The Museum of Witchcraft & Magic – Our First Visit
In this post, we recount our first visit to the Museum of Witchcraft and Magic in Boscastle, Cornwall. It was an unforgettable experience that deepened our understanding of witchcraft’s complex history, in particular, the persecution of British witches through the centuries.
Lorna x
As we’ve said elsewhere on this website, we just can’t get enough of Cornwall! We were married there in 2018 (during Storm Eleonor!) and our annual pilgrimage to Kernow (Cornish pronunciation) is still one of the high points of our year.
In 2023, we finally managed to include in our travels a place that had always been on our bucket list but had always been closed during our previous visits to Cornwall.. Namely, The Museum of Witchcraft & Magic.
Find Your Soul Path by celebrated Cornish witch, Emma Griffin is an insightful guide that blends spirituality with practical self-help. In this, her first book, Emma leads us on a journey of self-discovery, helping us align with our soul’s purpose. Beginning in the home, she expands outward with intuition and empowerment as core principles. Written in an easy-to-read style, Find Your Soul Path makes complex spiritual concepts accessible, offering practical tools for living authentically.
Driving a dodgy hire car that drove like it was on its last legs, we finally made it to the quaint little village of Boscastle on the north coast of Cornwall, where this small but facinating museum is situated. Without giving too much away (in case you want to visit yourself), here’s a taster of our day there..
Me meeting Joan Wytte, the museum’s resident Peller (a Cornish name for a cunning person). Joan died in Bodmin gaol in 1813 but was disinterred and later reburied in Boscastle, with the inscription: “Joan Wytte. Born 1775. Died 1813 in Bodmin Jail. Buried 1998. No longer abused”
A Book of Shadows, created over a number of years by Celia Penny, whose witch name was Francesca (sometimes Florranis). Celia was one of the last high priestesses of Wicca founder, Gerald Gardner.
A sobering list of the thousand or so British people (mostly women) who died, through imprisonment or execution, after being accused of practicing witchcraft.
We could happily have spent all day at the Museum of Witchcraft & Magic. There was so much to see and take in and we were thankful that taking photos was allowed (so we could peruse over our pics back at our digs in Falmouth).
In our opinion, you won’t be disappointed by a visit to the M of WM and we would encourage buying something from the giftshop to help support the running of this brilliant place (we bought a lovely clay Cernunnos figure).
We also defo recommend buying the handbook, which is a fascinating history of the museum and all things witchy!
