“If you sing before breakfast you will cry before supper...'' In their own words, what it meant for Victorians to dream of actors, April Fools, herrings or a railway ticket – why it was advised to throw a black snail by its horns over the left shoulder for good luck – and why it is essential to inform bees of a death in the family. “If one drops a knife, a woman is coming; a fork, a man is coming; a spoon, a fool.” Tappings on tables, questionable curatives, old wives'' tales and whispers from beyond the grave – Victorians were fascinated by the supernatural. Consult the Oracle was where they might have turned when they needed to identify a witch, interpret an omen or dream, required a natural cure or wanted to divine their future with a pack of cards – or simply wished to understand what the supernatural meant to them and their ancestors. First published in 1899, it offered a layman''s guide to ''matters magical and mysterious'', and today is a quirky glimpse of a supernatural age now lost, by turns haunting and hilarious.

“If you sing before breakfast you will cry before supper...'' In their own words, what it meant for Victorians to dream of actors, April Fools, herrings or a railway ticket – why it was advised to throw a black snail by its horns over the left shoulder for good luck – and why it is essential to inform bees of a death in the family. “If one drops a knife, a woman is coming; a fork, a man is coming; a spoon, a fool.” Tappings on tables, questionable curatives, old wives'' tales and whispers from beyond the grave – Victorians were fascinated by the supernatural. Consult the Oracle was where they might have turned when they needed to identify a witch, interpret an omen or dream, required a natural cure or wanted to divine their future with a pack of cards – or simply wished to understand what the supernatural meant to them and their ancestors. First published in 1899, it offered a layman''s guide to ''matters magical and mysterious'', and today is a quirky glimpse of a supernatural age now lost, by turns haunting and hilarious.