Made for me by a contact in Gael agus Gall, from a description in En vikingemarkedsplads: Ideer til historiske værkstedsaktiviteter, tværfaglige emner og temadage. The case itself is wood, not bone, but I still like it. The three needles to the left are for sewing, the one on the right for needlebinding. Leather specs here.
In this post, I wanted to talk a little about my own methods and share some resources on reading with bones. Before I begin though, I want to state that I am not an authority on bone throwing as a form of divination. I have been working on this form of divination for roughly three and a half years n
Bone throwing is one of the oldest forms of divination and can be found across multiple cultures throughout history. Because of this, there are multiple ways to practice throwing the bones and ways to interpret their meanings. If you come from reading traditional tarot or runes, you may find bone throwing frustrating and difficult. Unlike other forms of divination, throwing the bones is highly intuitive and bone sets are extremely personalized; no two sets or readers will be the same. Because of this, it's a highly effective form of divination, whether you are reading strictly for yourself or others. What is Used in a Set? There are a variety of ways to set up your "bone tarot" set depending upon the tradition(s) you may prescribe to or lack thereof. Most sets consist of bones, shells, stones, and small curios such as dice, coins, or other little trinkets while some are composed only of chicken bones, sometimes even painted to have different meanings. What the set is made up of is completely up to you and, honestly, not very important. However, the meaning behind each item and the item's relation to each other is important. How did they fall? Where are they located? Are they touching each other? How far apart are they? Together, the set works to answer the question the caster has asked of it. How Do You Read Bone Tarot? Again, there are multiple ways to read bones. You can work heavily with your ancestors for a more interpreted reading, relying on them to bring you inspiration while reading the bones. Others with a more scientific mind rely on a more analytical approach, connecting meaning to the pieces based on science and their placement on the cloth. Others still work with the spirits that live in the individual objects, listening to them as they whisper back details. Personally, I like to use a combination of these methods, using my prescribed meanings and the spirits to guide my interpretation of the reading. When you are first starting out, you may find a more analytical approach to be best, because its more like traditional tarot in that the location is associated with a specific question, body part, or event while each piece of the bone throwing set is also prescribed a predetermined meaning, such as a wing bone meaning travel. When it doubt, go with your gut. Despite the different ways to read bones, many practitioners use some similar techniques. To begin with, a question is always asked. Bone throwing can provide a narrow or wide perspective, depending on the situation, and therefore the question needn't be perfectly worded or specific. Most people find asking a question about something that is weighing heavily on you that you may or may not be able to completely put into words is best. However, if you come with a specific and perfectly worded question, bone throwing will still work just fine and allows for a more focused reading. Once the question is asked, the reader shakes the bone throwing set and casts them. Where you cast them is up to you. Some cast on a hard surface or on a fur or cloth with nothing on it; others on a cloth with designated regions; while others still cast in a design drawn in the dirt. Again, where you cast is entirely up to you. I have thrown on cloth with designated regions and on blank surfaces. I like both methods and choose a surface based on the type of question I am asking. For vaguer questions, I prefer a mat with designated regions. This allows for a more focused reading. If my question is more specific, I tend to ignore the designated locations and focus on proximity and reading left to right. Once the bones are cast, they are analyzed and meaning is prescribed to their placement to offer insight into the question asked. Remember to record all your readings in your journal or Book of Shadows. Sometimes it takes a little while for the full message to come into view, so return to your notes for a couple of days after the reading and add to your notes. Once cast, there are many ways to read the bones: Left to Right- The bones are considered on a timeline from left to right, with the bones on the left representing the past, those in the middle the present, and those on the right the future or possible outcomes. Distance from the Reader- Those closest to the reader represent the past, middle present, and those furthest away represent the future or possible outcome. Non-Linear Orientation- The items are not read in a linear sequence, but instead interpreted as a whole based on their placement on the surface and to each other. This relies more heavily on spiritual guidance. Of course, these are only a couple of ways to read and by no means the only ways. I encourage you to use your intuition while reading and change up how you read based on the questions being asked. How to Construct a Bone Set? Want to make your own "bone tarot?" Creating your own set is pretty fun, but a little time-consuming. Sure, you can buy a set online, and this is a great place to start, but building your