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Hanging and burning witches on Fetlar and in Scalloway.

Date 13 July 1976
Track ID 86149
Part 1

Track Information

Original Track ID

SA1976.087

Original Tape ID

SA1976.087

Summary

Hanging and burning witches on Fetlar and in Scalloway.

The contributor tells of witch curses on fishing boats and the last witch hanged on the Gallow Hill on 1703 for the loss of a sixareen [six-oared fishing boat]. He describes the tradition where relatives were allowed to pull on the feet of the hanged to hasten their end. Burnings were commoner in Scalloway where so many witches were executed that there was a heap of ashes.

Item Location

County - Shetland

Parish - Fetlar

Island - Fetlar

Language

English, Scots

Genre

Information

Collection

SoSS

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Good