Museums and Galleries: Museum of Witchcraft, Boscastle

Last week, Luciel and I had the opportunity to travel to Boscastle in Cornwall and to visit the Museum of Witchcraft, which is home to the largest collection of witchcraft-related items in the world! The museum was originally founded on the Isle of Man in 1951 by renound occult expert Cecil Williamson and, after a few relocations, eventually moved to Boscastle in 1961.

The building itself is on two floors and is packed with all kinds of fascinating witchcraft and ritual magic paraphernalia. In addition to items that were used in real witchcraft, there's also advertising featuring witches from various decades, toys, decorations, artwork, photographs, models, a small section on Satanism (nothing to do with witchcraft, but included because of the general misconceptions linking the two) and more. Each piece on display is accompanied by a description and the staff are also very friendly and willing to answer any questions (within reason) that you may have.

As well as the items on display to the public, the museum also has a vast collection of books on the occult, which scholars and those with appropriate qualifications or reasons may be allowed access to if arranged with the museum owners in advance. However, even without being able to view these books, the museum collection is still massive.

The entry fee is only £3 for adults, and the village of Boscastle also has many interesting shops/galleries and beautiful scenery. The ruins at Tintagel, which is said to be the birthplace of King Arthur, are also only 2-3 miles away and so the museum and the surrounding area are well worth visiting!



Contact and Visitor Information

The Museum of Witchcraft is located by The Harbour in Boscastle, Cornwall. Boscastle is on the North coast of Cornwall between Tintagel and Bude (Multimap link).

Open:

•Easter Halloween (April - end October)

•Monday to Saturday 10.30am till 6pm (last admission 5.30)

•Sunday 11.30am till 6pm (last admission 5.30)

The full address is:
The Museum of Witchcraft
The Harbour
Boscastle
Cornwall
PL35 0HD


To contact the Museum:
•Telephone: 01840 250111 (within UK)
•Telephone: +44 1840 250111 (international)
•Email: museumwitchcraft@AOL.com

Website: http://www.museumofwitchcraft.com/


Photographs by: Lilia Tombs

↓More images after the jump↓