
Curse tablet cursing Priscilla from Groß-Gerau: The lead tablet, here the front side, consists of three fragments and is inscribed on both sides with a prayer for revenge in Latin. It probably dates from around 100 AD.
Curse rituals were part of everyday life in wide areas of the Roman Empire over a period of 1,000 years
Curse tablets began to be systematically compiled and investigated in the 19th century. However, previously unknown versions of these spells on little lead sheets are continually being uncovered and deciphered. Some 1,700 of these have to date been collated and provide insights into the culture and language of those ancient people who placed their reliance on them. The archaeological finds originate from an era dating from roughly 500 BCE to 500 CE. In other words, the rituals were being performed over about 1,000 years in a region stretching from the Mediterranean to the far north of Europe. Those curse tablets were targeted at opposing litigants in court cases, sporting adversaries in the hippodrome, or rivals in amorous affairs. The lead tablets with their inscribed curses were often deposited in specific places, such as graves or in the vicinity of sacred locations, the assumed abodes of spirits of the underworld, who would ensure the effectiveness of the curse. "The curse ritual as a whole was not simply restricted to the wording of the spell as such, but would have also involved the act of writing it down, the piercing of the tablets, or their burial in deliberately selected places," said Hölscher describing aspects of the tabella defixionis practice. The ancients considered it a form of witchcraft or black magic, which were prescribed under Roman law.
Comment: It's rather alarming that the above professor can acknowledge how extreme shifts in climate lead to the downfall of an ancient civilization - and not just one, but a number of them, and across vast swathes of the planet - and yet he cannot see a parallel with what's going on today. Despite his claim, it appears he is not learning from history.
Generally, it seems the vast majority of ancient civilisations collapsed at times that were accompanied by extreme shifts in climate as well as an increase in natural disasters, and it's increasingly looking like our own civilisation will suffer a similar fate. However, as has been the case repeatedly throughout history, this is obviously not because of 'man-made global warming', but it does appear that human activity is a contributing factor: