A History of Magic, Witchcraft and the Occult
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- Create Date：2022-05-07 08:52:03
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：D.K. Publishing
- ISBN：024138611X
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Summary
Discover the beguiling history of witchcraft， magic， and superstition through the centuries in this stunningly illustrated title。
A History of Magic， Witchcraft and the Occult charts the extraordinary narrative of one of the most interesting and often controversial subjects in the world， covering everything from ancient animal worship and shamanism， through alchemy and divination to modern Wicca and the resurgence of the occult in 21st-century literature， cinema， and television。
Providing readers with a comprehensive， balanced， and unbiased account of everything from Japanese folklore and Indian witchcraft to the differences between black and white magic， and dispelling myths such as those surrounding the voodoo doll and Ouija， the book explores the common human fear of， and fascination with spells， superstition， and the supernatural。 The perfect introduction to magic and the occult， it explores forms of divination from astrology and palmistry to the Tarot and runestones， mystical plants and potions such as mandrake， the presence of witchcraft in literature from Shakespeare's Macbeth to the Harry Potter series， and the ways in which magic has interacted with religion。
The most comprehensive illustrated history of witchcraft available， A History of Magic， Witchcraft and the Occult will enthral and fascinate you with its lavish illustrated， accessible entries， whether you are a believer or sceptic。
A History of Magic， Witchcraft and the Occult charts the extraordinary narrative of one of the most interesting and often controversial subjects in the world， covering everything from ancient animal worship and shamanism， through alchemy and divination to modern Wicca and the resurgence of the occult in 21st-century literature， cinema， and television。
Providing readers with a comprehensive， balanced， and unbiased account of everything from Japanese folklore and Indian witchcraft to the differences between black and white magic， and dispelling myths such as those surrounding the voodoo doll and Ouija， the book explores the common human fear of， and fascination with spells， superstition， and the supernatural。 The perfect introduction to magic and the occult， it explores forms of divination from astrology and palmistry to the Tarot and runestones， mystical plants and potions such as mandrake， the presence of witchcraft in literature from Shakespeare's Macbeth to the Harry Potter series， and the ways in which magic has interacted with religion。
The most comprehensive illustrated history of witchcraft available， A History of Magic， Witchcraft and the Occult will enthral and fascinate you with its lavish illustrated， accessible entries， whether you are a believer or sceptic。
Reviews
Azahar
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Este libro nos habla de la magia， el ocultismo y la brujería a lo largo de la historia de la humanidad。Nos habla desde la mismísima prehistoria， pasando por costumbres， creencias y prácticas de diferentes culturas y en diferentes países， por la oscura época de quema de brujas y el renacer del ocultismo， hasta la actualidad。 Nos presenta a la mayor parte de órdenes， grupos y movimientos ocultistas que han ido surgiendo a lo largo de los años。 Nos da una introducción a la mayor parte de la histori Este libro nos habla de la magia， el ocultismo y la brujería a lo largo de la historia de la humanidad。Nos habla desde la mismísima prehistoria， pasando por costumbres， creencias y prácticas de diferentes culturas y en diferentes países， por la oscura época de quema de brujas y el renacer del ocultismo， hasta la actualidad。 Nos presenta a la mayor parte de órdenes， grupos y movimientos ocultistas que han ido surgiendo a lo largo de los años。 Nos da una introducción a la mayor parte de la historia de la brujería， sin profundizar demasiado pero sí lo suficiente como para entender y comprender lo que nos está presentando。Asimismo， nos aporta información extra con un sinfín de imágenes que apoyan el texto y amplían el conocimiento。 Y si en algún momento sientes que quieres profundizar más en algún tema del que se habla en el libro， no te preocupes， el propio libro te aporta una gran cantidad de bibliografía a la que puedes acudir para aprender y profundizar más。La maquetación y la portada y contraportada es preciosa， lo único ""malo"" es que el papel es satinado y se mancha fácilmente de las huellas de los dedos。 。。。more
Ellie
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Amazing book about how witches back then performed rituals and gives us a sense of realism about what happened back then！ Also great detail about different artefacts they used and have also found over time。
Claudia
