The Nameless Arte – Aspects of Traditional Witchcraft in Britain

The Nameless Arte

Introduction 

The 2nd September 2017 was a special day for two reasons. First, it was the OP’S birthday and second was the first, hopefully not last, Traditional Witchcraft Occult Conference celebrating the Nameless Arte, a phase coined by Nigel Pennick to describe the traditional witchcraft of Essex and East Anglia. The day was organised to celebrate the rich folklore, tradition and practice of the southern counties which may begin the question why was a northerner like myself attending in the first place.

Well for starters it was an epic road trip with friend; good food and good company all round. Travelling gave me the opportunity to socialise and make new friends in the wider community as well. Secondly, it never hurts to learn about folklore outside of your own immediate area. Survival varies and sometimes it is possible, even necessary, to look at similarities and build up from there. Finally; learning about lived experience and practice helps put my own process in to context. As was mentioned at the conference, we are now more connected than ever and there is no need for us to be little mushrooms under our own personal rocks. Let’s get out, share thoughts and see all Witchcraft practices grow and become more relevant in our modern lives.

Speakers

Master of Ceremonies

Andrew Collins is an author and explorer living who’s books challenge the way we perceive history as it is given in the mainstream. Amongst his notable publications are Ashes to Angels, a discourse on the Watchers and the Bible, and the Cygnus Mysteries.

Andrew gave an interesting introduction to the day by recounting the experience of an Italian friend interested in learning more about Witchcraft. The moral of the story – witchcraft is not something you can learn in a weekend, or can be denoted by the receipt of a certificate. It is an experienced process which occurs by working with the land and the forces that stalk it.

Andrew is very right in this assessment. Too many people, once upon a time myself included, think that they can read a book and suddenly they know it all and can do it all. All too soon it comes crashing down around people’s ears because they wade far too deep into the deep end with no understanding of the basics… but that is another conversation. Andrew’s caution that whilst we would learn much that day it wasn’t our attendance that made us witches but our practice.

Michael Clarke – Traditional Witchcraft as a Way of Life

The first speaker of the day was Michael Clarke; practitioner of the Nameless Arte and Toadman. Michael gave us insight into his own experience of traditional and folkloric practices in the rural lands of Essex, describing the Horsemen and other agricultural fraternities. He also described the infamous Toad Bone ritual to use, warning that with great power comes a great deal of trouble and strife, as any pact with Old Hornie might.

Michael’s wide ranging experience with the Craft in Essex was reflected in the wide range of subjects covered, which probably represented just a fraction of what he wanted to cover on the day. Speakers were strictly kept to 45 mins, with enough of a break in between speakers to make it possible digest and discuss subjects (and shop of course). Three quarters of an hour may not seem like much but it amazing what can get packed in by a good speaker.

Martin Duffy – Graven Image – the crafting and Manipulation of Effigies in British Witchcraft

Britain had a rich practice of image  magic from which to draw from and one really only need to visit at the Museum of Witchcraft in Boscastle to see the breath of method and materials used. Failing that, a wonderfully illustrated and comprehensive talk by Martin Duffy can bring the Museum to you. Martin’s talk, which discussed the materials, magical procedures and methods of deployment as well as the potential uses of poppets, was brought to life through the inclusion of photos from the museums archives.

I love poppets, but I particularly liked the knitted woman dressed in an WWII RAF uniform. Whoever the doll represented the maker went to great lengths to create her doppelganger. The talk was based on Martin’s new book Effigy: Graven Image and Holy Idol which, despite my long standing rule the shipping shouldn’t exceed the item, may mean I will be paying to ship a book from the States.

Richard Ward – Between God and the Devil – The origins, history, evolution and preservation of folk magic in rural Essex

This talk was divided in to two parts.  Firstly Richard discussed the blurred lines between Christianity and Paganism in the rural practices of Essex and how the concepts of God and the Devil were not as clear cut as we perceive today. The Devil was close, and the Arte of appeasing him a fine and noble one, just a few steps removed from making parts and controlling Him. Richard discussed his own family background within the Roma tradition as well as practical such as maintaining a plot of land dedicated to the Devil to ensure the productivity of the rest of the farm.

