The Secrets of Black Arts

About this book

The heading Black Arts was enough to sell an old manual. Under it, publishers gathered charms, invocations and mysterious instructions that seemed to place forbidden knowledge within easy reach.

The Secrets of Black Arts belongs to this mixed tradition of popular occult compilations. Material from different sources could appear together without clear attribution, giving an impression of continuity that the actual publication history may not support. The illustrations, headings and formulas are best examined as printed artifacts, revealing the tools used to make secret power appear available to anyone who opened the book.