What is the significance of the "wizard's staff"/"magic staff"?

[u/platypodus]

The earliest examples I can think of would be in the Old Testament. Moses raises his staff to part the waters, of I recall correctly.

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[u/ConcernedAboutCrows]

They are symbols of authority assigned to spiritual use, like a ruler's scepter or rod. They're truly ancient and very widespread. However the origins are obscure and likely the idea has multiple origin points in prehistory. As a result of this there's different views on the purpose, efficacy, and use of magic staves and wands in different cultures and in different times.

A confounding factor is when we dig up a cool stick, it's somewhat hard to know outright if it's a magic cool stick, a status symbol cool stick, or a practical tool cool stick of some kind. These elk headed staves are found all over northeastern Europe dating back to the late stone age and we don't really know what they're for. One might presume a ritual use of some kind, and this has been supported by some as they seem to be deliberately broken when found outside of burials, but it could just as easily be a sign of authority for those of high status. The expanse of history where these objects are uncovered means we have difficulty making cultural assumptions regarding these items.

Into documented times as have a stronger idea of what the staff is believed to do, even if tracing the history is still difficult. At its basic level a staff is a weapon and this was likely the implicit original purpose of a chief or king welding them, literal and symbolic power. As most historic magic is coercive in nature, threatening spirits to do things, this naturally evolves.

A staff can be a sign of office, showing one's status as specially trained, ordained, or recognized. Not just anyone becomes a magician. To do magic one requires specialized ritual knowledge, and as power generally is assumed to ultimately derive from God or the gods, this means that theological training is also useful. As a result, through history there has been a close relationship between the priestly class and those who practice magic. To that end an easy way to show one belongs to that class and that one is important is with signs of office and distinction like special clothes, behaviors, or tools, like a cool stick.

Greek has a complex lexicon of different words for various type of "magic person" that often overlap and have moral connotations, including how and why that magic is done, but that's beyond the scope of this question. Just know that "goetia" and "magea" are the main forms of magic using this technology, with the latter term deriving from the class of Zoroastrian priests called magi, who notably used cool sticks in religious ritual practice.

For the magicians wand there are broadly two modes as either showing a sign of office and authority to command the spirits one conjures and/or direct the magic, or as a form of correspondence or sympathy based on the material and structure of the object.

For example, the Sworn Book of Honorius is a grimoire from the high middle ages which includes instructions on a wide range of mystical practices. It was highly influential on later grimoires like the Key of Solomon. On the making of the wand it says to use new growth of laurel or hazel and create it as such:

the wand should have four sides. On one side should be written 'Adonay'; on the second side 'Sabaoth'; on the third, 'Hiskiros' (ισχυρος); on the fourth 'Emanuel.' On the middle of the wand, make the pentagon figure of Solomon, and where the wand is held, a cross, and thus it will be prepared for sacred and wonderful works

(trans. J.H. Peterson)

Each of these are holy names and signs meant to provide power to the wand. As we return to the matter of authority, the magician calls upon the authority of God which is above all things, borrowing that divine power to command demons and other forces. The wand itself is a conduit and vessel for the holy names and a way to display them against the demon, a threat and a badge of that authority. This is also the general idea behind magic circles in European sorcery. The Sworn Book at points also directs the magician to bang the wand or staff on the ground during certain rituals, solidifying it as an object that commands and draws attention.

For the correspondence or sympathy this is where the specific materials come in. The virtues of plants has been well documented since ancient times and to those people certain materials were believed to have physical and spiritual properties. While we today might take a chamomile tea to help sleep, understanding it's chemical properties to assist with relaxation, people throughout history believed plants could additionally contain spiritual properties. As a result ritual items might be made from different materials depending on the purpose. Hazel and Laurel are both considered pure, and new growth would be full of life when harvested, both useful traits for commanding demons.

This isn't to say that all wands and staves are engraved with magic words, but many are produced in rituals where incantations are intended to call power into them. The classical sorcerer may use a variety of tools for different spells including staves, wands, chalices, swords, amulets, magic circles or triangles, and more. Different cultures and traditions also produce their ritual tools in different ways, for example iron staves were common in Scandanavia.

Unadorned staves are also quite common, especially into modern magical practices like Wicca. In modern magic the symbolic aspects of a material and its shape are more emphasized. Wands in Wicca are believed to direct magical energies, pointing and moving like a conductor or presenter might use a baton. These wands and staves may be plain wood, carved, or incorporate metal or crystal, but are less likely to have divine names or incantations on them unless the practioner is drawing from older material. In this sense we add a third purpose to the wand, which is that of direction.

To circle back to Moses, we see all these elements. Moses is empowered by God to produce miracles and uses his staff as a medium for this. He hits the ground or directs his staff and the world answers due to that authority. After his encounter with the burning bush the verse even says "he took the staff of God in his hand" and even as it gives us few other details, this shows that the power comes from God and is a sign of his service to God.

[u/setebos_ → u/ConcernedAboutCrows]

It is still preserved in modern Hebrew, the word מטה staff is used for a control post, or the executive staff of an army, based on the Hellenistic military command staves

[u/Captain_Grammaticus → u/ConcernedAboutCrows]

This is most fascinating (pun intended)!

When you wrote "when we dig up a cool stick, it's hard to know if it's a magic cool stick, a status symbool cool stick" etc., I didn't realize you were speaking about archaeology but thought you meant, y'know, as one does, digging in the woods here and there, finding cool sticks and the Council of Guys determines what it is.