Nanshe is an active goddess in old Mesopotamia. Deity of sea water, fresh water, marshes and the animals of these environments, she also...

Nigella sativa or kalonji is a blackseed plant with healing properties. Use in cooking and folk medicine is documented by the 2nd...

In ancient Egypt, every year starts anew with the Arrival of Hapi, or the Flooding of the Nile. It's a joyful occasion marked by...

The flooding of the Nile comes at the rise of the Dog Star Sirius . Festivals abound and people create agriculture calendars around it....

Nephrite jade is the foremost commodity to travel along the Pacific Coasts of the East. The seaway route is the original Jade Road named...

Turquoise is beloved for thousands of years by people from royals to the richly challenged. The world's first known turquoise mine is...

Nefertum (Nefertem) is a creature of eternal beauty. At the time of Creation he rises from the waters as a blue lotus flower, which is...

Asteria or Star Stones create a star-like inner glow. Star sapphires belong to this group. In the ancient world they're valued by Greeks...

Phosphorus is the first element not known since ancient times. This glowing substance is discovered by German alchemist Hennig Brand in...

Abundant in native form, sulfur (sulphur) is a mysterious and essential component of natural life. All living things contain sulfur. It...

In natural health, magic and alchemy the fragrant herb rosemary ( Salvia rosmarinus ) is associated with memory, immortality and...

Sprites are small, charming faerie people with no grudge against humans. Their interest in the mortal realm is limited. Sprite magic is...

In the late Neolithic Age (10,200 - 4500 BCE), Europe is a wild unsettled place. Great bears , aurochs and big cats roam the forests....

Rough horsetail ( Equisetum hyemale ) is the oldest known plant in the world, and also makes beautiful music. Dating back to 150 million...

The earliest people in Scandinavia come up the Volga River in Russia after the last Ice Age about 25,000 years ago. They settle along the...

Among the Old Gods of German mythology is Ziu (pr. Ts-ee-ew) the Sky God. He's equated with the Norse Týr, the one-handed god. The Sky...

Tannenbaum is often equated with Christmas tree. Fir is best for the holidays. Its branches have flat soft foliage, it's easy to hang...

Creating a Frau Holle festival altar is fun. Frau Holle is perhaps the most beloved of German deities, with a number of different...

Amanita muscaria , fly agaric or fly amanita is the most widely recognized of the psychoactive plants and fungi. The use, folklore and...

Worship of bears and bear sacrifice is an ancient practice, going back to early humans. Twenty thousand years ago, in boreal forests and...