German Superstition in the 18th and 19th Centuries:
A Fusion of Folklore and Magic in the Face of Fear
These days, we don’t often worry about making ourselves invisible to demons, or wonder how to ward off the “evil eye.” We’re more likely concerned with global warming and finding a good off-base vet. If we lived in Germany three hundred years ago, however, our priorities would have been very different.
In the 1700’s, Europe was still reeling from the disastrous effects of the black plague that decimated one-third of the population. Scientists and clergy were rendered helpless in the face of such inexplicable devastation. In a world where prayer seemed futile and science was a fledgling art, people turned to homemade quasi-religious talismans as a balm for their fears.
The use of protective talismans flourished in the cities of Heidelberg, Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Stuttgart, Baden-Baden, Mannheim, and Karlsruhe. It isn’t surprising that superstition would be so heavily concentrated in the Baden-Württemberg region of Germany, home of the Brothers Grimm. The region was heavily steeped in a rich folkloric heritage rife with fictitious beasts, witches, and goblins.
At the Criminal Justice Museum in Rothenburg ob der Tauber, visitors can view the distinctive amulets worn by townspeople in the 18th and 19th centuries. These meticulously crafted curios are called “breverl,” meaning “little letter” in German. Breverl offered a magic shield against vulnerability in an era when many people still believed in witches and the potency of the evil eye.
The Museum der Kulturen of Basel explains that breverl are “a kind of spiritual writ of protection. This conglomerate amulet was either worn like a necklace, fixed to a belt, attached to a rosary or sewn into a piece of clothing. It contained a mixture of magical and religious symbols and objects derived from European 'animism' or from Christian folk beliefs.”
When a breverl is unfolded, a miniature altar of sorts is exposed—a collage-like assemblage of holy/magical symbols and miniature printed pictures of Mother Mary and Jesus, usually acquired at the site of a holy pilgrimage. Also glued inside the breverl are numerous fetishistic objects or materials such as clay (from a spiritual place), the hair of loved ones, metal foil, herbs, chips of saints’ bones, a piece of red cloth or paper, and coral.
Gold foil was included as a blanket protection from all evils, silver foil was specifically used as a safeguard against poison, red paper or fabric was used for protection against evil, and a dried, pressed cutting of fern was believed to make one invisible to demons!
Humans have always been compelled to explain the world through mythology, religion, and science. These explanations, however erroneous, have made mankind feel safe in an unpredictable world. Stories give us something to believe in and make us feel as though we have control over fate.
Even today, in our modern world, we grapple with the same existential questions our forebears puzzled over. We try to make sense of things in the midst of war, honor killings, and cloning, while cutting-edge technology and scientific discoveries perpetually remodel old paradigms. Who’s to say that our beliefs won’t seem silly three hundred years from now?
The next time you bring visitors to a local castle, why not tell them about the fascinating history of the breverl and its palliative effects on mankind’s fears over the years? They’re bound to snip a little piece of fern on the castle grounds as a poetic reminder of humanity’s perennial struggle for survival.
