How They Did It - Magic, Spells, & Curses in Ancient Rome DOCUMENTARY

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  • Опубликовано: 26 сен 2024
  • Learn about the magic spells and curses of ancient Rome! Claim your SPECIAL OFFER for MagellanTV here: try.magellantv.... Start your free trial TODAY so you can watch "Myths, Magic and Monsters" about the incredible orins stories for the legends of our past, and the rest of MagellanTV’s documentary collection: www.magellantv...
    In this How They Did It documentary episode we dive into the history of magic in ancient Rome. We begin with a discussion of how people in the past truly believed that they lived in a realm where the supernatural was as real as the ground they walked on. People blamed crop failures, stillbirths, disease, and all kinds of things they could not otherwise explain on magic.
    The episode focuses on the most common ways that ancient Romans in turn sought to use this magic in their daily life. Its a fascinating subject that I look forwards to covering more of in the future. Be sure to check out the rest of our How They Did It series which features animated history videos on different aspects of daily life in the past.
    Credits:
    Research = Chris Das Neves
    Writing = Chris Das Neves
    Narration = Invicta
    Editing = Penta Limited
    Sources and Suggested Reading:
    Magical Practice in the Latin West, eds. Richard L. Gordon and Francisco Marco Simón
    Curse Tablets and Binding Spells from the Ancient World by John Gager
    The Oxford Handbook of Roman Epigraphy eds. Christer Bruun and Jonathan Edmonson
    The Cambridge History of Magic and Witchcraft in the West: From Antiquity to the Present Edited by David Collins
    #Rome
    #HowTheyDidIt
    #History

Комментарии • 553

  • @InvictaHistory
    @InvictaHistory  2 года назад +96

    I'm designing a few Roman magic inspired shirts for our store. All proceeds go to the art team so please do have a look: printerpanther.com/collections/invicta

    • @ericgarcia4745
      @ericgarcia4745 2 года назад +4

      Thank you for introducing more than just ancient battles. Daily life, economy, evolution of units and religion/beliefs of ancient people's is a huge plus on this channel.

    • @dariusghodsi2570
      @dariusghodsi2570 2 года назад +3

      How do we find youre d&d content?

    • @InvictaHistory
      @InvictaHistory  2 года назад +6

      @@dariusghodsi2570 I haven't shared it publicly but will likely do so in the future

    • @andreascovano7742
      @andreascovano7742 2 года назад +2

      Invicta, how much does the lack of the sybbiline books of magic hurt our understanding of roman magic?

    • @QuizmasterLaw
      @QuizmasterLaw 2 года назад

      the devils diplomatic dictionary

  • @Pretisy
    @Pretisy 2 года назад +638

    Imagine being a Roman just casually speaking to your friend, & accidentally sending him to the ninth dimension.

    • @kevin6293
      @kevin6293 2 года назад +24

      My imagination isn’t that good.

    • @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen
      @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen 2 года назад +11

      @@kevin6293 what version of the USA flag is that ?

    • @ryansauchuk7290
      @ryansauchuk7290 2 года назад +19

      He was sent to the Shadow Realm

    • @kevin6293
      @kevin6293 2 года назад +19

      @@exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen April 1861, Fort Sumter

    • @aurelian2668
      @aurelian2668 2 года назад +1

      @@exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen thats when america was azticossis

  • @spiffyracc
    @spiffyracc 2 года назад +381

    If a hairy man comes to your small town and tells you you're a wizard and Emperor Hadrian wants to take you to a palace and show you his wand, don't go.

    • @zawwin1846
      @zawwin1846 2 года назад +30

      Well he is THE EMPEROR, don’t think you got a choice.

    • @spiffyracc
      @spiffyracc 2 года назад +20

      @@zawwin1846 He told me I was a god, though, so maybe I am more powerful?

    • @jdee8407
      @jdee8407 2 года назад +12

      Good advice, the same goes for, if Harvey Weinstein invites you to a party at the Four Seasons, don't go.

    • @knighthunter1791
      @knighthunter1791 2 года назад +16

      Oh, he's gonna show you his wand, alright.

    • @aiasfree
      @aiasfree 2 года назад +7

      I mean shit, Hadrian's no Nero I should be okay.

  • @kangirigungi
    @kangirigungi 2 года назад +570

    To the Romans, Greek was a magical language that always sounded profound, just as Latin is to us now.

    • @MrDalisclock
      @MrDalisclock 2 года назад +37

      Latin means a boss battle is about to occur. So pretty much.

    • @nikkibrowning4546
      @nikkibrowning4546 2 года назад +20

      'Cept koine greek was a trade language.
      You could be right, but, I'd need more evidence.

    • @YuzuruA
      @YuzuruA 2 года назад +45

      and the greeks used egyptian and jewish words

    • @barbiquearea
      @barbiquearea 2 года назад +5

      Is that why the Byzantines eventually abandoned Latin in favor of Greek?

