Sepher Raziel: Liber Salomonis: a sixteenth century English grimoire Sourceworks of Ceremonial Magic Volume 6 edited by Don Karr & Stephen Skinner (Golden Hoard Press, 2017) Hardcover

Don Karr & Stephen Skinner, editors. Sepher Raziel: Liber Salomonis: a sixteenth century English grimore, Sourceworks of Ceremonial Magic Volume 6. Golden Hoard Press, 2017. Hardcover edition. 264 pages.

Condition: Fine in a Near Fine dust jacket.

Description from the publisher: 

Sepher Raziel - also called Liber Salomonis - is a full grimoire in the Solomonic tradition from a rare sixteenth century English manuscript. It is completely different from the Sepher Raziel ha-Melakh published by Steve Savedow, and is the oldest grimoire so far published in the Sourceworks of Ceremonial Magic series, and shows clear signs of it Hebrew and Greek roots, quoting both Solomon and Hermes.

It contains seven treatises:

• Clavis, concerned with astrology and its use in magic, with precise interactions between planets, Signs, and Houses;
• Ala, outlining the magical virtues of stones, herbs, and animals;
• Tractatus Thymiamatus, which deals with incense, and perfumes used in the Art;
• Treatise of Times detailing the correct hours of the day for each operation;
• Treatise on Preparations on ritual purity, and abstinence;
• Samaim, on the different heavens and their angels; and finally,
• Semiforas or a Book of Names and their virtues and properties, being seven semiforas attributed to Adam and seven semiforas attributed to Moses.

The Sepher Raziel text is given in two forms: a literal transcription with no changes in spelling or wording, and a full modern annotated English version.

This volume also includes a foreword which offers an overview of Raziel manuscripts, which represent a number of independent traditions, an essay on the literature of Solomonic magic in English, an introduction to the Sepher Raziel manuscript itself, an appendix on incense names, botanical names and identification, a list of printed notices and manuscript sources of Sepher Raziel, and a full bibliography of printed works on Solomonic magic and items of related interest.