Witches were identified through various methods throughout history:
1. **Physical Marks**: Birthmarks, moles, and other skin abnormalities were considered proof of a witch. A confession and a mole were sufficient evidence to condemn a person to death⁵.
2. **Swimming Test**: Accused witches were dragged to the nearest body of water, stripped to their undergarments, bound, and then tossed in to see if they would sink or float. An innocent person would sink, but a witch would simply bob on the surface².
3. **Prayer Test**: Accused sorcerers were made to recite selections from the Bible—usually the Lord’s Prayer—without making mistakes or omissions. Any errors were viewed as proof that the speaker was in league with the devil².
4. **Touch Test**: The touch test worked on the idea that victims of sorcery would have a special reaction to physical contact with their evildoer².
5. **Characteristics**: Witches were most often believed to be women, frequently elderly, poor, widowed, or childless³.
6. **Actions**: They were accused of killing children, making men impotent, ruining crops, causing storms and shipwrecks, attending the sabbath, and working together to cause evil and discord³⁴.
It's important to note that these methods were based on superstitions and lack of understanding, and led to the unjust persecution of many innocent people. Today, these methods are recognized as deeply flawed and inhumane.
Source:
(1) Salem Witches: Cotton Mather on How to Identify a Witch.
https://www.worldturndupsidedown.com/2010/10/salem-witches-cotton-mather-on-how-to.html.
(2) 7 Bizarre Witch Trial Tests | HISTORY.
https://www.history.com/news/7-bizarre-witch-trial-tests.
(3) Witches in History - University of Queensland.
https://stories.uq.edu.au/art-museum/2019/witches-in-history/index.html.
(4) Women as witches: past, present and future - University of Queensland.
https://stories.uq.edu.au/shorthand-uq/small-change/women-as-witches/.
(5) Witches: Real Origins, Hunts & Trials | HISTORY.
https://www.history.com/topics/folklore/history-of-witches.