    • @drewinsur7321
      @drewinsur7321 2 года назад +36

      @@barbiquearea i think is more because the region had a larger population of greek speakers, cuz laws and stuff like that still written in latin

  • @dynawesome
    @dynawesome 2 года назад +311

    I’m running a dnd campaign in Ancient Rome, this is so helpful!

    • @NodDisciple1
      @NodDisciple1 2 года назад +9

      This review has some useful RPG books for Rome. Call of Cthulhu and D20. ruclips.net/video/2BWiWE3Lv5Q/видео.html

    • @MH-gm3ju
      @MH-gm3ju 2 года назад +1

      Have a look at the Lex Arcana RPG, it's very different to D&D and has an interesting take on magic and Rome

    • @jefferynelson
      @jefferynelson 2 года назад

      my campaign has a Roman culture too

    • @jefferynelson
      @jefferynelson 2 года назад

      @@NodDisciple1 thanks, you just gave me practical help

    • @gorvarhadgarson5227
      @gorvarhadgarson5227 2 года назад +2

      I'm the DM of a Roman inspired campaign to!

  • @lilykep
    @lilykep 2 года назад +76

    Belief is a powerful thing. I once cast a "curse" on a childhood classmate who intentionally ripped up my homework. In actuality all I did was mutter a few words under my breath and tell them that they'd be cursed with bad luck until they apologized. Their mind did the rest, from that point forward every bad thing that happened to them was the result of my "curse". They apologized after a few weeks and since they were no longer anticipating bad things, it seemed to them like the "curse" was lifted. To this day they still 100% believe I'm a witch who actually cursed them with real magic.

    • @nikkibrowning4546
      @nikkibrowning4546 2 года назад +10

      I made fun of my brother when he got a zit. He got mad and said, "zitious maximus" and poked my chin.
      I got a zit two days later on my chin.

    • @nunyabiznes33
      @nunyabiznes33 2 года назад +10

      Always great to debuff them with paranoia effect.

    • @hannahlarocco4699
      @hannahlarocco4699 Год назад

      Ok?

  • @kevinsmith9013
    @kevinsmith9013 2 года назад +259

    "You're a Roman now, Harry"

  • @maxherman3884
    @maxherman3884 2 года назад +115

    Are we not even gonna talk about how curses in the greco-roman world were powered by the dead? Necromancy was powerful, in the sense that burring your curse tablet with the corpse of someone who was known to have a vengeful spirit could cause that spirit to act out the punishment.
    Another common type of spell were threshold spells. These spells were inscribed on the threshold of a home. It's been a while, but I believe that one of the most common threshold spells was to make the previous inhabitants of the house protect it. (basically if you'd bought or moved into a house where someone had died [a common occurrence in the ancient world] you could ensure that their spirit would not take vengeance against you or make mischief in the house by binding it to the threshold, or some other object, at which point, you could placate it, and treat it as a sort of guardian.
    The video mentions love potions, but doesn't talk about love curses. There's a reason why. As you might expect, where intimacy and romantic rivalry are involved, love curses get nasty.

    • @Callmecel
      @Callmecel 2 года назад +8

      We had a limited amount of space with this one! If only there was a month dedicated to a love holiday...

    • @profezzordarke4362
      @profezzordarke4362 2 года назад +6

      Dude, most people still die at home. It has *always* been a very common thing. So if you buy a house that's a few decades old you can be sure at some point someone died in there.

    • @suzanneromijnders6320
      @suzanneromijnders6320 2 года назад +2

      @@profezzordarke4362 Buying an old house was the then more common than now part.

    • @carso1500
      @carso1500 2 года назад

      @@profezzordarke4362 Yeah but it's not as comon, now a days people usually die at the hospital sorrounded by profesionals trying ti save your life or on the outside on accidents or stuff like that, people still dies on their homes but it's a much rare occurrence than in antiquity

    • @JesseP.Watson
      @JesseP.Watson 2 года назад +2

      Hmm.
      Y'know, I laid a proper curse on an ex that I bought a house for who cheated on me. I had pretty much lost my marbles at the time. The thing is, though absurd, at times I wonder if it worked...
      I took a ball of her hair she left in the sink and spat on it then hid it on the property with the intention that it should act to bind her irrevocably to my memory and the place so she'd not be able to divide herself from the ruin she'd left me carrying there, so trapping her in a loop to the dream her betrayal corrupted.
      ...She came back a year after I moved away and tried to claim the house, I couldn't understand why because it was a mess and it should have been the last place she wanted to live, it was mine afterall... She was always absent while I was there and had been living with the guy she went off with...
      ....And then I remembered what I'd done in those days when I'd lost my mind there as it all came out.
      Mmm. I'm just about to sell her the place, at a small profit, 3 years later. She hung around there like a fly around shit.
      Mmm. When I go back to pick up the last of my belongings there soon I'm going to find and burn what's left of that spell.
      ...Let's just keep that between us eh... Because... Mmm. I'm normally quite a sane man. ...I just really hate cheaters.
      ...There is no magic so dark as that of the betrayed.
      Huh. ... Muha... ..MWAHAHAHAHAAA!

