Fossil magic and folklore

In the past, fossils were things that amazed, that had been miraculously created, had magical powers and were cures for all ills. Folklore goes back thousands of years and the common folk would not have scorned stories such as that of the venerable St. Hilda who turned snakes to stone. Early scientists also had problems deciding the answer to the question, what are fossils? Three or four centuries ago the answer to this question might have been that fossils are the remains of animals that had died during the biblical flood. It is easy to ridicule some of these beliefs, but it must be remembered that early scientists as well as the uneducated had to work within the straightjacket of religious dogma or ancient folklore, both of which would have been difficult to throw off. Remember the religious upheaval caused by the suggestion that the Earth was not flat, that the Earth orbited the sun rather than the other way round and that man evolved from primates.

Pseudodiplocaenia oblonga a star stone (P549518)

Some fossils, such as corals, confounded early scientists. Fossil corals such as Pseudodiplocaenia oblonga were referred to as ‘star stones’ and the distinguished scientist Robert Plot wrote about them in his book ‘The Natural History of Oxfordshire’ (1677). He described Astroites ‘which in the whole are irregular, but adorned as it were with a constellation’. He wondered whether they might have been ‘formed of some latent plastick power of the Earth’ or perhaps ‘some way related to the Celestial Bodies’.

Stigmaria, fish or serpent (P549461)

Stigmaria (the roots of the giant Carboniferous club moss lepidodendron), on the other hand, proved to be less of a problem to Robert Plot, for he confidently identified them as the remains of serpents or a fish ‘of a fresh water kind…. [which]…. seems to represent a carp or a barbel’.

An ammonite or 'snake stone' (P549559)

Books dating to the 16th century compared the coiled shape of ammonite shells to that of a serpent. They were often referred to as ‘snake stones’ and some were embellished with the carved head of a snake at the end of the coil. It was St. Hilda (614-680 AD) who turned the serpents into stone at Whitby, on the North Yorkshire coast. Snakes infested the site where she intended to build her abbey, so she rounded them all up and threw them from the cliff top to the rocks below.

An echinoid, the froth of snakes – catch it if you can! (P550271)

An echinoid, the froth of snakes – catch it if you can! Belemnite rostra were widely believed to have been thrown down to Earth from heaven as thunderbolts. Those that have a finger-like appearance (such as Dactyloteuthis) have been called ‘Devil’s Fingers’ or ‘St Peter’s Fingers’. In Denmark, fossil echinoids were regarded as thunderbolts and used to protect the bearer against lightning and witchcraft. An ancient Celtic belief held that they were formed from froth thrown into the air by snakes and they retained magical properties if they were caught before falling to the ground.

"Carcharocles" a tongue stone (P549488)

A fossil with a religious connection is the shark’s tooth. The teeth of "Carcharocles" and other sharks were beneficial remedies against rheumatism, but even more efficacious if placed in wine, for then it formed an antidote against snake venom. This last belief probably stemmed from the legend referring to the adventures of St. Paul. During his journey across the Mediterranean Sea, St. Paul encountered a great storm that wrecked his ship on the island of Malta. Whilst there he was attacked and bitten by an adder, but St. Paul turned the tongues of all adders to stone, thus making them less venemous. Ever since that time, a tongue stone has been considered to be a good talisman against ill fortune. Pliny the Elder was a Roman scientist who lived from 23 to 79 AD held a different view. He wrote about ‘tongue stones’ in his books, in which he indicated they resembled a man’s tongue and considered they must have fallen from the heavens during lunar eclipses.

"Lepidotes" teeth were considered to be toad stones with magical properties (P549584)

But if it is a talisman you seek, perhaps a ‘toad stone’ would be more effective. In his play ‘As You Like It’, Shakespeare referred to this amazing source of magic: Sweet are the uses of adversity Which like the toad, ugly and venemous, Wears yet a precious jewel on its head. It was held that toad stones formed inside the head of toads. What’s more, if they could be removed while the toad still lived, they were considered to carry great magical powers. Toad stones were often placed into rings or pendants to ward off ill health and bad luck. But when they were ground into a powder, toad stones were said to have great medicinal properties as an antidote to poison and a treatment for epilepsy. Of the toad stones to have survived from the medieval period, many prove to be the teeth of the fossil fish "Lepidotes".

Echinoids and their spines were thought to have medicinal properties (P549574)

Many different fossils have been considered to have medicinal powers. Folklore would give belemnite rostra the powers to cure rheumatism and sore eyes, and they were invaluable to the veterinarian for it was widely held that they cured intestinal stones in horses. Echinoids have been traditionally used in remedies for stomach disorders and as long ago as Roman times, they were considered an antidote for snake bites. Spines of the Cretaceous echinoid Balanocidaris glandifera, superficially resemble a bladder and were put to use as a cure for gall, bladder and kidney ailments. The strongly recurved forms of the bivalve Gryphaea have long been referred to as Devil’s Toe-nails. Scottish accounts from the 17th and 18th centuries suggest they were a relief for arthritis. However, if baldness or infertility is your problem, then ammonites were said to provide a cure, with the additional beneficial side effect of protecting the wearer from snakes.

Crinoid columnals – Fairy money. (P549514)

At a time when pixies and fairies were more common than they are today, the belief was held in parts of England that the columnals that form the stem of some crinoids were fairy money.

A petrified butterfly, turned to stone by Merlin the magician. (P550303)

Magic was always close at hand in those days when, according to a legend from South Wales, Merlin the magician could turn butterflies to stone. Merlin even has a trilobite named after him – the pygidium of Merlinia are the ‘petrified butterflies’.

<gallery caption="Editing Fossil magic and folklore—image gallery"> File:P549518.jpg|Pseudodiplocaenia oblonga a star stone (P549518) File:P549461.jpg|Stigmaria, fish or serpent a star stone (P549461) File:P549559.jpg|An ammonite or ‘snake stone’ (P549559) File:P550271.jpg|An echinoid, the froth of snakes – catch it if you can! (P550271) File:P549488.jpg|"Carcharocles" a tongue stone (P549488) File:P549584.jpg|"Lepidotes" teeth were considered to be toad stones with magical properties (549584) File:P549574.jpg|Echinoids and their spines were thought to have medicinal properties(P549574) File:P549514.jpg|Crinoid columnals – Fairy money(P549514) File:P550303.jpg|A petrified butterfly, turned to stone by Merlin the magician (P550303)