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This is a nice reference book， a good starting point， but doesn't delve into any of the topics it deals with。I think I'd have enjoyed it more if I bought the book， not the audiobook， as it's evident that there are a lot of images that I missed。 And it's a little annoying to have them listed while listening :PAnd， as a reference book， is a lot less useful in audiobook format。 Oh， well， my fault！ This is a nice reference book， a good starting point， but doesn't delve into any of the topics it deals with。I think I'd have enjoyed it more if I bought the book， not the audiobook， as it's evident that there are a lot of images that I missed。 And it's a little annoying to have them listed while listening :PAnd， as a reference book， is a lot less useful in audiobook format。 Oh， well， my fault！ 。。。more
Marcel Schwarz
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Interesting summary of ancient and modern occultism。
Gina Parrish
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This is a non-fiction book about the concept of magic throughout history。 If I took a class in college about the history of magic， I could see this being the textbook。 It’s academic in tone and has great illustrations to accompany the text。 It covers a broad range of topics and information without ever going too deep into any one area。 I wish it had a better list of sources for further reading about certain topics。 I rated it a three because， while informative， it felt redundant at times and the This is a non-fiction book about the concept of magic throughout history。 If I took a class in college about the history of magic， I could see this being the textbook。 It’s academic in tone and has great illustrations to accompany the text。 It covers a broad range of topics and information without ever going too deep into any one area。 I wish it had a better list of sources for further reading about certain topics。 I rated it a three because， while informative， it felt redundant at times and the text could have been pared down。 An overall definition of magic would have been good too， because by the end it was hard to know what it was I was even reading about， the concept had gotten so broad。 。。。more
Jason
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For a topic as vast as this， the entries were fairly informative， some more than others。 The images and drawings are plentiful。For my tastes， the best sections of the book were those discussing the early fusion of magic and proto-science in the discipline and practices of natural philosophy。 Both were concerned with ways of knowing about the world， but diverged， in part， due to differences in logical reasoning。 The book does a good job of describing these differences throughout the Renaissance a For a topic as vast as this， the entries were fairly informative， some more than others。 The images and drawings are plentiful。For my tastes， the best sections of the book were those discussing the early fusion of magic and proto-science in the discipline and practices of natural philosophy。 Both were concerned with ways of knowing about the world， but diverged， in part， due to differences in logical reasoning。 The book does a good job of describing these differences throughout the Renaissance and Enlightenment periods。There’s also a fair amount of weird history and insights about modern adherence to magical traditions。 Well worth a read。 。。。more
A。L。 Sirois
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As a former pagan （is one ever really a former pagan？）。 this book is pretty comprehensive but didn't tell me a lot I didn't already know from reading， practicing rites， and "drawing down the moon，" as they say。 Nonetheless， this is a fine book， with excellent illustrations， very well produced by the nice folks at DK Books， who as always have done a superior and comprehensive job。 The sections include: Ancient Roots， Curse or Cure， Scholars and Sabbats， Secrecy and Ceremony， and Modern Magic， wit As a former pagan （is one ever really a former pagan？）。 this book is pretty comprehensive but didn't tell me a lot I didn't already know from reading， practicing rites， and "drawing down the moon，" as they say。 Nonetheless， this is a fine book， with excellent illustrations， very well produced by the nice folks at DK Books， who as always have done a superior and comprehensive job。 The sections include: Ancient Roots， Curse or Cure， Scholars and Sabbats， Secrecy and Ceremony， and Modern Magic， with lots of sub-sections among them。 If you're looking for a good overview of the history of magic， this would be a rewarding place to start。 。。。more
victoria
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no pongo puntaje porque nunca le pongo a aquellos libros cuyo propósito es informar pero me parece una gran fuente de información， me gustó muchísimo y creo que todos aquellos interesados en cualquier tipo de magia o ciencia esotérica/oculta deberían saber no solo el contexto de lo que buscan estudiar si no también del resto。siento que aprendí mucho y aunque es obvio que algunas cosas no son tan específicas o detalladas como querría， me parece que no es un libro que busque hacer al lector un exp no pongo puntaje porque nunca le pongo a aquellos libros cuyo propósito es informar pero me parece una gran fuente de información， me gustó muchísimo y creo que todos aquellos interesados en cualquier tipo de magia o ciencia esotérica/oculta deberían saber no solo el contexto de lo que buscan estudiar si no también del resto。siento que aprendí mucho y aunque es obvio que algunas cosas no son tan específicas o detalladas como querría， me parece que no es un libro que busque hacer al lector un experto si no más bien familiarizarlo con lo histórico de la magia y el ocultismo。 recomendadísimo， 。。。more
