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For some pagans, Samhain is one of the most meaningful holidays of the year. It’s the final harvest festival and marks the thinning of the veil. It’s a time for honoring ancestors and the cycle of life and death. To celebrate this holiday, here are some Samhain altar ideas to consider.
For a simple Samhain altar, you can incorporate black, orange, and deep purple candles, and place symbols of the season like pumpkins or skulls. Dried leaves and photographs of your ancestors who have passed on to the spirit world are are good addition.
Here is your guide to Samhain’s colors, symbols, and correspondences as well as altar ideas. If you’re feeling inspired, you can use many of these same elements to decorate your home as well.
Samhain Colors, Symbols, and Correspondences
Samhain is the final harvest holiday and marks the Celtic New Year. It is also known as the Witches’ New Year. Celebrated on October 31st through November 1st, Samhain (pronounced sow-wain) is the perfect time to honor those who have passed and reflect on the cycle of life, death, and rebirth with new and old traditions.
Here are some of Samhain’s symbols, colors, and elements to incorporate into your altar. The colors can guide the selection of candles, crystals, and other decor, while representations of each element—water, fire, air, and earth—help balance your sacred space.
Here are also some Samhain recipes to try this Fall.
- Colors: Black, orange, purple, deep red
- Animals: Bat, owl, cat, raven, spider, wolf, frog, crow
- Crystals and Stones: Onyx, obsidian, carnelian, smoky quartz, hag stone
- Incense and herbs: Patchouli, cinnamon, cloves, frankincense, dragon’s blood, sage
- Plants: Pumpkins, wormwood, mandrake, chrysanthemum, hawthorn, rowan, mugwort, sycamore
- Foods: Apple, pumpkin, barmbrack, cider, cranberry, hazelnut
Samhain Altar Ideas
Here are some ideas you could incorporate into your own altar for the harvest holiday. Remember, the intention isn’t for it to look perfect. If you can, start with a cauldron, candles, chalice, wand, and incense then add other symbols or elements from there.
1. Samhain Altar Inspiration
Flying the Hedge put together this fall altar and did an excellent job of explaining the different elements on it. From the skull and black candle to candle holders representing Hekate and Norse runes, she did a great job of combining different pantheons in one cohesive altar space.
2. Multi-Deity Samhain Altar
This altar was created by the founder of Pagan Parenting and honors several archangels, as well as Lilith, Thoth, and Shamash.
3. Ancestral Altar
This altar is a sacred space with photographs of many ancestors and offerings for them. As you can see, these can include foods they enjoyed while here on Earth, like Dr. Pepper.
4. Nighttime Altar
This candlelit altar incorporates many traditional elements, including photographs of ancestors, a skull, and candles.
5. Ancestral Altar for Samhain
This altar features a single photograph of their ancestors. In front of it are different objects that hold significance for her, such as sage, candles, crystals, and dried plants. Remember, your altar should be not just a reflection of the season, but of you as well.
6. Coffee Table Altar
This coffee table altar for Samhain is great because it won’t get forgotten during the season. On it, you can see the corresponding colors of orange and black, as well as a skull, crystal wand, owl symbol, and incense.
7. Peaceful Samhain Altar
This solemn altar honors her ancestor by surrounding her with candles and recognizes her passing with the single Death card from the tarot.
8. Colorful Altar
This Samhain altar idea is a good reminder that that you can utilize colors other than just black and orange when picking objects for your space. The creator of this altar used black and different shades of red, orange, green, and brown to give it a dynamic look.
9. Samhain Community Altar
One possible idea for the holiday is to create a community altar where different members of your coven, family, or friends can contribute their own offerings.
10. Witch Altar
This witch’s altar features symbols of the triple goddess, multiple skulls, and symbols of deities she worships.
11. Pagan Samhain Altar
This pagan altar draws many elements from nature, including the dried roses, pinecones, dried leaves, and pumpkins. In the background you can see statues of the god and goddess and the Wheel of the Year.
12. Gothic Altar
This Halloween-meets-Samhain altar is simple but effective. You can make your own with some black and orange candles, a pumpkin, a glass of wine or moon water, a few crystals, sage, a skull, a pentacle, and some tarot cards. Add the bat candelabra and faux raven for extra credit.
13. Nature-Forward Altar
This candlelit altar leans heavily into orange and brown and has many natural elements as well as tarot cards from the Wild Unknown deck. When lighting candles, light them clockwise around your altar. When extinguishing them, put them out counter clockwise.
14. Outdoor Altar
I’m guessing this is a temporary altar as it’s been created outside. It’s an example of what you can do if you host a Samhain gathering in your backyard or in a nearby park. All the ritual tools are present (chalice, athame, wand, candle, pentacle) as well as an ode to those passed on and corresponding symbols for the harvest holiday.
15. Celtic Altar for Samhain
This altar honors different Celtic gods of the season, including what appears to be the Morrigan and Herne the Hunter. There are also offerings of bread, apples, and cookies to the gods and their ancestors.
16. Simple Samhain Altar
Another fall altar that shows you don’t need to have a lot of space or a ton of objects for it to be powerful. Begin by using what you have and add as you feel inspired or able.
17. Small Samhain Altar
If you only have a small space to create your altar, here’s an idea of how to utilize it with corresponding symbols of the season.
18. Window Altar
This working space gracefully combines many objects and elements without making it feel busy. I love the addition of the homemade puff pastry pentacle offering.
19. Maximalist Samhain Altar
Here is another similarly lush, but effective sacred space that shows another possible way to set up your altar for the holiday.
