Swimming Test

This is a 17th century woodcut by an unknown artist of a trial of a witch by ducking in the mill-stream.

I find this woodcut interesting more because of the background than because of the witch. The witch does appear to be a woman, but all the other people in the picture appear to be men. What I find strange is that there are two dogs in the river with her. I assume that they are supposed to be her familiars, but I don't know. Then there is the man in the washtub. Why would a grown man be in a washtub in the first place? The only reason I can figure out for him being there is that he is supposed to watch and make sure the witch does not use and unnatural means of making herself sink. Since this is a woodcut of a trial, if the witch were to float then there would be some proof that she is not a witch. Although if this is the case he is not doing a very good because he is not facing her. Then there are the two men that are holding her with ropes in the river. I guess I never really thought about how the swimming test would work, but I never pictured ropes being involved. Just to let everyone know what the swimming test is, it is when an accused witch is put into water to see if she will sink or float. The water is supposed to represent baptism water, so if the witch floats the water is rejecting her and if she sinks then she is not a witch. If a witch was to sink, then it was not an automatic acquittal, it was just one suggestion that she was not a witch. When I though about a witch having to do the swimming test, I always pictured the witch just getting in a pond and trying to float on her back. I guess that was a juvenile thought because then the person could escape, but I still never though about people trying to run.

There are also three men watching the swimming test that I assume are people from the courts. I cannot figure why the three of them would be standing in a row watching the test otherwise. If they were just casual observers I would think that they would not be so close to the river and also that there would be more people watching. The only person that I can see that looks to just be there to watch is the little boy on top of the building. I imagine that he is there because he was curious and wanted to see a "real" witch. I would think that there would be more kids there watching and not just the one.

The scene in the background is what really interests me. There is a man trying to catch he horses and cart which has just lost a wheel. The man has lost his all of his bags and is running after the cart. I wonder if the artist is trying to attribute the cart wheel breaking and the witch in the river. If the two were connected then it would suggest that the witch is still doing her evil works, even though she has been arrested. And then there is the wild boar. I do not know why there would be a wild boar roaming around people unless it was supposed to be associated with the witch. The wild boar kind of looks like what I would assume a familiar of one would look like. It has an air about it that does not quite make me believe that it is an actual boar, but something more sinister.

The rest of the woodcut is just scenery, but even the scenery does not lend itself to helping the witch. The sky seems to be cloudy, which suggests that a storm is brewing. If even nature is against this woman, then I would guess that she has no chance of being found not guilty. All of these things, the cart, boar, and storm, could just be coincidences but they would still be taken as signs of the witches guilt. I cannot see this scene turning out in favor of the witch.


Picture:http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.foxearth.org.uk/swimming.GIF&imgrefurl=http://www.foxearth.org.uk/SwimmingOfWitches.html&usg=__GKnBaGnWqo6v4F5x6F5xKnLOLc0=&h=506&w=600&sz=19&hl=en&start=12&um=1&tbnid=oorIuSEeprvslM:&tbnh=114&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dwitch%2Bswimming%2Btest%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26rlz%3D1T4DKUS_enUS276US281%26sa%3DN