Missing Camera

We've been contacted by a lady who has lost her camera outside the museum. The date was May 3rd around one o'clock. She had photos of her holiday in Somerset, Devon & Cornwall & is very distressed by its disappearance. A reward has been offered. I have no details of what type of camera it is but if anyone has any knowledge of the lost item please contact us & we'll send your information to the lady in question. I know it's a long shot but if we can help in any way we will. Thanks for your assistance on this one dudes.

Back from Australia

Well, I arrived back from Australia yesterday after 7 weeks and I must say it's very pleasant to be back home despite the jetlag. I can now update the blog more regularly with the latest happenings! Whilst in Australia I went along to the Mind Body & Spirit Festival and met She D'Montford, editor of Spellcraft magazine. They have done an article on the Museum of Witchcraft and we're hoping to build the connection so we can enhance Aussie/UK relations even further. Cassandra Easson was also there on a speaking tour and she has just released yet another book, Pagan in the City. What a prolific writer she is! The book should be released in the UK in a week or two I believe, so Cassandra fans should keep an eye out. I'll pop a link on for her website.

Happy May Day

Graham was up not so bright but very early to witness sunrise from a stone circle on Bodmin Moor yesterday. He then went off to Padstow to see the children's Oss dance to the haunting May Day tune. All before opening the museum! What a dedicated chap he is. Here are some lovely pics to prove it.

Summer Is A Comin'

It's great to see the boats go back in the harbour at this time of year. The sky put on a rainbow show in happiness at the thought.

Forced Temporary Closure

The museum had to close for a morning this week as the construction gang re laid the tarmac outside the museum.
Whist having to close is obviously bad news - having tarmac out side is great news!! Mud and dust have been causing us huge problems since the flood so it will be fabulous to enjoy smooth underfoot action for a change.

Auction Disappointment

Yesterday the museum failed to secure a painting of Cecil Williamson which had come up for auction in Plymouth.
The painting was by the late Robert Lenkiewicz and was undertaken shortly before Cecil died.
Graham had particularly wanted the portrait for the museum as he had taken Lenkiewicz to meet Williamson in his nursing home and witnessed the artist at work on this particular portrait. The museum took the bidding up to £4000 but this was not enough to secure the picture which finally sold for £4200.
Whilst it is disappointing not to have secured this important portrait, the museum has limited funds and must spend its money carefully.
I wonder who the successful bidder was?

New Sign

The weather in Boscastle can be a little extreme to say the least so our signs take a real beating. The lovely Mike, sign writer to the stars (well - us anyway) has been busy replacing our old sign with a sparkly new one. Here he is proudly displaying his work.

Glass cane donation

Our friends Martin and Belinda have donated a beautiful, very long, glass walking stick.
These items were often placed between a bed and fireplace and were said to absorb the evil spirits that caused diseases, especially ague (malaria). They should carefully be wiped clean each morning. Breaking your glass stick will surely attract misfortune. (From information provided by the Glass Manufacturers Federation.)
Let's hope that Martin & Belinda don't go down with the ague now they have given their stick to the museum!

Bye Bye Bridge

And so last Tuesday (a grey & foggy day in keeping with the mood of the villagers) we bid farewell to a Boscastle landmark - the old bridge outside the museum. I'm not sure how long it's been there but I believe it's more than a couple of centuries. It has withstood many of the floods that have hit Boscastle and that is one of the reasons why it has had to be replaced. During the August 2004 flood, fourteen cars became lodged underneath it, causing a huge backlog of water & debris which exacerbated the destructive effect of the flood waters outside the museum.

As sad as it is to see it go it really had to be changed. Unfortunately the new bridge is a bit of a shocker. We hope it will look more attractive when it is finally tarmacked & the railings are in situ. Graham took these photos for your perusal.

Foiled Again

One of our winter jobs has been to try and solve the problem of high humidity in some of the old wooden cabinets. The humidity monitors in some of these cabinets have often displayed a humidity figure several percent higher than ambient. This could be caused by the wood of the cabinet releasing moisture. After taking advice, we have lined one of the worst offenders with metal foil, replaced the silica gel, and we are now monitoring the results.
If this works and we can reliably control the humidity within all of the cabinets, we may be able to switch off some of the dehumidifiers a save a fortune in electricity and reduce our carbon footprint as well.

Bappy Easter

We would like to give a warm welcome to 'Bappy' the cast metal Baphomet which previously belonged to a lovely woman called Patsy (pictured here). Bappy was once used as a door stop in a second hand shop but was rescued by Patsy and they lived together in her Devon home for many years. Patsy is now thinking of moving and feels it's best not to take Bappy with her as others are sometimes shocked and worried by his devilish appearance. He has kindly been donated to the museum and we hope 'Bappy will be Happy' (chuckle) with us in his future life here.

Dragon Shoots

Anyone interested in pagan related books for small children will be delighted to hear there is a new series out called 'Dragon Shoots'. There are twelve books in the series based around the yearly festivals. Anyone interested should contact author Nell on sales@dragonshoots.com or check the website www.dragonshoots.com .