Nicholas Ives
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A basic but thorough understanding of magic and how it has been perceived over the centuries of human existence。
Tracey Everett
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Visually stunning， would be good as a coffee table book， covering a vast array of beliefs and rituals throughout human history。 A bit more depth in some areas would have been an improvement but it gives a basic introduction to many areas that could lead to more in depth study elsewhere。
Christian
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In an effort to cover a lot of ground I feel like the topics were touched upon a bit too briefly to really get a feel for them。
Michelle
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Don't judge a book by it's cover， because in this case you will be very disappointed。 It's an OK book for the beginner in the field not really looking for a show piece rather than facts， or wants some basics of today's witchcraft and magic。Another Eurocentric book。 Neglects much of the importance of ancient Egypt who influenced ancient Greek， Romans， Golden Dawn， Free Masonry and ceremonial magic。Neglects African Witchcraft almost entirely。Neglect Jewish mysticism， but incudes christianity。 Incl Don't judge a book by it's cover， because in this case you will be very disappointed。 It's an OK book for the beginner in the field not really looking for a show piece rather than facts， or wants some basics of today's witchcraft and magic。Another Eurocentric book。 Neglects much of the importance of ancient Egypt who influenced ancient Greek， Romans， Golden Dawn， Free Masonry and ceremonial magic。Neglects African Witchcraft almost entirely。Neglect Jewish mysticism， but incudes christianity。 Includes Islam but not the pre Islamic。 Nothing on Babylonian magic。The HISTORY of magic is missing entirely！If the book hadn't been a gift， I would put it to be recycled as that is all it is good for。 。。。more
Alja
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An excellent high-level overview of magic beliefs and practices over time and different parts of the world， with plenty of visual examples。
K
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I have yet to have a DK book disappoint。 Susanna Lipscomb， is a professor of history at the University of Roehampton， a fellow of the royal historical society， and a fellow of the higher education academy。 She helped bring this book together。 Its a large book with a good amount of info but don't be afraid to do further research。 Consultants and contributors include: Dr。 Sophie Page。 An associate professor in history at UCL。Thomas Cussans。 A freelance historian and author。John Farndon。 A royal li I have yet to have a DK book disappoint。 Susanna Lipscomb， is a professor of history at the University of Roehampton， a fellow of the royal historical society， and a fellow of the higher education academy。 She helped bring this book together。 Its a large book with a good amount of info but don't be afraid to do further research。 Consultants and contributors include: Dr。 Sophie Page。 An associate professor in history at UCL。Thomas Cussans。 A freelance historian and author。John Farndon。 A royal literary fellow at Angela Ruskin university in Cambridge。 Ann Kay。 A writer and editor with an MA in art history。Philip Parker。 A historian and former British diplomat who studied at Cambridge。—-ancient roots， pre-history to 400 CE-The book starts out with a section about ancient Egyptian magic in mythology （Thoth， burials， book of the dead）， then into ancient Hebrew magic （Tanakh， the witch of Endor）， Persian magic， Greek， Roman， Healing plants， then Chinese magic （Wu， Weidan， Feng Shui）， Japanese Magic， Hindu， Mayan。-Curse or Cure 400 to 1500-As a science began to prevail witchcraft and sorcery came under scrutiny。 -Scholars and Sabbats 1500 to 1700-Cats are the most commonly reported which is familiar， there was even a mid evil legend that the devil himself had created them by accident。Religion played a role in the story of Saito science and produce science， being a vital ingredient in magical thought by contributing to such thinking it also helped foster the early development of natural science。 The Lesser Key of Solomon。 The False Monarchy of Demons。 De praestigiis daemonum。 Life and Death of Doctor Faustus。 -Secrecy and Ceremony 1700 to 1900-History of tarot。 History of Father Christmas。 Golden dawn。 -Modern Magic 1900 onward- Modern witchcraft。 Thelema （Greek for “will”）。 Divination Runes。 “The function of magic is to ritualize man’s optimism。” —“Magic is a topic around which Miss information swirls， like mists around a witches cauldron。 The spellbound in book with the spell the fog， lift the enchantment， and vivid Lee illuminate this perennially fascinating subject。” 。。。more
Babe of Darkness
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Awesome book！
Helena
