Watchtowers

Watchtowers

Watchtowers are associated with the four directions—east, south, west, and north— in the Wiccan ritual Circle. They are etheric, symbolical structures set up to guard the Circle during the rites. The ceremony of erecting and consecrating the Circle contains reference to the Guardians of the Watchtowers. In some Wiccan traditions these guardians are equated with the magical elementals of sylphs (east = air), salamanders (south = fire), undines (west = water), and gnomes (north = earth). In other traditions, there is no specific naming or identifying of the guardians.

According to Grimassi, in ancient Rome small towers were built at the joining roads of a crossroads and an altar placed before each tower. On these altars offerings were made to Nature spirits in the form of the Lares, or Compitales. The Lares were originally placed where two fields joined, since they were protectors of agriculture, but later they were also placed at crossroads.