Witches Part 2 - the Cliches

There are a lot of myths that surround the Halloween version of witches. For example, Halloween witches ride on brooms, wear pointy hats, are ugly, old, and have familiars. Long crooked fingers, warts, and wearing only black and carrying wands are other clichés.
But where to they come from?

The Broom - originally the pagans used staffs in their rituals, especially in their dances on the full moon. But with the influx of Christianity they had to hide their staffs to protect themselves. The broom is a common household object and an easy place to hide a staff. The thing was, when they went leaping about in the night on some of their dances, seen at a distance it looked like they were flying on the brooms. Thus, the myth.

The Pointed Hat - this is a funny one because medieval witches were originally depicted as bare headed and naked. No hat. According to a Slate article, "It wasn’t until the 1710s and 1720s that children’s chapbooks in England began illustrating supernatural tales with crones in peaked hats." So, it is possible it came out of one artist's rendition and it just stuck.
 
The Green-faced and Ugly Witch - according to a vlog the green-faced witch actually started with the movie The Wizard of Oz. But ugly witches are a throwback from the trio of witches: the mother, the crone, and the maiden archetype. This archetype is present in the legends of King Arthur, though a trio of crones often shows up in Greek Mythology and Macbeth. Mostly people remember the crone, though the seductress 'maiden' pops up now and again. This archetype is common in neo-paganism as the Triple Goddess. It also shows up in Terry Pratchett novels.

Black Cats - this actually comes from the idea that witches have animal familiars that help

them. According to some, they come from the devil. According to other sources, the familiars are of faerie origin. Some believe that the black cats are the witches themselves. Cats all over the world have been seen as omens of good and bad luck.

Wands - Honestly, I never associated witches with wands at all. Faerie Godmothers, maybe. Harry Potter witches, sure. But the traditional witches, nope. So, for the record, I'm not sure who invented the whole wand thing.

Next blog, famous TV and movie witches.