Black cats have long been associated with bad luck and Halloween, but why? When and where did the association begin?

Cats have been an important symbol in many cultures going back millennia to the days of antiquity. The Ancient Egyptians, for example, held cats as sacred and saw them as the guardians of the underworld. Many Pharaohs were buried with mummified cats. In Greek mythology, cats were associated with the goddess of magic, sorcery, the moon, and witchcraft: Hekate. According to the Greeks, Hekate had a cat as both a pet and familiar.

Cats were revered, tolerated, or seldom thought of for hundreds, if not thousands of years, until the 13th century. Pope Gregory the IX issued “Vox in Rama,” which said many things, including that black cats were an incarnation of Satan. It is also believed by many to be the beginning of the inquisition.

Aside from the Devil, Medieval Europeans also linked black cats to witches. Witches, at the time, were usually practitioners of pre-Christian religions and were seen as a threat to the church. Witches held a deep bond between human and animals, which the church viewed as “diabolical,” therefore anyone who hung around with animals (particularly cats, which the pope already said could be the incarnation of Satan) were seen as suspect and often violently dealt with.

Not all of society’s disdain for black cats stems from their perceived connection to Satan, however. Cats were often accused of spreading the plague and were exterminated. It was actually rats which carried fleas which carried the plague. The sharp reduction in cats – a natural predator of rats – is believed to have caused the devastation of the plague to intensify.

Last but not least, we have the superstition where it’s bad luck for a black cat to cross your path. This superstition grew from the logic that, if witches and Satan could assume the form of a cat, and black ones are extra evil, seeing one cross your patch may well mean you’ve had a brush with a witch or the devil.

To this day, black cats are the least commonly adopted among house cats.

From all of us at Adventure Bail Bonds to you, have a safe and happy Halloween!