In folklore and mythology, the image of a witch riding a horse is a common motif. Often depicted as a figure with dark powers and supernatural abilities, the witch on horseback represents both fear and fascination. The association between witches and horses can be traced back to ancient times. In Greek mythology, the witch Circe was known for transforming her enemies into animals, including horses. In Norse mythology, the goddess Freyja was said to ride a chariot pulled by two giant cats, creating a link between witches and powerful, mystical creatures. In European folklore, witches were believed to possess the ability to transform into various animals, with the horse being a popular choice.
Though responsible for a small number of small paintings, Elsheimer remains one of the most important artists of the Baroque period, whose influence is felt in the works of (amongst many others) Rubens, Rembrandt and Claude. Trained in Germany, he moved to Venice in 1598 and Rome in 1600; he specialized in miniature paintings on copper with moody landscape elements, spectacular effects of light and unconventional story-telling. Elsheimer’s few works were eagerly sought after by collectors like the Earl of Arundel, who owned a significant group, including the St Christopher which he gave to Charles I (RCIN 400938). In addition to the three works associated with Elsheimer now in the Royal Collection (RCIN 400613, 400938 & 404717), his Mocking of Ceres (Agnes Etherington Art Centre, Kingston, Ontario) was given to Charles II and subsequently left the collection. This little copper originally featured in the 'newly erected cabbonett' in the King's Private Lodgings, where Charles installed 73 of his smaller pictures, sculptures and books. It is thought to have been acquired by Sir Arthur Hopton, British ambassador to Spain, on his travels through Europe (either 1629 or 1635), presumably when passing through Germany; one assumes the previous owner would have supplied the attribution and the information, which reads "said to be done by Elsheimer before hee went to Italie". The painting is a faithful copy (in oil) of Albrecht Dürer's engraving (c.1500) and Elsheimer's figures may well have been directly traced from an impression – with a couple of centimetres added on for the space Elsheimer added around the figures, the measurements are almost exactly the same as those in the British Museum's impression (11.6 x 7.2 cm). There is no doubt that the woman depicted is meant to be a witch, although the choice to show four cupids playing with different objects in the foreground is more difficult to explain and appears to have no literary precedent. However, in Dürer's famous Melencolia I engraving of 1514 a cupid accompanies the female personification, looking equally sullen in posture as it bows its head. Assuming a variety of unusual, contorted poses, the four cupids in the witch engraving look just as mischievous as the witch. Like in Melencolia I, perhaps they, too, act as an extension of the protagonist's mental state. Dürer scholars tells us that the putti carry an alchemist's pot and thorn-apple plant, also known as Devil's Weed. The poisonous thorn-apple plant comes under the nightshade family and has traditionally been associated with witches' flying ointment and incantations. An alchemist's pot was used to make spells and potions: similar to what we know as a witch's cauldron. The spindle and staff connote weaving; the typical womanly act of the witch, weaving is also used as a figure of speech for making mischief, weaving spells or magic. She sits backwards to emphasise that her doings are the reverse of humans, nature and all normal processes. The goat upon which she rides has long had Satanic associations. Elsheimer changed a number of aspects of Dürer's original, not least making it a nocturnal scene. Other alterations include Elsheimer removing the beginnings of a hail storm in the upper left of Dürer's print and adding in a few long flecks of grass in the foreground. It might also be argued that Elsheimer's witch wears a kinder to expression to that of Dürer's. In his 1977 catalogue entry on The Witch, Keith Andrews admits, after expressing initial doubt about an attribution to Elsheimer, that he was persuaded by the identification of a number of the artist's signature motifs: the "transparent modelling of the figures and the draperies", for instance, and also "the claw-like hand of the witch" and "physiognomical resemblance of the putto on the left to those who hover above the Holy Family in the Berlin painting" (Rest on the Flight to Egypt, 1599). Furthermore, a transformation from day into night appears very in keeping with Elsheimer's artistic development. To Andrews' identifications I would like to add the similarity of face the witch, in particular the stretched, sallow quality of the skin, to that of an old woman in his Mocking of Ceres (1608) and of Baucis in Jupiter and Mercury in the House of Philemon and Baucis (1609, Dresden). One piece of evidence for an attribution to Elsheimer comes from Giovanni Baglione's Le Vitte de' Pittori, Scultori, Architetti of 1642, where author writes of Elsheimer 'I once saw a paper (carta) depicting a night-piece with a Sorceress and with all kinds of spells which represented the horrors of the underworld, and the terrors of the magic arts – a work so beautiful as others of his have been found to be'. Clearly this doesn't refer to the Royal Collection's painting on copper, however it describes a (now lost) drawing or a print of a remarkably similar theme. It should be assumed that Abraham van der Doort's original supposition of 1639 is correct: this is indeed painted by Adam Elsheimer before he went to Italy after a print by Albrecht Dürer and presumably while still a pupil of Philipp Uffenbach. Therefore, it is likely this is the one of Elsheimer's first works on copper and certainly his first known painting.
In his 1977 catalogue entry on The Witch , Keith Andrews admits, after expressing initial doubt about an attribution to Elsheimer, that he was persuaded by the identification of a number of the artist s signature motifs the transparent modelling of the figures and the draperies , for instance, and also the claw-like hand of the witch and physiognomical resemblance of the putto on the left to those who hover above the Holy Family in the Berlin painting Rest on the Flight to Egypt , 1599. In addition to the three works associated with Elsheimer now in the Royal Collection RCIN 400613, 400938 one assumes the previous owner would have supplied the attribution and the information, which reads said to be done by Elsheimer before hee went to Italie.
In European folklore, witches were believed to possess the ability to transform into various animals, with the horse being a popular choice. The notion of the witch riding a horse was strongly connected to the idea of the wild hunt, a mythical event in which a group of supernatural beings, led by a witch, rode through the night causing chaos and mayhem. The witch on horseback also symbolizes freedom and independence.
