✦
This is a working document, updated as research continues. Each card in the Cunning Folk Cards deck is listed here with its historical basis and the published sources that support it. Cards flagged for replacement are marked in red. The intention is that every card in the final deck will carry a verifiable historical source — making this as much a research project as an interactive experience.
Key Sources
The following works are cited throughout. Full details are given here; subsequent references use author and short title only.
- Davies, Owen. Popular Magic: Cunning-folk in English History. London: Hambledon Continuum, 2003.
- Wilby, Emma. Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits. Brighton: Sussex Academic Press, 2005.
- Thomas, Keith. Religion and the Decline of Magic. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1971.
- Baker, Jim. The Cunning Man’s Handbook. London: Avalonia, 2014.
- Stanmore, Tabitha. Cunning Folk: Life in the Era of Practical Magic. London: Bloomsbury, 2024.
- Hoggard, Brian. Magical House Protection: The Archaeology of Counter-Witchcraft. New York: Berghahn, 2019.
- Merrifield, Ralph. The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic. London: Batsford, 1987.
- Hole, Christina. English Folk-lore. London: Batsford, 1940.
- Opie, Iona and Moira Tatem. A Dictionary of Superstitions. Oxford: OUP, 1989.
- Swainson, Charles. The Folk Lore and Provincial Names of British Birds. London: Folklore Society, 1885.
- Armstrong, Edward A. The Folklore of Birds. London: Collins, 1958.
- Vickery, Roy. A Dictionary of Plant-lore. Oxford: OUP, 1995.
- Honeybell, Fae. ‘Cunning Folk and Wizards in Early Modern England.’ University of Warwick dissertation, 2014.
- Ewen, C. L’Estrange. Witch Hunting and Witch Trials. London: Kegan Paul, 1929.
Mending ♥ — The Healing Arts
Ace through King of Hearts. The healing and remedial practice of the cunning folk.
Ace of Hearts — The Cauldron
Historical BasisIron vessels used for brewing remedies and charm-waters over the household hearth.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 3 — herbal preparations and the material culture of cunning folk practice.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk, ch. 2 — domestic setting of cunning folk work and hearth-based preparations.
The cauldron as a specific cunning folk object is more folkloric than precisely documented. The hearth context and brewing of remedies is well evidenced.
2 of Hearts — The Pestle and Mortar
Historical BasisStone grinding tools used to prepare herbs, simples, and powders for medicinal and magical use.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 3 — herbal medicine as a core cunning folk service.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk — the overlap between herbalism and magical practice.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 7 — herbal practice within popular medicine.
Universally documented across the literature. No specific caveats.
3 of Hearts — The Abracadabra Charm
Historical BasisA written charm in diminishing triangular form, worn or carried to reduce illness as the letters diminished.
Sources
- Honeybell dissertation — reproduces the triangular Abracadabra charm as a documented cunning folk written charm.
- Quintus Serenus Sammonicus, Liber Medicinalis, 3rd century AD — earliest documented source prescribing the diminishing triangle form.
- British Library Royal MS 12 E XXIII, f. 20r — 13th-century copy prescribing Abracadabra as a remedy.
- Daniel Defoe — records Londoners posting the charm on doorways during the Great Plague of London (1665).
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — includes the Abracadabra charm among documented written charms.
Exceptionally well documented from Roman antiquity through the early modern period.
4 of Hearts — The Lodestone
Historical BasisA naturally magnetic iron ore used to attract desired outcomes and draw out illness, working on sympathetic principles.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic — lodestones as objects used in cunning folk practice.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — sympathetic magic and naturally occurring objects with unusual properties.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — lodestones among documented magical materia.
Well documented in the broader magical literature. The attraction use is more strongly evidenced than the healing use.
5 of Hearts — The Needle
Historical BasisNeedles found in concealed deposits alongside witch bottles, poppets, and pierced hearts — used to fix workings in place.
Sources
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — needle deposits as part of the counter-witchcraft archaeological record.
- Davies, Popular Magic — material culture of cunning folk workings.
- Manning, C. R. ‘On the Concealment of Charms in Buildings.’ Norfolk Archaeology 7 (1872).
