Pitchfork

From Traditional Witchcraft Wiki Project

A pitchfork consists of a long pole topped with metal tines, normally 2 or 3 in number, and is used to lift and throw loose material, such as hay, leaves and so forth. They have long been considered to be associated with the Devil, and are also identified with the trident of the Greek god Poseidon and the Hindu god Shiva, which is called the 'trishul'.

Pitchforks, like brooms, were popularly considered to be used by witches as a means of transvection, or as a means of carrying the cauldron whilst travelling to the sabbat on the goat. Some witches were even believed to have tied a piece of cloth to the pitchfork to act as a sail. In some traditions of witchcraft, they are also used as an altar of a Horned God and as a staff to raise certain powers.