The History of Magic
From Alchemy to Witchcraft, from the Ice Age to the PresentSelect a format:
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Summary
A Telegraph Book of the Year
A remarkable, unprecedented account of the role of magic in cultures both ancient and modern -- from the first known horoscope to the power of tattoos.
'Fascinating, original, excellent' Simon Sebag Montefiore
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Three great strands of practice and belief run through human history: science, religion and magic. But magic - the idea that we have a connection with the universe - has developed a bad reputation.
It has been with us for millennia - from the curses and charms of ancient Greek, Roman and Jewish magic, to the shamanistic traditions of Eurasia, indigenous America and Africa, and even today in the West when snapping wishbones or buying lottery tickets.
Drawing on his decades of research, Professor Chris Gosden provides a history of human thought and how magic may help us rethink our understanding of the world.
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'This is an extraordinary work of learning, written with an exhilarating lightness of touch . . . It is essential reading.' Francis Pryor, author of Britain BC, Britain AD and The Fens
'Without an unfascinating page' Scotsman
'Chris Gosden shows how magic explores the connections between human beings and the universe in ways different from religion or science, yet deserving of respect' Professor John Barton, author of A History of The Bible
A remarkable, unprecedented account of the role of magic in cultures both ancient and modern -- from the first known horoscope to the power of tattoos.
'Fascinating, original, excellent' Simon Sebag Montefiore
_____
Three great strands of practice and belief run through human history: science, religion and magic. But magic - the idea that we have a connection with the universe - has developed a bad reputation.
It has been with us for millennia - from the curses and charms of ancient Greek, Roman and Jewish magic, to the shamanistic traditions of Eurasia, indigenous America and Africa, and even today in the West when snapping wishbones or buying lottery tickets.
Drawing on his decades of research, Professor Chris Gosden provides a history of human thought and how magic may help us rethink our understanding of the world.
_____
'This is an extraordinary work of learning, written with an exhilarating lightness of touch . . . It is essential reading.' Francis Pryor, author of Britain BC, Britain AD and The Fens
'Without an unfascinating page' Scotsman
'Chris Gosden shows how magic explores the connections between human beings and the universe in ways different from religion or science, yet deserving of respect' Professor John Barton, author of A History of The Bible
Reviews
With his own magic touch, Chris Gosden brilliantly reveals the place of magic in human societies from the Ice Age to the present day in all inhabited continents, and shows how the exercise of magic was an everyday practice that joined the world of the dead to that of the living
Professor David Abulafia, author of The Boundless Sea