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So， for anyone that's wanting to have a brief overview of multiple practices around the world， from different time periods， different forms of divination relevant to different practices this is your book。I had this on audible， but I will be getting the hardback copy too because it's a fantastic reference starting point。With most information all referenced， with a fantastic glossary in the back， it's a great reference book for your own research。While I did enjoy this book， the author regularly we So， for anyone that's wanting to have a brief overview of multiple practices around the world， from different time periods， different forms of divination relevant to different practices this is your book。I had this on audible， but I will be getting the hardback copy too because it's a fantastic reference starting point。With most information all referenced， with a fantastic glossary in the back， it's a great reference book for your own research。While I did enjoy this book， the author regularly went through folk and witchcraft as we know it， to commercial magicians & illusionists。。。 that I found weird and wondered if they truly had any part of being in a book about occultism。。。 anyway。。。 I did enjoy this book， its not overwhelming but it does spark wanting to learn more， which for a contextual reference book， that's exactly the goal！ 。。。more
Annmarie
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The history of witchcraft in different traditions is very interesting。 And I love the pictures they use here。 They are beautiful。 But they don't have any references about where do they find this information。 How I am supposed to know that the information in this book is correct if they don't have references？ The history of witchcraft in different traditions is very interesting。 And I love the pictures they use here。 They are beautiful。 But they don't have any references about where do they find this information。 How I am supposed to know that the information in this book is correct if they don't have references？ 。。。more
Bailey
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DK is known for its layouts filled with photographs and images that add to the information being presented， and this book was no different。 Filled with images from primary sources as well as photographs of artifacts。 They covered many of the major historical sources and theories as well as historical figures throughout time。 The first thing I noticed about the book was that while it mentioned primary sources in text it had no other bibliography to speak of。 Not all of the information would have DK is known for its layouts filled with photographs and images that add to the information being presented， and this book was no different。 Filled with images from primary sources as well as photographs of artifacts。 They covered many of the major historical sources and theories as well as historical figures throughout time。 The first thing I noticed about the book was that while it mentioned primary sources in text it had no other bibliography to speak of。 Not all of the information would have come from the sources mentioned so where else are they getting their information？ It also feels as though each section is researched and written by someone different。 While the book did really well on their voodoo section， I question why earlier a “voodoo doll” was mentioned when they tell you that voodoo does not use dolls。 When picking this book up I recommend taking with a healthy dose of salt everything from Wicca onwards。 They make it seem as though Wicca and Neo-Pagans are all the same and their section of heathenry focuses only on the unfortunate use of the religion in the spread of nationalist propaganda in Germany。 They also note a traditional witchcraft tool as coming from Wicca when in reality only some Wiccan sects adopted it from Robert Cochranes traditional witchcraft tradition （the Stang）。 Theres also the neo- shamanism section which ALMOST includes Native American practices， but only due to one of the images they include。Overall I think this is a decent book。 I wish they had tried to delve beyond surface level with the modern sections and I’d recommend probably not reading anything past the Wicca portion， though the Chaos magic portion was decent。 This book is like a more in depth Wikipedia article where it’s mostly an overview and should more be used as a jumping off point for more research。 Not worth the $35 USD that I paid for it at Barnes and Nobles。 。。。more
Katie （DoomKittieKhan）
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Who doesn't love a DK picture book aimed at adults？ This full-color and lusciously illustrated book offers a study of magical and occult practices from cultures around the world through the lens of material culture。 In terms of timeline， the book covers a vast chronology of magical practices and wraps up with a mention of neo-Wiccans and witchy activism that has found new footing in the digital age。 While the text portions are too brief （it is just a survey book after all）， they are thorough and Who doesn't love a DK picture book aimed at adults？ This full-color and lusciously illustrated book offers a study of magical and occult practices from cultures around the world through the lens of material culture。 In terms of timeline， the book covers a vast chronology of magical practices and wraps up with a mention of neo-Wiccans and witchy activism that has found new footing in the digital age。 While the text portions are too brief （it is just a survey book after all）， they are thorough and engaging。 And I do mean thorough！ I would be surprised to find a type of magical practice that isn’t mentioned in this book。 I especially loved the section on Byzantine court magic and learning about chremetismomancy or the practice of interpreting the neighs of horses as a form of divination！ The real joy comes from exploring the images within and learning more about the history of magic through objects。 Highly recommend if you're looking for a quick reference guide with gorgeous photos to add to your macabre library。 。。。more
