ALBERTUS MAGNUS, BEING THE APPROVED, VERIFIED, SYMPATHETIC AND NATURAL EGYPTIAN SECRETS. WHITE AND BLACK ART FOR MAN AND BEAST.
Book Details + Condition: De Laurence edition from 1930. Orange cloth stamped in black and gilt, lettered in gilt on spine. 208 pages. In very good condition: tight binding; light shelfwear to boards; text is clean and unmarked. An eccentric collection of folk remedies, incantations, spells and prayers, aimed at preventing or curing diseases, protecting against curses, avoiding dangers, and more. The text is ascribed to the mediaeval scholar, theologian and natural scientist Albertus Magnus, but probably has no real connection with him and instead belongs to the "pow-wow books." These collections were brought to America by German immigrants in the early years of settlement, and remained popular in the communities of Pennsylvania. Many of them were translated into English and published in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Topics range from the cure of consumptive lungs and the gout, to ways to get rid of bedbugs and spiders, natural magic, and spells and prayers for subjects such as 'If a Human Being or Beast is attacked by Evil Spirits, how to restore him and make him well again,' and 'If a Man or Beast is attacked by Wicked People, and how to banish them forever from the House so that they may never be able to do any Harm.''
