Case file · Witch trials
The witches' scale of Oudewater
Oudewater's weigh house, the Heksenwaag, is said to have received from Charles V in 1545 the right to weigh people accused of witchcraft and certify that they were not too light to be witches.
1545 CE · 52.02, 4.87 · status: official
The account
Those found of normal weight got a 'certificaet van weginghe'. People came from Germany and elsewhere for a fair weighing; the town's honest scale is said never to have condemned anyone.
The sceptical view
The privilege of Charles V is traditional rather than documented; the scale was not used during the Holland and Utrecht trials of the late 16th century.