THE MIDWIFE AND THE WITCH
Book Details + Condition: Yale University Press (New Haven and London). Uncommon First Edition, 1966. Hardcover with dust jacket. Large octavo, 196pp. Blue cloth gilt-lettered on spine. B/w illustrations. Bibliography & index. A study of the history folklore and superstition surrounding the role of midwife - which at times was though to overlap with the practice of witchcraft. From the jacket: The mysteries of pregnancy and childbirth have produced a rich folklore. In these essays are many colorful and curious ideas about pregnancy tests, sex prediction, and the protection of the mother by charms and amulets. Here also are accounts of early midwives who experimented with witchcraft and made flying ointments, as well as the record of how the midwife, an essential member of society, came under the control of church and state. In very good condition: tight binding; endpapers tanned; interior is clean and free of markings; dust jacket unevenly faded, with a little creasing to the edges. It remains uncut, with the original price still present.
