A small demon often kept inside a bottle or ring and used for magical purposes. Imps are evoked and commanded to carry out tasks and spells. Witches were said to keep imps that assumed different forms, such as toads, rodents, and especially flies, spiders, and other insects. When accused witches were imprisoned, they were watched closely for any appearances of their imps. Prisons were full of insects and rodents, so it was rare that a cell would not have such visitors. Guards would pounce on them, and if they were killed, it meant they were harmless animals or bugs. But if a fly or spider escaped, it was taken as a sure sign of the witch’s imp. Witches were accused of using imps to carry out evil deeds upon innocent people, such as bewitchment, ill fortune, accidents, and even death. In return, the witches suckled the imps with their own blood, using their fingers or protuberances on the body. Witch hunters searched bodies for witch’s marks, usually, warts, discolored skin, and unnatural lumps believed to serve as teats or paps. In some witch trials, the term “imp” was used interchangeably with the familiar.
