Lesser Key of Solomon Hb

Compiled from original manuscripts and fragments in the British Museum Library, Joseph Peterson, s new presentation is the most complete and accurate edition of this famous magical grimoire, "The Lesser Key of Solomon the King". He goes to great length to establish the provenance of each part, and possible derivative works, including critical analyses of all major variations, utilizing fresh translations of earlier magical texts such as Johann Trithemius's Steganographia, The Archidoxes of Magic by Paracelsus, and newly discovered Hebrew manuscripts of the original Key of Solomon. He also outlines the sources and omissions in previous, modern editions. Included in this comprehensive edition are: -- Goetia -- The ritual invocation of evil spirits and Solomon's devices for binding them; -- Theurgia Goetia -- Slightly less diabolical than Goetia, this part continues the study of spirits "partly good and partly evil; " -- Ars Paulina -- Outlines the good spirits or angels governing the hours of the day and the signs of the zodiac, purported to have been discovered by the Apostle Paul after he had been snatched up to heaven. Includes "The Conjuration of the Holy Guardian Angel; " -- Ars Almadel -- Attributed to an Arab of the same name, it describes twenty beneficial spirits that govern the zodiac; -- Ars Notoria -- With roots that go back to 13th-century Latin manuscripts, and probably even earlier oral traditions, this collection of orations or prayers is interspersed with magical words said to have mystical properties that can impart communion with God and knowledge of divine and human arts and sciences; -- Appendices, which include addenda found in Sloane manuscript Johann Weyer's Psuedomonarchia demonum, and variant examples of some drawings. Abundantly illustrated, Peterson includes reproductions of the original magical circles, tools, and seals of the spirits with variations of certain drawings from various sources and notae missing from earlier editions. He draws on the most recent research by esoteric scholars such as Claire Fanger, George Mora, John Shea, Claudia Rohrbacker-Sticker, I. P. Couliano, Robert Turner, Adam McLean, and others, making this an essential addition to the library of any student of ritual magic and the Western Mystery Tradition.