6 of Hearts — The Measuring Cord
Historical BasisA length of knotted cord used to measure the body against previous readings, tracking recovery or deterioration in healing practice.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 3 — measuring as a diagnostic technique in cunning folk healing.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — measurement charms in the context of popular healing.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — cord measurement among documented healing techniques.
7 of Hearts — The Holy Well
Historical BasisSacred springs and wells whose waters were believed to carry healing virtue. Well veneration persisted throughout the early modern period despite Reformation attempts to suppress it.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — holy wells as sites of popular healing belief.
- Davies, Popular Magic — well water in the context of cunning folk healing preparations.
- Rattue, James. The Living Stream: Holy Wells in Historical Context. Woodbridge: Boydell, 1995.
The connection to cunning folk specifically is slightly indirect — holy wells predate and exceed the tradition — but the use of well water in healing is genuine.
8 of Hearts — The Bent Sixpence
Historical BasisA silver coin bent deliberately and given as a protective charm. The bending transformed the coin from currency into a magical object.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic — bent coins as one of the most common cunning folk charms.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — bent silver coins in protective charms.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk — bent coins among documented charm objects.
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — archaeological evidence for bent coins in concealed deposits.
One of the most thoroughly documented cunning folk charms. Archaeological and documentary evidence both strong.
9 of Hearts — The Warm Hearth
Historical BasisThe hearthfire as the living centre of the household, never allowed to go out. Letting it die was widely believed to invite misfortune.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — hearth beliefs in household protective practice.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk — domestic setting of folk belief including hearth customs.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — hearth beliefs in English popular tradition.
Well documented in English folk belief broadly. Note: possible thematic overlap with The Salt on domestic protection — under review.
10 of Hearts — The Bundle of Herbs
Historical BasisDried herbs tied and hung — completed remedies kept as protection or stored for future use.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 3 — herbal remedies as a core cunning folk service.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk — herb preparation and storage.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 7 — herbal practice in popular medicine.
Jack of Hearts — The Robin
Historical BasisThe robin was associated with the dead in English folk tradition. To kill one brought lasting misfortune. The bird was understood as a messenger between the living and the dead.
Sources
- Swainson, Folk Lore and Provincial Names of British Birds — robin associations with the dead in English tradition.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — the belief that killing a robin brings misfortune.
- Armstrong, The Folklore of Birds — comprehensive survey including robin beliefs.
The gardener’s friend association is real and widely known. The death/messenger association is documented but less prominent than for some other birds.
Queen of Hearts — The Cow
Historical BasisThe household cow as the primary source of milk, butter, and economic survival. Protection of livestock from bewitchment was one of the most common reasons people consulted cunning folk.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 2 — livestock protection as a core cunning folk service; the most common single reason for consultation.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 17 — livestock bewitchment in popular belief.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk — multiple cases of cunning folk consulted about bewitched cows.
The cow is arguably the single most important animal in the cunning folk’s client base.
King of Hearts — The Toad
Historical BasisThe toad was a powerful figure in cunning folk practice, most notably in the Toadman’s rite — a ritual using toad bones to gain mastery over horses and men. Documented particularly in East Anglian tradition.
Sources
- Wilby, Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits — the toad as a familiar spirit in cunning folk and witch trial records.
- Davies, Popular Magic — the toad in the context of cunning folk familiars.
- Evans, George Ewart. The Pattern Under the Plough. London: Faber, 1966 — the Toadman’s rite in East Anglian oral tradition.
- Maple, Eric. The Dark World of Witches. London: Robert Hale, 1962 — toad bones in cunning folk practice.
One of the strongest cards in the deck.
Knowing ♦ — Divination & Sight
Ace through King of Diamonds. The divinatory and sight-based practices of the cunning folk.
Ace of Diamonds — The Hag Stone
Historical BasisA stone with a natural hole through it, hung at the threshold or held to the eye to see past glamour and illusion.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic — hag stones as protective and divinatory objects.
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — archaeological evidence for hag stones in threshold deposits.
- Merrifield, The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic — hag stone use across England.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — threshold and divinatory uses.
One of the best documented objects in the entire deck.
2 of Diamonds — The Pendulum
Flagged for replacement. The pendulum as a divination tool is primarily a 19th and 20th century practice, post-dating the cunning folk period. The description reflects modern ideomotor theory rather than period belief.
