Sant Julià de Lòria Hosts Fifth Witchcraft Days with 160 Attendees
Andorra's event blends academic lectures on prehistoric sacred landscapes and Pyrenean witchcraft history with popular workshops, drawing crowds.
Key Points
- Archaeologist Martín Almagro Gorbea lectured on Paleolithic to Indo-European sacred views of Pyrenean mountains.
- Weekend events included concert, Wikipedia edit-a-thon on Andorran witchcraft cases, syrup workshop, and theatre shows.
- 160 attendees, near-full capacity, strong turnout from Barcelona, Girona, Tarragona boosting tourism.
- Academic sessions continue through Wednesday with more lectures.
Sant Julià de Lòria's fifth Jornades de Bruixeria event has drawn strong interest, with 160 participants in weekend activities and its academic phase now underway.
The event opened its scholarly segment on Monday evening with a lecture on the prehistoric origins of Pyrenean sacred landscapes, delivered by archaeologist and museologist Martín Almagro Gorbea at Sala Sergi Mas in Casa Comuna. Moderated by anthropologist Cinta Pujal, head of cultural heritage, Almagro explored how ancient communities interpreted mountain terrain like Andorra's as spiritually significant. He traced these views to Paleolithic animism, Neolithic Mother Goddess beliefs, and later Indo-European rituals, noting that such traditions persist in isolated areas. In a light moment, he remarked that he had not encountered any witches that day but highlighted their role in traditional explanations of natural phenomena and territorial spirits.
Local officials, including minor consul Sofia Cortesao, praised the event's blend of academic, cultural, and popular offerings to reach broad audiences. Comú representatives reported near-full capacity across sessions and notable attendance from outside Andorra, particularly Barcelona, Girona, and Tarragona, boosting parish tourism.
The weekend featured a Friday concert and talk, "Las tres muertes de Blancanieves: Manzanas envenenadas, brujería e infanticidio en los Pirineos (siglos XIV y XV)". Saturday included a Wikipedia edit-a-thon that added details on ten cases of Andorran women accused of witchcraft—out of around 180 historically—to online entries, with about a dozen participants. That afternoon offered a syrup-making workshop. Sunday brought theatre shows: "El secret del sol" in the morning and "Dones de flors herbes" in the afternoon, a homage to trementinaires who gathered medicinal herbs and oils for remedies sold across rural Catalonia. These activities accounted for the total of 160 attendees.
Further lectures and conferences continue through Wednesday.
Original Sources
This article was aggregated from the following Catalan-language sources: