Bigs Flayer, a woman residing in Carrington, Edinburgh, becomes a stark figure in the historical annals of 17th-century Scottish witch trials with a case recorded on the 12th of April, 1649. The socio-political climate of the time was fraught with the tension of civil wars and religious upheavals, setting a precarious backdrop against which accusations of witchcraft frequently emerged. Bigs Flayer’s story is preserved mainly through the formal documentation associated with her trial, classified under the judicial records of C/EGD/2064.
The records indicate that a confession was recorded during her trial, registered under T/LA/2057. Such confessions, often elicited under duress, carry a complex legacy, reflecting the harsh realities faced by those accused in a period where fear of the supernatural intertwined with everyday life. Bigs's experience would have unfolded within a community tense with suspicion, where accusations could be deeply rooted in personal vendettas or collective anxiety. As the legal proceedings unfolded, the written testament of her alleged crimes was crafted, sealing her fate within the scrolls of Edinburgh’s local history. Such trials typify the tumult of the time, offering sobering insight into the mechanisms of justice and belief during an age when the supernatural hovered perilously close to the earthly realm.