2 - THE CLASSICAL INHERITANCE

Summary

Archaeological evidence provides vivid details from the magic of antiquity. For example, in 1934 a lead plate dating from the era of the Roman Empire was unearthed in London. Someone had taken the trouble to rip it from a building, write an inscription on it, and pound seven nails through it. The inscription reads:

I curse Tretia Maria and her life and mind and memory and liver and lungs mixed up together, and her words, thoughts and memory; thus may she be unable to speak what things are concealed …

One can only conjecture what sort of scandal lay behind this chilling curse. We do know, however, that it is not an isolated case. Through much of the Roman Empire people with enemies to dispatch might try doing so by writing a curse on some object, usually a small lead tablet. To heighten the magical efficacy they would often transfix the object with a nail and bury it or drop it into a well, where it could take its place amid the powers of the nether world.

Archaeologists have also turned up amulets made from magical gems, especially in Egypt. These present magic in a less obviously sinister form, since they could serve for protection or healing, but they could be put to other ends as well.