This is my first year when I am spending the New Year’s Eve in Vienna. Considering that I do not have any free days and on Monday I will go to work, I don’t have so much of a plan in regards to it. Buuuut, recently I found out about a very interesting tradition which takes place in Austria. I am speaking about the molybdomancy, meaning the usage of molten metal and the interpretation of it.

The method originates in ancient Greece and it became a common New Year tradition in the Nordic countries, including Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

The procedure is as follows: tin is melted on a stove and poured into a bucket of cold water. The resulting shape is either directly interpreted as an omen for the future, or is rotated in a candlelight to create shadows, whose shapes are then interpreted.

On internet, you can even find guides on how to interpretate the shadows and you will know how your year is going to look like.

i don’t know about you, but I will definitely try it. I am not sure about the accuracy of our interpretation, but most definitely will be a nice thing to try together with my friends.

In German, this tradition is called Bleigießen, and you can find the materials on every New Year market or in Libro or Muller.