1663 – Glass walking stick

Physical description:

Glass walking stick, made of bluish clear glass with a spiral twist.

Museum classification:

Protection

Size:

730 x 70 x 20

Information:

Glass Walking Sticks, Tubes and Rods.

The following is from Ithell Colquhoun, The Living Stones: Cornwall (Peter Owen: Great Yarmouth, 1957), p. 181

'In the West Country the "witch's stick", a rod with a crook-end made of glass from Nailsea near Bristol, is the equivalent of the magician's "wand of power."  Sometimes these rods were twisted, sometimes hollow and if so were filled with coloured threads or the tiny sweets called "hundreds and thousands."  The stick was suspended above the chimney-piece so that if an ill-disposed member of the craft entered the house he or she would be obsessively compelled to count the contents of the glass tube, and so dissipate the energy intended for magicking.  These sticks are called "medicine-rods" since disease "settled" upon them; but if carefully wiped each day they could be used as a cure-all.'

These items were often placed between a bed and fireplace. They were said to absorb the evil spirits that caused diseases especially ague (malaria). They should carefully be wiped clean each morning. Breaking your glass stick will surely attract misfortune.  (From information provided by the Glass Manufacturers Federation.)

 

Sometimes known as witch sticks.

Resource:

Object

Materials:

Glass

Copyright ownership:

Treetrunk Ltd

Glass Walking Sticks, Tubes and Rods.

The following is from Ithell Colquhoun, The Living Stones: Cornwall (Peter Owen: Great Yarmouth, 1957), p. 181

'In the West Country the "witch's stick", a rod with a crook-end made of glass from Nailsea near Bristol, is the equivalent of the magician's "wand of power."  Sometimes these rods were twisted, sometimes hollow and if so were filled with coloured threads or the tiny sweets called "hundreds and thousands."  The stick was suspended above the chimney-piece so that if an ill-disposed member of the craft entered the house he or she would be obsessively compelled to count the contents of the glass tube, and so dissipate the energy intended for magicking.  These sticks are called "medicine-rods" since disease "settled" upon them; but if carefully wiped each day they could be used as a cure-all.'

These items were often placed between a bed and fireplace. They were said to absorb the evil spirits that caused diseases especially ague (malaria). They should carefully be wiped clean each morning. Breaking your glass stick will surely attract misfortune.  (From information provided by the Glass Manufacturers Federation.)

 

Sometimes known as witch sticks.