Oil Painting of Woman and Cat

  The victims of witch hunts were predominantly women, often middle aged or elderly. This was justified by the biblical understanding that women were more susceptible to evil and demonic temptation, evidenced by Eve's transgression in the Garden of Eden. With this in mind, the popular depiction of witches surfaced as an older woman and often accompanied by a demon which would take the likeness of an animal, for example a cat, toad, or dog. South West Scotland stayed true to this depiction in their own accusation demographics.