  • @cringlator
    @cringlator 2 года назад +98

    Hmmm… Something tells me throwing a lead curse tablet into someone’s well would be the most effective way to attack them.

    • @eclipse_war5009
      @eclipse_war5009 2 года назад +4

      He would sell it saying its magic water which burns if thief would be nearby

    • @pp-wo1sd
      @pp-wo1sd 2 года назад +10

      It wouldn't make much of a difference . Romans put small pieces of lead into wine to sweeten it and used lead pipes

    • @ChocorocK
      @ChocorocK 2 года назад +7

      @@pp-wo1sd Romans would survive in chernobyl.

    • @pp-wo1sd
      @pp-wo1sd 2 года назад +11

      @@ChocorocK indeed , they would be completely radiation proof . Shame about the lead poisoning though

  • @torrent6181
    @torrent6181 2 года назад +159

    I love this ‘Day in the life of’ content. You do a really good job explaining it!
    Also it’s so cool that Ancient Romans actually attempted to cast magic. Do you have plans to make a video about Ancient Romans’ relationship with Astrology? That would be epic to see you cover.

    • @torrent6181
      @torrent6181 2 года назад +1

      I’m not sure if Ancient Romans really had any significant Astrology beliefs, but it would be cool to see a video on it if they did

    • @leonardoferrari4852
      @leonardoferrari4852 2 года назад +4

      @@torrent6181 in the second century ac chaldean astrology took the roman world by storm, to the point where everyone wanted his or her fortune read before any significant event, it became the most popular form of divination.
      It also greatly influenced religions, for the first time in the roman world the souls of the deceases were not bound to the underworld (that became the place for evildoers), the worthy were instead carried to the skies.
      You can tell how that inspired christianity who was taking hold in the same time period and it would definitly be a great topic for a video

    • @torrent6181
      @torrent6181 2 года назад

      @@leonardoferrari4852 Very interesting!

    • @Marksfish
      @Marksfish 2 года назад

      Noob. Magic is so easy 2 cast

  • @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen
    @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen 2 года назад +430

    Roman wisards would be so OP though, Latin is their first langage so they would learn spells much quicker.

    • @KingsguardRP
      @KingsguardRP 2 года назад +19

      Bold of you to assume the horned one speaks latin

    • @evenaskeladden
      @evenaskeladden 2 года назад +55

      Just as we in our modern time use Latin in magick(the correct spelling of the term in contrast to fictional magic), the Romans used Ancient Greek in their spells and incantations. We humans have always(almost) used an older and more ancient language in magick. The mystery is, what language did the Egyptians use? Maybe just their own tongue, or maybe an older one which they knew about back then.

    • @TwistedAlphonso1
      @TwistedAlphonso1 2 года назад +5

      Wingardium Leviosum

    • @the-human-being
      @the-human-being 2 года назад +10

      @@evenaskeladden magick is an obsolete spelling…..

    • @facundocadaa9020
      @facundocadaa9020 2 года назад

      @@KingsguardRP effective enough for most christian religions

  • @TwistedAlphonso1
    @TwistedAlphonso1 2 года назад +92

    Magus es, Harrius.

  • @johnfraire6931
    @johnfraire6931 2 года назад +62

    Nero used fireball
    It's super effective!

  • @dariustiapula
    @dariustiapula 2 года назад +64

    I imagine the Legion mastering defensive spells either in formation or fortress.

    • @TwistedAlphonso1
      @TwistedAlphonso1 2 года назад +9

      Protegus Maximus

    • @andrewhawking7893
      @andrewhawking7893 2 года назад +3

      @@TwistedAlphonso1 Might throw Bigus Dickus at that while at it)))))

    • @nunyabiznes33
      @nunyabiznes33 2 года назад +2

      Defensive wards on the fortifications!

  • @saltherilshaven
    @saltherilshaven 2 года назад +70

    Wow, this was in depth. I wasn't expecting to have actual spells to see! Very informative!

    • @charlesochieng9935
      @charlesochieng9935 2 года назад

      📌📌 🔥🔥POWERFUL MORE THAN ANY MAGIC, SPELL👇👇👇📌Try it and you will never regret 👇👇
      ruclips.net/video/SwSFCgQQrtw/видео.html
      ruclips.net/video/no9AGW9B_sY/видео.html
      ruclips.net/video/Q6qyiulLh10/видео.html
      ruclips.net/video/hjo0JvFvQes/видео.html

  • @obiwancoolidge1828
    @obiwancoolidge1828 2 года назад +36

    *after a charioteer race*
    “Julius! Did you put your curse in the Goblet of FIYAH????!!!” Dumbledore asked, calmly.

  • @emperoraugustus4047
    @emperoraugustus4047 2 года назад +49

    Your a wizard! gaius harianus pottus maximus!

    • @johnfraire6931
      @johnfraire6931 2 года назад +1

      I suppose a plebian like yourself is going to stop him, are you?

    • @path1024
      @path1024 2 года назад

      His a wizard?

