Talisman

Talisman (through Spanish from Arabic, but thence from the Gr. telesma, 'mystery,' 'initiation'), a species of charm, consisting of a figure engraved on metal or stone when two planets are in conjunction, or when a star is at its culminating point, and supposed to exert some protective influence over the wearer of it. The terms Talisman and Amulet (q.v.) are often considered nearly synonymous, but the proper distinctive peculiarity of the former is its astrological character. Talismanic virtues have often been attributed to a peculiarly marked or formed egg, and instances are recorded, by various authors, of eggs hatched with figures of comets or eclipses on them. A species of talisman which has acquired considerable celebrity is the Abraxas (q.v.). Another historic talisman is the Lee-penny, a heart-shaped, dark red jewel, now set in a shilling of Edward I., with a silver chain and ring attached, supposed to have been obtained in Spain by Sir Simon Lockhart, who set out with Sir James Douglas to bear Bruce's heart to the Holy Land. So late as 1824 water in which it had been dipped was used to cure cattle bitten by a mad dog. A species of talisman at present in use in Asia is a piece of paper on which the names of the Seven Sleepers and their dog Kitmer are inscribed. Pasted on the walls of houses, it is believed to be a protection against ghosts and demons. Phylacteries (q.v.) were used as talismans; and in Christian Byzantium phylacteries were made bearing the figure of Solomon, the compeller of demons. See ASTROLOGY, DIVINATION, INCANTATION, MAGIC; and Pettigrew's Medical Superstitions (1844).