An altar cloth is used by magicians, Wiccans, Satanic witches, and other practicioners of the occult for one or more of several reasons. For the book series Wicca see Sweep (book series) and Circle Of Three. ... Satanism is a religious or philosophical movement centered around Satan or another entity identified with Satan, or centered around the forces of nature, particularly human nature, represented by Satan as an archetype. ... This article is part of the Witchcraft series. ... The word occult comes from Latin occultus (hidden), referring to the knowledge of the secret or knowledge of the hidden and often meaning knowledge of the supernatural, as opposed to knowledge of the visible or knowledge of the measurable, usually referred to as science. ...

1. Protection of the altar. Many altars are either handmade, expensive or unique, thus the altar cloth will be used as protection against damage. Altars commonly have candles, open flame, bowls of water and salt, and burning incense, all things that could damage an otherwise priceless(to the user) altar.

1. Decoration. Some altar cloths are simply chosen for decorative purposes, as many occultists, such as Wiccans, may leave their altar on display at all times. It may also be changed to match the corresponding sabbat, esbat or season.

1. Practical magic use. Some individuals may choose altar cloths that are of use in the application of magic(or magick). For example: an altar cloth with the cardinal directions on it, or the pentacle or pentagram. Another example is it may have runes or glyphs of power used to enhance the magicians personal power or provide protection.