New York Historical Society Presents Salem Witch Exhibit
The fascination behind witches and the history surrounding witchcraft has been a trend and peak of interest for many people. The New York Historical Society is bringing that history to light with their new exhibit, “The Salem Witch Trials: Reckoning and Reclaiming” that is on view from October 7, 2022, until January 22, 2023.
Courtesy of Thomas Satterwhite Noble
The Salem Witch Trials was a rather dark period in American history which occurred in colonial Massachusetts between 1692 to 1693. The Salem Witch Trials was an example of intolerance and injustice in American history which resulted in the death of 25 people- mostly women- who were accused of witchcraft.
“We are proud to present this extraordinary exhibition through our Center for Women’s History, exemplifying the Center’s mission to rethink familiar chapters of the past and deepen our understanding of them. We hope our visitors will come away with a new perspective on these terrible events from more than 300 years ago and what they still mean for us now,” said Dr. Louise Mirrer president and CEO of the New-York Historical Society.
Courtesy of New York Historical Society
The exhibit highlights include rare artifacts, documents, a written account of the first trial, and modern projects inspired by the events.
A hand-stoned, iridescent gray gown designed by Alexander McQueen is one of the highlights at the exhibit. McQueen, who found out he was related to Elizabeth Howe, one of the victims accused and killed in the trials, was inspired to create his 2007 Autumn-Winter collection after Howe. The collection was named, “In memory of Elizabeth Howe, Salem, 1692”. He included symbols of paganism and witchcraft in the collection and included designs that deviated from the Victorian silhouette.
Courtesy of Frances F. Denny and ClampArt
The exhibit also highlights portraits from Frances F. Denny, a contemporary photographer. The series of photographs is called, Major Arcana: Portraits of Witches in America. Denny hopes to destigmatize the word “witch”, which was used to control and silence women.
The exhibit puts the horrific events into context while showing respect to the victims who lost their lives due to mass hysteria and injustice.
The traveling exhibition is organized by the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, and is coordinated at New-York Historical by its Center for Women’s History.