3 of Diamonds — The Divining Rod
Historical BasisA forked hazel branch used to locate hidden water, metal, lost objects, and thieves. Documented in England from the 16th century.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — dowsing in the context of popular magic and its uses beyond water-finding.
- Davies, Popular Magic — divining rods in cunning folk practice.
- Barrett, W. F. and Besterman, T. The Divining Rod. London: Methuen, 1926 — comprehensive historical survey.
The use for finding lost objects and thieves as well as water is specifically attested in the cunning folk literature.
4 of Diamonds — The Sieve and Shears
Historical BasisA sieve balanced on open shears, turned by the speaking of names to identify a thief or wrongdoer. One of the most thoroughly documented cunning folk divination techniques.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 4 — the sieve and shears as a standard cunning folk technique.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — multiple documented cases.
- Scot, Reginald. The Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584) — early primary source.
Primary source documentation from the 16th century. One of the strongest cards in the deck.
5 of Diamonds — The Unexpected Letter
Flagged for replacement. No documented cunning folk practice of reading unsolicited correspondence as omen has been found in the academic literature.
6 of Diamonds — The Scrying Bowl
Historical BasisA dark bowl filled with water or ink, used for visual divination.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — crystal gazing and related scrying practices.
- Davies, Popular Magic — scrying vessels in cunning folk divination.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — bowl scrying among documented techniques.
7 of Diamonds — The Bible and Key
Historical BasisA door key suspended within a Bible at a chosen verse, turned by the speaking of a name to reveal truth or guilt.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 4 — extensive discussion as a standard cunning folk divination technique.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — multiple cases across England and Scotland.
- Primary source: Agnes Urquhart (Scotland, 1724) — “confessed herself guilty of charming by making use of the Bible and key for finding out things that were stolen, which she has done frequently, and also taught her daughter the said art.”
Primary source documentation. One of the best evidenced cards in the deck.
8 of Diamonds — The Casting Lots
Historical BasisSmall marked objects — bones, stones, or sticks — thrown and read where they fell to determine fate or identify wrongdoers.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — casting lots in popular divination.
- Davies, Popular Magic — lot-casting among cunning folk techniques.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — documents the practice.
9 of Diamonds — The Candle
Historical BasisTallow or beeswax candles used in divination practice. Flame behaviour, smoke direction, and wax drippings were all read as signs.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — candle divination in popular practice.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — candle use in cunning folk workings.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — candle divination customs.
The divination use is somewhat less specifically documented than the charm-working use.
10 of Diamonds — The Cunning Folk Chest
Flagged for replacement. No documented evidence that cunning folk kept a specific locked chest of tools. A compelling image but essentially invented.
Jack of Diamonds — The Bee
Historical BasisBees were told of all significant household events in English folk tradition. They were believed to carry news between the living and the dead, and to leave if not informed.
Sources
- Hole, English Folk-lore — ‘telling the bees’ as a widespread English custom.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — bee beliefs in popular tradition.
- Ransome, Hilda M. The Sacred Bee in Ancient Times and Folklore. London: George Allen & Unwin, 1937.
One of the most thoroughly documented English folk customs in the deck.
Queen of Diamonds — The Cat
Historical BasisThe cat appears throughout witch trial records as a familiar spirit, and in household folk belief as a creature that perceives what humans cannot.
Sources
- Wilby, Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits — animal familiars in witch trial records, cats prominently featured.
- Davies, Popular Magic — familiar spirits including cats.
- Ewen, Witch Hunting and Witch Trials — primary source compilation including multiple cat familiar cases.
The description correctly attributes the cat primarily to witch trial records rather than cunning folk specifically.
King of Diamonds — The Hare
Historical BasisThe hare was the most charged animal in English folk tradition — associated with witches, shapeshifting, and the uncanny.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 17 — hare beliefs in the context of witchcraft.
- Davies, Popular Magic — hares in the context of witch belief.
- Cooper, Q. and Sullivan, P. Maypoles, Martyrs and Mayhem. London: Bloomsbury, 1994 — hare beliefs in English folk custom.
Keeping ♣ — Protection & Ward
Ace through King of Clubs. The protective and warding practices of the cunning folk.
