![]() When Saint Columbia was in Pictland in 565 AD, visiting the court of King Bridei, he took a white stone from the river Ness, blessed it, and instructed that the water into which it had been dipped be given to sick people in order to cure them. In Scandinavia, warriors carried amulets called 'life-stones' or 'victory-stones' to strengthen their hand in a fight. In medieval Iceland, the belief in charm-stones was extremely strong and featured in the 12th century Gragas law-book as well as in Icelandic folk tales and sagas such as the Laxdaela. The Macdonalds were said to have gained many a victory in this way. In Arran, there was a stone called Baul Muluy which was used to disperse enemies: When thrown among the front ranks, the opposing army would retreat in confusion. One such stone preserved in the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland belonged to a farmer in Angus in the 1870s which he kept in a small leather bag suspended round his neck. Water into which the pebble had been dipped was believed to have healing powers. In Scotland, 'cold-stones' were used to help cure sick animals. They have been used as both sling-stones (made more potent by the addition of a magic or tribal emblem - as in ancient Greece) or, more commonly, as stones with reputed magical powers. ![]() Painted pebble charm stones date back thousands of years. The stones or pebbles themselves occur naturally but they are honed or adapted in some way to inject charm and esoteric value. The charmstone is a mineral believed to have mystical or healing powers. ![]()
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