During times of widespread belief in witchcraft and magical influences, it is not unusual to find folk beliefs that attribute all sorts of sexual ailments to the malign influence of evil wielders of magic. Such beliefs were prominent at the height of the witch-hunting hysteria in medieval and colonial-era Europe. The Malleus Maleficarum (published 1487), one of the most influential texts used by witch hunters during the height of the craze, claimed that witches were responsible for male impotence and female barrenness, as well as miscarriages, lack of mother’s milk, and other general infertility problems. These notions, however, did not solely originate with medieval and colonial era witch hunters. To the contrary, the idea that witches (or witch-like figures) could use their powers to inflict impotence on men was an ancient concept in Europe, and the subject was mentioned by famous figures of ancient civilizations, such as renowned writers from the Roman Empire.
Ovid (43 BCE-17 CE), a Roman poet living in the time of Augustus (r. 32/27 BCE-14 CE), wrote about several ancient Roman folk theories about the supernatural causes of impotence. Given the sexual nature of the topic, it is not a surprise that the subject came up in Ovid’s collection of erotic poems, called the Amores. Ovid’s particular poem, Amores 3.7, tells the story of a Roman man who was dismayed over having “stage fright” during an intimate moment. The unfortunate protagonist of the poem, after narrating frustratedly that he had been unable to get in the mood, went on to wonder if his problems in bed had been caused by a magical curse. Ovid then took the opportunity to list several ancient Roman theories of how witches could cause impotence. Ovid wrote:
“Perhaps some Thessalian hell-brew has ruined
My physical urges, maybe I’m a victim of spells
And herbal concoctions. Perhaps some witch is busy transfixing
My image, and name, in red wax,
sticking pins through my liver. Magic spells can transform wheatfields
Into barren tares, can dry up springs at source,
Charm acorns off oaks, grapes from vines, strip orchards bare of
Their fruit without human aid—so what’s to stop
Some magician giving my member a local anesthetic?”
(Ovid, Amores, 3.7.27-35)
Possibility of malicious magic was not only brought up by the embarrassed narrator, but also by his accommodating partner; when she finally gave up trying to stoke the fire to life, she told the narrator, “Look, either some witch has hexed you or you’ve just been making love with another girl” (Ovid, Amores, 3.7.79-80). Picking out some witchy details from the tale, Ovid mentioned nefarious potions, spells, herbal concoctions, magical effigies, hexes, and the region of Thessaly, which was a place associated with witchcraft to the Romans—such as the Thessalian witch, Erictho, featured by the Roman poet, Lucan (c. 39-65). Such witchcrafts, believed the narrator, could have been the reason he was put in his predicament. Yet, given the amorous nature of Ovid’s Amores, it is more likely that the author’s intended culprit was the non-magical alternative option provided by the narrator’s partner. After all, the narrator claimed it had not been long since he “made it Twice with that smart Greek blonde, three times With a couple of other beauties—and as for Corinna, In one short night, I remember, she made me perform Nine times, no less” (Ovid, Amores, 3.7.23-27). Whatever the case, be it fatigue or a witch’s magic, the narrator was relieved to find that whatever was vexing him soon dissipated, but not before his partner gave up on their evening and left.
Written by C. Keith Hansley
Picture Attribution: (The Sorrow Of Telemachus, Painted By Angelica Kauffmann (c. 1741–1807), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons and the MET).
Sources:
- The Amores, by Ovid, translated by Peter Green in The Erotic Poems (Penguin Classics, 1982).
- The Malleus Maleficarum by Heinrich Kramer and James Sprenger, translated by Montague Summers. New York: Dover Publications, 1971.
- Civil War, by Lucan, translated by Matthew Fox. New York: Penguin Classics, 2012.
