A long time ago, people believed that metal was a gift from the gods, given as a protection against evil. Any form of metal was considered lucky, whether it was a horseshoe hung over a door or a good luck coin.
Early Celtic tribes would put a horseshoe above the door to keep away elves and goblins. Not only was the horseshoe made of iron, which was used to ward off evil spirits, it was shaped like a crescent moon which was another symbol that repelled evil. Traditionally it was held in place by seven iron nails, seven being a lucky number.
As to the question of which way you should hang your horseshoe, hang it open end up to keep the devil away and bring good luck into your home, or hang it open end down to share good luck with anyone passing through the doorway.
The old-wives tale of putting a penny in the shoe of a woman on her wedding day comes courtesy of an old Victorian rhyme. "Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a silver sixpence in your shoe." If a sixpence wasn’t available, a penny could be substituted. Over time the saying changed to, "and a lucky penny in the shoe." The penny in the shoe ensured that the newly married couple would always have wealth.
Find a penny, pick it up
All the day you’ll have good luck
See a penny, let it lay
Bad luck will follow you all day
The original phrase was "see a pin and pick it up and all day long you'll have good luck." This was a reference to a pagan ritual in which a pin could be used in a good luck spell. The myth was that a dropped pin might have been used in such a spell and would provide good luck to the person who found it.
As far as pennies are concerned . . . if you lose a penny it’s believed you’re losing your luck – whether you’re losing good luck or bad depends on how the penny lands. If it lands heads up you need to pick it up, otherwise you’re leaving your good luck behind. However, if it lands tails up leave it alone because you’ve just gotten rid of some of your bad luck.
Looking to change your luck? Take ten pennies, find a parking lot, and toss them into the air. Pick up all the pennies that land face up, leaving behind all the pennies that are tails up. Then you have to wait for someone to come along and pick up all the bad luck pennies, taking your bad luck away with them.
Good luck with that.
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