Witch shirt from Veringenstadt

Torture shirt of Anna Kramerin, who was burned as a "witch" in Veringenstadt in 1680. Flax; Plain weave; hand-sewn 135 × 90 cm; 17th century.

The witch shirt from Veringenstadt is a utensil of the witch madness . It is kept in the Veringenstadt local history museum on the upper floor of the Veringenstadt town hall.

The undyed linen shirt with a V-neckline and long sleeves with sewn-on cuffs is made from three diagonally cut panels of fabric. The flaws, tears and damage to the fabric are partly due to improper storage, but partly perhaps contemporary. There is no doubt that this torture shirt, always kept in the town hall in Veringenstadt, was made for the widow Anna Kramerin, who was burned as a witch in Veringenstadt in 1680. The trial protocol obtained shows that the Sigmaringen Vice Chancellor Dr. At the beginning of the trial, Johann Kirsinger ordered the city to have a witch's shirt sewn. According to the protocol, this shirt was only ever put on for torture and then taken off again. Therefore it is correct to call it a torture shirt. This function also explains why the shirt was preserved and not given to the fire.

history

In 1680 Anna Kramer, known by the population as Bader-Ann , was charged with witchcraft in Veringenstadt . During her highly embarrassing questioning , Bader-Ann had to wear this witch's shirt in order to receive "truthful statements" from her. After several tortures she was sentenced as a witch and beheaded and burned on June 8, 1680.

According to tradition, the shirt was spun , woven and sewn by seven thirteen-year-old children from May 10th to 17th, 1680, i.e. in seven days . Consecrated " magic notes " were sewn into the seams , which, according to superstition , should prevent the "influence of the devil on the person" who wears this shirt.

The shirt is laid in fine folds in the neck area and has half-length sleeves. The many small holes are due to the fact that dog feet and other symbols were sewn in here, which were later cut out as disaster-repellent amulets.

Bader-Ann's witch shirt is the only known one of its kind that is still preserved today.

Web links

The minutes of the trial against Bader-Ann can be read here.
State office for museum care: witch shirt / shame dress from Veringenstadt
The witch shirt from Veringenstadt . In: Südkurier of August 12, 2009

Individual evidence

↑ Protocol of the witch trial against the Baderann in the city archive of Veringenstadt from 1680
↑ Thomas Fink: Witches Trial of Bader-Ann 1680. Volume 21 of the series: Materials for the history of the city of Veringen. Veringenstadt 2012.
^ Adolf Rieth : A new local history museum in Veringenstadt (Hohenzollern) . In: Ministry of Culture Baden-Wuerttemberg (ed.): Newsletter of the preservation of monuments in Baden-Wuerttemberg - organ of the state offices for the preservation of monuments. July – December 1966. Volume 9 - Volume 3/4 . Freiburg in Breisgau. ISSN 0465-7519 . Pp. 108–111, here pp. 110f.

[1] Protocol of the witch trial against the Baderann in the city archive of Veringenstadt from 1680

[TF-2] Thomas Fink: Witches Trial of Bader-Ann 1680. Volume 21 of the series: Materials for the history of the city of Veringen. Veringenstadt 2012.

[3] Adolf Rieth : A new local history museum in Veringenstadt (Hohenzollern) . In: Ministry of Culture Baden-Wuerttemberg (ed.): Newsletter of the preservation of monuments in Baden-Wuerttemberg - organ of the state offices for the preservation of monuments. July – December 1966. Volume 9 - Volume 3/4 . Freiburg in Breisgau. ISSN 0465-7519 . Pp. 108–111, here pp. 110f.