  • @MehnixIsThatGuy
    @MehnixIsThatGuy 2 года назад +146

    Always kind of interesting how, today, we know that magic doesn't exist and the spells and cursed chanting didn't do anything, but often were accompanied by things that ended up causing the desired effect. Like cursing someone by placing rotten remains in their bedroom, the rot attracting vermin and disease which then the target catches, and so becomes ill, which everyone then attributes to the cursed text stored along with the remains as they don't understand how diseases work.
    Either that or simple confirmation bias, where a person is cursed to misfortune and they just so happen, utterly unrelatedly, to suffer misfortune, which is then also attributed to the curse.
    Most good lies, or I guess misunderstandings in these cases, have a kernel of truth.

    • @matijaderetic3565
      @matijaderetic3565 2 года назад +15

      I feel magic rituals can be a good way to control your mind, mood and thus reality.
      I mean I sometimes consider everything a ritual.
      You go to the gym everyday, you get stronger. Study and you'll get more knowledgable.
      It's just important to have deep understanding of what matters in your ritual so you don't end up like cargo cults - summoning airplanes by building a landing strip complete with wooden antennas and stuff like that.
      I myself am an atheist and a skeptic, but I find the channel foolish fish, which deals with magic, really intriguing.
      The ideas of conjuring up different headspaces seem useful.

    • @lilykep
      @lilykep 2 года назад +27

      In my experience it's 100% confirmation bias. In school a classmate tore up my homework and when I started muttering under my breath he said "what are you gonna cast a curse on me?" (i was a goth kid) So I was like "Yes I am, nothing you do will ever go right and you'll have only bad luck until you apologize" The next few weeks every single unfortunate thing that happened to him, he blamed on the "curse". Then after he apologized he was no longer looking for misfortune so to him it seemed like the "curse" was lifted. He still to this day thinks I'm a witch with actual powers.

    • @groglorb8980
      @groglorb8980 2 года назад +6

      @@lilykep thats a good lesser curse, I've seen similar things happen before.

    • @Wertsir
      @Wertsir 2 года назад +10

      Speak for yourself. My mother was 100% convinced that magic exists, and that dnd and Harry Potter would lead you down the path to Satanism. She ain't the brightest spell in the spellbook if you know what I'm saying.

    • @oiausdlkasuldhflaksjdhoiausydo
      @oiausdlkasuldhflaksjdhoiausydo 2 года назад +10

      It changes the mind and the feelings of the person believing in them and that is real. Tell an alcoholic who quit alcohol by dedicating his mind to god that god is not real and he’ll reply that he indeed was able to quit alcohol thanks to god. Is he wrong? Belief and mind are very much real…

  • @ramenbomberdeluxe4958
    @ramenbomberdeluxe4958 2 года назад +69

    Rome would TOTALLY be an all white deck with maybe a dash of black and blue for good measure. Oh wait, wrong magic-

    • @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen
      @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen 2 года назад +8

      That's the Egyptians, imagine Cleopatra teaching Yu Gi Oh to Ceasar/Anthony, lmao.

    • @ramenbomberdeluxe4958
      @ramenbomberdeluxe4958 2 года назад +9

      @@exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen
      No no no, the Egyptians would be Yu-Gi-Oh, and they would have a strong balance of White and Black I feel if they had a Magic deck.

    • @confectortyrannis275
      @confectortyrannis275 2 года назад +7

      Ran a white/red legions/tokens generator Armies deck that was a lot of fun. Just rank upon rank of legionaires and angels and... lotsa fun 💥 💥 💥

    • @mondaysinsanity8193
      @mondaysinsanity8193 2 года назад

      Id say white maybe blue or red but not black and def not green

  • @isaacofthales4303
    @isaacofthales4303 2 года назад +19

    Do Monsters in Rome, next. This has me wondering about how monsters (or at least belief in them) affected ancient life

  • @alexander1995ah
    @alexander1995ah 2 года назад +15

    This came out in perfect time, I'm currently writing on an Essay "Did the Roman's believe magic was a threat" and this has given some good inspiration. Thanks!

  • @bariuslippius
    @bariuslippius 2 года назад +40

    man i pressed harder than varus defeat at teutoburg

  • @Perroloco603
    @Perroloco603 2 года назад +52

    Bravo... you could make a whole series of this, incluiding the origins of roman magic which includes graeco-egyptian stuff. Also, you know romans added to their own culture things of their conquered peoples.

    • @JTVSydney
      @JTVSydney 2 года назад

      Thank you for sharing, may I ask where I can further research them adding on spells and rituals stolen from other nations? Very interesting!

  • @awesomehpt8938
    @awesomehpt8938 2 года назад +54

    Considering how the spells in Harry Potter sound like Latin it’s no surprise that Romans did magic too.

    • @jy-li1jq
      @jy-li1jq 2 года назад +4

      They are latin

    • @murder13love
      @murder13love 2 года назад

      🤦‍♂️

    • @ChocorocK
      @ChocorocK 2 года назад +1

      @@jy-li1jq Roman Wizards seldom talk in fear of randomly casting spells.