Witches Are Obsessed With Horses
In 1726, an elderly woman known to history as Janet Horne was paraded through the Scottish town of Dornoch, covered in tar, and burned for being a witch. Janet Horne was a generic placeholder name in Scotland for witches during the period, and this Janet Horne holds the distinction of being the last person executed for witchcraft in the British Isles. One of the curious things about the case was the nature of the accusations against Horne involved her daughter, who had deformed hands and feet. The townspeople accused Horne of having turned her daughter into a pony and ridden her to the Devil to have her shod. Though the daughter escaped the mob, Horne (who by most accounts was elderly and showing signs of senility) was caught and killed.
Verbrennung auf dem Scheiterhaufen. Accessed via Wikimedia Commons.
While casting about for an appropriately Halloween-themed blog post, I found a bevy of information about the connections between witches and horses. Accusations that purveyors of the dark arts were connected to horses abound — even into the 21st Century. A story reported in Blockula, Sweden in 1699 asserted that an army of witches had been accosting men in their sleep, putting an enchanted halter over their heads to turn them into horses. And in another case from Scotland, a woman named Margaret Grant claimed to have been turned into a pony by “evil-disposed persons” and forced to ride great distances.
Two witches smoking their pipes by the fire with a toad at their feet. From The History of Witches and Wizards (1720), Wellcome Library. Accessed via Wikimedia Commons.
In addition to these stories is a recurring, mixed account of the ghostly Nightmare, also called the Night Hag. As far back as the Renaissance, horse owners have reported visits of the Nightmare to their horses. Signs in the morning include the horse covered in sweat, exhausted, and a tangled mane, sometimes described as plaited by supernatural means. The phenomenon has been attributed to witches and pixies (who, being obsessed with mortal horses, steal them to ride at night), and in recent years, to Bigfoot or occult-obsessed horse thieves. So pervasive was the concern over the nightmare that Thomas Blundeville, in his 1564 book The Fower Chiefest Offices Belonging to Horsemanship, included an incantation (and directions for hanging naturally-perforated stones in the stable) to ward against the Nightmare. The incantation was touted by Blundeville as a practical way for horse owners to avoid having to pay a “false Fryer” to produce the warding spell.
The primary sign of the Nightmare is the fairy plaits in the mane. Although skeptics claim that a horse’s mane can easily become tangled on its own under correct atmospheric conditions, elaborate tales of unauthorized braiding have been reported.
“It was very generally accepted as an indisputable fact at that time that not only witches, but also certain malignant sprites who lived in the woodland gardens, occasionally assumed the forms of women clad in white raiment, who in this guise would haunt the stables when night fell. They carried with them tapers of lighted wax, and they used the drippings from these to tangle the horses’ manes into inextricable knots, to the great annoyance both of the steeds and of their grooms.”
—The Horse in Magic and Myth, M. Oldfield Howley, National Sporting Library & Museum
The tying of knots as a spell is an ancient theory of witchcraft. It’s not a huge leap from fairy plaits to the Witch’s Ladder, a layered cord of knots, each with a separate intention of spell. Theories of various malevolent hexes were floated in the late 19th Century, a common one being that the Witch’s Ladder contained a death spell that could only be undone by finding and untying the cord.
Witch’s Ladder, from The Folk-Lore Journal Volume 5 (1888). University of Toronto. Accessed via Wikimedia Commons.
How do we interpret these reports of Nightmare and tangled manes? It could be that in an era where many more people were adept at handling horses, the propensity to “borrow” a turned-out horse for a nighttime ride was a more common practice. A sweaty, exhausted horse from such an exercise might have a tangled mane where an unauthorized rider held on to the steed. Or maybe there’s more to it: pixies, witches, or Bigfoot.
John Connolly has served as the George L. Ohrstrom, Jr. Head Librarian at the National Sporting Library & Museum (NSLM) since early 2014. He is responsible for the care of the Library collections, including books, magazines, photographs, diaries, letters, and much more. The NSLM collections span over 350 years of the history of equestrian sport, as well as fly fishing, wing shooting, and other field sports. Have a question? Contact John by e-mail
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Horses have long been associated with strength and speed, and the image of a witch riding a horse conveys a sense of power and liberation. In some stories, witches were even believed to possess the ability to fly on their magical steeds, further emphasizing their otherworldly nature. Today, the image of a witch on horseback persists in popular culture. It is often used in literature, art, and film to evoke a sense of mystery and enchantment. Whether portrayed as a menacing figure or a misunderstood outcast, the witch on horseback continues to capture our imagination..
Reviews for "The Witch on Horseback: Haunting Tales of Ghostly Encounters"
1. Jane - 2/5 - I was really disappointed with "Witch on horseback". The story felt disjointed and lacked a clear direction. The characters were underdeveloped and I couldn't connect with any of them. The pacing was inconsistent, with some chapters dragging on while others felt rushed. Overall, it felt like the author had a good concept but failed to execute it effectively.
2. Mike - 1/5 - I couldn't get through "Witch on horseback". The writing style was clunky and filled with unnecessary descriptions and details. The story itself was confusing and hard to follow. I found myself constantly rereading paragraphs to try and make sense of what was happening. The dialogue felt forced and unnatural, making it difficult to engage with the characters. I found this book to be a frustrating and unenjoyable read.
3. Emily - 2/5 - "Witch on horseback" did not live up to my expectations. The plot was predictable and lacked originality. The main character was unlikable and seemed to make irrational decisions without clear motivations. There were also several instances of poor editing, with grammatical errors and inconsistent formatting. I found myself losing interest halfway through and struggled to finish the book. Overall, I was disappointed with this novel and would not recommend it.