Molybdomancy (from and -mancy) is a technique of

divination Divination () is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic ritual or practice. Using various methods throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a should proceed by reading signs, ...

using molten

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

. Typically, molten

lead Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...

tin Tin is a chemical element; it has symbol Sn () and atomic number 50. A silvery-colored metal, tin is soft enough to be cut with little force, and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, a bar of tin makes a sound, the ...

is dropped into water. It can be found as a tradition in various cultures, including Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Turkey. Some versions have been found to have potentially harmful effects on human health.

Method

Lead (or more recently tin) shapes are melted in a ladle over a flame, and the molten liquid is then poured into the water. The resulting shape is either directly interpreted as an omen for the future, or is rotated in a candlelight to create shadows, whose shapes are then interpreted. The shapes are interpreted symbolically, for example a bubbly surface signifying money, a fragile or broken shape misfortune. The shape of the lead before melting can refer to a specific area of one's life. For example, ships for traveling, keys for career advancement, etc.

Finland

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

, the tradition is to tell the fortunes on

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve refers to the evening, or commonly the entire day, of the last day of the year, 31 December, also known as Old Year's Day. In many countries, New Year's Eve is celebrated with dancing, eating, drinkin ...

by melting "tin" in a ladle on the stove and throwing it quickly in a bucket of cold water. The practice is known as . Shops sell ladles and small bullions in the shape of a horseshoe for this express purpose. The shapes are often interpreted not only literally, but also symbolically: a bubbly surface refers to money, a fragile or broken shape misfortune. Ships refer to travelling, keys to career advancement, a basket to a good mushroom year, and a horse to a new car. Originally made from lead and tin, since 2018 the bullion have been mostly made from lead free tin, after Tukes (Safety and chemicals agency) banned the use of lead in "uudenvuodentina". The world's largest , , was cast by members of the Valko volunteer fire department in

Loviisa Loviisa (; ; formerly Degerby) is a town in Finland, located on the southern coast of the country. Loviisa is situated in the eastern part of the Uusimaa region. The population of Loviisa is approximately , while the Loviisa sub-region, sub-regi ...

, in New Year 2010.

Germany, Austria, and Switzerland

(literally "lead pouring") is a traditional activity held at the New Year to predict the fortune of the coming year. The different resulting shapes are identified based on their resemblance to any of various objects, animals, and structures, each with its own interpretation. EU regulations passed in 2018 limit the sale of toxic lead-containing products, including molybdomancy kits. Alternatives involve dripping molten wax or tin rather than lead into water. In the Czech Republic molybdomancy is one of the traditional Christmas traditions.

Turkey

The tradition of molybdomancy is called in Turkish (literally, "lead casting", "lead pouring") which is intended to help with various spiritual problems or predict the future. The rituals vary, but they involve pouring molten

into water. Researchers from

Ankara University Ankara University () is a public university, public research university in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the History of the Republic of Turkey, formation of the Turkish republ ...

performed a study of the effects of this tradition on the health of women. They reported risks of

antimony poisoning Antimony is a chemical element; it has symbol Sb () and atomic number 51. A lustrous grey metal or metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite (). Antimony compounds have been known since ancient times and were pow ...

and

lead poisoning Lead poisoning, also known as plumbism and saturnism, is a type of metal poisoning caused by lead in the body. Symptoms may include abdominal pain, constipation, headaches, irritability, memory problems, infertility, numbness and paresthesia, t ...

. A similar traditional practice is used in

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

Jewish folk medicine

Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...

folk medicine, the '' segula'' of () involves a medicine-woman reciting a psalm or an incantation, and then throwing molten lead into a vessel full of water. It is used for divination or the removal of the

evil eye The evil eye is a supernatural belief in a curse brought about by a malevolent glaring, glare, usually inspired by envy. Amulets to Apotropaic, protect against it have been found dating to around 5,000 years ago. It is found in many cultures i ...

. Traditionally, it was resorted to in cases in which illness of pregnant women or that of children is due to fright, to find out what object was the cause of the alarm; from the resemblance of the form assumed by the metal to a particular animal, a medicine-woman divines that the cause of fright was a cat, a dog, a horse, and so on.

Notes

References

* * {{Divination Divination