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The Oxford Illustrated History of Witchcraft and Magic
This richly illustrated history provides a readable and fresh approach to the extensive and complex story of witchcraft and magic.Telling the story from the dawn of writing in the ancient world to the globally successful Harry Potter films, the authors explore a wide range of magical beliefs and practices, the rise of the witch trials, and the depiction of the Devil-worshipping witch.The book also focuses on the more recent history of witchcraft and magic, from the Enlightenment to the present, exploring the rise of modern magic, the anthropology of magic around the globe, and finally the cinematic portrayal of witches and magicians, from The Wizard of Oz to Charmed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
324 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 9, 2017
88 people are currently reading
2657 people want to read
About the author
Owen Davies
25 books105 followersOwen Davies is a reader in Social History at the University of Hertfordshire. His main field of research is on the history of modern and contemporary witchcraft and magic.
His interest in the history of witchcraft and magic developed out of a childhood interest in folklore and mythology, which was spawned in part from reading the books of Alan Garner. From around the age of sixteen, he also became interested in archaeology and began to get involved with field-walking and earthwork surveying. He then went on to study archaeology and history at Cardiff University and he spent many weeks over the next six years helping excavate Bronze Age and Neolithic sites in France and England, mostly in the area around Avebury. He developed a strong interest in archaeology in general, and the ritual monuments and practices of the Neolithic and Bronze Age.
From Cardiff, he went on to write a doctorate at Lancaster University, working on a thesis looking at the continuation and decline of popular belief in witchcraft and magic from the Witchcraft Act 1735 to the Fraudulent Mediums Act 1951 (1991-1994).
His interest in the history of witchcraft and magic developed out of a childhood interest in folklore and mythology, which was spawned in part from reading the books of Alan Garner. From around the age of sixteen, he also became interested in archaeology and began to get involved with field-walking and earthwork surveying. He then went on to study archaeology and history at Cardiff University and he spent many weeks over the next six years helping excavate Bronze Age and Neolithic sites in France and England, mostly in the area around Avebury. He developed a strong interest in archaeology in general, and the ritual monuments and practices of the Neolithic and Bronze Age.
From Cardiff, he went on to write a doctorate at Lancaster University, working on a thesis looking at the continuation and decline of popular belief in witchcraft and magic from the Witchcraft Act 1735 to the Fraudulent Mediums Act 1951 (1991-1994).
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
July 16, 2021
For the most part this book is very well detailed and researched, however, I think that more of caution or sceptism should have been given to Evans-Pritchard. Indeed, I find it difficult to believe he approached the Azande respectfully or articulate the understanding carefully. Evans-Pritchard lived in a period in which British Imperialism, Empire and White Supremacy altogether were still at their peak. Thus I cannot believe that Evans-Pritchard's motivations in his observations were anything less than maintaining the status quo that every culture and every society not white were inherently "inferior". In this I believe the author is biased to Evans-Pritchard as there isn't sufficient concrete evidence to suggest otherwise. It should also be made clear the so-called age of "Enlightenment" was the period in which Colonisation was becoming a reality. Furthermore, there should have been more of a distinctive check that the reports of Clyde Kluckhohn about the Dine (Navajo) were also biased and a response to this by Dine voices are necessary.
December 18, 2017
I enjoyed reading this book. It reminded me a bit of the TIMES book series in the amount of information and beautiful illustrations.
November 16, 2017
Owen Davies who has written several books on witchcraft and cunning folk has gone ahead and given an overview of magic and witchcraft going all the way back to Sumerian times up to the present, documenting how witches are perceived in the the movies. OOwne Davies has written two of the essays himself and the rest are drawn from contributing authors.
Going back to Sumeria, which was one of the first societies in general. It is in this society that that European or Western Magic has it's roots. There were alway evil spirits to look out for. THe Mesopotamians shared their space with these spirits and believed in placating them in order to be left alone. Good spirits also had to be placated. There was always the fear that someone would use magic against you. Magicians could be temple priests or wise men outside of the temple. The same held for Egypt.
The Greeks learned lots of there magic from the Egyptians, Phoenicians and Sumerians.They absorbed their ideas of astrology and took on a lot of their myths and made it their own. Greek magic used defixiones or lead sheets that were rolled up with an inscription and cast into the Earth or into water. It most be noted that during these Ancient times it was not considered bad to work magic. Witches and magicians were not considered bad. Magic workers were judged by the work they produced. There was n attitude against magic.
In Europe societies were magical as well. THe Norse deemed magic to be feminine and it was considered improper for men too engage in such practice. As Christianity rolled into Europe from the Middle East, not everyone came onto it automatically and dropped their old pagan religion. What happened was an amalgamation of Christianity and ancient pagan customs being absorbed by the new religion. Churches were built on top of old Pagan shrines.
The attitude towards magic was not negative although the church did try to stamp it pagan practices. What got someone into trouble was if they we're accused of using negative magic against someone. THis would result in a flogging or some minor punishment.
European contact with the Middle East via the crusade, 1492 brought Ancient Greek learning back. Too Europe along with many Islamic ideas on magic. This was also when witches were being demonized. Where as before magic was looked down upon now active witch hunts though the inquisition were rising up. People were put through such horrible torture that they often did not survive the investigation. If a witch survived the trial then it was proof that she was a witch.
The Catholic CHurch and the PRotestants would accuse each other of witch craft. Foreign ideas were threatening. Important to note is that the same things Romans said against Christians the Christians would now say against witches.
