Occult: Decoding the visual culture of mysticism, magic and divination
Peter Forshaw
Searching for the philosophers’ stone in the pursuit of transmutation and immortality; harnessing the properties of the natural world to cast magic spells; seeking visionary experiences to connect with the spiritual world; conjuring demons to enact our desires; using the tarot and astrology to divine the future – the quest to understand the mysteries of the universe and to tap into its powers has fuelled manifold occult philosophies from the early esoteric traditions of the ancient Egyptians to the practices of modern occultists.
For hundreds of years, occult – or hidden – knowledge has been recorded in esoteric manuscripts, enshrined in illustrated grimoires, inscribed in stelae, incorporated in cryptic paintings and embodied in arcane ritual objects. Delve within these pages and pore over myriad intricate images, ornate manuscripts and intriguing ritual objects, and discover the meaning concealed within the secret ciphers, mysterious symbols and covert rituals of the occult.
Peter Forshaw is a researcher interested in the history of alchemy, magic, Kabbalah, astrology, ritual activity and esotericism. He has a doctorate in Intellectual History and is Associate Professor of Western Esotericism in the Early Modern Period at the Centre for History of Hermetic Philosophy, University of Amsterdam. In addition to editing several volumes on occult and esoteric subjects, he is the author of The Mage’s Images: Heinrich Khunrath in his Oratory and Laboratory and served as editor-in-chief of Aries: Journal for the Study of Western Esotericism for 10 years. He has contributed to TV and Radio programmes including BBC Radio 4’s In Our Time series and Channel 5’s The Philosophers’ Stone – The True Story. His Instagram page of esoteric art attracts more than 58,000 followers.
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