Don’t prick your finger on a spindle

Before the witch hunts, women participated in many professions – they were brewsters, blacksmiths, teachers, court poets, merchants and craftsmen. Beginning with the Renaissance, a combination of social, legal and cultural forces changed this. Fear of being labelled a witch meant fewer women would work outside the home to earn a wage, leaving them vulnerable to impoverishment without the financial support of a man. This systematic exploitation of feminised workforces is one we’re still living with hundreds of years later.