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Weird Sisters
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Joseph Anton Koch: Macbeth and the Witches John Gilbert: Weird Sisters
Watch the Weird Sisters conspire in the opening scene of William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth
Macbeth and Banquo encounter the Three Witches, illustration by John Gilbert for an edition of Shakespeare's works, 1858–60. The Weird Sisters of Macbeth, engraving by Losay from the painting by Henry Fuseli
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Joseph Anton Koch: Macbeth and the Witches
Joseph Anton Koch: Macbeth and the Witches Macbeth meets the Weird Sisters, based on a scene from Shakespeare's play Macbeth; oil on canvas by Joseph Anton Koch, 1835.

Weird Sisters

fictional characters
Also known as: Three Witches
Written by
Gitanjali Roy
Gitanjali Roy is deputy managing editor, Encyclopaedia Britannica. She has over two decades of editorial experience across digital and broadcast media.
Gitanjali Roy
Fact-checked by
Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
Britannica Editors
History

Weird Sisters, the creatures who prophesy the destinies of the main characters in William Shakespeare’s tragic play Macbeth, written sometime in 1606–07 and published in the First Folio of 1623. They make five predictions to Macbeth, which induce him to subvert the order of succession to the Scottish throne by regicide. In stage directions accompanying the play, the creatures are referred to as Witches. The term Weird Sisters was first used by Scots writers as a sobriquet...

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