Historical method: a recorded belief or accusation is not independent proof of the supernatural event described.
Three layers
An entry in a trial record may say a witness described nocturnal travel. That supports the claim that the record contains such testimony. A historian may infer an underlying communal belief. An imaginative retelling may portray a literal journey. Those are three separate layers.
The citation trap
A source citation can be authentic and still be a poor match for a particular sentence. Citations must be checked at the claim level, with uncertainty preserved rather than cosmetically removed.
Public correction policy
Each page has a stable identifier and review date. Readers can report a specific disputed sentence and supporting source, and future revisions can be compared in a Git repository.
Source and revision record
- Trial transcripts: Paolo Gasparutto and Battista Moduco, 1575–1581 (translated excerpt via University of Washington)Edited translation of primary record · A modern publication of translated trial testimony, not a facsimile of the original manuscript. Copyright may apply.
- Carlo Ginzburg, The Night Battles (updated edition, 2026)Publisher listing · Publisher bibliographic and interpretive overview; updated edition dated September 8, 2026.