Description
Book SynopsisBestselling author Philip Matyszak explores how the Greeks and Romans used magic, who performed it and why. Magic was everywhere in the ancient world. The supernatural abounded, turning flowers into fruit and caterpillars into butterflies. Magic packed a cloud of water vapour with energy enough to destroy a house with one well-aimed thunderbolt. It was everyday magic, but it was still magical. Philip Matyszak takes readers into that world. He shows us how to make a love potion or cast a curse, how to talk to the dead and how to identify and protect oneself from evil spirits. He takes us to a world where gods, like humans, were creatures of space and time; where people could not just talk to spirits and deities, but could even themselves become divine; and where divine beings could fall from or be promoted to full godhood. Ancient Magic offers us a new way of understanding the role of magic, looking at its history in all of its classical forms. Drawing on a wide array of sources, from Greek dramas to curse tablets, lavishly illustrated throughout, and packed with information, surprises, lore and learning, this book offers an engaging and accessible way into the supernatural for all.
Trade Review'It’s funny, it’s interesting and it’s informative. The author’s borderline cynical humour, ironic take in parts of the book, and his powers of comparison are thoroughly entertaining' - The Secret Library
Table of ContentsIntroduction: Discovering Ancient Magic
1. Talking to the Dead
2. Makers of Magic
3. Magic of Love and Hate
4. Magical Creatures
5. Protection against the Arts of Darkness
6. Looking to the Future
