In early 20th-century Britain, many people still relied on charms, a belief system called sympathetic magic. Folklorist Edward Lovett collected objects from cottage cupboards, including mole's feet thought to cure cramp, because their cramped shape seemed to match the complaint. Other remedies worked by transferring pain: a tooth-shaped flint was rubbed on teething gums, and a potato carried in the pocket was believed to draw off rheumatism. Some cures were grisly, such as a dried frog in a silk bag to prevent fits, or a live toad tied on a child's throat for whooping cough. Lovett argued that these beliefs would not vanish quickly, and he noted that people still carried mascots in cars.

Hampi is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in Karnataka, India, with more than 1,600 surviving remains spread over 4,100 hectares. It was the capital of the Vijayanagara Empire from 1336 to 1565. Travellers from Persia and Portugal described it as a prosperous, wealthy and grand city with temples, markets and farms along the Tungabhadra River. By 1500 it was estimated to be the world's second-largest city after Beijing, and probably India's richest at the time. In 1565 a coalition of Muslim sultanates defeated the Vijayanagara Empire, its capital was conquered and destroyed, and the city was left in ruins. Hampi remains a religious centre, with the active Virupaksha Temple at its heart.