The demon-binding symbol that turns floors, ceilings, trunks and rooms into supernatural cages
- Record Type
- Weapon
- Permanent Archive ID
- SPN-WPN-000020
- Aliases & Epithets
- devil's trap; demon trap; protective circle; demonic heptagram; pentagram devil's trap
A devil's trap does not kill a demon. It contains one. As long as the symbol remains intact, most demons cannot cross its boundary and lose access to many of their powers. Break one line, however, and the cage becomes decoration.
A cage, not a killing weapon
A devil’s trap is one of the hunters’ most useful pieces of demon lore because it creates control without pretending to be a cure. An intact symbol can stop most demons at a doorway, pin one beneath a ceiling or hold one inside a room, vehicle or container. It buys the hunters time to question, exorcise, cure or kill the demon by some other method.
The entire rule is one unbroken line
The material changes—paint, chalk, ash, blood, iron, chains, ultraviolet ink and even projected light—but the governing rule stays remarkably consistent: the symbol works only while its boundary remains complete. Scrape it, crack it, wash it away or remove an engraved bullet, and the prisoner may escape.
One idea, many forms
Supernatural uses elaborate heptagram and simplified pentagram designs, then adapts the same binding principle into handcuffs, bullets, warded trunks, panic rooms and the Men of Letters dungeon. Samuel Colt’s enormous Wyoming trap shows the same lore scaled up until iron railroads and churches become part of the boundary.
Power still matters
Most demons are restrained and partially depowered, but the rule is not absolute. Castiel crosses a trap because he is an angel. Cain remains physically dangerous while contained. Ramiel simply walks across one. The page records those outcomes as limits instead of treating every circular symbol as an all-purpose supernatural off switch.
Overview & Classification
- ID Number
- 20
- Type
- Demon-binding symbol / protective countermeasure / ward
- Creator / Origin
- The hunters learn the symbol from the Key of Solomon in S01E22. The series uses two principal designs: Bobby's more elaborate heptagram trap and the more common pentagram form. Samuel Colt also built a roughly 100-mile-wide iron devil's trap around the Devil's Gate in Wyoming.
- Owners / Users
- Sam Winchester; Dean Winchester; Bobby Singer; John Winchester; Mary Campbell; Samuel Colt; Rufus Turner; Jo Harvelle; Ellen Harvelle; Crowley; Castiel; Becky Rosen; Kevin Tran; Linda Tran; Henry Winchester; Men of Letters; Tara; Luther Shrike; Nick; other hunters and supernatural factions recorded in the chronology.
- Targets
- Demons in possessed vessels or smoke form, including Meg, crossroads demons, Ruby, Crowley, Abaddon, Cain and Abraxas. Traps are also used defensively at doors, windows, containers, vehicles and rooms. They do not bind angels and are not reliably effective against every Prince of Hell.
- Known Kills
- None by the symbol alone. A devil’s trap restrains or blocks; exorcisms, weapons, cures and other actions determine the final outcome.
- Known Failures
- Possessed Sam breaks Bobby’s ceiling trap with a spell; Father Gil breaks Casey’s trap; Lilith detects and breaks one; Crowley and other demons escape when lines are damaged; Castiel is unaffected; Cain retains strength and telekinesis; Ramiel crosses a trap; Devil’s Trap Bullets fail against Ramiel.
Equipment, Objects & Places
- Weapon Name
- Devil's Traps
- Related Artifact IDs
- Key of Solomon; Heptagram; Pentagram; Devil's Trap Bullets; Binding Link Handcuffs; the Impala's warded trunk; Bobby Singer's panic room; Men of Letters dungeon; Devil's Gate. Each should resolve to its own canonical lore, artifact, vehicle, location or weapon record when published.
Abilities, Rules & Limitations
- Powers / Properties
- An intact devil's trap immobilizes a demon within its boundary and suppresses many demonic powers. It can be placed above or below the target, used as a barrier, or applied directly through objects such as handcuffs and engraved bullets. The series depicts traps made with paint, chalk, ash, blood, iron, ultraviolet ink, chains, carved lines and projected light.
- Limitations
- The full design must remain intact. Scraping, cracking, washing away or otherwise breaking a line disables the trap. A demon may avoid a visible trap, and rare or exceptionally powerful demons may break, resist or cross one. Small-object versions require direct contact. Devil's traps do not bind angels; Castiel walks through one. Cain remains dangerous while contained, and Ramiel crosses a floor trap without being stopped.
Appearances & Chronology
- First Mention ID
- SPN-EPS-000022 — S01E22, Devil’s Trap
- First Use ID
- SPN-EPS-000022 — S01E22, Devil’s Trap
Archive & Verification
- Canon Status
- Screen confirmed
- Research Status
- Full-series profile pass completed through S14E11 using the consolidated episode history; individual later-season evidence and citation IDs remain pending the governed episode-by-episode re-research.
- Evidence IDs
- SPN-EVD-000083; SPN-EVD-000086; SPN-EVD-000098
- Citation IDs
- SPN-CIT-000204; SPN-CIT-000205; SPN-CIT-000216; SPN-CIT-000217; SPN-CIT-000218; SPN-CIT-000219; SPN-CIT-000220; SPN-CIT-000221; SPN-CIT-000222; SPN-CIT-000223; SPN-CIT-000224; SPN-CIT-000225; SPN-CIT-000226; SPN-CIT-000227; SPN-CIT-000247; SPN-CIT-000248; SPN-CIT-000262; SPN-CIT-000266; SPN-CIT-000269; SPN-CIT-000210; SPN-CIT-000211; SPN-CIT-000258; SPN-CIT-000259; SPN-CIT-000260; SPN-CIT-000265; SPN-CIT-000270; SPN-CIT-000271; SPN-CIT-000272; SPN-CIT-000273
- Notes
- Canonical symbol/countermeasure entity. Never create a separate Devil's Trap record for each drawing or appearance. Distinct derivative devices, including Devil's Trap Bullets and Binding Link Handcuffs, may retain their own canonical records and link back here. Bulk refresh 2026-08-05: existing governed episode evidence retained; no appearance-level duplicate authorized.
- Last Verified
- 2026-08-05
- Record Status
- Verified profile; full episode-by-episode appearance expansion pending
- Primary Glyph
- GLY-043
- Overlay Glyph(s) / Assignment Status
- Not Applicable — no additional supported locked weapon overlay
- Icon Governance Status
- Primary weapon/countermeasure glyph assigned; lore, spell and ward relationships belong in the clickable icon ribbon and connected records.