Friday, June 03, 2016

Coloured thread folk magic donation

Friend of the Museum John Byrne recently kindly donated a collection of wands and charms, including crosses, an old iron nail and a small horseshoe (photographed below).




Drawing on Lancashire’s long history of folk magic, John’s magical tools are inspired by traditional rowan crosses bound with red thread, but they also explore the significance of other woods such as elder and apple, together with various different coloured threads and objects such as shell and sea glass. 

It is fascinating to see how our supporters rework and revitalise the magic represented in our collection, and we are very grateful to John and everyone who helps to keep the Museum somewhere living and evolving.

Many thanks to Joyce Froome for this text.