Daisy Wheel, Hexfoil, Hexafoil, Rosette - by Robyn S Lacy (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The use of protective symbols, also known as apotropaic marks, are often part of folk magic traditions, appearing in homes, churches, on personal items, and even graves, across Europe, Australia, and North America. The most common and well-known of these marks is the hexfoil, otherwise known as the daisy wheel, witch hex, or rosette. Hexfoils have a history of use for personal protection and were carved both intentionally or graffitied into church pews and walls, bed frames, doors, and gravestones. This research sheds light on the use of this historic symbol to protect the bodies and souls of the deceased, across several thousand years and multiple countries"-- Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

The use of protective symbols, also known as apotropaic marks, are often part of folk magic traditions, appearing in homes, churches, on personal items, and even graves, across Europe, Australia, and North America. The most common and well-known of these marks is the hexfoil, otherwise known as the daisy wheel, witch hex, or rosette. Hexfoils have a history of use for personal protection and were carved both intentionally or graffitied into church pews and walls, bed frames, doors, and gravestones. This research sheds light on the use of this historic symbol to protect the bodies and souls of the deceased, across several thousand years and multiple countries.

Review Quotes

"As an analysis of the distribution and extent of the symbol in northern America this book is a must read for graveyard historians... this is an interesting book which is an attempt to narrate the use of [the W] symbol in funerary contexts over the last couple of millennia." - Current Archaeology

About the Author

Robyn S. Lacy earned her PhD in Archaeology at Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador. She runs a historic gravestone preservation business with her husband in Newfoundland, which takes them all across the island and beyond. Her first book, Burial and Death in Colonial North America, was published in 2020, and she regularly writes about her research on her website, spadeandthegrave.com.