were associated with femininity and, in the modern era, with witchcraft.
Witches were allegedly said to ride on large black cats to the witches’ Sabbath. Although cats were demonized, there were also confessed cat lovers among the nobility and the clergy.
In medieval literature, cats appeared as creatures with magical abilities. They were therefore also mentioned in the context of remedies. For instance, Albertus Magnus recommended placing the flesh of a wild cat on a gout-affected area. A sneeze powder was made from the gall of a black cat. To treat a stye, he suggested rubbing the eye with the tail of a male cat.
At times, particularly black cats were hunted and burned at the stake. It was said that the devil often appeared in the form of a black cat, and his followers would kiss its genitals during initiation. Pope Gregory IX banned the devil in the form of a cat in a bull in the 13th century. In 1303, Walter Langton, Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, was accused of venerating the devil in the form of a black cat, but he was able to clear himself of the charges.
Pichture: Bodleian Library, MS. Ashmole 1511, Folio 35v, Cats hunting mice
Magical Practices
In the Middle Ages, magic was practiced by doctors, bathhouse attendants, barbers, midwives, lay healers, wise women, and fortune-tellers, and despite the official rejection of the Church, also by monks and village priests.
When preparing a remedy, many magical taboos had to be observed. These were meant either to ensure the purity of the remedy or to strengthen the healer’s powers. For instance, herbs should be picked barefoot or in silence, and before sunrise. No sexual contact should have occurred before picking, and no iron tools were to be used. The bark of a tree was considered more potent if it came from the side of the tree facing east, as it could absorb the rays of the rising sun.
Christian prayers and blessings, as well as magical invocations, worked on the same principle. Health manuals that were created in monasteries often instructed the reader to say prayers over the healing herbs. These prayers were directed to God, Christ, Mary, or a saint, and belong to the realm of official religion, as do blessings related to the patient. But a third category consisted of invocations and exorcisms; these were spoken as commands and were directed at the illness itself or the demon that supposedly caused it. These belong to the realm of magic. The healer was in a battle with the evil spirit of the disease, relying on both sacred and magical powers for assistance.
For infertile fields, it was common for the village priest to perform certain rituals. Before sunrise, four clumps of earth were dug up from the four corners of the field. The priest sprinkled them with a mixture of holy water, oil, milk, honey, and herbs while reciting phrases from the Bible in Latin, such as: “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.”
Usually, invocations and exorcisms were used on people. However, demons responsible for hail could also be summoned. There were incantations to make good demons stay and to banish evil ones.
There were fluid boundaries between “official” exorcism, performed by a high-ranking clergyman, and popular exorcism, carried out by lower clergy or even laypeople. Christian rites, folklore, and superstition mixed together.
Picture: Magical table and symbols in the magical tradition of Solomon.
Necromancy – Revenants from the Realm of the Dead
Isidore of Seville (c. 560 to 636 AD) was one of the most widely read and influential authors of the Early Middle Ages. He was the Bishop of Seville and compiled an encyclopedia of the knowledge of Antiquity that still existed around 600 AD. His works were eagerly copied in monasteries.
He mentions the summoning of the dead (necromancy):
“The necromancers seem to bring the dead back to life through invocations and make them answer questions… To bring the corpse back to life, water and blood are used, for it is said that demons love blood. Thus, in every necromantic summoning, water is mixed with red blood to attract the demons more easily through the red color of the blood.”
Whether and how frequently such rituals were actually carried out cannot be determined. For the Church, necromancy was considered superstition, and belief in revenants—those who supposedly return from the realm of the dead to appear to their relatives—was also condemned.
In the Early Middle Ages, there were “good” and “evil” revenants. The first group consisted of saints who appeared to particular individuals, usually monks, kings, or clergymen. The dark revenants, on the other hand, included criminals who were improperly buried, suicides, unbaptized children, and women who had died in childbirth. Their souls found no rest because they had not been buried with the proper rituals.
Around the year 1000, reports also began to surface of “ordinary” dead people appearing to their family members.
Picture: Illustration of a Bible scene: The Witch of Endor uses a necromantic ritual to summon the spirit of Samuel from: Sadducismus Triumphatus (1681) by Joseph Glanvill
Black and White Magic
In the Middle Ages, magic served many purposes: to heal illnesses, to awaken the love of a desired person, to find a lost item, or to harm enemies. The boundaries between religion, science, and magic were fluid. From today’s perspective, many medieval rituals of the Christian Church also seem irrational, such as exorcisms and processions of supplication. The belief in the power of relics was part of official religion. Body parts or bones of a saint, or objects that they had touched, were believed to transfer their power to anyone who touched or even just looked at them.
For the people of the Middle Ages, there was no contradiction between scientific knowledge and the belief that the sacred could perform miracles, that exorcism could drive out the devil, and that the power of relics could heal and help. While such ideas were part of the official doctrine, the Church strictly condemned “magical” or “superstitious” practices. As early as 813 AD, the Council of Tours declared that “ligatures of bones and herbs” were “traps of the devil.” According to the Church, miracle healers, magicians, and fortune tellers were in the service of the devil. A good Christian should never be led astray by the devil in the form of a demon; if in doubt, they should rather die as a martyr. Magic was both banned and combated by the Church and the state.
Much of our information comes from court records. The most frequent charge related to magical practices was the accusation of having harmed, made sick, or killed a person.
“Black” magic was intended to harm or kill someone, while “white” magic was used for healing purposes or for protection. The difference between positive and negative magic did not lie in the means used, but in the goals they served. Both “white” and “black” magic used spells, invocations, amulets, and potions.
Picture: Witches’ Sabbath, Hans Baldung Grien, 1540
Magic Tricks
Medieval manuscripts also contain instructions that clearly belong to the realm of coarse jokes and tricks, such as how to sprinkle itching powder in someone’s bed, make them turn black in the bath, or deceive them into thinking the meat on their plate is raw and full of worms. Loaves of bread dancing on the table and dead fish jumping out of the frying pan also fall into this category.
Several manuscripts describe tricks involving fire, such as how to make a candle that cannot be extinguished or how to create a large flame from a pan of water. Even special light effects were known, which could make people appear as giants or seemingly lose their heads. These experiments often required extensive chemical knowledge.
The English monk Thomas Betson, who lived in the Abbey of Syon in Middlesex, stood out in his 15th-century handbook. He wrote that one should attach a woman’s fine hair to a hollowed-out egg, making it appear as if the egg were moving by magical power, as the thin hair would be invisible to the naked eye. With some skill, it could even look as though the egg were floating in the air. Betson also suggested placing a living beetle into a hole in an apple. If the beetle then moved inside the fruit, it would seem as if the apple were vibrating on its own.
Such magic tricks were presumably meant for entertainment. However, there were also many charlatans who made good business by exploiting the gullibility and fears of people, fueling superstition. The poet Walther von der Vogelweide (around 1200) also speaks of the “tricks of the jugglers.”
Picture: Painting by Hieronymus Bosch: The Sorcerer, 1502