MODERN CHESS SET BY BARN BARM PORTABLE
Whoever buried it would have believed that the contents would rebuff spells.Īdam Daubney, finds liaison officer for the portable antiquities scheme in Lincolnshire, said at the time: "Witch bottles were most popular in the 17th and early 18th centuries, and the majority of finds date to these periods.
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Most 'witch bottles' were made in the 17th and 18th centuries – which means that the Navenby find was one of the latest of its kind. The bottle is made of green glass and experts said with confidence that it dates to 1830 because of the way it is cast. The Navenby witch bottle (Image: Lincolnshire Echo)īut it was only when she took it to an open day run by her village’s archaeology group at the end of 2003 that its real function emerged. It was discovered by Jo Butler, from Navenby, near Lincoln, when she was digging a pond in her garden in 1999. The glass bottle, 8cm in diameter, was used by people in bygone days to ward off evil spirits. "The intentional placing of artefacts at boundaries and thresholds of properties is a well-documented practice in which owners sought to ward off evil spirits." We're a superstitious lot in Lincolnshire.īack in January 2004 we reported on the discovery of a 'witch bottle' containing human hair and pins. "The barn appears on the 1888 Ordnance Survey map of the area. The owner of the property discovered the items when undertaking renovations to the barn. "The roof had been leaking for some time and had rotted the beam.
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"The timber was used as a horizontal beam, part of the structural frame, which flanked the right side (as entering from the outside) of the door at head height. The finds database has this entry about the bishop and the queen: "Both were concealed in the timber of a 19th century outbuilding which appears once to have been used for livestock. The finds were reported to the Portable Antiquities Scheme run by the British Museum to encourage the recording of archaeological objects found by members of the public to further historical and archaeological knowledge. "I'd ask members of the public or builders, if they are starting a renovation project, if they find anything unusual to please get in touch." He added: "These were found by the property owners when they were undertaking renovations of their barn. The Bishop was a good luck charm (Image: Lincolnshire County Council/Portable Antiquties Scheme)