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The frog was put like a corpse in shrouds made of a piece of the patient's undergarments inside the coffin. Then the coffin was put under the church through a hatch in the foundation. After this they went to the churchyard, opened a recent grave, and took the body out of the coffin. A hole was dug into the side of the grave. The dead body was split so that the patient could be first pulled through the hole on the side of the grave and then three times through the dead body, switching between clockwise and counter-clockwise. The healer chanted during this: 'Rise all people, people of the air, people of the dead! Come to protect the unprotected, to help the endlessly suffering!' Afterwards the grave was restored.
324:. It should be trough-shaped and the lid, which should have nine holes along the mid-ridge, should be made from the same tree as also eight wooden nails. The red frog, which has not been touched with bare hands, is put on its back in this coffin with its hind legs bound with red thread. Then the lid is put on and fastened with the eight wooden nails and a ninth tar or coffin nail, which is driven in the third hole counted from the head-side, which coincides with the heart of the frog. The lid is not fastened by its rims, only with the nails that have been nailed through the frog all the way into the bottom of the coffin.)
25:
316:
This trouble is removed thus that a frog-coffin is made. Before this the frog must be found – it should be a reddish one – and it should be caught with mittens or something else covering the hands; since if the coffin is made before the frog has been caught, what will happen is that no frog will be
340:
region such that the healer first took the patient with him/her to sit naked on the threshold of a house that had been moved three times. There the healer threw cold water on the patient to startle him/her. Then they went to the forest, caught a frog and killed it. A coffin was made of alder wood.
353:
Both the malicious intent of 'frog coffin' rituals, and also those intended to 'reflect' evil intent back on the sender were at odds with the
Christian world view of forgiveness, though the protective use against other persons' malice could co-exist to some extent as it did not harm the innocent.
288:
Generally the burial of a miniature coffin is a key part of the ritual. The majority of recorded lore is about counter-magic – intended to reflect evil intentions back to those sending them. A lesser part of recorded rituals are malicious in intent – the ritual may be similar to the counter-magic
232:
Finds with very similar features were found in 1907 at the church in
Tuusniemi (b.1869). At the same church similar coffins were found in 1818 in the church's bell tower- these coffins also contained bedbugs, animal hair, or grains. Another find was made in the 1930s under the churches stone
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Then some hairs are pulled off each cow three times and put in a rag which is closed with red thread; then the frog-coffin, cow-hair-pouch, and three sharp tools with unknown makers are carried while circling the cowshed twice clockwise and once counter-clockwise while reciting a
289:
one, but include the burial of an item from the victim in the coffin, though the intent of ritual is also key. In these rituals frogs are the commonest animal (about 70%) though others may be used including squirrels, pike, or even a
240:
Whilst most coffins have been found in eastern
Finland an example has been found in the west at Turku Cathedral – this deposit was a 'high quality' work was made of varnished pine with cloth, and the initials 'HM' on the base.
362:('Power') for these spells may have come from the dead associated with the church and churchyard. In some cases miniature coffin rituals included elements of Christian practice, such as reciting parts of the
236:
Possibly related finds include a cat in an alder coffin at
Kiihtelysvaara Church, and alder coffins (about 20 centimetres (7.9 in)) containing a carved human figure found at The Old Church of Pielavesi.
211:
the 'coffins' had been pushed into the space through ventilation hatches. At the time of discovery some of the coffins were relatively new. Five further coffins were found in 1901, and the find recorded in
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wood; a frog inside the coffin; fishing net covering or wrapping the frog; a needle impaling the frog with white thread in the needle; in one case it is thought the frog's mouth had been stitched shut.
300:
which included burying a piece of the afflicted's undergarments with a frog coffin – this cure likely was another form of a protective 'reflective' spell, with the illness assumed caused by malicious
144:, who explained them as placed objects with a magical purpose of the stealing the luck of more successful fishermen. A typical size for the coffin was 15 centimetres (5.9 in) long.
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In recorded folklore accounts it was thought that such a practise was powerful magic, and could kill an intended victim. Other spells or rituals could be healing, such as a cure for
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for the purposes of folk magic. These coffins are known from finds secreted in churches, as well as from references to their use in folk magic at other locations.
35:
723:, Suomen keskiajan arkeologian seura – Sällskapet för medeltidsarkeologi i Finland (The Society for Medieval Archaeology in Finland), Turku
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a societal ritual ("Yaogui") takes place including a hunt for hibernating frogs ("Gui"), and their sacrifice and placing in a coffin (of a
186:
Church (in Sweden) – along with the coffins other finds included puppets made of alder or birch bark, parts of fishing nets, and textiles.
