SHAVING AND PROBING
The accused witch would be stripped naked and then have all of their bodily hairs shaven. The investigators did so to search their body hair for any demons or charms of magical powers that may have been hiding there helping them during their trial. For the same reason the accused person may also be subjected to unmerciful orifice probing.
DEVILS MARK
This type of search was one of the major ones for the presence of witchcraft. The accused witch was subjected to a bodily search for evidence of a devils mark, as it was believed that the devil made a permanent mark on the bodies of those whom had sworn allegiant to him. It was believed the mark was left by the devil licking, kissing, touching a particular spot on the accused witches body, raking his claws across their body or branding it with an iron. Such marks were difficult to locate and required rigorous and invasive searches. Any mark was considered definite proof of being a witch. If the investigator was particularly fanatical any mark on the body could be construed as a mark of the devil. These usually consisted of warts, moles, freckles, a lesion or even a rough patch of skin. This was bad news since few people have mark free bodies.
PRICKING
If no mark could be found on the accused witches body it was rare that the investigators would give up so easily and deem someone innocent. It was believed that sometimes the devil didn�t leave a visible mark when claiming someone but instead made a small area of the body of his follower insensitive to pain. Again the body was painfully searched with pins being pricked all over the body. It was highly unlikely that the investigators employed gentle tactics with this procedure.
SWIMMING
Swimming, also known as ducking, was not an official test to prove an accused witches guilt and it was declared illegal in England by Henry II in 1219. The test was frequently conducted by a group of local villagers with no legal backing. Swimming an accused witch consisted of the victim being bound hand and foot, often right thumb bound to left big toe and vice versa. They were then thrown into a stretch of water such as a pond, river or lake. If the accused witch floated it was a sign of the definite guilt, the theory being that the devil is helping his own to survive or that gods baptismal waters had rejected them. If the accused witch sank, the person was innocent, little comfort for them because they usually sank and drowned before they could be helped out of the water. To make the torture worse they were sometimes sewn into a sack before being thrown in.
THE LORDS PRAYER
The accused witch was also required to recite the lords prayer. This was to be done repeated, accurately and without the slightest stumble. If they made any mistake or paused they were held to be unable to complete the holy task because of their association with the devil. Most of the accused witches would have been trembling with terror and incapable of thinking or speaking clearly so the number of people who failed this test were high.
