New Homeowner Baffled by Strange Item Found in Attic: For 'Protection'

A confused first-time buyer has turned to the internet for advice about a peculiar item he found hanging from the attic ceiling.

In a now viral post, u/Victorchu93, 29, published a photo of a chicken bone with string wrapped around it. Vic captioned the image: "Found this in the attic of our new house. Not sure why it's there."

The post has received 7,700 upvotes, and hundreds of people have commented since January 1, with many saying it is a witch bundle.

Vic told Newsweek: "It is the first home we bought. It was built in the '60s. An elderly lady lived here before she died, and her daughter sold the house."

He went on: "My spouse and I were cleaning it, as there were still a few items left in the house, while moving our own stuff into it. We found the object hanging in the attic. The item itself looked to be chicken bones. There were two, but one broke off. Part of the broken-off bone was still attached to the other bone with strings that tied them together.

"Most people on Reddit seem to agree it was some form of witchcraft, witch bundle or warding charm of some kind. I don't know for sure what it was, what it was used for or why it is hanging up in the attic.

"We have since thrown it in the dumpster," Vic said.

Witchcraft's Dark Legacy

In the medieval and post-medieval eras, accusations of witchcraft led to the execution of tens of thousands of supposed witches, mostly women.

"Many religions, including Christianity, taught that the devil could give people known as witches the power to harm others in return for their loyalty," according to Smithsonian magazine.

Now, many people practice witchcraft without negative consequences. The hashtag "witchcraft" has been viewed 12.7 billion times on TikTok.

Witch Bundle

One Redditor suggested the item is a witch bundle, but this is usually made up of sticks or herbs.

The Museum of Witchcraft and Magic in Cornwall, Britain, says a twig bundle is used to "draw spirits to a witch's working place."

"Make a small switch of twigs, set it alight and, holding [the bundle], run around the site, making smoke circles and trails. It is proven that spirits are responsive to the sweet smells of incense perfumes and many other pleasing smoke smells caused by smoldering and scorching," the museum said.

Bone Casting

Because the item found by Vic was a chicken bone, it might have been used to divine the future. Such rituals are supposed to heal illness and spiritual difficulties, according to Spirituality Health magazine.

The magazine, which covers spiritual traditions and cultures, said in an article: "Bone casting is one of many skills of a sangoma, a traditional healer of the Zulu, Swazi, Xhosa, and Ndebele traditions in southern Africa. Sangomas are called to heal illness, social disharmony, and spiritual difficulties. They intercede between their patients and the spirit world to establish a balanced and harmless relationship."

A typical session has the patient or the diviner throwing bones on the floor, and ancestral spirits control the pattern, writes the article's author, Winter Ross.

A Form of Protection?

It is unclear what the item was used for, but some Redditors were skeptical and feared it was used as protection.

The top comment, which received 2,200 upvotes, said: "A witch bundle. Probably meant to be protective."

"Watch The Exorcist, it always starts in the attic," warned another Redditor.

One person said: "That's to protect the house more than likely from what I can see this one's specifically to ward off a demonic being but it's hard to tell! Regardless whatever u do, don't throw it away just put it back it was there for a reason."

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