Item #65866 The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy. Francis BARRETT.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.
The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.

The Magus. Or Celestial Intelligencer; Being a Complete System of Occult Philosophy.

London: Knight and Compton & W. Blackader for Lackington, Allen, And Co., 1801 [1875]. Second edition. Hardcover. Large Quarto. xv [1], 1-176, 1 - 198 pp. Original dark brown leather spine with gilt title and decorative design of the spirit Cassiel on spine, over deep maroon paper covered boards. Fresh brown endpapers. Frontispiece portrait of Barrett and 22 full-page plates and diagrams (5 of the plates are hand-colored). Barrett was a teacher of "Natural Philosophy, Natural Magic, Cabala Magic, Chemistry, the Talismanic Art, Hermetic Philosophy, Astrology, Physiognomy.." in London in the early 19th century. When compiling 'The Magus' he drew heavily from earlier magical and alchemical writings, including those of Agrippa, van Helmont, and Porta. The book was first published in 1801 and went on to become one of the most influential magical treatises in the English language, and played an important part in inspiring the nineteenth century occult revival. From a superficial viewpoint at least this second edition – published in 1875 - was an exact reprint of the First - it even retained the original publication date and publisher's details of the first edition, and it is sometimes mistakenly identified as such. There are, however, a number of minor textual differences, and five of the plates in the reprint edition were coloured (in the First Edition it was usually – although not always – only four). In addition the reprint edition was printed on a different paper type, and had a leather spine with a gilt stamped design of the angel Cassiel. This copy has been skillfully recased: that is the gatherings have been resewn and it has been reinserted into the original binding. This is so well done that really the only way that it is noticeable is that close examination reveals the head and tail bands to be a little too bright for a book of this age, and it has fresh endpapers. There is a small tear at the head of the spine, and the spine is quite rubbed, particularly at the hinges, with some chafed spots and the gilt-work dulled. The paper-covered boards show some rubbing and discoloration. Half title-page unevenly toned, few light finger marks to title page and on a few other pages, a handful of pages have tiny chips or tears to the margins. Some of the plates are a little darkened or discolored at the margins. Shows general signs of moderate use, but still a tight, clean better-than VG copy of this book, and scarce thus. A large heavy book that will require additional shipping and insurance to most destinations. Additional costs will be quoted upon our receipt of your order. Item #65866

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