axinomancy
English edit
Alternative forms edit
Etymology edit
Latin axinomantia, from Ancient Greek ἀξινομαντεία (axinomanteía), from ἀξίνη (axínē, “axe”) and μαντεία (manteía, “prophecy”)
Noun edit
axinomancy (uncountable)
- (rare) Divination by saws or axes.
- 1610, Augustine, City of God:
- Diuination generally was done by diuers means […] by hatchets, Axinomancy
- 1855, Edward Smedley, The Occult Sciences[1]:
- Axinomancy Was performed by balancing an axe on an upright stake, and the names of suspected persons being pronounced, it was supposed to point out the guilty by its motion.
- 1925, Arthur Bernard Cook, Zeus: A Study in Ancient Religion[2], volume 2, page 702:
- Axinomancy, strictly so called, has varied somewhat in its modus operandi. A hatchet suspended by a cord was used to detect criminals or discover secrets: it twisted and turned in answer to relevant questions.
References edit
- “axinomancy”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.