Abstract A viral wart is a common benign lesion caused by infection with human papillomavirus. They typically present in children; however, they are also often seen in adults, particularly in immunosuppressed patients. Modern treatments for viral warts include cryotherapy, cantharone, cautery and curettage, and topical chemotherapeutic agents. However, historically, a variety of methods were employed to treat viral warts: animal-based, plant-based, mineral-based and magicoreligious. These can be further categorized based on the principles of chance and transference (Barron C, Soverino T. Snails, water in a stone, and Holy Wells: an examination of wart cures from the Irish Schools’ Folklore Collection, 1937–38. Folklore 2020; 131:386–412). One popular method that combined both the principles of chance and transference involved finding a snail by chance and then rubbing it on the warts, and skewering the snail to kill it. The concept behind this method was that the warts would be transferred to the snails and then the warts would subsequently decay with them. Another animal-based cure involved stealing a piece of meat, usually bacon, and rubbing the meat into the wart before burying the meat. In terms of mineral-based cures, there were many popular methods. The most commonly encountered treatments included holy water, forge water (often from a blacksmith), water from a stone or ‘wart rocks’. People would also attend ‘wart wells’ and make offerings of stones. The use of water was the most widespread mineral-based cure. Plant-based cures were also prevalent, with the milk of a dandelion, the juice of a potato, rushes and straw being just a few examples. Plant-based cures were often combined with aspects of religion. One cure involved cutting a potato in two, and rubbing the cut part to the wart in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The potato was then put away in an old wall; when it shrivelled up, it was believed the wart would disappear. There were also ritualistic methods. Certain healers could perform prayers, and it was believed that when a funeral would pass, one should lift clay three times from under the right foot and rub it on the warts. They would then need to throw it away after the funeral. As the corpse wasted away, the warts would decay, too. While the natural trajectory was that these warts would have self-resolved irrespective of the cures used, our ancestors were proactive and employed many different methods to treat this common ailment.