Hardcover. Cambridge MA, Harvard University Press, 3rd pr., 1975, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: Very Good, Hardcover in a lightly worn dust jacket, 231 pages. Frontispiece facsimile manuscript page showing names of the accused at Salem. The stark immediacy of what happened in 1692 has obscured the complex web of human passion, individual and organized, which had been growing for more than a generation before the witch trials. Salem Possessed explores the lives of the men and women who helped spin that web and who in the end found themselves entangled in it. From rich and varied sources-many previously neglected or unknown-Paul Boyer and Stephen Nissenbaum give us a picture of the events of 1692 more intricate and more fascinating than any other in the already massive literature on Salem. Name on front fly leaf, otherwise clean.
Hardcover. Los Angeles CA, Philosophical Research Society, 19th ED., 1973, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: None, Hardcover, textured black boards with red and gold gilt lettering design on front cover. Bronze color title on spine B&w illustrations by J. Augustus Knapp, 245 pages. Clean, bright copy. A reduced facsimile of the 1928 edition.
Hardcover. New Haven CT, Yale University Press, 1st, 2013, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: Very Good, Hardcover in a bright dust jacket, 430 pages. SIGNED BY MONOD on the tile page, also INSCRIBED on the half-title page. The late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries are known as the Age of Enlightenment, a time of science and reason. But in this illuminating book, Paul Monod reveals the surprising extent to which Newton, Boyle, Locke, and other giants of rational thought and empiricism also embraced the spiritual, the magical, and the occult. Although public acceptance of occult and magical practices waxed and waned during this period they survived underground, experiencing a considerable revival in the mid-eighteenth century with the rise of new antiestablishment religious denominations. The occult spilled over into politics with the radicalism of the French Revolution and into literature in early Romanticism. Even when official disapproval was at its strongest, the evidence points to a growing audience for occult publications as well as to subversive popular enthusiasm. Ultimately, finds Monod, the occult was not discarded in favor of "reason" but was incorporated into new forms of learning. In that sense, the occult is part of the modern world, not simply a relic of an unenlightened past, and is still with us today. Clean copy.
Hardcover. London, Reaktion Books, 2013, 2013, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: Very Good, 336 pages. Hardcover with dust jacket. Profusely illustrated in full color & black & white throughout. Clean, tight copy.
Softcover. Canberra, ANU Press/Australian National University, 1st, 2015, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: None, Softcover, 334 pages. Sorcery and witchcraft practices and beliefs are pervasive across Melanesia. They are in part created by, and give rise to, a wide variety of poor social and developmental outcomes. These include uneven economic development, low public health, lack of social cohesion, crime, fear and insecurity. A further very visible problem is the attacks on men and women who are accused of being practitioners of witchcraft or sorcery, which can lead to serious bodily harm, banishment and sometimes death. Today, many communities, individuals, church organisations and policymakers in Melanesia and internationally are exploring ways to overcome the negative social outcomes associated with witchcraft and sorcery practices and beliefs. This book brings together a collection of chapters written by a diverse range of authors, both Melanesian and non-Melanesian, providing crucial insights both into how these practices and beliefs are playing out in contemporary Melanesia, and also the types of interventions that are being trialled or debated to address the problems associated with them. Some light marking to several pages.
NY, Henry Holt, 1st, 1992, Book: Good, Dust Jacket: Very Good, Hardcover. Dust jacket pristine. Color illustrations by Brusca. A familiar folktale motif is that of the clever man who outwits the devil. In this zesty retelling, based on an Argentinian source, that man is Juan Pobreza, a poor blacksmith who reshoes a mule belonging to St. Peter and charges nothing for the job. Touched, St. Peter asks the man to name three wishes. Juan, sure that Peter is not who he claims to be, makes three seemingly senseless wishes that help him out later when he must deal with the agents of the devil. In the twist at the end, Pobreza finds himself barred from both heaven and hell.
Hardcover. London, Rider & Co., 1st, 1928, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: None, Hardcover, green cloth covers, black lettering on spine, 143 pages. A spiritual guidebook that explores the four major initiations of the human soul. The book delves into the spiritual journey of the soul and its evolution through the four initiations: Birth, Baptism, Transfiguration, and Resurrection. Conroy draws on the teachings of ancient wisdom traditions and modern spiritual practices to provide readers with a comprehensive understanding of these initiations and their significance in the spiritual path. The book is written in a clear and accessible language and provides practical exercises and meditations to help readers deepen their spiritual practice. Name on front fly leaf, inscription on dedication page. Otherwise a clean, tight copy.
Softcover. Kila MT, Kessinger Publishing, reprint, ND, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: None, Softcover, 217 pages. A facsimile edition from 1654 (per the preface by R Turner). Comprises two (of the six) books that made up Robert Turner's 1655 first English edition of Agrippa's "Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy." The books are "Of Occult Philosophy or Of Magical Ceremonies," by Agrippa (a work renowned as one of the most straight forward guides to evocation published) and "The Heptameron or Magical Elements" by Peter de Abano, a set of rituals of conjuration, mapped out by day. Clean copy.
Softcover. St. Cloud MN, North Star Press Of St. Cloud, 1st, 2009, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: None, Softcover, 276 pages, b&w illustrations. The Hooked X is a secret symbol first found on an inscribed slab of rock, dated 1362, unearthed by a farmer in Minnesota in 1898. This mysterious symbol inspired the author to pursue a nine-year investigation on both sides of the Atlantic that led to the discovery of other artifacts and clandestine documents indicative of secret trips to North America long before Columbus. The trail of evidence led to a deep plunge into the shadowy areas of Freemasonry and the Knights Templar that most brethren of these orders are unaware of. This incredible true story reveals untold secrets of North America that weave from medieval times through today, forever changing history as we know it. Clean, bright copy.
Hardcover. London, Stuart & Watkins, 2nd pr., 1970, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: Good, Hardcover in a lightly worn dust jacket with tape repairs to rear panel, black cloth stamped with gilt. 221 pages. Originally published in 1896, this printing was limited to 500 copies. Clean. Arthur Edward Waite (2 October 1857 - 19 May 1942), commonly known as A. E. Waite, was an American-born British poet and scholarly mystic who wrote extensively on occult and esoteric matters, and was the co-creator of the Rider-Waite Tarot deck.
Softcover. New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1st, 1998, Book: Very Good, Dust Jacket: None, 128 pages. Softcover. A very clean, unmarked copy with only minor edgewear. Color illustrations throughout.