Devon & Cornwall Pagan Federation Conference Yesterday

A great day was had by all at the Devon & Cornwall Pagan Federation conference at Kilkhampton near Bude yesterday. There were some excellent speakers in attendance. Philip Carr-Gomm kicked off proceedings with a talk on druidry & oracles; Val Thomas spoke on the art of the kitchen witch; Julian Vayne did a fab job speaking on Aleister Crowley (filling in at the last minute for Dr Roland Rotheram who was sadly unable to attend - we wish him a speedy recovery); and the grande finale was a Parkinson-esque interview of the wonderful Maxine Sanders undertaken by the effervescent Cassandra Latham.

The amazing Wolf's Head & Vixen Border Morris side had a fab fun time energising the room with their unique brand of hot Morris action. (Apparently they were seen later in the evening entertaining the manager & customers of Morrisons in Bude in full regalia.)

The Museum & The Occult Art Company had a stall which was well supported. The highlight of the evening was Damh the Bard entertaining the crowd with his music - I believe there was much boogeying going on (if anyone has any incriminating photos please send them in). You can find Damh on Youtube.

We've had a special opening today for everyone who attended the PF do. It's great to get some energy into the place before we officially open on March 21st. It's freezing outside & we're battening down the hatches for what may be a very elemental night.

Opening 2008

Please excuse the lack of input on this blog recently. We have just returned from a fabulous trip to the temples of Angkor Wat in Cambodia and are now gearing up for the reopening of the museum. We will open on Friday 21st March. Opeing hours are the same as usual: 1030 am till 6 pm Monday to Saturday and 1130 am till 6 pm Sundays.

Hello Again

Well, it's been a while since my last post. I've been away from computer world for a while. There's not been a huge amount to report - just a continuation of the works down in the harbour (yes it's still going on!) and me having my bathroom modernised by Hannah's husband Lee (how thrilling you say). After much lobbying we now have a telephone box in the harbour. If you don't have an Orange network phone your mobile won't work so it's a bit of an asset to visitors to say the least. The next thing we need is a cash machine that doesn't charge you to take your own money out - don't get me started.....

The Gateway building (aka toilet block) is nearing completion in the car park but the shop next to the museum has come to a standstill & I've been told may not be open until June. Great! Keep Calm!!

On a more pleasant note - Hi to September & Karl who popped over from Atlanta Georgia for a visit today. The museum was closed but I happened to be dropping something off so let them in for a quick visit. They'd driven all the way from Scotland to see the musuem so it was fortuitous that I was around. Hi to September's coven back in Atlanta! Come & visit soon - during summer preferably. I suggested a trip to Avebury stone circle on their way back to London - a truly special place.

Happy New Year

We at The Museum of Witchcraft would like to wish all our visitors & supporters a very happy New Year. May 2008 be as magical as you wish it to be!

Please note the photo has nothing to do with New Year, I just like it!!

New Bridge

Well, after all the controversy regarding the replacement of the bridge outside the museum, the new bridge was finally lowered in to place yesterday Dec 18th. During the flood we had 14 cars wedged underneath the old bridge. The blockage contributed to quite a bit of the damage done to properties and increased risk to life so it was decided to replace it with a wider variety which will be less likely to be blocked by debris in case of another flood. Hannah took some photos of the momentous event.

Harbour Works photos

As promised here are a few photos of the ongoing works int he Harbour. The largest crane in the world (slight exaggeration) is readying itself for the bridge replacement on Tuesday. The Gateway building (read toilet block) at the entrance to the car park is on track to be finished around mid January I believe. The river itself is being widened & lowered outside the Things store & Valency lawn. All may look a little different next time you come along to Boscastle.

Boscastle Diggings

Having returned from a 3 week stint in Australia, I have found Boscastle to be awash with even more diggers, cranes & builders than before I left. The main road through the village was closed but thankfully (as of yesterday) it has reopended & traffic can make its way through, sometimes wth the help of traffic lights. Huge pipes are being laid along the museum side of the river & I believe the bridge outside the museum will be replaced on Tuesday. A massive crane is insitu readying itself for the task. I have taken some photos & will put them on shortly. The weather has been freezing but sunny, a far cry from last weekend which apparently saw some of the worst winds & storms Boscastle residents had seen for years. Some say there were 30 foot waves breaking in the harbour. Happily I flew in the day after all this happened & have had fab sunshine since my return. As I mentioned, I will pop a few photos of the works on so you can see what a tad of a mess Boscastle looks at the moment. Hopefullly it will all be worthwhile!!

Mavis

Here is a photo of Mavis who sadly died on Nov 28 2007. Mavis loved nothing more than sitting on Graham's lap while he brushed her fur. She was, perhaps, the fussiest eater in the world but was extremely friendly & purred at the drop of a hat. She was much too glamorous to chase birds or mice & to our amusement, the resident robin would often strut its stuff inches from Mavis' disinterested glare. She definitely made the most of all of her nine lives, bouncing back from several operations & illnesses with kittenesque fervour. Bye Mavis - thanks for being a good friend.