Ash
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I really enjoyed this book！ I felt like it was a great starting point for someone who is interested in learning anything about magic， witchcraft， or the occult， and a very basic understanding of how the practice has changed through the years。 I have been extremely curious about this subject and this was a wonderful introduction to the history that we know of。 I am definitely interested in looking into more books to read about the topic！-The book is very centered on European and Asian magic and w I really enjoyed this book！ I felt like it was a great starting point for someone who is interested in learning anything about magic， witchcraft， or the occult， and a very basic understanding of how the practice has changed through the years。 I have been extremely curious about this subject and this was a wonderful introduction to the history that we know of。 I am definitely interested in looking into more books to read about the topic！-The book is very centered on European and Asian magic and witchcraft that we know about from archeological finds and written history。 There is not too much on other cultures and what "magic" is like in those cultures， but I am left to assume that it has something to do with a lack of knowledge and understanding and perhaps the desire to be respectful to those cultures。 That would be the only negative I came across personally。 。。。more
Fay Babette
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This is an absolute gem to read I've learnt so much and the vast differences in practises and cultures embedded is astonishing。 This is an absolute gem to read I've learnt so much and the vast differences in practises and cultures embedded is astonishing。 。。。more
Edric Unsane
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A short， yet good， history of witchcraft going from ancient to modern times。
Jared
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A great introductory text on the beliefs and practices of various eras， movements， trends， and cultures across the globe throughout history， from ancient societies to modern-day communities。 Accompanied by pictures and diagrams。 Doesn't go too deep into any one topic， but gives enough insight to get you started; I feel as though I now understand enough of the broad concepts of occultism， magic， and witchcraft to engage in further research。 A great introductory text on the beliefs and practices of various eras， movements， trends， and cultures across the globe throughout history， from ancient societies to modern-day communities。 Accompanied by pictures and diagrams。 Doesn't go too deep into any one topic， but gives enough insight to get you started; I feel as though I now understand enough of the broad concepts of occultism， magic， and witchcraft to engage in further research。 。。。more
Fran
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This is a survey of a huge number of different types of magic。 Gives a great overview without going into depth。
Hannah K Hitchens
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Great comprehensive look into histories。 Could have been much longer， but there's probably books in detail about specifics， so this is a great beginner's understanding！ Great comprehensive look into histories。 Could have been much longer， but there's probably books in detail about specifics， so this is a great beginner's understanding！ 。。。more
✨Bean's Books✨
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Absolutely amazing book！ ❤️
Yasmin
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A very interesting book。
Uudenkuun Emilia
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A very general-level but far-ranging overview of the history of magic etc。 I would've loved to have even more of a nonwestern perspective， but at least the book acknowledged stuff like racism and colonialism。 This would be a great introductory read for someone who knows nothing about magic in history！ A very general-level but far-ranging overview of the history of magic etc。 I would've loved to have even more of a nonwestern perspective， but at least the book acknowledged stuff like racism and colonialism。 This would be a great introductory read for someone who knows nothing about magic in history！ 。。。more
Jbondandrews
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A very well crafted book。 The photographs are very colourful and almost tell a story of their own and the history does encourage one to keep learning about magic， witchcraft and the occult。
Jenn
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