Magic, Witchcraft and Sorcery in Iceland and the Tragedy of Jón Rógnvaldsson

Iceland's traditions associated with dark and fascinating witchcraft practices are as old as the island's first human settlement.

Countless people have paid for these practices with their lives, but many witches and sorcerers have not stopped their commitment to the magical arts, which are described in Iceland by the word "Sei?ur".

The men who practiced magic were called "sei?menn" and the women were called "vísendakona".

The most basic concept of Seur is related to the ancient Norse gods such as Odin and Freyja.

Icelandic magic was originally based on the beliefs of the Norwegians, but over time it began to evolve into its own unique and mystical magic system, with the Norse god Odin riding on his horse.

(public **** field), although there are many famous people who practiced magic by name, most of them were never punished by Christians.

As Iceland was slow to Christianize, and was not likely to adopt the rules peculiar to other northern countries of Europe of the Christian faith, as Denmark or Norway did, or to wipe the ancient beliefs from their land more rapidly, the story of the women who were punished for witchcraft is much longer, but it is the subject of a separate article.

Unlike the rest of Europe, in Iceland most of the people persecuted were men, because male magic has a strong tradition.

The first man to be executed, Jón Rógnvaldsson, lived in the late 16th century and the first half of the 17th century, in an Armenian manuscript of 1053.

Johannes in Iceland. (transcription of section 2.5), Jón Rógnvaldsson became a symbol of those executed for witchcraft and those who were salt in the eyes of Christian priests .

While the followers of Christ do their best to bury ancient customs, people do not want to stop praying to their gods, performing ancient rituals and summoning all the souls of the world to fulfill their needs.

One of those who wouldn't stop was Jón Rógnvaldsson, whose practice was widely known in Iceland, and whose story was lost over time, with only a small part of his life surviving to the present day.

It began in the 16th century when Magnus Bilson, a bailiff, traveled from Copenhagen to Iceland, bringing with him a book about the persecution of witches in 1487.

Decades later, the horrific stories that Pilsen read became a reality in Iceland, as the same events were caused by a closed society.

Bj?rnson is so influenced by the book that when he hears about a boy's mysterious illness and the deaths of several horses, he believes that these events are caused by witches and need to be exposed.

Encouraged by the holy monks, people begin to gossip that it is caused by black magic.

For some reason, the boy implies that the person who cursed him is Jon Grunwaldtsen.

The evidence presented at the trial was pieces of paper written by Jon with Icelandic runes.

His brother, who was trying to help, declared that Jon practiced rune magic called galdra (or galdr), which involved spells and incantations, but not for evil purposes.

This is enough to conclude that Jon is a threat to society.

Despite being the victim of malicious accusations, in 1625 he was burned at the stake by an unjust flame, a pagan priestess who specialized in singing galdres.

(Public **** domain), the Christianization of Iceland took place around 999 AD, and the new religion was not easily accepted.

The Icelanders wanted to follow their old beliefs, so the process of adapting was long and painful, and the imaginations of Christian believers led them to believe that Pagans and Wiccan practitioners were followers of the Devil, and that their sexuality brought them closer to their dark masters.

The monks who tried to influence society with the teachings of Jesus tried to confront them with the same tools that had been used before in other parts of Europe.

According to Christopher Morris of University College London, the introduction of Christianity.

(public **** field), as a result of these arguments, men were punished in the same way as women were in relation to magic.

Cruelty Christian worshippers of the Holy Cross forced many innocent people onto burning stakes with ice.

The Norwegian and Danish laws on witchcraft were enforced in Iceland in 1630.

However, unlike other countries, most of the people executed for magical practices in Iceland were men.

Only ten out of a hundred were women, and three witches were executed.

(Public domain) Today, witchcraft has been transformed into a huge and thriving industry that generates a significant amount of revenue for Iceland every year.

Museum exhibitions, such as the Icelandic Museum of Witchcraft in Holmavík, as well as publications, and a boom in "witchcraft tourism" in every corner of the island.

Although it is difficult to find any original works related to the ancient magical traditions, thousands of people come to Iceland in search of this magical inspiration.

Above: Alchemist S?dziwój by Jan Matejko: Alchemist and Pioneer Chemistry.

(Public **** domain), by Natalia Klimczak: historian, journalist, writer.

She worked at Gouakins from December 2015 to April 2017 .