    • @melissarose7488
      @melissarose7488 2 года назад +1

      I took Latin in school for a few years and almost every week there was a vocab word that was also a Harry
      Potter spell 😂

    • @VeryEvilGM
      @VeryEvilGM Год назад

      Leviooosa!

  • @evershumor1302
    @evershumor1302 2 года назад +4

    I love that you don't try to explain away the magic.

  • @alicia1463
    @alicia1463 2 года назад +8

    Religion for Breakfast has some absolutely lovely videos on magic. He even makes a replica of a curse tablet.

  • @mfaizsyahmi
    @mfaizsyahmi 2 года назад +3

    Invicta casually incantating ancient curses on RUclips is not something I was expecting. Poor cursed things suddenly getting a jolt of curses in 2021 after millenia of respite.

  • @navilluscire2567
    @navilluscire2567 2 года назад +9

    I love how you've made clear that magic was for most of human history not something exclusive to a select few but rather was an everyday, mundane thing for people of all walks of life, whereas magic in alot of popular fantasy fictional settings is a sadly elitist thing, were there's this bizarre hardline between the magical and the mundane when it was never the case for much of history, it isn't till modern times that magic is thought of as mostly the realm of an exclusive cast of well..."spellcasters", often ridiculously overpowered too with no real recourse for those deprived of magic from this modern, arbitrary division.

  • @DanMcLeodNeptuneUK
    @DanMcLeodNeptuneUK 2 года назад +9

    "I have an amulet to protect against the evil eye!" - Eastern diplomat from Rome 2 : Total War

  • @Leto85
    @Leto85 2 года назад +8

    How interesting. Normally I would picture magic in either a medieval or modern day setting, not in ancient Rome.
    What's next: magic among the stars in a science fiction setting? I"m looking forward to such a thing.

    • @carso1500
      @carso1500 2 года назад +1

      I mean currently we do have stuff that the ancients would consider magic, just look infront of your face

    • @Leto85
      @Leto85 2 года назад +2

      @@carso1500 In front of my face is your comment, and it looks indeed magical much. :)

    • @jy3n2
      @jy3n2 2 года назад

      "In the name of the Galactic Spirit and of his prophet, Hari Seldon, and of his interpreters, the holy men of the Foundation, I curse this ship. Let the televisors of this ship, which are its eyes, become blind. Let its grapples, which are its arms, be paralyzed. Let the nuclear blasts, which are its fists, lose their function. Let the motors, which are its heart, cease to beat. Let the communications, which are its voice, become dumb. Let its ventilations, which are its breath, fade. Let its lights, which are its soul, shrivel into nothing. In the name of the Galactic Spirit, I so curse this ship."

    • @Cara-39
      @Cara-39 Год назад

      Magic is still an important part of life today, with many millions believing they communicate directly with God, saints and angels and that the immaculate conception, resurrection of the dead, night travel on a heavenly horse from Mecca to Jerusalem and to heaven, parting of the Red Sea with a staff & living in a wooden boat with 2 of every animal for 40-150 days during a flood...etc are true historical events. For many, no amount of facts, evidence or scientific/medical advancement will shake their their belief in the fantastical so while we may have come a long way since Ancient Rome, magic didn't die out with togas, gladiators and polytheism.

  • @devingunnels3251
    @devingunnels3251 2 года назад +11

    Awesome video. I've been thinking a long time about how I should handle magic in my fictional setting, and I wanted to base it close to how magic was viewed historically. This video was an excellent source of knowledge and inspiration.

    • @Cara-39
      @Cara-39 Год назад +1

      You should also look into the Etruscan religion, which was influenced by ancient Greece, was older than Rome's and before Etruria was conquered, was more sophisticated. The Etruscan Discipline and Liver of Piacenza (still exists) provide instructions to help their priests interpret the will of the gods via lightning, thunder and the liver of animals. The Etruscan priests could also call on the gods to throw lighting to destroy their enemies and they were much better at divination than Rome's, who could really only receive yes/no answers from their gods via birds. It's very interesting and Rome adopted much into their own religion as they expanded the empire.
      en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etruscan_religion?wprov=sfla1

  • @andrewjohnson6716
    @andrewjohnson6716 2 года назад +14

    “This was peak civilization”. Yes, because it was a society where a manual laborer can afford to go for a massage and spa session. Services that, in our “advanced” society, are completely out of reach of those that need them most.

  • @themonitor6468
    @themonitor6468 2 года назад +2

    When the tablet said “babpoopbabpoopbabpoopbabpoopbab” i started crying 😭

  • @barryrudolph3080
    @barryrudolph3080 2 года назад +15

    Our local Walmart is an enchanted place.
    Whenever I need help, All the floor employees disappear. Like maaaaaaagic.

  • @napoleonibonaparte7198
    @napoleonibonaparte7198 2 года назад +14

    Low key thought this would be sponsored by Raid Shadow Legends.

  • @planepaste1882
    @planepaste1882 2 года назад +5

    currently living in Bath. wonderful video but Bath is considered a city here in fact. Bath is the largest city in the county of Somerset.

