Found in the Hermetikon archive

Willow

Salix alba

Willow appears in Hermetikon as an archive-backed plant entry, with references across historical medical, magical, symbolic, and ritual contexts where the source texts support them.

Risk: moderate
Books: 62
Contexts: 5
Mentions: 207

Overview Reading Contexts Citations Related Books

Archive Profile

Identity, safety, and search aliases used to connect this herb to the archive.

Herb identity

Common name: willow
Latin name: Salix alba(candidate)
Identity note: Filter out fiction title hits and favor Salix/willow bark contexts.

Safety

moderate

Salicylate cautions apply: aspirin allergy, anticoagulants, children, and pregnancy require care.

Historical archive citations are not medical advice. Use modern clinical and poison-control sources for ingestion, dosage, pregnancy, and toxicity questions.

EMA HMPC: Salicylate cautions apply: aspirin allergy, anticoagulants, children, and pregnancy require care.

Aliases

willowsalixSalix albawillow bark

Willow in Historical Sources

Curated archive synthesis of recurring uses, recipes, rituals, and interpretive problems.

Hermetikon's curated reading of Willow (Salix alba) is built from 3 source-linked archive notes and 2 preparation or ritual-use entries. The strongest recurring contexts are medicine, preparations, and folk magic. Each note below links back to the archive source used for the claim.

Medicine

high

Culpeper's Salix entry says willow leaves are cold, dry, and binding, used for spitting of blood, fluxes, fever-room cooling, and hot diseases of the head.

Culpeper's Complete Herbal | Nicholas Culpeper | 1653

HERBS AND THEIR LEAVES.

Preparation

high

King's mentions black-willow bark as a poultice component for indolent ulcers, paired with ginger in the cited medicinal discussion.

King's American Dispensatory | Harvey Wickes Felter | 1854

Page 1225

Folk magic

medium

Frazer records a Swedish cure in which three stolen willow branches are made into a hoop, crawled through silently, and then burned so the illness adheres to it.

The Golden Bough | James George Frazer | 1913

Â§ 3. The External Soul in Animals.

Preparations and ritual uses

Poultice

high

King's mentions black-willow bark combined in a poultice for indolent ulcers.

King's American Dispensatory | Harvey Wickes Felter | 1854

Page 1225

Rain charm

medium

Frazer records a Mongolian rain charm that fastens a bezoar stone to a willow twig and places it in pure water with prayers or incantations.

The Golden Bough | James George Frazer | 1906

Â§ 2. The Magical Control of Rain

Willow Archive Contexts

Compact source patterns from the extracted citation set.

Medicine

3 passages across 3 books; strongest source: The Family Herbal.

Matched as salix; high confidence.

Astrology

6 passages across 6 books; strongest source: Culpeper's Complete Herbal.

Matched as salix; high confidence.

Folk magic

1 passage across 1 book; strongest source: Primitive Culture, Vol. 2.

Matched as willow bark; high confidence.

Preparation

4 passages across 4 books; strongest source: Encyclopaedia of Occultism.

Matched as willow; high confidence.

Symbolism

1 passage across 1 book; strongest source: Liber 777.

Matched as willow; medium confidence.

Willow Cited Excerpts

Representative public passages with the herb mention highlighted and linked to archive source material.

5 shown

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

Nicholas Culpeper

1653

"...ng of blood: outwardly, heat hot with a little vinegar and applied to the side, helps stitches and pains in the sides. *Salix.* Willow leaves, are cold, dry, and binding, stop spitting of blood, and fluxes; the boughs stuck about a chamber, wonderfully cool the air, and refresh such as have fevers; the leaves applied to the head, help hot diseases there, and frenzies. *Sampsucum.* Marjoram. *Sunicula.* Sanicle; hot and dry in the second degree, cleanses wounds and ulcers. *Saponaria.* Sope-wort, or Bruise-wort, vulgarly used in bruises and cut fingers, and is..."

HERBS AND THEIR LEAVES.Open in Reader

Astrologyalias: salixhigh confidence

King's American Dispensatory

Harvey Wickes Felter

1854

"...ficient as a remedj' for breaking up colds, and in relieving the pangs of di-iordered viemtrualion. Combined with black-willow bark, it forms an excellent poultice to indolent ukeis; and has been used as a sialagogue to relieve ■paralytic affection.-^ of the tongue, toothache, and relaxed uvula. Ginger in jwwder, formed into a pla.^ter with warm water, and applied on paper or cloth to the forehead, has relieved violent headache. Cakes made of ginger and molasses, with flour, etc., are very beneficial to the stomach, when eaten in moderation. Dose of ginger, in powd..."

Page 1225Open in Reader

Preparationalias: willow barkhigh confidence

The Golden Bough

James George Frazer

1906

"...n this guise he appears suddenly in the village at the hour of vespers, preceded by three boys blowing on horns made of willow bark. The great object of his supporters is to set up the Whitsuntide Basket on the village well, and to keep it and him there, despite the efforts of the lads from neighbouring villages, who seek to carry off the Whitsuntide Basket and set it up on their own well. [307] In the neighbourhood of Ertingen (WÃ¼rtemberg) a | The Lazy Man in WÃ¼rtemberg. | masker of the same sort, known as the Lazy Man ( Latzmann ), goes about the village on Mid..."

CHAPTER X RELICS OF TREE-WORSHIP IN MODERN EUROPEOpen in Reader

Astrologyalias: willow barkhigh confidence

The Golden Bough

James George Frazer

1890

"...n this guise he appears suddenly in the village at the hour of vespers, preceded by three boys blowing on horns made of willow bark. The great object of his supporters is to set up the Whitsuntide Basket beside the village well, and to keep it and him there, despite the efforts of the lads from neighbouring villages, who seek to carry off the Whitsuntide Basket and set it up at their own well. 312 In the neighbourhood of Ertingen (WÃ¼rtemberg) a masker of the same sort, known as the Lazy Man ( Latzmann ), goes about the village on Midsummer Day; he is hidden under ..."

Â§ 5.â€”Tree-worship in antiquity.Open in Reader

Astrologyalias: willow barkhigh confidence

The Golden Bough

James George Frazer

1890

"...n this guise he appears suddenly in the village at the hour of vespers, preceded by three boys blowing on horns made of willow bark. The great object of his supporters is to set up the Whitsuntide Basket on the village well, and to keep it and him there, despite the efforts of the lads from neighbouring villages, who seek to carry off the Whitsuntide Basket and set it up on their own well. In the class of cases of which the foregoing are specimens it is obvious that the leaf-clad person who is led about is equivalent to the May-tree, May-bough, or May-doll, which i..."

X. Relics of Tree Worship in Modern EuropeOpen in Reader

Astrologyalias: willow barkhigh confidence

Books Mentioning Willow

Complete public source inventory, placed after the interpretive reading so the page opens with the most useful synthesis first.

62 books

King's American Dispensatory

Harvey Wickes Felter | 1854

willow barksalixwillow

20 mentionscited

Hastings' Encyclopaedia of Religion and Ethics

James Hastings | 1908

Archive Profile

Herb identity

Safety

Aliases

Willow in Historical Sources

Medicine

Preparation

Folk magic

Preparations and ritual uses

Poultice

Rain charm

Willow Archive Contexts

Medicine

Astrology

Folk magic

Preparation

Symbolism

Willow Cited Excerpts

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

King's American Dispensatory

The Golden Bough

The Golden Bough

The Golden Bough

Related Archive Material

Related herbs

Books Mentioning Willow