amulets
One means of harnessing the supposed magico-medicinal virtues of certain fossils was to wear them as amulets, in the broader, more classical sense of the word as elements of magical power conferring protection on the owner or bearer against supernatu- ral forces, evil, harm or disease (with the added bene- fit of their aesthetic value). Many geological mate- rials have been used in amulets (e.g. Bratley, 1907; Fernie, 1907; Villiers, 1929; Budge, 1930). Amber has a particularly rich folklore in this regard, and is repre- sented by many surviving specimens (Fig. 20). Pliny indicates that (Naturalis Historia, Book 37, cap. 11, 12; Ball, 1950: 134):
Even today, the country women of Lombardy and those along the Po wear necklaces and collars of amber beads, mainly to adorn themselves, but in part also for their own health; for they believe that it prevents the inflammation of the tonsils and other diseases of the throat and the pharynx; for the people of that region are subject to goitre, about the fleshy parts of the throat, caused by the local water which breeds the disease. It is, however, true that a necklace of amber beads worn about the necks of little babies is a great protection against secret poisons and a coun- tercharm against witchcraft and sorcery. Callistratus says that such necklaces are good for all ages, to pre- serve the wearer from fantastic illusions and fears that drive one out of his senses: further, amber, whether taken in drink or hung about one, cures strangury.... He says of this yellow amber that if it be worn as a collar about the neck it cures fevers and heals disea- ses of the mouth, throat and jaws.
Albertus Magnus stated that wearing amber helped to maintain chastity and ease difficulties during childbirth (Wykoff, 1967; see also Silvatico, 1541 Cap. 488). Felice Passera (1610—1702)(1688: 494), a Capuchin monk from the Brescia Infirmary advised carrying amber in some way, wearing it as part of a necklace or collar to protect against condi- tions of the head and throat, whilst carrying an amber amulet, often on the wrist, was supposedly effective against catching the plague. Jan Baptist van Helmont (1579—1644) believed that it was the intrinsic “magnetic” power of the stone that offered “Counterpoisons to the fatal contagion of this plague” (van Helmont in Charleton, 1650: 22). Amber was also believed to afford high quality spiritual protection; if tied to a young boy’s collar it was effective against spells and enchantments, sorceries (“maleficij”) and demons, subduing all evil spiritual influences in- cluding those causing night-time fears. According to Camillus Leonardus (dates unknown), physician to Caesar Borgia (1475? — 1507), amber fastens loose teeth (Leonardus, 1502; 1751: 228).
Sir John Harington (1561—1612), courtier to Elizabeth I, poet, writer and inventor of the flush toilet, translated the 12th century Regimen Sanitatis Salernitanum into English in 1607, and in the 1624 edition of the work was added a section entitled “The Preservation of Health, or, A Dyet for the Healthful Man.” Here, he advises (Harington, 1624: 42):
Even today, the country women of Lombardy and those along the Po wear necklaces and collars of amber beads, mainly to adorn themselves, but in part also for their own health; for they believe that it prevents the inflammation of the tonsils and other diseases of the throat and the pharynx; for the people of that region are subject to goitre, about the fleshy parts of the throat, caused by the local water which breeds the disease. It is, however, true that a necklace of amber beads worn about the necks of little babies is a great protection against secret poisons and a coun- tercharm against witchcraft and sorcery. Callistratus says that such necklaces are good for all ages, to pre- serve the wearer from fantastic illusions and fears that drive one out of his senses: further, amber, whether taken in drink or hung about one, cures strangury.... He says of this yellow amber that if it be worn as a collar about the neck it cures fevers and heals disea- ses of the mouth, throat and jaws.
Albertus Magnus stated that wearing amber helped to maintain chastity and ease difficulties during childbirth (Wykoff, 1967; see also Silvatico, 1541 Cap. 488). Felice Passera (1610—1702)(1688: 494), a Capuchin monk from the Brescia Infirmary advised carrying amber in some way, wearing it as part of a necklace or collar to protect against condi- tions of the head and throat, whilst carrying an amber amulet, often on the wrist, was supposedly effective against catching the plague. Jan Baptist van Helmont (1579—1644) believed that it was the intrinsic “magnetic” power of the stone that offered “Counterpoisons to the fatal contagion of this plague” (van Helmont in Charleton, 1650: 22). Amber was also believed to afford high quality spiritual protection; if tied to a young boy’s collar it was effective against spells and enchantments, sorceries (“maleficij”) and demons, subduing all evil spiritual influences in- cluding those causing night-time fears. According to Camillus Leonardus (dates unknown), physician to Caesar Borgia (1475? — 1507), amber fastens loose teeth (Leonardus, 1502; 1751: 228).