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A ritual against epilepsy also use a 'frog coffin' – it gives one ritual by which such coffins might end deposited in churches :
358:, pp. 211–2) notes the use of Christian holy places as geographic focuses for non-Christian practices. It is thought that the
762:
Hukantaival, Sonja (2018), "The
Materiality of Finnish Folk Magic: Objects in the Collections of the National Museum of Finland",
50:
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Contemporary newspaper reports of finds of such burials were scathing of such practises occurring and continuing to occur. (
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One such find were the coffins found during restoration work in the choir of Kuopio
Cathedral, recorded in the newspaper
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again – the newspaper surmised from the number that the coffins were being added yearly. Two coffins were kept by the
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section). On the 25th day after the sacrifice, the frog's bones are exhumed and used to foretell the next harvest.
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There is extensive recorded folklore concerning the placement of frogs in coffins in eastern
Finland, including
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282:
304:. For example, in a ritual to dispel the problem of cows not returning home at night, recorded from the
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717:""For a Witch Cannot Cross Such a Threshold!" Building Concealment Traditions in Finland c. 1200–1950"
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245:, building history, and style have dated this coffin to the late 17th century or early 18th century.
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293:. Animal substances (milk, feathers, hooves etc.) may have also been buried in a miniature coffin.
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697:"Frogs in Miniature Coffins from Churches in Finland – Folk Magic in Christian Holy Places"
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Old Church (coffin and bound frogs); coffins and bound frogs have also been found at
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in 1895 – the cathedral itself was consecrated in 1816 – according to the report in
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Frog coffins were believed to keep cattle healthy, if buried near a cattle shed.
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Burials of frogs in miniature coffins were discovered in churches in eastern
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found at all. Otherwise the coffin will be prepared as explained before.
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Chinese
Festival Culture Series-The Maguai Festival of the Zhuang People
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around the turn of the twentieth century, and were briefly recorded by
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Material
Religion - the Journal of Objects, Art and Belief
224:– features of these offerings were – a coffin carved from
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of China idolize the frog – on the first day of the
320:(First a coffin must be made from a single-growing
739:(4), Helsinki: Finnish Literature Society, 1917
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147:Churches where such coffins were found include
117:are burials of frogs in miniature coffins in
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281:in modern religion, except Karelia which is
51:introducing citations to additional sources
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615:, No. 1335, p.335-6; No. 1570, pp.389–391)
721:Archaeologia Medii Aevi Finlandiae XXIII
41:Relevant discussion may be found on the
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349:Christian interpretations and influence
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733:Suomen Kansan Vanhat Runot (SKVR)
366:, but not performed by a priest.
611:, p. 150) translated from (
220:in Helsinki, and another in the
34:relies largely or entirely on a
23:
308:Mikko Koljonen (born 1812) of
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776:10.1080/17432200.2018.1443893
642:https://yle.fi/a/74-20025936
273:, and as far north as south
155:Church (about 100 coffins);
715:Hukantaival, Sonja (2016),
695:Hukantaival, Sonja (2015),
336:Epilepsy was healed in the
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746:Finnish Literature Society
218:National Museum of Finland
16:Item of Finnish folk magic
277:– these areas are mostly
729:"Pohjois-Hameen Loitsut"
472:, Map.1, Table 1, p.197.
655:, pp. 199, 211–2.
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744:"Folklore Archives",
748:, KRK103:92, 1935–36
159:Church (4 coffins);
151:(about 32 coffins);
47:improve this article
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508:, pp. 199–200.
267:North Ostrobothnia
243:Radiocarbon dating
677:Song, Li (1995),
667:, pp. 211–3.
632:, pp. 188–9)
571:, pp. 208–9.
556:, pp. 206–8.
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520:, pp. 200–1.
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62:"Frog coffin"
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58:Find sources:
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417:Horse skulls
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167:Old Church;
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626:FLS FA 1935
402:Church grim
306:cunning man
200: [
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177:Bringetofta
138: [
795:Categories
710:(1): 192 –
628:) and in (
429:References
380:Lunar Year
310:Viitasaari
73:newspapers
784:195040072
613:SKVR 1917
412:Dried cat
169:Heinävesi
161:Pielavesi
153:Tuusniemi
43:talk page
390:See also
328:spell...
298:epilepsy
283:Orthodox
279:Lutheran
249:Folklore
125:Overview
816:Coffins
704:Mirator
688:Sources
302:sorcery
275:Lapland
263:Karelia
131:Finland
119:Finland
87:scholar
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384:Bamboo
338:Kuopio
271:Kainuu
175:; and
165:Nilsiä
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780:S2CID
700:(PDF)
434:Notes
322:alder
226:alder
204:]
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94:JSTOR
80:books
374:The
360:Väki
259:Savo
66:news
772:doi
49:by
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737:IX
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