Rebecca Beyer

Lecture & Workshop Host

LECTURE: Invisible Missiles: Herb Magic to Cure Elf Shot

Throughout the world there is a folk magical belief that unseen beings can fire wounding magical darts into an unsuspecting person, invisible to the naked eye. Strange pains and unexplained medical maladies are the result of an attack by these unseen darts. Plant charms were often just the thing to cure these strange and mysterious wounds. Through examining the Leechbooks of Anglo Saxon England and the later witchballs of the Appalachians mountains, practitioners of folk magic can find ways to utilize and guard against invisible attack in a modern folk magical context using often humble plants from just outside their doorstep.

WORKSHOP: Invisible Missile: Witch Bullets
2 HOUR INTENSIVE– space is limited to 20 participants

Witchbullets or witchballs are an Appalachian survival and adaptation of Anglo Saxon elf shot. Crafted from materia magica such as black horse hair, wax and plants with strong magical histories such as Henbane and ginseng, these hair balls or witchballs were used to both curse and counter curse in Appalachian folk magic. Using the traditional materials, craft your own witchball or protect your home, undo evils cast against you and learn the history of this delightfully strange practice.

$45 workshop add on fee
$5 materials fee

BIO: Rebecca Beyer is the woman behind the Blood and Spicebush School of Old Craft. She lives in the mountains of Western North Carolina, where she manages a homestead and teaches traditional witchcraft, foraging, and Appalachian folk medicine. She has a BS in Plant and Soil science from the University of Vermont and a Masters in Appalachian Studies and Sustainability, concentrating in Appalachian Ethnobotany at Appalachian State University. She is also a member of the Association of Foragers. She spends her days trying to learn what her ancestors did and finding ways to share traditional skills by living in line the Old Ways.

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