Necklace of snake vertebrae, Europe, 1871-1916

Made:
1871-1916 in Europe
Necklace of snake vertebrae, amuletic Necklace of snake vertebrae, amuletic

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Creative Commons LicenseThis image is released under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 Licence

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Necklace of snake vertebrae, amuletic
Science Museum Group
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Necklace of snake vertebrae, amuletic
Science Museum Group Collection
© The Board of Trustees of the Science Museum

Necklace of snake vertebrae, amuletic, thought to protect against lumbago, Lovett collection, from North London, 1871-1916

The growing influence of biomedicine in the 1800s did not necessarily replace established forms of treatment based on belief and superstition. What could be referred to as folk medicine – customs that often went back generations – continued to be practised. For example, here the bones of a snake have been threaded on to string to make a rather uncomfortable looking necklace. It is thought that this amulet was used to protect against lower back pain – perhaps the fluid slither of a snake was thought to encourage the back muscles to stay supple.

The snake necklace was originally made in North London and then purchased in 1930 from Edward Lovett’s (1852-1933) collection of British amulets and charms. Lovett was interested in folk remedies all his life and began collecting from the age of eight.

Details

Category:
Ethnography and Folk Medicine
Collection:
Sir Henry Wellcome's Museum Collection
Object Number:
A665420
Materials:
vertebrae, snake and string
Measurements:
overall: 12 mm x 960 mm
type:
necklace and amulet