Osculum infame

Lore & Background

During the era of witch-hunting, many believed that witches worshipped the Devil and paid him homage by kissing his posterior. The osculum infame is mentioned in nearly every single recorded account of a Witches' Sabbath and in confessions – most of which were extracted under torture. Although most common in Europe, no illustrations of it exist in the publications of English persecutions, possibly as torture was not regularly employed in the questioning of those accused. It was called the kiss of shame because it was generally regarded as an act of degradation.

According to the allegations, witches would give the kiss of shame at the beginning of the sabbat, after the Devil had read the names of his followers. They would approach him by crawling or walking backwards, turn, bow and kiss his posterior. It was believed that this kiss was required for a new witch to be initiated, and the kiss was followed by feasting. Sometimes witches kissed not only the Devil's fundament, but lower-ranking demons' as well.

Generally considered to be an act of homage, or respect, the North Berwick witch trials of Scotland in the 16th century held that the kiss was an act of penance issued from the Devil. Reported in Newes from Scotland, declaring the damnable Life of Doctor Fian (1592) by W. Wright: '...and seeing that they tarried over long, hee at their coming enjoyned them all to a pennance, which was, that they should kisse his buttockes, in sign of duety to him, which being put over the pulpit bare, every one did as he had enjoyned them.' The pamphlet provided the first descriptions of the osculum infame to the English population. Belief held that the Devil demanded the kiss of shame in forms other than human, including rams, black cats, and toads. Errores Haereticorum, a medieval tract, claims that the Cathars took their name 'from the term cat, whose posterior they kiss, in whose form Satan appears to them.' The role could also be reversed whereby the witch was the recipient of the kiss.

Reader's Guide

The osculum infame is significant as a central element in the mythology of European witch-hunting, symbolizing the perceived degradation and submission of witches to the Devil. Its near-universal mention in accounts of the Witches' Sabbath and in confessions—often extracted under torture—highlights how such beliefs were used to justify persecution. The absence of illustrations in English publications, possibly due to the lack of routine torture, suggests regional variations in how the accusation was deployed. The kiss was not only an act of homage but also, in the North Berwick trials, framed as an act of penance. The belief that the Devil could appear in animal forms (rams, black cats, toads) and that the role could be reversed (the witch receiving the kiss) shows the flexibility of the folklore. The legacy of the osculum infame endures as a potent symbol of the demonization of witchcraft and the extreme measures taken to extract confessions during the witch-hunt era.

Did You Know?

• The osculum infame is mentioned in nearly every single recorded account of a Witches' Sabbath.
• Most confessions mentioning the kiss were extracted under torture.
• No illustrations of the osculum infame exist in the publications of English persecutions, possibly because torture was not regularly employed there.
• The Devil was believed to demand the kiss in forms such as rams, black cats, and toads.