Ace of Clubs — The Salt
Historical BasisSalt laid at thresholds, windowsills, and around beds as a barrier against malevolent forces.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — salt as an apotropaic substance.
- Davies, Popular Magic — salt in protective practice.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — salt customs extensively documented.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — comprehensive documentation of salt beliefs.
Note: possible thematic overlap with The Churchyard Dirt and The Warm Hearth on domestic/threshold protection — under review.
2 of Clubs — The Coral and Bells
Historical BasisA child’s teething coral hung with silver bells, worn to ward off the evil eye and protect infants.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic — protective charms for children including coral.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — evil eye belief and child protection.
- Egan, Geoff. The Medieval Household. London: HMSO, 1998 — archaeological evidence for coral and bell objects.
- Multiple Tudor and Stuart portraits show children wearing coral and bell rattles — documentary visual evidence.
One of the best documented cards in the deck. Both archaeological and portrait evidence.
3 of Clubs — The Rowan Cross
Historical BasisTwo rowan twigs bound with red thread into a cross, hung above doors and in byres to protect against witchcraft. The red thread is a specifically attested detail.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — rowan in protective practice.
- Davies, Popular Magic — rowan crosses in English and Scottish protective tradition.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — rowan cross customs.
- Vickery, A Dictionary of Plant-lore — comprehensive documentation of rowan beliefs.
4 of Clubs — The Protective Lintel
Historical BasisApotropaic marks cut or scratched into lintels and doorposts — daisy wheels, hexfoils, VV marks — to protect the household. Documented archaeologically across England.
Sources
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — comprehensive survey of apotropaic marks including lintel markings.
- Easton, Timothy. ‘Ritual Marks on Historic Timber.’ Weald and Downland Open Air Museum Guidebook, 1999.
- Merrifield, The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic — early documentation of protective marks.
5 of Clubs — The Blackthorn
Historical BasisThe blackthorn was the cursing tree of English folk tradition, its thorns used to pierce poppets and fix malevolent workings in place.
Sources
- Vickery, A Dictionary of Plant-lore — blackthorn in English folk tradition.
- Davies, Popular Magic — thorns in offensive workings.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — blackthorn customs and beliefs.
6 of Clubs — The Mirror
Historical BasisPlaced facing an entrance, a mirror was believed to return whatever approached it, sending ill-wishing back to its source.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — mirror use in the broader context of popular magic.
- Davies, Popular Magic — mirror use in protective practice.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — mirror beliefs in English tradition.
The English cunning folk evidence is thinner than for some other cards. The practice is real but the specific attribution to cunning folk rather than general folk belief needs care.
7 of Clubs — The Psalm
Historical BasisPsalm verses written, spoken, or sewn into clothing as charms. Divine words carrying their own authority against harm.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 3 — written psalm charms as a core cunning folk technique.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — psalm use in protective charms.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — psalm charms with specific examples.
- Honeybell dissertation — written charms including psalm verses from documented cases.
Among the most thoroughly documented practices in the English cunning folk literature.
8 of Clubs — The Besom
Historical BasisA broom of bound birch twigs, swept outward across the threshold to drive out ill-will and what had gathered in the house.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — ritual sweeping in popular belief.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — besom customs in English tradition.
- Davies, Popular Magic — sweeping in protective and cleansing practice.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — broom beliefs.
9 of Clubs — The Witch Bottle
Historical BasisA bottle filled with urine, iron nails, and hair or nail clippings, buried beneath the hearth or threshold to trap and destroy a curse. Archaeologically verified across England.
Sources
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — the definitive study; dozens of excavated examples documented.
- Merrifield, The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic — early documentation of excavated witch bottles.
- Davies, Popular Magic — witch bottles as a cunning folk prescription.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 17 — counter-witchcraft practice.
- Specific examples: Navenby (Lincolnshire), Greenwich (2009), and numerous others documented by Hoggard.
One of the most archaeologically verified practices in the entire deck.
10 of Clubs — The Hidden Shoe
Historical BasisA worn shoe concealed within walls or beneath floorboards during building. Found in hundreds of old English houses. Exact purpose debated but clearly apotropaic.
Sources
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — comprehensive survey of concealed shoes.
