From antiquity to the Enlightenment, astrology, magic, and alchemy were considered important tools to unravel the mysteries of nature and human destiny. As a result of the West's exposure during the Middle Ages to the astrological beliefs of Arab philosophers and the mystical writings of late antiquity, these occult traditions became rich sources of inspiration for Western artists.
In this volume from the popular Guide to Imagery series, the author presents a careful analysis of occult iconography in many of the great masterpieces of Western art, calling out key features in the illustrations for discussion and interpretation. Astrological symbols decorated medieval churches and illuminated manuscripts as well as fifteenth-century Italian town halls and palaces.
The transformational symbology of magic and alchemy that enlivened the work of a wide range of Renaissance artists, including Bosch, Brueghel, Dürer, and Caravaggio, found renewed expression in the visionary works of nineteenth-century artists, such as Fuseli and Blake, as well as in the creative output of the twentieth century's Surrealists.
Featuring some of the most ferocious and humorous book curses ever inscribed, this is a lively, engaging introduction to the history and development of bookish maledictions.
Have you ever wanted to protect your books from forgetful borrowers, merciless page-folders, or outright thieves? Perhaps you have even wished harm on those who have damaged your books--but would you threaten them with hellfire, hanging, or the plague?
This book contains a collection of some of the most ferocious and humorous book curses ever inscribed--from fearsome threats discovered emblazoned on stone monuments from the ancient Near East to elaborate manuscript maledictions and chilling warnings scribbled in printed books. Book curses are entertaining writings in themselves, but they also offer a tantalizing insight into how passionately texts and books have been valued by their owners and readers over the centuries. Here you will find an engaging introduction to the history and development of the book curse and perhaps some inspiration to pen a few of your own.
In an increasingly uncertain world, people are seeking more and more ways to navigate life's challenges and seize opportunities. The Book of Luck is a fun and practical gift book that explores the world of luck and shows you how by simply shifting your mindset and adopting certain practices, you can increase your chances of experiencing luck in all aspects of your life. Featuring 60 beautifully illustrated lucky symbols from all around the world - including the talismanic Daruma doll to the whimsical Maneki-neko - alongside daily affirmations, everyday rituals, gratitude mediations and vision boards, The Book of Luck will teach you how you can leverage these symbols and actions to overcome obstacles and create a positive environment that encourages luck to flow into your lives. Whether you are preparing for a crucial job interview, navigating the challenges of moving house, or gearing up for a high-stakes presentation, this book will show you that by making positive choices and taking proactive steps towards your goals, you can create a foundation for luck to flourish.
Become a competent, confident spell-worker with this practical guide to witchcraft, presented in a beautiful hardcover with gilded page edges.
Containing an extensive collection of traditional spells and techniques, this guide will help readers attract positive friendships, love and luck as well as promote healing, careers and protection. The Practical Book of Witchcraft is an essential reference for anyone wishing to master the incredible art of wicca and spell-making. Includes:- A section on tools used as well as information on how to consecrate them
- Correspondences for different spells
- Rituals for manifesting your wishes This spell-binding book provides a wonderful introduction into witchcraft and makes a perfect gift. ABOUT THE SERIES: The Mystic Archives are beautiful hardcover guides which reveal the hidden mysteries of esoteric arts, presented with foil-embossing, Wibalin binding, patterned endpapers and gilded page edges.
The first granular study of nineteenth-century composer devotion--a network of devotees who preserved tangible traces of composers through relics, rituals, pilgrimage, exhumation, and embalming. During the nineteenth century, music institutions promoted artworks they deemed timeless and made composers into figureheads of a lasting Western canon. Alongside this institutional face of the canon was a more intimate impulse to preserve, touch, and embrace the residues of the dead. In Germany and Austria between 1870 and 1930, music lovers venerated the bodies, houses, and belongings of composers as relics, shrines, and talismans. In The Composer Embalmed, Abigail Fine documents the vernacular and eccentric ways that composers have been remembered. Fine navigates a wealth of unknown archival material to recover the stories of devotees: from pilgrims who felt time stop in historic houses to music-loving doctors who made skulls into sacred specimens, dilettantes who displayed Beethoven's mask as a relic of the "beautiful death," and interwar critics of those dilettantes who disparaged piety as a false religion, a kitsch replica. In isolation, these practices may look like simple acts of affection. But in the aggregate, Fine asserts, acts of devotion constituted what we might broadly understand as relic culture--a culture that sought to possess the body of the departed genius, and that superimposed habits of anthropological collecting onto artifacts of Austro-German heritage. By excavating objects, ephemera, amateur lyric, visitors' books, letters, and travelogues, The Composer Embalmed reveals the underbelly of the canon, where guilty pleasures blur the boundary between sanctity and desecration.
