Alphitomancy
An ancient method of divination used to prove the guilt or
innocence of a suspected person with a loaf of barley. When
many persons were accused of a crime and it was desired to find
the true culprit, a loaf of barley was made and a portion given
to each of the suspects. The innocent people suffered no illeffects,
but criminals were said to betray themselves by an attack
of indigestion. This practice gave rise to the oath If I am
deceiving you, may this piece of bread choke me. By means
of this method, a lover might know if his mistress were faithful
to him, or a wife, her husband.
The procedure was a follows A quantity of pure barley flour
was kneaded with milk and a little salt, without any leaven. It
was then rolled up in a greased paper, and cooked among the
cinders. It was afterward taken out and rubbed with verbena
leaves and given to the person suspected of deceit, who, if the
suspicion was justified, would be unable to digest it.
In ancient times, there was said to be a sacred wood at
Lavinium, near Rome, where Alphitomancy was practiced in
order to test the purity of women. The priests kept a serpent
or a dragon in a cavern in the wood. On certain days of the year
the young women were sent there, blindfolded, and carrying a
cake made of barley flour and honey. Those who were innocent
had their cakes eaten by the serpent, while the cakes of the others
were refused.
Sources
Waite, Arthur Edward. The Occult Sciences. 1891. Reprint, Secaucus,
N.J. University Books, 1974.
