Ancient Rome and Modern Italy 43 



or, in certain cases, in spite of themselves. Possession of the power 

 is commonly indicated by some peculiarity of the eye or by some- 

 thing unusual about the body, such as a deformity, or abnormal 

 stature. 227 An emanation of magic potency proceeds from the 

 eye. This can be diverted, stopt, or nullified by various occult 

 means. Quite usual is the employment against it of an amulet of 

 some kind, a prophylactic gesture, or a countercharm of words. 



Since feelings of jealousy are so often thought to be responsible 

 for the action of the Evil Eye, possession of a healthy, pretty baby 

 can cause an Italian mother as much solicitude as maternal pride. 228 

 She has ever to fear somebody's lurking look of envy which may 

 eventually cause her darling to waste away and die. So it is that 

 quite spontaneous praise from anyone who is gazing at the child 

 terrorizes the superstitious parent. A considerate Italian who is 

 aware of all this will accompany his words of admiration, his Che 

 bel bimbo, come bello! or the like, with some such expression as 

 juori jettatura or fuori malocchio, which orders the maleficence 

 away, or he may call down God's blessing with a Dio la benedica 

 or 77 Signore lo benedica; for God's blessing is still believed to save 

 a little girl or boy from the worst of deviltry. 229 Merely to say 

 Grazia a Dio, "Thanks to God", will suffice. If trust in God be 

 feeble,'' one can always make the sign of the horns without attract- 

 ing attention. This consists in sticking out towards the person or 

 thing that threatens danger the index and little finger of the closed 

 hand. This prophylactic gesture has been in use for at least sev- 

 eral thousand years. It symbolizes, as it were, the actual horns 

 of an animal, and these were deemed to be avertive as being instru- 

 ments of hostility, or, it may be, as constituting a semblance here 

 below of the crescent moon in the sky. This heavenly body in its 

 waxing and waning symbolizes the power of growth. As an object 

 of religion, it represents the Goddess Diana, and Diana, in her 

 other self as Hecate, was mistress of Hell and Queen of Witches. 



If baby's health begins to fail and its parents know who has 

 praised its beauty, they must find that person. Putting the child 

 in his or her arms, they compel the blunderer to annul the effects of 

 the bewitchment by a blessing or by spitting on it. 230 If the ad- 

 mirer is more inclined to superstition than to the use of the pious 

 phrase, he can himself make the protective sign of the horns at the 

 time he eulogizes and all will then be well. Moreover, the nurse 



