Shopping for Spells: Exploring Four of the World's Witchcraft Markets | Atlas Obscura

Some practicing witches purport to be able to cure and transform people, or create favorable, or unfavorable, conditions. And these witches require supplies for their conjuring, and for this there are witchcraft markets. However, it’s not just people who claim a connection to witchcraft who have a need for candles, incense, herbs, oils, soaps, potions, and supplies for assisting the balance of a situation. Tourists, curiosity seekers, and the desperate also seek out these spiritual supply supercenters. At these four witchcraft markets from around the world, you can find almost anything for any purpose.

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Anyone can come here to the Mercado de Brujas, seeking a potion for an ailment, a reading with a Kallawaya (a traditional healer from the Andes), or stroll through the stalls and pick out an item that will help you find a job or a lover. Colorful statues of Incan gods line the shops, as well as packets of incense, amulets, candles, and bottles filled with liquid for use in rituals which include dried herbs, alcohol, and sometimes the remains of animals. At the market, you can also find spell kits, small animal figurines, and even bags of dried coca leaves. When processed coca is formed into the psychoactive drug cocaine. In its unprocessed form, when chewed, coca leaves help alleviate headaches, stomach aches, and nausea. 
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In Togo and neighboring Benin, a large portion of the population practices Voodoo. This is the region where the religion originated before spreading to parts of the Caribbean and South America during the slave trade. Tourists are welcome to look at the piles of heads and skulls that include dogs, gorillas, and chimpanzees. Other remains, such as elephant feet, gazelle horns, monkey paws, and turtle shells, can also be found here. Many of the heads still have their skin attached. Larger objects are used in rituals for house blessings. Proprietors claim that the animals were not killed for ritual, but come to them already deceased from other parts of Africa.
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Many people who are familiar with Lima have never heard of the market. It’s hidden underneath the Gamarra Station. Once you have spotted vendors outside selling python skins, you have found the place. The focus here is on the traditional folk medicine that is widely practiced among not only indigenous groups, but also the greater society of Peru. Many of the mixtures sold here are part of indigenous family traditions that have been passed down for generations.

Shopping for Spells: Exploring Four of the World's Witchcraft Markets | Atlas Obscura