THE OCCULT REVIEW: VOLUME 12, JULY - DECEMBER, 1910
Book Details + Condition: William Rider & Son (London). Volume 12, 1910. First UK Editions of the highly influential and pre-eminent journal of the 20th century, THE OCCULT REVIEW. (The US editions were issued one month after the British.) This compilation spans July-December, 1910. Privately bound with marbled hardcover boards and three-quarters leather binding. Raised bands and gilt to spine; marbled endpapers. Part of the collection of famous suffragist Alice Eugenie (du Pont) Ortiz, with her bookplate present. 402 pages. Firm binding; shelf wear, with old water damage to rear board, rendering it slightly supple; rubbed leather; some very old warping to pages due to water damage; a handful of pages towards the rear with pencilled marginal notations and notes. Also, to pp 44-45 are extensive pencilled notes, that convey a dream of a "figure with a crown of thorns that is black". To that same page, interestingly, is a Letter to the Editor from none other than Aleister Crowley - on the subject of ceremonial magick. Strangely, the month of July has been crossed out on the title page for that month, replaced with an inked-in "June" notation. The following month in the compilation - September - has been likewise crossed out, and replaced with and inked-in "August". (Perhaps a publishing error that was relayed to the customers.) The 6 months represented with the edits, therefore: June, August, September, October, November, December. A true gem and an increasingly scarce first edition of occult literature, and a fascinating treasure-trove of knowledge, for occult and spiritualist collectors. Please see our other listings for more OCCULT REVIEW first edition volumes.
Edited by Ralph Shirley, THE OCCULT REVIEW contained essays on all aspects of occultism, from alchemy to witchcraft; there was emphasis on magic, as many of its authors had been members of the Golden Dawn or its offshoots. Most of the eminent occultists of the period contributed to the journal, such as Frater Achad, Arthur Avalon, Annie Besant, Theodore Besterman, J.W. Brodie-Innes; Hereward Carrington, Mabel Collins, Aleister Crowley, Dion Fortune, Ada Goodrich-Freer; Franz Hartmann, D.D. Home, E.J. Langford Garstin; Michael Juste; William Kingsland, G.R.S. Mead; Sylvan J. Muldoon, Elliot O'Donnell, H. Stanley Redgrove, Sax Rohmer; Eduoard Schure, Lewis Spence, Meredith Starr, Montague Summers, and A.E. Waite. In most cases, these articles are the first appearance of their work. In addition to essays, poems, artwork, and illustrations, each issue typically contained the editor's 'Notes of the Month,' letters from the public, book reviews, and advertisements. This compiled volume contains such articles as:
- The Philosopher's Stone (Franz Hartmann)
- Woman and Mystic Doctrine (A.E. Waite)
- The Evolution and Development of the Devil (G. Woolliscroft Rhead)
- Crystal-Gazing
- The Healing-Cup of Nanteos
- Dreams
- The History and Mystery of the So-Called Divining or Dowsing Rod
- Primitive Symbolism
- The Cat That Saw The Ghost (G. Llewellyn)
- Scottish Curing or Charm Stones (Harry Lockhart)
- The Way of the Soul
- Children and the Unseen
- Reflections on Reincarnation
- The Rites of Eleusis
- The Significance of Names and Numbers
- And so much more.
