The Witch Cult in Western Europe: A Study in Anthropology - Softcover

Murray, Margaret Alice

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1463523106 ISBN 13: 9781463523107

Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2011

Synopsis

Margaret Alice Murray (13 July 1863 - 13 November 1963) was a prominent British Egyptologist and anthropologist. Primarily known for her work in Egyptology, which was "the core of her academic career," she is also known for her propagation of the Witch-cult hypothesis, the theory that the witch trials in the Early Modern period of Christianized Europe and North America were an attempt to extinguish a surviving pre-Christian, pagan religion devoted to a Horned God. Whilst this theory is today widely disputed and discredited by historians like Norman Cohn, Keith Thomas and Ronald Hutton, it has had a significant effect in the origins of Neopagan religions, primarily Wicca, a faith she supported. Her work in Egyptology took place largely alongside her mentor and friend, the archaeologist Sir Flinders Petrie, whom she worked alongside at University College London. One of the earliest women to "make a serious impact upon the world of professional scholarship," she was also an ardent feminist, being actively involved in the Suffragette movement. From 1953 through to 1955, she was the president of the Folklore Society, although since her death various members of the society have attempted to disassociate the organization from her and the Murrayite theory of the Witch-Cult.

About this title

About the Author:

Margaret Alice Murray (13 July 1863 – 13 November 1963) was a prominent British Egyptologist and anthropologist. She is primarily known for her work in Egyptology, which was "the core of her academic career"; she was one of the first women to practice archaeology and the first woman to publicly unwrap a mummy. She is also known for her propagation of the Witch-cult hypothesis, the theory that the witch trials in the Early Modern period of Christianized Europe and North America were an attempt to extinguish a surviving pre-Christian, pagan religion devoted to a Horned God. Whilst this theory is today widely disputed and discredited by historians like Norman Cohn, Keith Thomas and Ronald Hutton, it has had a significant effect in the origins of Neopagan religions, primarily Wicca, a faith she supported.

About this edition

• Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 1463523106
• ISBN 13: 9781463523107
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 250