own will create a stronger connection between you and the bones. I've talked to other witches who began by buying a set and removing the items that didn't resonate with them and incorporating items into it that did. There is no right or wrong way to do this, and I am still building my own set! When you begin creating your bone set, start by setting the intention that you are open to receiving objects for use in divination. Then begin going through items you may already have. Check junk drawers and other places you stash random objects. If there is something small that you've never quite been able to let go of, it may be something that belongs in your bone throwing set. Remember, not everything has to be a bone! In fact, you don't need bones at all if that's what you want. Buttons, crystals, small pieces of driftwood, bottle caps, dice, small carved figures, pieces of cardboard tags, seeds and beans, and a variety of other small objects all work! If it speaks to you and feels right in your set, then it's meant to be. However, I do have a couple of things you should keep in mind. First, you should have an object that represents you. Generally, this object is slightly bigger than the others. Next, the items in your set should mean something. Think about tarot and rune meanings. There is a card or rune that represents health, wealth, love, family, etc. You want a set to have the same sorts of representations so you can get a good reading. I also suggest you add objects that mean yes and no, evil, and decision (a coin is great for this), but you don't have to have these things. Below is a list of items you may want to include in your bone tarot and some possible meanings for those objects: feather- flight, travel, communication, messages from the dead coin- yes/no wishbone- luck, prosperity, good fortune skeleton key- transition, open doors, opportunity, crossroads, decisions quartz point- amplification, positivity, protection, versatility amethyst- soul, afterlife, psychic ability fossil- past, ancestors, perseverance claw- past, present, or future depending on the size white shell- purity, hope, innocence curved bone- yes/no sors bone- fate, destiny, external influences (this is not an actual bone in the body. Instead, its a term, originating from another form of divination, to refer to the smallest, thinnest, or rarest bone in your set. You do not have to prescribe this meaning to any of your small/thin/rare bones. I personally prefer to work with the bones function in the body to determine meaning.) human finger- singling out an issue white river rock- purity, innocence, food intentions black river rock- banishment, bad luck, evil barnacle- smothered, overwhelmed, chaos alligator claw- luck, prosperity, opportunities, success penis bone- love, fertility, luck coyote bone- trickery, apprehension, fooled by appearances bean- growth, fertility, opportunity buckeye nut- abundance, fertility, luck, achievement, employment hag stone- protection, spiritual transformation, messages dice- numbers button- connection, bonds tooth- communication, truth, lies, rumors (depending on how it faces) This list is just to give you some ideas and you should prescribe meaning to your objects based on your intuition. As you gather items, spend time holding them and meditating on them to figure out their meaning. Be sure to keep your notes on each item in your Grimoire or Book of Shadows. Items can be removed or added as you see fit, but always write down what you have removed or added an object so you know what your set contains and the meanings of each object. But overall, have fun with it and practice often. It's a truly magical experience to work with a bone tarot set and will flex that intuitive muscle. And that concludes my series on Bone Magic! I hope this series has been informative and has inspired you to work with animal remains in your practice. Maybe you'll start constructing your own bone throwing set or set out to find your first animal skull. However you decide to work with animal remains, remember to keep their spirits in mind. Always treat them with respect and honor your contracts with them. Your magical practice will surely benefit. Interest in the rest of the series? Here's what's to come! Bone Magic Series Introduction A Brief History of Animal Remains in Magic Bones and Skulls: How to Use Them in Magic Furs and Pelts: How to Use Them In Magic Feathers, Fangs, and Claws: How to Use Them in Magic How to Ethically Acquire Animal Remains Cleaning and Preserving Animal Remains Working With the Spirits of Animal Remains: Crossing Over & Contracting Feeding Your Bones Throwing the Bones + Build Your Own Bone Tarot
Mystery Oddities curio collection cabinet full of amassing Vulture Culture treasures!!! Start you own Curio, replenish your craft supplies or give it as a Awesome Unique Gift! This box is guaranteed to have more value than the listing price. This one has bigger items included ( from 0.5 to 3 inches), if you need miniature items only (up to 5 cm or 2 inches) see Vulture Culture Miniature box If you have special requests I would do my best to honor them but it might impact a number of items included Wooden cabinet with 3 shelves is OPTIONAL DOES NOT include wet specimens, see my wet specimen mystery boxes or Natural History Mystery box for wet specimens High quality items ( no small broken unidentified bones to increase numbers). You can see some of my treasures on the pictures, but there was no space to include all that I have!! Boxes examples are pictured, not exactly the same that you will receive, contents depend on the current stock