Discover the world's most fascinating death and funeral traditions in this illustrated modern-day memento mori. Embark on a whirlwind tour of burial, preservation, and memorial practices and landmarks from across the globe and throughout history, ranging from the customs of our ancestors to contemporary practices. In these vibrantly illustrated pages, you can explore how humans from time immemorial have honored and remembered the dead, including: Mummification in ancient Egypt Post-mortem photography in Victorian England Open-pyre cremations in India Ghana's fantasy coffins The Japanese ritual of kotsuage ("the gathering of the bones") And much more
Author-illustrator YY Liak tackles the thorny theme of death with a deep compassion for the universal experiences of loss and grief and an intrepid interest in the unique mortuary practices that have arisen across continents, cultures, and millennia. Her colorful, modern illustrations bring to life a whole spectrum of human beliefs about death and dying. EXISTENTIAL AND ENDLESSLY ENTERTAINING: Whether you're casually curious about what happens to our bodies after we die or intimately experienced with death and its attendant customs, appreciating the rituals of others can help you develop and deepen your own. MARVELOUSLY MACABRE, TREMENDOUSLY THOUGHTFUL: Dynamic, full-color artwork accompanies informative and intriguing text, rendering everything in energetic detail--from a step-by-step breakdown of the embalming process to detailed diagrams of ancestral altars around the world. A GIFT FOR CURIOUS MINDS: This intriguing volume makes an excellent present for sociology lovers and morbidly curious readers. It's a perfect fit for anyone who enjoys an accessible, illustrated take on history and anthropology and can also be shared with younger readers to kickstart important discussions about death and dying. Perfect for: Science buffs and history lovers Adults and teens interested in death and funeral traditions Anyone curious about different cultures' beliefs about death and mortality Readers seeking resources that demystify and destigmatize death and dying Fans of popular science and sociology authors like Caitlin Doughty, Mary Roach, and Sue Black
Author-illustrator YY Liak tackles the thorny theme of death with a deep compassion for the universal experiences of loss and grief and an intrepid interest in the unique mortuary practices that have arisen across continents, cultures, and millennia. Her colorful, modern illustrations bring to life a whole spectrum of human beliefs about death and dying. EXISTENTIAL AND ENDLESSLY ENTERTAINING: Whether you're casually curious about what happens to our bodies after we die or intimately experienced with death and its attendant customs, appreciating the rituals of others can help you develop and deepen your own. MARVELOUSLY MACABRE, TREMENDOUSLY THOUGHTFUL: Dynamic, full-color artwork accompanies informative and intriguing text, rendering everything in energetic detail--from a step-by-step breakdown of the embalming process to detailed diagrams of ancestral altars around the world. A GIFT FOR CURIOUS MINDS: This intriguing volume makes an excellent present for sociology lovers and morbidly curious readers. It's a perfect fit for anyone who enjoys an accessible, illustrated take on history and anthropology and can also be shared with younger readers to kickstart important discussions about death and dying. Perfect for:
This must-have sequel to the bestselling parody book The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America proves that all birds are fascinating, wonderful, idiotic jerks--no matter where in the world they reside. "Full of NSFW names and descriptions for different species that'll have you LOL-ing even if you never actually go looking for said birds IRL."--Buzzfeed Following in the tracks of the first uproarious and beloved bird book in the series, this hilarious sequel ventures beyond to identify the stupidest birds around the world. Featuring birds from North and South America, Africa, Asia, Europe, and Oceania, author Matt Kracht identifies the dumb birds that manage to live all over the freaking place with snarky yet accurate names and humorous, anger-filled drawings. Offering a balance of fact and wit, this uproarious profanity-laden handbook will appeal to hardcore birders and casual bird lovers (and haters) alike. ENTERTAINING AND EDUCATIONAL: This laugh-out-loud funny spoof guide to all things wings includes a matching game, a bird descriptor checklist, and tips on how to identify a bird (you can tell a lot by looking into a bird's eyes, for example). Plus, each entry is accompanied by facts about a bird's (annoying) call, its (dumb) migratory pattern, its (downright tacky) markings, and more. POPULAR AUTHOR: Matt Kracht is an amateur birder, writer, and illustrator who enjoys creating books that celebrate the humor inherent in life's absurdities. Based in Seattle, he enjoys gazing out the window at the beautiful waters of Puget Sound and making fun of birds. Other amusing titles from Matt include The Field Guide to Dumb Birds of North America and OMFG, BEES! A GREAT PRESENT: This is the perfect gift for the bird lovers and haters in your life. It also makes a great Mother's Day, Father's Day, birthday, retirement, or gag gift. Perfect for: Birdwatching and nature enthusiasts People who think birds are creepy or annoying (and people who love birds but also enjoy a good laugh) Anyone looking for the ultimate coffee table book or bar-top conversation starter Gift givers seeking a fun, quirky gift for their favorite bird enthusiast or animal lover
Postcard collecting has been a popular American pastime since the hobby's Golden Age more than a hundred years ago. For today's collector, postcards offer historic photography, snapshots of pop culture and everyday life, colorful works by famous artists--and the thrill of the hunt as you build your collection.
