Lady Elder Tree

No other plant is more associated with witchcraft in parts of northern and western Europe than the elder tree (Sambucus nigra). An Old English Christian canon explicitly forbids its veneration while later tales strongly associate the elder with witches and witchcraft. Yet the plant is also personified as a goddess-like figure who heals and punishes, the Elder Tree Lady. Appeals to the Elder Tree Lady are especially strongly recorded in Denmark and southern Sweden, where one must ritually ask her before removing any part of the plant—or else. Featuring numerous original illustrations by a variety of artists and introduced by scholars John Lindow and Mathias Nordvig, here researchers Joseph S. Hopkins & Rune Hjarnø Rasmussen present and discuss historical references to this incredible plant and its personification alongside poetry, literature, and traditional recipes.