Brooms

thumb|Sorghum-made brooms with long handles as well as short handles

agricultural tool used for moving soil or other material

besom used for bathing

thumb|right|On Carrington Moss, 1851, David Cox (artist)|David Cox, shows individuals gathering material for besoms.

In Roman mythology, Deverra (apparently from Latin deverro "to sweep away") was one of the three gods that protected midwives and women in labor, the other two being Pilumnus and Intercidona. Symbolised by a broom used to sweep away evil influences, she ruled over the brooms used to purify temples in preparation for various worship services, sacrifices and celebrations.

thumb| A broomsquire is someone who makes besom brooms for a living. It is a trade that was historically associated with heathland areas of England. The broomsquire tended to use heather or birch twigs gathered from the heathland to make the brooms. They also grazed cattle or sheep on the poor vegetation. The broomsquire was described by Sabine Baring-Gould in his novel The Broomsquire written in 1896 and set in the Devil's Punch Bowl, Hindhead. In his 1903 ghost story The Blood-Eagle, Robert Hugh Benson hints at links between broomsquires and paganism.