An original, matted, illustration - "The Sabbatic Goat. The Baphomet of Mendes" - from the first English edition of Eliphas Levis' "Transcendental Magic. Its Doctrine and Ritual."
London: Redway, 1896. First Edition. An original illustration from the First English Edition of Eliphas Levis' "Transcendental Magic. It's Doctrine and Ritual" which was translated by A. E. Waite and published by George Redway in 1896. The illustration, which has been cropped, is approximately 4.5 inches x 6.5 inches. The "Explanation of Figures Contained in this Work" describes it as "The Sabbatic Goat. The Baphomet of Mendes." According to Levi's notes this is: "A pantheistic and magical figure of the Absolute. The torch placed between the two horns represents the equilibrating intelligence of the triad. The goat's head, which is synthetic, and unites some characteristics of the dog, bull, and ass, represents the exclusive responsibility of matter and the expiation of bodily sins in the body. The hands are human, to exhibit the sanctity of labour; they make the sign of esotericism above and below, to impress mystery on initiates, and they point at two lunar crescents, the upper being white and the lower black, to explain the correspondences of good and evil, mercy and justice. The lower part of the body is veiled, portraying the mysteries of universal generation, which is expressed solely by the symbol of the caduceus. The belly of the goat is scaled, and should be coloured green ; the semi-circle above should be blue; the plumage, reaching to the breast, should be of various hues. The goat has female breasts, and thus its only human characteristics are those of maternity and toil, otherwise the signs of redemption. On its forehead, between the horns and beneath the torch, is the sign of the microcosm, or the pentagram with one beam in the ascendant, symbol of human intelligence, which, placed thus below the torch, makes the flame of the latter an image of divine revelation. This Pantheos should be seated on a cube, and its footstool should be a single ball, or a ball and a triangular stool. In our design we have given the former only to avoid complicating the figure." The illustration is in a modern cream-coloured acid-free mat board (outer size is 8 x 10 inches), with foam backing board, ready for framing. The size of the mat & mount is such that it is a standard US document size, and should fit in any ready-made frame designed for an 8 x 10 inch photo or document. The mat board is fine - as new. The illustration is a little discolored, but overall in VG+ condition. Scarce. The first English edition of "Transcendental Magic" (which was translated from the revised French edition of 1861) is uncommon and copies are rarely so damaged that they are beyond restoration - and thus individual illustrations from it seldom come on the market. The illustration is guaranteed from the original 1896 edition, and thus over 100 years old, and comes with a certificate of authenticity. Item #64159
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