The second part concerned about gentleman know as Cunning Murrell.  Perhaps not as well known as George Pickingill, a name became synonymous with the pelars of Essex, Murrell’s existence and connections in the landscape are clear in the literature of Edwardian folklorists. Pickingill on the other hand burst on to the scene some time after his death, being dragged from the memories of people who lived in the area. The so called Pickingill Papers have recently been called into question and given that many of the attributes and feats accorded to him were first attributed to Murrell in contemporary sources it is likely that the identity of Pickingill as Cunningman extraordinaire is a later fabrication. This opinion may be unpopular for many, but compelling when presented with evidence of both men in comparison.

Andrew Mercer – The Wicked Shall Decay – Charms, Spells and Incantations of Rural Britain

Andy is a member of the Folklore Society and as a native of Essex has a keen interest in the magical practices of the area so it was nice to find out that his new book “The Wicked Shall Decay” looks beyond the southern counties and into the north. Included in Andy’s talk was reference to a charm/spell from the north riding of Yorkshire, a mere stones thrown from myself in the West Riding. Andy stumbled a bit with the rhyme, having a soft southern accent there were elements of dialect he just couldn’t wrap his tongue around. It is hard to believe that prior to increased mobility both for information and labour the difference in language from one end of the country was very marked. Even now it is possible to find pockets of dialects which sound like entirely different languages, far closer to the old English and Norse from which the dialect emerged. 

 

As one might expect, many of the spells and charms were concerned with cursing, either causing or averting them, as well as finding and creating love where it may not have been before. Modern practice hasn’t really travelled too far from these core concepts if truth be told, and the preoccupation remains strong amongst people first approaching the craft. It can be hard to see the wood for the trees but there are some useful lessons to be found in referencing and may be even adapting these older examples into our modern practice, even if it only to keep them alive in our own traditions going forward. Andy’s book is currently available on Amazon for pre-order and is definitely something I will be adding to my shelf when the time comes.

Gemma Gary – Cornwall and the Modern Traditional Craft

The final talk of the day was delivered by Cornish Witch Gemma Gary. Gemma is well known in the Trad Craft community as the owner of Troy Books publishing house as well as a most prolific author on the subject on folk magic and traditions of Cornwall. One particularly defining book is Traditional Witchcraft – A Cornish Book of Ways, which will be celebrating its 10th year in print in 2018, and Gemma used her talk to revisit the book and its subject in light of the conference. Whilst being centred on Gemma’s own experience of the Craft community, including the various working groups and covens she has engaged with over the years, Traditional Witchcraft was written in such a way that it has gone on to influence a large number of independent traditional covens and  solitary witches up and down the country. As well as giving an overview of the book itself Gemma read passages and used them to illustrate her experiences over the years, helping the listener understand not only the context and content of the book but also how it truly represents a lived tradition.

Panel and Excursion

The day of talks closed with a panel consisting of all the speakers. Amongst the usually questions for clarity or to reinforce concepts and ideas with personal experience was one particularly profound and pertinent questions on which the day was closed. What is the future of Traditional Witchcraft? My thoughts align very closely with the sentiments expressed by the speakers on the day; Traditional craft practices are, by their nature, an exercise in looking back at the sources and references we have and finding a way to incorporate them into our own practices. By doing so we are inevitably drawing the past into the present, blending our own traditional practices for future generations. They will, as one might expect, have far more information to draw on that we do currently but even as they read our material and the inspirations behind it they will bring their own changes and inspirations. Traditional Witchcraft is a lived and living tradition, changing and evolving to meet the times. It is a practice of working with the land and the spirits of the dead, how we work with them reflects our own time and place it is the very fact we work with which makes our craft Traditional.

The entire event was followed by an excursion, lead by Richard Ward, around the sites and places associated with Cunning Murrell. Unfortunately I was flagging by this point, as were others in my party so we bid our farewells this point. It would have been nice to meet up with the people a few hours later at a pub for drinks and to digest some good food and interesting information but we weren’t clear on where the excursion would end so we settled on Taco’s and Tequila instead. Very yum.

Photo’s © Victoria Newton