At long last there's a full-color overview and in-depth guide to this fascinating hobby. The 432-page Guide Book of Collectible Postcards is a complete one-stop resource for newcomers and experienced collectors alike. It includes:
A postcard collection takes you on a unique trip into the past. Inside this book, you'll find cards of high society and lowbrow humor, natural disasters, social, political, and religious movements, popular artists' illustrations, newspaper comics, circus animals, early movie stars, athletes, planes, trains, automobiles, and the corner general store--and much more!
Authors Q. David Bowers and Mary L. Martin share decades of experience in buying, selling, and collecting. They guide you from the earliest postcards of the 1870s to the Golden Age of the 1890s through the Great War, and to the modern chrome postcards found on store racks today.
"Together, Mary Martin and Dave Bowers have raised the bar for the serious recognition of the postcard as one of the most important forms of mass media in history."--from the foreword by Leonard A. Lauder
Witches' hats and harvest moon
Ghosts that dance to haunted tune
Apples, goodies, food galore
Halloween has this and more!Halloween magick: Prosperity Pumpkin Spell, Corn Husk Dolly, Solitary Harvest Moon Ritual Magickal goodies: Candied Love Apples, Witches' Brew, Sugar Snakes in Graveyard Dust Halloween myths and superstitions: Black cats, scarecrows, pitchforks, witches, ghosts, and haints Divination: Circle of Ashes and Stones, Magick Mirrors, Apple, Pumpkin Seed, and Water Divination Rituals to Honor the Dead: The Dumb Supper, Samhain Fire, Soul Lights, Spirit Rattles and Spirit Bowls
Ghosts that dance to haunted tune
Apples, goodies, food galore
Halloween has this and more!
Just where did the autumn gaiety begin? Let Silver RavenWolf guide you through the cobwebby corners of time to uncover the history behind Halloween. Honor the spirit of this hallowed harvest holiday with:
Boasting a rich, complex history rooted in Celtic and Christian ritual, Halloween has evolved from ethnic celebration to a blend of street festival, fright night, and vast commercial enterprise. In this colorful history, Nicholas Rogers takes a lively, entertaining look at the cultural origins and development of one of the most popular holidays of the year.
Drawing on a fascinating array of sources, from classical history to Hollywood films, Rogers traces Halloween as it emerged from the Celtic festival of Samhain (summer's end), picked up elements of the Christian Hallowtide (All Saint's Day and All Soul's Day), arrived in North America as an Irish and Scottish festival, and evolved into an unofficial but large-scale holiday by the early 20th century. He examines the 1970s and '80s phenomena of Halloween sadism (razor blades in apples) and inner-city violence (arson in Detroit), as well as the immense influence of the horror film genre on the reinvention of Halloween as a terror-fest. Throughout his vivid account, Rogers shows how Halloween remains, at its core, a night of inversion, when social norms are turned upside down, and a temporary freedom of expression reigns supreme. He examines how this very license has prompted censure by the religious Right, occasional outrage from law enforcement officials, and appropriation by Left-leaning political groups.
Engagingly written and based on extensive research, Halloween is the definitive history of the most bewitching day of the year, illuminating the intricate history and shifting cultural forces behind this enduring trick-or-treat holiday.
Drawing on a fascinating array of sources, from classical history to Hollywood films, Rogers traces Halloween as it emerged from the Celtic festival of Samhain (summer's end), picked up elements of the Christian Hallowtide (All Saint's Day and All Soul's Day), arrived in North America as an Irish and Scottish festival, and evolved into an unofficial but large-scale holiday by the early 20th century. He examines the 1970s and '80s phenomena of Halloween sadism (razor blades in apples) and inner-city violence (arson in Detroit), as well as the immense influence of the horror film genre on the reinvention of Halloween as a terror-fest. Throughout his vivid account, Rogers shows how Halloween remains, at its core, a night of inversion, when social norms are turned upside down, and a temporary freedom of expression reigns supreme. He examines how this very license has prompted censure by the religious Right, occasional outrage from law enforcement officials, and appropriation by Left-leaning political groups.
Engagingly written and based on extensive research, Halloween is the definitive history of the most bewitching day of the year, illuminating the intricate history and shifting cultural forces behind this enduring trick-or-treat holiday.