  • @serotonin.scavenger
    @serotonin.scavenger 2 года назад +4

    Magic is still around today. Most don't know how it works, but it works. It's allowing me to type this and post my my thoughts on this comments section!

  • @bravomike4734
    @bravomike4734 2 года назад +9

    Sometimes I like to think that we are like Warhammer's orks and whatever we do and the results we achieve also depends on the amount of people that believe in it.
    In some Buddhist faiths, they believe that more the people believe in something, more likely it is to happen because of power of belief. Whether it is creation of ghosts, fortune or misfortune.

  • @juliantotriwijaya9208
    @juliantotriwijaya9208 2 года назад +1

    "Did you throw the chicken into the sea?" asked the priest to the general calmly.

  • @lugburz5589
    @lugburz5589 2 года назад +7

    ooga booga INVICTA

  • @Commandercody82
    @Commandercody82 2 года назад +2

    The timing you made this video is impeccable thank you

  • @browndd
    @browndd 2 года назад +6

    As the astute may have noticed. Magic in the ancient world almost always involved writing the hex or curse down. Which is actually fitting if you think about it because "writing" IS magic. I mean think about it as I'm writing this comment I'm sharing my thoughts with anyone who can read English. 2000 years from now someone might read this and even though I would have been dead for thousands of years my thoughts can reach out from beyond the grave and live again in the readers mind.

  • @busterhikney6936
    @busterhikney6936 2 года назад +8

    "Grenade of Evil". Describes my ex, lol

  • @ahmetcanoral7671
    @ahmetcanoral7671 2 года назад +2

    Youre ancient cultures daily lıife videos are awesome. You always find amazing articles to study.

  • @thewekender2701
    @thewekender2701 2 года назад +1

    Everybody gangsta till your favorite historian starts chanting ancient curses

  • @chavamara
    @chavamara 10 месяцев назад

    I love this topic so much! It's fascinating how integral magic was to many cultures!

  • @homoe7976
    @homoe7976 2 года назад +2

    O Algorithmus, God of RUclips, bless this channel and grant it likes beyond measure.

  • @christopherevans2445
    @christopherevans2445 9 месяцев назад +1

    Nice job on reading that curse tablet. Very cool

  • @beyondborderfilms4352
    @beyondborderfilms4352 2 года назад +1

    2:06: if your crops died despite good weather it must be your jealous neighbor cursing your crops.
    Random farmer in ancient times: damn it John stop cursing my cabbages.
    John:...what?

  • @MatthewChenault
    @MatthewChenault 2 года назад +32

    Ironically enough, it was Christianity that brought an end to the use of “magic.” The Christian faith brought with it a revolution in the way we acted. It discouraged seeking to curse your enemies and, instead, understand them and treat them as you would wish to be treated.
    It was that mentality change that brought about an end of the “magic” of the time. By the end of the Roman Empire, most of these traditions had been slowly phased out.
    After all, Saint Augustine of Hippo - a 5th century theologian and scholar - said on Witchcraft: “The church has no reason to seek out and persecute any witches because their powers do not exist.”

    • @Dantick09
      @Dantick09 2 года назад +7

      Praying for a particular team to win seems like Cristhian magic to me

    • @bravomike4734
      @bravomike4734 2 года назад +6

      Mindblowing how centuries later the Churches of England and the mobs of America just persecuted witches without fair trials and reasons.

    • @reinercelsus8299
      @reinercelsus8299 2 года назад +6

      Ironically enough, Christianity has only replaced the assumed source of "magic" and old pagan traditions with such from Christianity, but still preserves and encourages beliefs in "magic" since antiquity.

    • @profezzordarke4362
      @profezzordarke4362 2 года назад +4

      @@bravomike4734 Protestants, not Catholics as you just said. In Catholicism only God can do magic, so Witches have no Power. It would be Pagan to even belief that witches exist at all. So *the church* as in the Catholic church never persecuted Witchcraft. The largest culprit were Puritan Protestants over in America *and there is still the Bible Belt*
      Catholics actually do Christian Magic, as well as Orthodox Christians, by calling upon Saints and Angels.

    • @MatthewChenault
      @MatthewChenault 2 года назад +1

      @@Dantick09, that isn’t how you are supposed to pray, though.
      Rather, that’s a inkling of the old, pagan traditions surviving after Christianization. Most of the folktales about vampires, witches, and whatnot are pagan traditions that continued on after Christianization. The Catholic Church never supported them and often condemned these actions.

  • @MuttMagician
    @MuttMagician Месяц назад

    This is a great video I've always been interested in ancient mysticism. very few people can talk about that and still keep it entertaining.

  • @Davlavi
    @Davlavi 2 месяца назад +1

    Amazing thanks for sharing.

  • @JL-ti3us
    @JL-ti3us 2 года назад +3

    I hope you don't get copyright striked for using the Harry Potter jingle.

  • @miketacos9034
    @miketacos9034 2 года назад +1

    My thoughts and prayers go out to all the wrestlers Invicta accidentally cursed with this video.