- The Northampton Museum Concealed Shoe Index — catalogues over 1,900 examples from England and beyond.
- Swann, June. ‘Shoes Concealed in Buildings.’ Costume 30 (1996) — foundational study of the practice.
- Merrifield, The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic — early documentation.
The acknowledgment that its exact purpose is still debated reflects the genuine state of the scholarship. One of the best cards in the deck.
Jack of Clubs — The Cock
Historical BasisThe cockerel’s crow at dawn was believed to drive off spirits and signal the boundary between dangerous night-time and safe daylight.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — the cockerel as a spirit-driver in popular belief.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — cockerel beliefs in English tradition.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — cock-crow beliefs.
Queen of Clubs — The Badger
Flagged for replacement. The badger’s folk associations in England do not connect specifically to cunning folk practice. The description reads as a spirit animal interpretation rather than documented early modern folk belief.
King of Clubs — The Dog
Flagged for replacement. English dog folklore is predominantly associated with malevolent black dog traditions (Black Shuck, Barghest, Padfoot) rather than the loyal guardian described. The current framing reflects modern sentiment rather than documented early modern folk belief.
Binding ♠ — Working & Intent
Ace through King of Spades. The binding, offensive, and intentional workings of the cunning folk.
Ace of Spades — The Iron Nail
Historical BasisIron nails driven into doorposts, thresholds, and effigies to fix a working in place. Archaeologically documented across England.
Sources
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — iron nail deposits in threshold and structural contexts.
- Merrifield, The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic — iron nail use in apotropaic practice.
- Davies, Popular Magic — iron in cunning folk protective and offensive practice.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — iron’s magical properties in popular belief.
Among the most commonly excavated apotropaic objects in England.
2 of Spades — The Crossroads
Historical BasisWhere three or four roads met was the place to deposit offerings, burdens, and workings — a liminal space for ritual deposit documented across English folk practice.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — crossroads in popular magic and ritual deposit.
- Davies, Popular Magic — crossroads deposits in cunning folk practice.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — crossroads customs.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — comprehensive documentation of crossroads beliefs.
The “walk away without looking back” instruction is specifically attested in folk sources.
3 of Spades — The Wax Ball
Historical BasisBeeswax worked by hand until soft and shaped. What was done to the wax was understood to act upon its subject at a distance.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic — wax working in cunning folk practice.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 17 — wax images in the context of popular magic.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — wax use in workings.
4 of Spades — The Black Book
Historical BasisPersonal records of charms and workings kept by cunning practitioners. Several such manuscripts survive in archive collections.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 2 — manuscript books kept by cunning folk practitioners.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — based substantially on surviving cunning folk manuscripts.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — written grimoires and personal charm books.
- Specific surviving example: The Commonplace Book of Richard Napier, Bodleian Library, Oxford.
The term ‘Black Book’ is slightly romanticised but the practice of keeping personal charm books is very well documented.
5 of Spades — The Poppet
Historical BasisA figure of cloth, wax, or clay made to represent a specific person, named and worked upon to bind, harm, or compel.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic — poppets as a cunning folk working tool.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 17 — poppet use in English witchcraft cases.
- Ewen, Witch Hunting and Witch Trials — primary source compilation including multiple poppet cases.
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — archaeologically recovered poppets.
Exceptionally well documented in both the literary and archaeological record.
6 of Spades — The Knotted Cord
Historical BasisA length of cord in which knots were tied one by one as a binding working progressed, each knot fixing the intention more firmly.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — knotted cord workings.
- Davies, Popular Magic — cord magic in cunning folk practice.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — knotted cord workings with specific examples.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — knot magic beliefs.
7 of Spades — The Churchyard Dirt
Historical BasisSoil from consecrated churchyard ground, carrying protective virtue. Used in English folk practice to guard thresholds and bless foundations.
Sources
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 2 — the protective virtue of consecrated ground.
- Davies, Popular Magic — churchyard soil in protective workings.
The distinction between English churchyard dirt (protective, apotropaic) and American hoodoo graveyard dirt (offensive) is important and correctly observed in the card. Further primary source research ongoing.
8 of Spades — The Heart with Pins
Historical BasisAn animal heart pierced with pins or thorns and buried or burned, used to compel affection, cause suffering, or break a working already in place. Multiple examples excavated from English buildings.
