Superstition Collection

Judaism. Divine protection. Amulets. Jewish Museum Berlin. G
Judaism. Divine protection. Amulets. Often consisted of scrolls written in Hebrew and the texts were combined with motifs geom?tircos or magical figures

4-Leaf Clover - Barde
Clover plant with several four-leaf clusters

Los Caprichos by Francisco de Goya (1746-1828)
Francisco de Goya (1746-1828). Spanish painter and printmaker. Los Caprichos. Lo que puede un sastre! (What can a tailor!). Number 52. Aquatint. 1799. Reproduction by M. Segui i Riera

Witches Sabbath by Francisco de Goya
Francisco de Goya (1746-1828). Spanish romantic painter. Witches Sabbath, 1821-1823. Detail. Prado Museum. Madrid. Spain

Superstitions
An interesting instance of the popular aversion to walking under a ladder. A group of superstitious pedestrians find themselves in a bit of a scrum as they attempt to squeeze through the smallest gap

Those Superstitions by Bairnsfather
Those Superstitions Private Sandy McNab cheers the assembly by pointing out (with the aid of his pocket almanac) that it is Friday the 13th

Pulling the Wishbone
Pulling a wishbone to see who will come away with the larger part and the corresponding wish

East End Woman scared of dog making her to walk under ladder
" You never know you Luck." " Hi! Come back, yer Silly! Do yer want to spile yer Luck?" Date: 1892

Boy and Clover - 1
A boy walks through the snow carrying a very large four- leaved clover Date: 1910

Miss Modern magazine fortune teller
Front cover of Miss Modern magazine for November 1931, featuring a young gipsy fortune teller with a crystal ball (and the free gipsy ring, found FREE inside the magazine!). Date: 1931

Eddie Merton, superstitious stuntman, who always slept in a coffin on the night before a dangerous stunt. Seen here sitting up in the coffin in his hotel bedroom for his morning cup of tea. Date: 1971

Quaker's group hanging a dog condemned by warlock. Engraving
New England (Massachusetts). 17th century. Quaker's group hanging a dog condemned by warlock. Engraving, 1807

A meteor over the Sinai Desert is interpreted by the Arabs as the herald of important events in the Red Sea area Date
A meteor over the Sinai Desert is interpreted by the Arabs as the herald of important events in the Red Sea area... Date: July 1935

The racemose Passionflower, Religious superstition
The racemose Passionflower, Passiflora racemosa, Religious superstition. Handcoloured lithograph by Dean and Munday after an illustration by Eliza Eve Gleadall from The Beauties of Flora

Tartar Woman making a Tsi, sacrificing the spirit of the door to prevent misfortune entering. Buddhist or Fo sect, Lao-Kiun

DEVIL ATTACKS SHIP, C15
A devil attacks a merchant ship in a storm while God watches from above Date: 15th Century

HOGARTH / CREDULITY
Credulity, Superstition and Fanaticism Date: 1762

Hamsa painted hands, Nefta, Tunisia
Hamsa painted hand signs on a house door to keep out evil and afford protection, Nefta, Tunisia Date: 1987

Dinner Party with Thirteen People
THIRTEEN AT TABLE - the hostesss ultimate nightmare ! Date: 1925

For Good Luck by William Heath Robinson
Training black cats to enter the front door at the stroke of twelve on New Years Eve. A contraption to encourage a New Year tradition imagined by the cartoonist William Heath Robinson. Date: 1919

In Marble Halls - Jobbing actors chatting in a theatre bar
" In Marble Halls" - Jobbing actors standing in a theatre bar discussing their fortune, both successful and not

Big Stone - Cloughmore, Co. Down, Northern Ireland
The Big Stone - Cloughmore, Rostrevor, County Down, Northern Ireland. This 30-ton granite boulder perches on the slopes of Slieve Meen, 1000 ft above the village of Rostrevor

Trees in Superstition and Legend by Pauline Baynes
Illustration by Pauline Baynes depicting the various trees of legends and superstition

Kissing the Blarney Stone, Ireland
Kissing the Blarney Stone, Blarney Castle near Cork, Ireland. Date: late 19th century

Eddie Merton, superstitious stuntman, who always slept in a coffin on the night before a dangerous stunt. Seen here with a suitcase, helping to carry the coffin into his hotel. Date: 1971

At fortune tellers house. Engraving. Colored
At fortune tellers house. Engraving by Walla. L Illustration, 1885. Colored

Superstition / Throw Salt
If you spill some salt you must throw it over your left shoulder or else you will have bad luck Date: 1960s

Girl and Horseshoe
A girl stands in the snow holding a giant horseshoe to wish you a good New Year Date: circa 1905

Astrology & Superstition
ASTROLOGIA E SUPERSTIZIONE astrology admired, superstition scorned Date: 18th century

Leap-Year Monster
In Berry, central France, there is a monster who you should try not to see during Leap Year - for if you do, its sure to bring you bad luck Date: 1855

A bride getting ready for her wedding day. A page relating various wedding lore, including that a bride should put on her gloves with her back turned to the mirror. Date: c. 1912

Two diners pull a wishbone rather too energetically much to the amazement (or annoyance) of their waitress. Chicken, plates

Superstition - Ladders
Is walking under a ladder really bad luck? These London pedestrians seem to think! Date: early 1930s

Walking under a Ladder
Is walking under a ladder really bad luck? These pedestrians think so, doing their best to avoid a ladder! Date: early 1930s

Eastern Russia - Transbaikalia - Tsam ceremony
Eastern Russia - Transbaikalia - Buddhist Tsam ceremony amongst the Buryat People to exorcise evil which consisted of a series of masked dances and often had a narrative content

Fortune teller. Engraving. FRANCE. Paris. Mus饠;

Book of the Good and Bad luck (15th c. )
Book of the Good and Bad luck (15th c.)

LCC-LFB Vauxhall fire station, Lambeth SE1
Vauxhall fire station was built by the London County Council in the last year of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade, before the name was changed to the London Fire Brigade

Superstition has always ruled the world

Hoyts comic whirlwind, A brass monkey a satire on superstition. Date c1900

Washing in Dew
The fair maid who, the first of May, goes to the fields at break of day, and washes in dew from the hawthorn tree, will ever after handsome be

Lucky Horseshoe on Door
A horseshoe is nailed to a farm door to keep away the devil or any other evil threat Date: 1922

Boy and Clover - 2
A boy stands in the snow holding a very large four- leaved clover Date: 1910

Arrows against Storms
The Gauls fire arrows into stormclouds to drive them away - an idea which is not quite so ridiculous as it sounds. Date: 1st century

Four-Leaf Clover
The four leaves of this clover each carry a romantic picture representing happiness... Date: circa 1910

Child & Horseshoe
Girl with a horseshoe to wish a Good Year - a few months later World War One began... Date: 1914

Woe Betide or Good Luck to You by Pauline Baynes
A page of superstitions painted in intricate detail specially for Holly Leaves by Pauline Baynes. The key to the illustration is on p.46 of the issue

The Humorist Christmas Number
Two diners pull a wishbone rather too energetically much to the amazement (or annoyance) of their waitress. Chicken, plates

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