Public Domain Artifact: Difference between revisions

* The Hand of Glory is a common item in folklore, a magical relic made from the hand of a hanged man. It can be lit like a candle and provides a light that only the wielder can see. Various other powers have also been ascribed to it in various tales - generally something appropriate for a sneak thief.

** [[The Laundry Series]] has Hand of Glories serving as channels from an extradimensional energy source. Not only do they bestow invisibility, they can be used to fire [[Frickin' Laser Beams]], though this causes the hand to degrade. The Laundry usually gets theirs from Chinese political prisoners.

** ''[[Hunter: The Vigil]]'' has the Hand as a top-level example of [[They Would Cut You Up|the Cheiron Group]]'s Thaumatechnology. Instead of granting invisibility, however, it grants a light that enthralls all who see it. And unlike other examples, the user needs to have it grafted to their wrist first.

** The TV Dresden Files adaptation had a Hand of Glory that could let people walk through walls.

** [[Simon R. Green]] occasionally has one show up with the power to open and seal locks, portals and barriers both mundane and magical.

** Also appears in a poem by the same name in the ''Ingoldsby Legends'' where it has the power to send a household into a deep slumber.

** Also seen in [[Harry Potter]]: It seems Draco Malfoy owns one.

** ''[[Labyrinths of Echo (Literature)|Labyrinths of Echo]]'' had the Order of the Icy Hand, who used an extra source of power made of the adept's left hand chopped off and embedded in an enchanted ice crystal. Of course, then they had to take turns guarding those. As one could expect, they were people with great desire to work high-end magic, but little natural "talent" for it, so this inconvenient way to compensate was their only known option.

** ''[[DungeonsGunnerkrigg & DragonsCourt]]'', ashad usual.something Therevery arelike manythis artifactsmade, knownexcept asfrom a "hand of X"still-living (often hands of various avatars)dude.

*** ''[[Forgotten RealmsGreyhawk]]'' has the Hand of Harrowing (it's mostly used to ward a place against undead).Vecna