Please, contact me with the picture if unable to ID some of the items Labels provided upon request How it works: I will randomly select 3, 5, 7, 10, 15+ items (your choice) from my huge collection When selecting items I will aim for the maximum diversity in each box. Some of the specimens I only use for this listing You will see a skull in larger box 7 or 10, 15 items (size and quality might differ) In each set you might find any of of the following: Bones, Skulls, Claws Teeth Fossilized shark teeth, mammal teeth, invertebrates, shells plants etc. Mummified animals and birds parts Various unaltered crystals and semi-precious stones Tumbled stones, colorful sea glass Beetle and butterflies wings, dried beetles, spiders, worms etc. Various Mammal, Fish skulls, claws teeth and bones Snake or spiders skins (shed) Various dried plants, herbs, seeds, flowers, pods, mushrooms River or sea pearls Some of my found at the beach objects, little surprise :) Various curiosities found by me, small figurines, coins, witchcraft artifacts, tokens Hand made jewelry Please leave me a comment if you do not want some of the listed above, for example "no bones" or "no insects" and I will do my best to accommodate Maximum height of the vials on standalone items pictured is 5 cm or 2 inches, so they could fit into the shelfs There are more mystery boxes in my store Marine mystery box https://www.etsy.com/ca/CaveMansDigs/listing/886623941/marine-mystery-box-oddities-and?utm_source=Copy&utm_medium=ListingManager&utm_campaign=Share&utm_term=so.lmsm&share_time=1607491175215 Wet specimens mystery box https://www.etsy.com/ca/CaveMansDigs/listing/876535262/mystery-box-wet-specimens-box-oddity?utm_source=Copy&utm_medium=ListingManager&utm_campaign=Share&utm_term=so.lmsm&share_time=1607491202192 No animal was killed for its parts Many of these are items that I have personally *ethically* collected during biological fieldwork around the world. Some come from hunters who hunt exclusively for food, some from road kills or other peoples collections Other sources -Scavenged from nature -Owl Pellets -Roadkill -Died naturally (was a pet animal) -A by-product of an industry -A by-product of pest control on farms All bones/teeth have been properly sanitized (see procedures described below) ** Small parts-Choking hazard. Not suited for small children.** NOT A FOOD ** Small parts-Choking hazard. Not suited for small children.** Shipping Please check if your country allows import of this animal parts Canada Economy Shipping DOES NOT INCLUDE TRACKING, please select an upgrade if you wish to track your item and want your parcel to be protected from getting lost in the post etc, unfortunately I can no longer give refunds for 'lost' packages if the tracking upgrade wasn't purchased. I have still left an option to buy standard shipping as I'm aware the tracked postage can be pricey (especially for overseas customers) but please be aware this is at your own risk. However, I will always do my very best to make sure your item(s) arrive to you safely and on time, whatever postage has been selected, but it is out of my control once it enters the postal system. If the item is damaged, a refund can be arranged if a photo is sent. Thank you CaveMansDigs Taxidermy studio Taxidermy disclaimer All animal parts were treated in accordance with standard taxidermy procedures Tissue samples in 8 % Formaldehyde for at least 48 hours, and then transferred to 95% alcohol solution Bones boiled (100 Degrees Celsius) for at least 30 minutes and bleached Skins and paws salted for at least 28 days with sea salt containing 2% washing soda (sodium carbonate, Na2CO3) and then soaked with agitation, in a 4%(w/v) solution of washing soda (sodium carbonate, Na2CO3) maintained at pH 11.5 or above for at least 48 hours Wet samples care instructions All wet samples slowly change with time, tissues became harder and lighter/darker in color. Preserving liquid (in my store it is always alcohol) darkens and evaporates. It is natural and unavoidable process. There are no health hazards related to alcohol. If your specimen is sealed with cork and wax, evaporation will be slower, but you would need to break the seal to replenish alcohol when the levels gets too low (it usually takes long time, but depends on the storing conditions). If you received your specimen unsealed due to the shipping restrictions, you need to fill the jar or the vial with any available alcohol with concentration equal or higher than 70%. Alcohol (isopropyl, ethanol) is easily available in any drugstore or online. If with time your preserving liquid loses transparency you can simply change it. Do not store your specimens in direct sun light or in the room with the temperature higher than 30 Celsius. Store them far away from the open fire source Colder conditions are preferable Please, do not hesitate to ask me if you have any questions
This post is just a little run down of the most useful bone to the Early Medieval bone worker – the cannon bone, specifically those from cows. What is a cannon bone? A cow cannon bone As hoof…
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Bone throwing, a very old form of Divination that can be found in numerous cultures throughout the world. It is not a Divination Method that belongs to any particular culture or religion. Throwing …
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Period: Final Jōmon period (ca. 1000–300 B.C.). Culture: Japan. Medium: Bone. Classification: Bone. Credit Line: The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of As...
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