Philtre

From Traditional Witchcraft Wiki Project

A Philtre is a magical potion, usually compounded of a concoction of herbs, and often administered by a Cunning Man or witch in order to poison, make a person mad, or to procure love. Love potions could procure love in a number of ways, normally by acting as an aphrodisiac or through depriving a person of their ability to control their own actions. Not all philtres were intended to be imbibed by the cup, rather some were baked into food, such as cakes.

Popular ingredients of philtres included mandrake root (love apples), bryony, fern seeds, vervain, and animal parts, others still called for the witch's sweat to be added to the pot. Such potions were very popular in the Middle Ages, but were popularly replaced by spells and charms in the 17th and 18th Centuries. Philtre is an old French word that comes from the Latin philrtum, and this in turn has its origin in the Greek philtron, which is derived from philein, meaning 'to love', and philos, meaning 'beloved'.