Sometime in early September of 1929, Norah “Netta” Fornario relocated to the Isle of Iona, just off the west coast of Scotland. The 32-year-old was a member of the Alpha et Omega Temple, an offshoot of the occult society, The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. She’d been living in London, but had abruptly decided to take a sabbatical on this remote, mystical island. Despite insisting that her move was only temporary and a way for her to dive deeper into her occult studies, sources say that Netta sent an abundance of clothing, furniture, books, and personal items to her new home.
Perhaps Netta suspected that she would live out the rest of her days on Iona. However, she likely didn’t expect to take her last breath only months after she arrived.
According to her friends, Netta was an accomplished psychic who could heal people telepathically. Although her unusual gifts rendered her an outsider in mainstream society, when she arrived on the Isle of Iona, her new landlord (Mrs. McRae) found the girl fascinating. Even though they came from different backgrounds, the two women got on fondly. Netta shared stories about her magickal endeavors and Mrs. McRae repaid her in local myths.
According to Mrs. McRae and other villagers, Netta spent the days exploring the island on foot. She mostly kept to herself, especially when night fell. While the rest of the island slept, Netta practiced magick. She was known to spend long periods in trance while communicating with nearby spirits. She also claimed to receive messages from other dimensions and planets, as well as a ‘rudderless plane in the sky.’
On November 17th, Netta informed Mrs. McRae that she must leave the island immediately and head back to London. She explained that someone was attacking her telepathically, although she never said who or why they wanted to hurt her. Some accounts claim that while Mrs. McRae was taken aback by her guest’s recent change of heart, she was mostly concerned about the silver jewelry Netta always wore—it had tarnished black overnight.
Since it was Sunday and no boats were coming to or from the island until the following day, Mrs. McRae helped Netta pack her bags. Later in the evening, Netta again changed her mind and said she wished to stay on Iona permanently. Mrs. McRae was unsure what to make of Netta’s fickle behavior, so she told the girl to sleep on it. This was the last time Mrs. McRae would see her friend alive.
The next morning, Mrs. McRae went to Netta’s room, but it was empty. When she didn’t return home for lunch or dinner, Mrs. McRae knew something was terribly wrong.
The locals sent out a search party, and a few miles from her house, they discovered Netta’s body.
Netta was found sprawled atop a large faerie mound in the ruins of an ancient village. She had carved a large cross into the earth and laid across it, dagger still in hand. She was naked except for a ceremonial black cloak. Because she wasn’t wearing shoes, her feet were cut and bloodied, but other than that, there was no sign of foul play.
Most believe that Netta died from exposure to the elements. The dagger in her hand, choice of clothing, and her final location atop a faerie mound suggest that she was likely performing a ritual—one that went horribly wrong. Some say that the psychic (who claimed to make regular visits to other worlds) may have become trapped, injured, or lost in one of these realms, unable to find her way back.
In some versions of Netta’s story, when the search party found her body, it was covered in scratches. This was baffling since Netta was believed to be alone at the time of her death. But, according to some, these marks were inflicted not by a human but a spirit. You see, in the months and years prior to her last day, Netta and a former high-ranking member of The Golden Dawn, Moina Mathers, were engaged in a public feud. Although Moina had died a year before Netta, Moina was rumored to be at the helm of various psychic attacks within her former community.
But how does that explain the mysterious cloaked man that some claim Netta was seen walking with during her last days? And what about the orbs of blue light that others claimed were dancing around Netta’s body as it lay atop the faerie mound?
We’ll likely never know. Netta Fornario took the end of her story to the grave. Her final resting place is marked by a simple headstone in St. Oran’s Cemetery on the Isle of Iona.
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