The Survey of Scottish Witchcraft

1563-1736

By Julian Goodare, Lauren Martin, Joyce Miller and Louise Yeoman, January 2003

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Case Details

C/EGD/140 Patrik Lowrie

name of accused
Patrik Lowrie
designated title
no information
Accused Reference
A/EGD/129
Case date start
28/7/1603
Given case date
no information
Case commission
no information
case complaint
no information
case correspondence
no information
case chronicle
no information
other details
no information

characterisation

  • consulting (secondary characteristic)
  • demonic (secondary characteristic)
  • folk healing (secondary characteristic)
  • folk healing (primary characteristic)
  • maleficium (secondary characteristic)
Characterisation Notes
None

Qualitative information

Non-natural beings

Notes
Exhumed bodies from a grave yard
  • Spirit Helena McBurnie

Demonic pacts

  • no information

witches meetings

  • Witches meeting
  • Devil present
Notes
None

Meeting places

  • Common Waist Sandhillis near Irving Shore
  • None Kirkyard
  • None Kirk
  • Lowdon Hill Hilltop

musical instruments

  • no information

Folk culture

  • Specific ritual acts
  • Sympathetic magic
Notes
He was presented with a hairbelt (in the shape of a Devil's claw) from the spirit woman Helena McBurnie. He was accused of damaging cows milk on Beltane.

Counter strategies

  • no information

white magic

  • no information

Elf/fairy elements

  • no information

Shape-changing

  • no information

Ritual objects

  • Hairbelt
  • Corpse

Religious motif

  • no information

Calendar customs

  • Halloween
  • Beltane
  • Whitsunday

Diseases or illness

  • Human illness
  • Animal illness
  • Transferring disease
  • Laying on
  • Rec. healer
  • Healing humans
  • Healing animals
Notes
Struck someone blind

Cause of witch's malice

  • no information

Other maleficia

  • Property damage

    • Damage to property

    • Dairy
    • Crops

    weather modification

    • no information

    Notes
    Turned milk to blood

    Other charges

    • Incantation
    • Sorcery
    Notes
    None

    Plea

    Claimed bewitched
    no
    Claimed possessed
    no
    Admitted lesser charges
    no
    No defence
    no
    Claimed natural causes
    no
    Notes
    None
    Case Notes
    His master and baron pursued him as the holder of a commission, along with the bailie who was supposedly after his goods. Check on dates of trial, etc. the sequence doesn't seem to match up.
    references
    name notes
    RPC v7 p. 67 Commission of arrest.
    Books of Adjournal JC2/4 fo. 58v - 60v None
    Pitcairn v ii, p. 477-79 Same text as JC2/4, Also found in the High Court Record Index, no. 1 for 23/7/1605
    Dundonald Parish Records Carnegie Library, Ayr, 941.429 DUN, p. 54-86 None