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/964 Anie Tailzeour

name of accused
Anie Tailzeour (alias Rwna Rowa)
designated title
no information
Accused Reference
A/EGD/953
Case date start
no information
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

  • maleficium (secondary characteristic)
  • neighbourhood dispute (secondary characteristic)
  • neighbourhood dispute (primary characteristic)
  • refused charity (secondary characteristic)
Characterisation Notes
None
additional persons
name involvement notes
no additional persons recorded

Qualitative information

Non-natural beings

Notes
None
  • no information

Demonic pacts

  • no information

witches meetings

Notes
None

Meeting places

  • no information

musical instruments

  • no information

Folk culture

  • Specific Verbal Formulae
  • Specific ritual acts
Notes
Someone took a lock of her hair. Description of a ritual where she took 3 cows tail hairs, 3 of her pubic hairs, and 3 hairs from her papys and said 'cum butter, cum' in order to move the profits from one person to another. When one of her accusers was going home late one evening he met a number of cats and claims to have seen her face on one of the cats. Appeasment with a bannock.

Counter strategies

  • Counter-magic
  • Appeasement

white magic

  • no information

Elf/fairy elements

  • no information

Shape-changing

  • Animal a cat with her face

Ritual objects

  • Bannock
  • Meal

Religious motif

  • no information

Calendar customs

  • Midsummer
  • Harvest
  • Our Lady Day (Harvest)
  • Candlemas
  • Yule

Diseases or illness

  • Human illness
  • Human death
  • Animal illness
  • Animal death
  • Quarreling
  • Cursing
Notes
Moved a lot of profits away from one family to another, specifically cows and cornes. Damaged a plow after quarrelling. Quarrel over peats. Took milk away from a cow.

Cause of witch's malice

  • no information

Other maleficia

  • Property damage

    • Damage to property

    • Crops
    • Animals
    • Meal

    weather modification

    • no information

    Notes
    she stole some peats.

    Other charges

    • Superstition
    • 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
    None
    references
    name notes
    RPC 2nd S, v8 pp. 360-364 See also Abbotsford Club, Miscellany/Vol. 1 [series 11], Edinburgh 1837. The project did not check this printed primary source.