Alan
Baker.
The Wizard: Sorcery through the Ages.
London: Ebury
Press,
2003.
218pp.
Hardback ISBN
009188912X.
Publisher's
recommended price £10.00
Wizards
have always
been powerful iconic figures, whether as Neolithic Shamans, robed
Druids,
Renaissance mystics or twentieth-century occultists. The Wizard
takes a look at their history, and the broader world of our fascination
with the supernatural.
It's
a
history
full of incredible characters: Paracelsus the Alchemist, a major
influence
on Frankenstein; Dr John Dee, the Elizabethan mathematician who talked
to angels; Merlin, a key figure of Celtic mythology who later inspired
Gandalf; and Aleister Crowley, the self-styled "wickedest man alive".
But The
Wizard
also provides an insight into the practical uses of magic, showing how
spells, sigils and talismans are thought to work, as well as covering
the
origins of secret magical societies and their missions.
So
whether you
have a serious interest in magical men of the past, or a curiosity
about
all things occult, The Wizard will entertain with its wealth of
mystical
information.
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