  • @iLLeag7e
    @iLLeag7e 2 года назад +1

    your art team gets a gold star. I really like your channel, invicta! Have a good day yall

  • @larshenrici1598
    @larshenrici1598 2 года назад +2

    This will absolutely find its way into my Lex Arcana RPG groop

  • @ColtDouglasMusic
    @ColtDouglasMusic 2 года назад +4

    Wow this channel is awesome! Very enjoyable video. :)

  • @The_Daily_Tomato
    @The_Daily_Tomato 2 года назад +8

    Holy cow I'm early!

  • @lucasa5363
    @lucasa5363 2 года назад +2

    Thank you for the quality content you create and share

  • @Lhiet
    @Lhiet 2 года назад +7

    2:15 Bruh this type of tought is still pretty common here in Brazil, specially due to african influences in brazilian culture. All brazilians know about "macumba", and many people fear the possibility of being cursed by others

    • @adanzavala4801
      @adanzavala4801 2 года назад +1

      Here in mexico too, a lot of low class people is OBSESSED with this shit. I just can't believe i have to breathe the same air as those fuckers 😞

    • @pandasniper1
      @pandasniper1 2 года назад +2

      @@adanzavala4801 im sure they feel the same way about you

    • @adanzavala4801
      @adanzavala4801 2 года назад

      @@pandasniper1 I don't believe in witchcraft or any of those things, if that's what you're suggesting, that's waaaay more than what those fuckers can even say hahaha

    • @benjaminwatt2469
      @benjaminwatt2469 2 года назад

      @@adanzavala4801 Witchcraft and magic are only effective with the help of demonic intervention. It is real and dangerous and shouldn't be taken lightly

    • @pandasniper1
      @pandasniper1 2 года назад

      @@adanzavala4801 No, I am saying you are a terrible person. And those you feel are below you feel the same way about you.

  • @AlwaysDecent
    @AlwaysDecent 2 года назад +4

    Now I got a new understanding to Acts 19:19 they were literally putting all their safety in him. Thank you. :)

  • @shadowkeep2949
    @shadowkeep2949 2 года назад +2

    This is Interesting, Keep at it

  • @bonbondurjdr6553
    @bonbondurjdr6553 2 года назад +5

    Please do more videos about ancient magic, religion, and superstitions, it's been a lot of fun! :D

  • @cultofthevoid5677
    @cultofthevoid5677 2 года назад +2

    A lot of this honestly doesn't sound much different then the kind of magick practiced in modern occultism. Modern occultists usually don't use tablets but everything else sounds about the same.

  • @theJellyjoker
    @theJellyjoker 2 года назад +8

    I cast GUN

  • @Theturtleowl
    @Theturtleowl 2 года назад +1

    Next world cup, I am taking cursing to a whole new level.

  • @baliczek4568
    @baliczek4568 2 года назад +1

    14:00 Firstly I heard Obelix, Asterix

  • @TheSaneHatter
    @TheSaneHatter 2 года назад +7

    I hope that guy got his clothes back: it was an awful risk to take in scaring his neighbors so publicly. (It was also a clear demonstration of why gyms have lockers now.)

  • @AbsolXGuardian
    @AbsolXGuardian 2 года назад +2

    Interesting that even back in the Roman era people thought that good magic required the use of gibberish/a language they didn't know "Magic words"

    • @Sophia-ty4tp
      @Sophia-ty4tp 2 года назад

      Abracadabra has been in use since the third century

  • @dango470
    @dango470 2 года назад +1

    Id love to see a setting with a magick system like this.
    It also makes sense why all these scrolls work are always in games featuring magick

  • @db3536
    @db3536 2 года назад +15

    Haha I wondered if our good narrator was a DnD fan. The way he spoke and pronounced different words gave him away. Lol 👍

  • @jasse85
    @jasse85 2 года назад

    Billions of people still pray to this day so pretty mutch nothing has changed.

  • @bighmay12
    @bighmay12 2 года назад +1

    How incredibly fascinating

  • @fangsteur2765
    @fangsteur2765 2 месяца назад

    Thanks for sharing the books, they may be helpful, you won a subscriber :)

  • @mikaeelmalik1724
    @mikaeelmalik1724 2 года назад +1

    I'd love to see more on this topic

  • @The-Plaguefellow
    @The-Plaguefellow 2 года назад

    *Iugius Mutus, with his stack of magic tablets:* "SED TEMPVS D-D-D-DVELLUM!"

  • @adelhany4708
    @adelhany4708 2 года назад

    It started raining heavily when this started 11:24

  • @mikewazowski8369
    @mikewazowski8369 2 года назад +1

    The sator square is actually an identification badge/puzzle, the palindrome characters can be formed into a "cross" with the words patornostra, or, our father. Along with two sets of As, and Os, obviously symbolic of the Alpha and Omega.

  • @JNelson_
    @JNelson_ 2 года назад

    It's so cool hearing about the city of Bath, where I went to university.

