Beer and Witchcraft - the surprising link.

[liuzhou]

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Double, double toil and trouble;

Fire burn and caldron bubble.

Fillet of a fenny snake,

In the caldron boil and bake;

Eye of newt and toe of frog,

Wool of bat and tongue of dog,

Adder's fork and blind-worm's sting,

Lizard's leg and howlet's wing,

For a charm of powerful trouble,

Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.

 

Shakespeare - Macbeth

 

It seems that the legendary traditional appearance and accoutrements of witches may have actually risen because they were conjuring up beer rather than malign entities from beyond.

 

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if you traveled back in time to the Middle Ages or the Renaissance and went to a market in England, you’d probably see an oddly familiar sight: women wearing tall, pointy hats. In many instances, they’d be standing in front of big cauldrons.

 

But these women were no witches; they were brewers.

 

They wore the tall, pointy hats so that their customers could see them in the crowded marketplace. They transported their brew in cauldrons. And those who sold their beer out of stores had cats not as demon familiars,  but to keep mice away from the grain.

 

The full article is here.

 

[Anna N]

10 hours ago, liuzhou said:

The full article is here.

Thanks. As you note it is still speculation to a large degree but not beyond possibility by any means.