She told her, while she kept it,
‘Twould make her amiable and subdue my father
Entirely to her love, but if she lost it
Or made gift of it, my father’s eye
Should hold her loathèd, and his spirits should hunt
After new fancies.
– William Shakespeare
Othello, Act 3, Scene 4. According to Othello, the Egyptian sorceress who gave the handkerchief to his mother told her that it was charmed. The person in possion of the handkerchief would have a loyal, loving spouse. But if it got lost or was given away, then that spouse would look for love outside of the marriage. This is an example of where Othello is trying to manipulate Desdemona. The handkerchief is Othello’s first gift to Desdemona and in an attempt to justify his jealousy and anger he is trying to link it to his wife’s fidelity.