  • @AhmadReda_
    @AhmadReda_ 2 года назад

    Playing Skyrim at the same time when i have an essay for my college about ancient magic, then watching this, i just feel like a DOVAHKIN

    • @VeryEvilGM
      @VeryEvilGM Год назад

      But do you get to the cloud district very often?

  • @meshachalex1277
    @meshachalex1277 2 года назад +3

    I really appreciate *Alabi the great spell caster* for what he has done for me, he is still the best spell caster ever

  • @photinodecay
    @photinodecay 2 года назад +1

    I'm surprised this isn't sponsored by Magic: The Gathering. :D

  • @crystalm2460
    @crystalm2460 2 года назад +5

    17:26 were they purposely indecipherable so that the people around them won't know what the spell exactly meant or are they indecipherable to us today bc of time taking a toll on them or bc we've lost the knowledge of what they mean?

    • @Callmecel
      @Callmecel 2 года назад +6

      They were indecipherable to the people at the time as well - a bunch of them were given an "eastern sounding/Persian" sound to make them more mystical

    • @crystalm2460
      @crystalm2460 2 года назад +1

      @@Callmecel that's interesting thanks!

  • @froggystyle642
    @froggystyle642 2 года назад +1

    Romans: I'm gonna curse that dude
    Also Romans : *BLOOBLOOBLAHBLAH*

  • @thomas6617
    @thomas6617 2 года назад +2

    Looks like this isn't doing too good in the algorithm. Even though it's super interesting and puts light on a subjet few others do. Thus here I am in the comment section, trying to cast my spell on the algorithm to help make this video ascend!

    • @Sophia-ty4tp
      @Sophia-ty4tp 2 года назад

      Hear us, Oh Algorithm! ia! ia!

  • @rob9726
    @rob9726 2 года назад +1

    Dudes dropping lead tablets with curses on them into wells? Oh yeah, that might do some damage.

  • @TheCaesarion
    @TheCaesarion 2 года назад +4

    Can you dive into the religion or the mythology more? Like the stories

  • @drusik
    @drusik 2 года назад +2

    "Hundreds of curse tablets found in the spring of aqui-soules"..
    Sounds like the whole springs was just a frontier to steal peoples clothes if there were that many... The tablets would also just be left there? While others would continue to bathe in the spring? No slave would come and remove it?
    It's also interesting the wording of these curses. "I hand to you [name]. I deliver to you [target]", yet they never thought that an evil spirit might question "who are you to grant me authorization to contribute to said targets mishaps".

  • @chaoticneutral7573
    @chaoticneutral7573 2 года назад +1

    Then you make fun of your's friend new sandals - 😂
    Then you see him moments later scribbing something on lead tablet - 😨

  • @promiscuous5761
    @promiscuous5761 2 года назад

    Thank you.

  • @DeviilReaper
    @DeviilReaper 2 года назад +5

    No I imagine spells and counter spell belonging to Magic: The Gathering...

  • @XenoRaptor-98765
    @XenoRaptor-98765 2 года назад +2

    Many other cultures and civilizations have their own concepts of magic and witchcraft.

  • @riccardolaghi6680
    @riccardolaghi6680 2 года назад

    This is going to be very useful for my witcher studies.

  • @jorymiller3607
    @jorymiller3607 2 года назад +1

    Imagine if they had used their time and strong belief in magic to bring blessings for one another. ✨🦋✨

    • @Alejojojo6
      @Alejojojo6 2 года назад +1

      They also did that of course. Magic wasnt only for mean things. If your parents were sick you casted a spell. If your friend just had a child, you cast as spell for them to have a good recovery etc...

  • @KatonRyu
    @KatonRyu 2 года назад +1

    I once decided to curse a particularly inconsiderate person to suffer from extreme inconvenience forever. I then had an entire week of everything going wrong in the most inconvenient ways possible. I'm pretty sure these things were unrelated, but to be on the safe side I haven't attempted to curse anyone since.

  • @alejandrosakai1744
    @alejandrosakai1744 2 года назад

    I love the illustrations!

  • @alex_zetsu
    @alex_zetsu 2 года назад +7

    I kind of wish you saved this for April 1st.
    Or have the same video, i mean it's a fine video, and just not have this video _title._
    A third great alternative is if it started with party tricks the Romans did with optimal illusions and slight of hand (if they did it at all, if not then it's a moot point) and then move on to their other magic.

  • @RantyCat
    @RantyCat 2 года назад +12

    If this title fails to attract viewers, I don't know what will.

    • @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen
      @exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen 2 года назад +1

      Where does your pfp come from ? I've seen it on Twitter, but I don't remember the account...

    • @RantyCat
      @RantyCat 2 года назад +2

      @@exaggeratedswaggerofablackteen It’s Khun from the anime Tower Of God.

  • @Oxtocoatl13
    @Oxtocoatl13 2 года назад

    Ancient Roman spells are peak ASMR content

  • @Xenophon1
    @Xenophon1 2 года назад +1

    There is some cursing in HBO's Rome mini-series.