4093 – Humorous Poppet

Physical description:

A white fabric doll with ten white-headed pins, and writing in black on the doll indicating the various humorously unpleasant things the user can wish on their enemy. A label suggests fixing a photograph to the head. Boxed in a black and purple box.

Museum classification:

Curses

Size:

280 x 120 x 50

Information:

These dolls are popularly known as 'Voodoo' dolls, a word that seems intended to make them appear exotic, but in fact they are part of a tradition of British magic going back hundreds of years. Sticking pins into images was used for both love magic and cursing, with descriptions of how to perform the magic appearing in medieval books of magic and witch trial records. The images were often referred to as 'poppets', and were made of wax, clay or sometimes cloth (cloth images are mentioned in the records of the Salem trials in America).

Referring to them as 'Voodoo' dolls is comparatively recent. The word 'Voodoo' is derived from Vodou, the name of a spiritual belief system of the Caribbean, which spread to Louisiana and in particular New Orleans, where it is now known as Voodoo. Vodou has its origins in Shamanic African spiritual traditions, but is also influenced by Roman Catholicism.

Although image magic is sometimes used in Vodou, referring to dolls like this one as 'Voodoo dolls' is connected to the demonisation of Vodou by Europeans and Americans - a way of associating Vodou with using magic to curse people. This hostility towards Vodou was due to its association with resistance to slavery. In particular, Vodou played an important part in inspiring the successful slave revolt that liberated Haiti from French colonialists in 1804.

Resource:

Object

Materials:

Fabric, metal, card, plastic

These dolls are popularly known as 'Voodoo' dolls, a word that seems intended to make them appear exotic, but in fact they are part of a tradition of British magic going back hundreds of years. Sticking pins into images was used for both love magic and cursing, with descriptions of how to perform the magic appearing in medieval books of magic and witch trial records. The images were often referred to as 'poppets', and were made of wax, clay or sometimes cloth (cloth images are mentioned in the records of the Salem trials in America).

Referring to them as 'Voodoo' dolls is comparatively recent. The word 'Voodoo' is derived from Vodou, the name of a spiritual belief system of the Caribbean, which spread to Louisiana and in particular New Orleans, where it is now known as Voodoo. Vodou has its origins in Shamanic African spiritual traditions, but is also influenced by Roman Catholicism.

Although image magic is sometimes used in Vodou, referring to dolls like this one as 'Voodoo dolls' is connected to the demonisation of Vodou by Europeans and Americans - a way of associating Vodou with using magic to curse people. This hostility towards Vodou was due to its association with resistance to slavery. In particular, Vodou played an important part in inspiring the successful slave revolt that liberated Haiti from French colonialists in 1804.