Familiar Fictions

read the entire Collection in print in Issue 2.

Animal familiars, long associated with witchcraft and mythology, are thought to be companion creatures that can travel between worlds and support humans in spiritual and magical workings. The idea of a familiar commonly conjures the image of a black cat, found in both folklore and depictions of witchcraft in contemporary books and film. For millennia, cats have been honored as sacred creatures in many cultures, from Japan to Egypt. 

In Greek mythology, cats are associated with the goddess Hecate, who had the power to shapeshift into feline form. Hecate is the goddess most associated with magic, witchcraft, and the moon, and her power was derived from her deep connection to liminal spaces, or the power to move between realms. Hecate was also thought to have intimate connections to dogs; her black dogs guard the underworld and support her as she presides over the world of death. Like cats, dogs have also commonly been known as familiars, and early definitions of familiar simply meant companion or close friend, perhaps evidenced in the scientific name for a dog: Canis familiaris. Depictions of Hecate in paintings and sculptures often include cats, dogs, and other animals such as horses, cows, and serpents. 

---

read the entire Collection in print in Issue 2.