Top 5 Facts About Witches and Witch Hunts
Double, double toil and trouble fire burn and Bubble Bobble—Welcome to WatchMojo's Top 5 facts. In today's instalment, we're counting down the 5 most unbelievable real life facts about Witches, and Witch Hunts. Wondering if witch hunts are still a thing? Or whether witches had a role in the 1992 African Cup of Nations? You've come to the right place.
Special thanks to our user christo for submitting the idea on our Interactive Suggestion Tool at http://www.WatchMojo.comsuggest.
#5: Nearly 1 in 4 people Were Accused of Witchcraft in Salem
first thing that North Americans think of when they hear “Witch Hunt” is probably Salem, Massachusetts. There were lots of Witch Hunts before and after Salem, many of them had more casualties than in Salem. The thing with Salem is that it had only 600 residents and 140 them were tried for witchcraft. This lead to 19 executions by hanging, 7 deaths in prison (including two infants), and one man who was crushed by rocks in an effort to make him plead. Salem was terrifying because everyone in the town knew the supposed victims, and anyone in the town could be accused.
#4: Witches Are Lighter than Bibles... Apparently
People once reasoned that witches had to be light in order to fly, so one test for witch-i-ness was to weigh an accused woman next to a bible. This might sound like an easy test to pass, but back in the day books were heavier. Much, much heavier. The heftiest manuscript bible ever found was 160 lbs, and the popular Macklin Bible was 130. It isn’t likely that either of these bibles were used in trials, but neither was a Gideon pocket bible. Some people did somehow fail weighing tests, probably as a result of Witch Hunters bribing the staff the Weigh House.
#3: Witch Hunts Still Happen
Yes, Actual non-metaphorical Witch hunts are still happening. Most of them are in Africa, The south Pacific and Latin America, but occasionally they happen in The United States and Europe too. The U.N. estimates that thousands, possibly even over a million people are beaten, banished or murdered each year because of witchcraft accusations. In India in 2014, a medal-winning javelin thrower was attacked by a mob because of a single witchcraft accusation. In Ghana, there are a handful of so-called Witch camps, where people, mostly elderly widows, can take sanctuary from their accusers.
#2: Good Juju Wins Soccer games
Charms, Sorcery and Witch Doctors play a big part in the soccer scene of some African countries. In 1992 The Ivory Coast’s sports minister hired Witch Doctors to help them win the African Nations Cup. They won the championship, but did not fully pay back their witch doctor until 10 years later. The fee was about 2000 USD, which sounds like a pretty reasonable price for a win at an international championship. I mean I’d pay that… but if you’re on a budget, sheep guts, lizard parts and other magical charms are are often hidden around soccer stadiums or found in dressing rooms at big soccer games in Zimbabwe.
#1: South Africa Has an Anti-Witch Hunt Police Unit
The unit was established at the beginning of the post-apartheid period and mostly focused on Satanist conspiracy theories. It was run by Dr. Kobus "Hound of God" Jonker, who kept weird occult items on display around his office, Animal skulls, such as candles made from human fat, and a chained bible. The Unit shut down in 2006 after complaints of persecution by Pagans and those with traditional tribal believes. The Unit reopened in 2012 under new management, and with the important goal of preventing witch hunts in rural communities. That said the new 40-officer unit's credibility is kind of put into question by its additional focus on curses, vampirism, spiritual intimidation, and "Allegations of Rape by Tokoloshe spirits".
So, what do you think? Should we be on the lookout for witchcraft? For more heavier-than-a-bible Top 10s and lighter-than-a-duck Top 5s, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com