Sources
- Hoggard, Magical House Protection — excavated pierced hearts from English buildings.
- Merrifield, The Archaeology of Ritual and Magic — early documentation of excavated examples.
- Davies, Popular Magic — heart workings in cunning folk practice.
- The Pitt Rivers Museum, Oxford — holds documented examples of pierced hearts.
Archaeologically verified. One of the strongest cards in the deck.
9 of Spades — The Honey Jar
Flagged for replacement. The honey jar as described is a hoodoo practice with American roots, not documented in English cunning folk tradition. Does not appear in Davies, Wilby, Thomas, or Baker.
10 of Spades — The Fee
Historical BasisPayment made to the cunning folk person for their work, understood to complete and seal the transaction.
Sources
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 2 — cunning folk fees and the social economics of consultation.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic — payment in the context of popular magic practice.
- Stanmore, Cunning Folk — the fee system and what it meant to both parties.
The completion-and-sealing function of the fee is specifically documented in Davies.
Jack of Spades — The Rat
Flagged for replacement. The rat as a cunning folk creature or documented omen animal in English folk tradition is not well evidenced. The description reads as invented folklore rather than documented practice.
Queen of Spades — The Adder
Historical BasisThe adder — England’s only native venomous snake — carried considerable weight in English folk tradition. Respected and carefully avoided.
Sources
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — adder beliefs in English tradition.
- Hole, English Folk-lore — adder customs and beliefs.
- Tongue, Ruth L. Somerset Folklore. London: Folklore Society, 1965 — regional adder beliefs.
King of Spades — The Crow
Historical BasisThe crow was read as an omen throughout English folk tradition. Its number, direction, and behaviour each carried specific meaning, preserved in well-known counting rhymes.
Sources
- Swainson, Folk Lore and Provincial Names of British Birds — crow and rook omens extensively documented, including the counting rhyme (“one for sorrow, two for joy”).
- Hole, English Folk-lore — crow omen beliefs.
- Armstrong, The Folklore of Birds — comprehensive survey including crow traditions.
- Opie and Tatem, A Dictionary of Superstitions — crow beliefs.
The counting rhyme is specifically documented and widely known — a useful point of connection for non-specialist visitors.
The Jokers
The Angel
Historical BasisThe guardian presence invoked by cunning folk as warrant and protection for their work. Divine and angelic authority frequently framed cunning folk practice as operating under heavenly sanction.
Sources
- Wilby, Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits — divine and angelic invocation in cunning folk practice.
- Davies, Popular Magic, ch. 2 — cunning folk framing their work within Christian authority.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 8 — angelic invocation in popular magic.
- Baker, The Cunning Man’s Handbook — specific examples of angelic invocation in documented charm texts.
The Man in Black
Historical BasisA dark figure offering knowledge and power, appearing at the crossroads or in visionary encounters. Present in witch trial testimony and cunning folk accounts, particularly in Scottish sources.
Sources
- Wilby, Cunning Folk and Familiar Spirits — the Man in Black in cunning folk and witch trial testimony.
- Davies, Popular Magic — the figure in the context of diabolical pact narratives.
- Thomas, Religion and the Decline of Magic, ch. 17 — the dark figure in witchcraft belief.
The English evidence is somewhat thinner than the Scottish. The crossroads setting is specifically attested.
Cards Flagged for Replacement
The following seven cards have been identified as historically weak or inaccurate and are being replaced with objects, creatures, or practices better documented in English cunning folk tradition.
- 2 of Diamonds — The Pendulum: anachronistic; primarily a 19th-20th century practice
- 5 of Diamonds — The Unexpected Letter: no documentary basis in cunning folk practice
- 10 of Diamonds — The Cunning Folk Chest: invented; no documentary basis
- Queen of Clubs — The Badger: insufficient cunning folk documentation
- King of Clubs — The Dog: wrong folk tradition; English dog folklore is predominantly malevolent
- 9 of Spades — The Honey Jar: wrong tradition entirely; American hoodoo, not English cunning folk
- Jack of Spades — The Rat: insufficient documentation
Replacement candidates are under active research. The goal is that every card in the final deck will carry a verifiable historical source.