Witches' stones (in
Jèrriais
(french: Jersiais, also known as the Jersey Language, Jersey French and Jersey Norman French in English) is a Romance language and the traditional language of the Jersey people. It is a form of the Norman language spoken in Jersey, an island i ...
: ''pièrres dé chorchièrs'') are flat stones jutting from
chimney
A chimney is an architectural ventilation structure made of masonry, clay or metal that isolates hot toxic exhaust gases or smoke produced by a boiler, stove, furnace, incinerator, or fireplace from human living areas. Chimneys are typic ...
s in the islands of
Jersey and
Guernsey
Guernsey (; Guernésiais: ''Guernési''; french: Guernesey) is an island in the English Channel off the coast of Normandy that is part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, a British Crown Dependency.
It is the second largest of the Channel Islands ...
.
According to
folklore in the
Channel Islands, these small ledges were used by
witches to rest on as they fly to their
sabbats. Householders would provide these platforms to appease witches and avoid their ill favour.
Traditional
vernacular architecture in
Jersey is in
granite and such witches' stones can be seen protruding from many older houses. The real origin of this architectural feature is to protect
thatched roofs from seeping water running down the sides of the chimney stack. Thatched roofs being thicker than tiled roofs, the jutting stones would sit snugly on the thatch – as can be seen on the few remaining thatched roofs in Jersey. When thatch began to be generally replaced by pantiles in the 18th century, and later by
slate
Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...
s, the witches' stones were left protruding prominently from the chimney stack. This either gave rise to the belief in witches' resting places, or reinforced an existing belief. Fear of witches was widespread in country areas well into the 20th century in Jersey.
The force of tradition can be seen in a number of newly constructed houses in
vernacular style that sport witches' stones despite never having had a thatched roof.
Image:Witches' stones on thatched roof Jersey.jpg, The stones protect the joins of thatched roofs
Image:Witches' stones Jersey.jpg, When thatch is replaced by tile, the stones no longer serve the original purpose
Image:Witches' stones on tiled roof Jersey.jpg
Image:Witches' stones on tiled roof Jersey 2.jpg
Image:Witches' stones on tiled roof Jersey 3.jpg
Image:Witches' stones on tiled roof Jersey 4.jpg
Image:Witches' stones on tiled roof Jersey 5.jpg
Image:Witches' stones on modern roof Jersey.jpg, This modern house incorporates witches' stones in its chimneys
In England
Although not common in England, witch stones or witch seats can be found in the villages of
Feizor
Feizor is a hamlet in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, England. The name means "Fech's summer pasture" probably in reference to a prominent local landowner whose name was recorded at the time of the Norman conquest
The Norman Conquest ...
, near
Settle
Settle or SETTLE may refer to:
Places
* Settle, Kentucky, United States
* Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England
** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district
Music
* Settle (band), an indie rock band from Pennsylvania
* ''S ...
, and at
Wharfe both in
North Yorkshire.
See also
*
Architecture of Normandy
:''See also the Romanesque architecture erected by the Normans at Norman architecture.''
The architecture of Normandy spans a thousand years.
Vernacular domestic styles
In Upper Normandy and in the pays d'Auge, Mortainais, Passais and Avranch ...
References
Des pièrres dé chorchièrs
Stonemasonry
Jersey culture
Witchcraft in England
Architectural elements
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