Beskrivning
In 1577, Johann Weyer appended a short work titled Pseudomonarchia Daemonum to his treatise on the falsehoods of witchcraft and the magical arts, De Praestigiis Daemonum. Thanks in very large part to Reginald Scot’s inclusion of a translation in his own Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584), this short satirical play upon the Book of Spirits has attained an afterlife Weyer could not have foreseen. Black Letter Press’ edition presents the original Latin text with a new Modern English translation by Paul Summers Young, featuring wide-ranging notes contextualizing the work. The appendix includes Scot’s translation, and a new translation of the French Livre des Esperitz, as representative of the genre Weyer drew upon for inspiration.
Weyer’s text has cast a long shadow among occultists, but it is also an entertaining work of fantasy in its own right. His world-building and characterization of the various spirits are a delight.
Translated, with a commentary by Paul Summers Young.
Black Letter Press is a small independent publisher located close to Hannover in Northern Germany, founded in 2018 in Turin, with the publication of Giambattista della Porta’s Natural Magick. BLP specializes in the revival of rare and antique books on a broad range of topics, including the sciences and history of science, poetry, occult philosophy, art, curious and unusual literature, and more. Their mission is to do these historical texts justice, publishing books that are fine and beautiful, yet remaining affordable and accessible.
