The Old Woman and the ConjurorsAuthor: Mike Slater Troy Books is extremely pleased to welcome Michael Slater with the publication of his new book The Old Woman and the Conjurors: A Journey from Witch Scratching to the Conjurors, and the Southcottian Millenarean Movement of the Early 19th Century. The writing of The Old Woman and the Conjurors began as a result of a complete coincidence. The author, whilst researching for a friend, discovered a story in an adjacent newspaper column

Botanical name: Marrubium vulgare

an elongated witch's ball

The study of folklore is very often the examination of symbolism and symbolic interpretation changes over time

Devils Shoestring is widely used for protection and luck

so I have no way of knowing how they utilised herbs for their magical practice

Burned in devotion to Lucifer

Although nestled in the Cornish landscape and its lore

Natural historians have written their works of devotion to the works of nature: a genre which has been recognisable ever since Gilbert White wrote The Natural History of Selborne

the twilight of the rational

This harm could come in the form of curses

Rich in folklore and folk traditions

like a siren whose call you can’t ignore