Sir John Harington (1561—1612), courtier to Elizabeth I, poet, writer and inventor of the flush toilet, translated the 12th century Regimen Sanitatis Salernitanum into English in 1607, and in the 1624 edition of the work was added a section entitled “The Preservation of Health, or, A Dyet for the Healthful Man.” Here, he advises (Harington, 1624: 42):
Always in your hands vse eyther Corall or yellow Amber, or a Chalcedonium, or a sweet Pommander, or some like precious stone to be worne in a ring; in a ring vpon the little finger of the left hand: haue in your rings eyther a Smaragd, a Saphire, or a Draconites, which you shall beare for an ornament: for in stones, as also in hearbes, there is great efficacie and vertue, but they are not altogether perceived by vs: hold a crystal in your mouth; hold sometime in your mouth eyther a Hyacinth, or a Crystall, or a Granat, or pure Gold, or Siluer, or else sometimes pure Sugar-candy. For Aristotle doth affirme, and so doth Albertus Magnus, that a Smaragd worne about the necke, is good against the Falling-sicknes: for surely the vertue of an hearbe is great, but much more the vertue of a precious stone, which is very likely that they are endued with occult and hidden vertues.
Johann Schröder (1600—1664) (Fig. 21), the Ger- man physician and pharmacologist who first appre- ciated arsenic as a chemical element, wrote of amber that “bound to the Neck behind [it] cures Defluxions of the Eyes, and hung about the Neck, keep Destilla- tions from the Throat” (Schröder, 1669: 278). Much later, Gérard (1842) found that the wearing of a heavy (70g) amber necklace mitigated a case of convulsions. Walter Hildburgh (1876—1955), a collector of amu- lets and patron of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London found that necklaces of smooth and face- ted amber beads were used in Spain as prophylactics for teething problems, as well as to protect against injury caused by “fascinación.” He also reported that a faceted amber bead strung together with milky glass was worn by Basque women as protection against mammary gland disorders (Hildburgh, 1906, 1944). Furthermore, the wearing of an amber neck- lace “assuredly cures that most torturing pain called the cramp .... as many thousands have experienced”, as well as being efficacious against soreness of the eyes (Anonymous, 1790: 7).
In Scotland four amber beads were kept as a charm against blindness by the MacGregor family of Glencoe whilst similar “lammer” beads were esteemed as curing sore eyes and sprained limbs; one parti- cular bead was regularly used to clear foreign bodies from the convex surface of the eyes of both humans and livestock (Black, 1893; Clark, 2010: 69). Further- more, an eighteenth century smuggler from Gallo- way wore an amber bead which he used for curing sick children, diseased cattle and other sick animals; treatment involved dipping the bead three times into water, which was then given to the sick person or ani- mal to drink. Further examples of amber amulets are illustrated in Hansmann & Kriss-Rettenbeck (1977, figs. A35, A46) and Watteck (2004: 45).
Johann Schröder (1600—1664) (Fig. 21), the Ger- man physician and pharmacologist who first appre- ciated arsenic as a chemical element, wrote of amber that “bound to the Neck behind [it] cures Defluxions of the Eyes, and hung about the Neck, keep Destilla- tions from the Throat” (Schröder, 1669: 278). Much later, Gérard (1842) found that the wearing of a heavy (70g) amber necklace mitigated a case of convulsions. Walter Hildburgh (1876—1955), a collector of amu- lets and patron of the Victoria and Albert Museum in London found that necklaces of smooth and face- ted amber beads were used in Spain as prophylactics for teething problems, as well as to protect against injury caused by “fascinación.” He also reported that a faceted amber bead strung together with milky glass was worn by Basque women as protection against mammary gland disorders (Hildburgh, 1906, 1944). Furthermore, the wearing of an amber neck- lace “assuredly cures that most torturing pain called the cramp .... as many thousands have experienced”, as well as being efficacious against soreness of the eyes (Anonymous, 1790: 7).
In Scotland four amber beads were kept as a charm against blindness by the MacGregor family of Glencoe whilst similar “lammer” beads were esteemed as curing sore eyes and sprained limbs; one parti- cular bead was regularly used to clear foreign bodies from the convex surface of the eyes of both humans and livestock (Black, 1893; Clark, 2010: 69). Further- more, an eighteenth century smuggler from Gallo- way wore an amber bead which he used for curing sick children, diseased cattle and other sick animals; treatment involved dipping the bead three times into water, which was then given to the sick person or ani- mal to drink. Further examples of amber amulets are illustrated in Hansmann & Kriss-Rettenbeck (1977, figs. A35, A46) and Watteck (2004: 45).
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