THe anti magic attitude would die down and magic would be more accepted . By the 1950's most of the anti magic laws we're gone. Some of the greats in magic would arise from the 1900's too the present. Crowley, Gardner, MEsmer to name a few. Former masn would join magic order not with the intent to manipulate the environment but to come closer to God and achieve perfection.
THe book finishes first with surveys on witches in the cinema and anthropology studies of witchcraft and magic.
Going back to Sumeria, which was one of the first societies in general. It is in this society that that European or Western Magic has it's roots. There were alway evil spirits to look out for. THe Mesopotamians shared their space with these spirits and believed in placating them in order to be left alone. Good spirits also had to be placated. There was always the fear that someone would use magic against you. Magicians could be temple priests or wise men outside of the temple. The same held for Egypt.
The Greeks learned lots of there magic from the Egyptians, Phoenicians and Sumerians.They absorbed their ideas of astrology and took on a lot of their myths and made it their own. Greek magic used defixiones or lead sheets that were rolled up with an inscription and cast into the Earth or into water. It most be noted that during these Ancient times it was not considered bad to work magic. Witches and magicians were not considered bad. Magic workers were judged by the work they produced. There was n attitude against magic.
In Europe societies were magical as well. THe Norse deemed magic to be feminine and it was considered improper for men too engage in such practice. As Christianity rolled into Europe from the Middle East, not everyone came onto it automatically and dropped their old pagan religion. What happened was an amalgamation of Christianity and ancient pagan customs being absorbed by the new religion. Churches were built on top of old Pagan shrines.
The attitude towards magic was not negative although the church did try to stamp it pagan practices. What got someone into trouble was if they we're accused of using negative magic against someone. THis would result in a flogging or some minor punishment.
European contact with the Middle East via the crusade, 1492 brought Ancient Greek learning back. Too Europe along with many Islamic ideas on magic. This was also when witches were being demonized. Where as before magic was looked down upon now active witch hunts though the inquisition were rising up. People were put through such horrible torture that they often did not survive the investigation. If a witch survived the trial then it was proof that she was a witch.
The Catholic CHurch and the PRotestants would accuse each other of witch craft. Foreign ideas were threatening. Important to note is that the same things Romans said against Christians the Christians would now say against witches.
THe anti magic attitude would die down and magic would be more accepted . By the 1950's most of the anti magic laws we're gone. Some of the greats in magic would arise from the 1900's too the present. Crowley, Gardner, MEsmer to name a few. Former masn would join magic order not with the intent to manipulate the environment but to come closer to God and achieve perfection.
THe book finishes first with surveys on witches in the cinema and anthropology studies of witchcraft and magic.
July 24, 2017
Interesting, but perhaps not what I was looking for. A great deal of this I already knew. This might be good for someone wanting a general overview focused in on the view of witchcraft with the church through history as opposed to an wide ranging cultures sort of thing.
November 2, 2017
It contains some interesting information, but it really wasn't what I was hoping for.
March 7, 2018
Bit of a slog, more of a school book than pleasure reading, but still interesting.
July 1, 2020
I am always interesting in learning about the history of witches especially in ancient times and about cunning folk. The pictures were very interesting.
December 30, 2023
I bought this book for a uni research project with the question: how did the picture of the witch evolved up to our horror media today. This book was a perfect choice for that, because it covered really much information and it nearly answered all of my questions. I liked that it was divided in several chapters with different topics, some of them were really informative and will help me to write my paper, but some felt just like a boring info dump.
I also found the picture selection a bit lacking, because there could have been better ones, with more meaningfulness and sometimes they weren’t on the page where they should have been to connect them to the text.
But all in all I really loved this book, because others of this genre hadn’t so much themes included and were even more dry to read. It’s one of the first non-fiction books that I have finished so props to this book, that I could finish it. Even though English isn’t my first language, it was understandably most of the times and i just had to translate technical terms. I‘ve never learned so much about a topic, so thanks to Owen Davies for this Collection!!
I also found the picture selection a bit lacking, because there could have been better ones, with more meaningfulness and sometimes they weren’t on the page where they should have been to connect them to the text.
But all in all I really loved this book, because others of this genre hadn’t so much themes included and were even more dry to read. It’s one of the first non-fiction books that I have finished so props to this book, that I could finish it. Even though English isn’t my first language, it was understandably most of the times and i just had to translate technical terms. I‘ve never learned so much about a topic, so thanks to Owen Davies for this Collection!!
November 11, 2017
3.5 Stars. Because each chapter has a different author, some chapters are better than others. Overall, it’s a good overall introduction to the history of witchcraft from ancient times to the present. However, some chapters in particular come off as overly academic, like the kind of thing someone wrote for a graduate thesis or something. As a result, the text can be boring and a bit too narrowly focused at times. I find there were occasions where the author assumed familiarity with certain sources, which made following their argument difficult. The fact that the images aren’t labeled at all (e.g., “figure A”) made finding them later difficult. It was especially problematic as some were referenced (again) in other chapters but it wasn’t always obvious the picture had already been included. This was especially problematic in the chapter on the representation of witches in art. I also found the last chapter (witches on film) particularly lacking. The author focused on very few sources despite this book being recently published. It would have been nice to see shows/books like “The Magicians” or Harry Dresden series mentioned, or even “Supernatural.”
Despite its shortcomings, I really enjoyed most of the book. The chapters on medieval magic, popular magic, and modern magic in particular. I do wish there was a bit more coherence to the book, but I would still recommend it.
Despite its shortcomings, I really enjoyed most of the book. The chapters on medieval magic, popular magic, and modern magic in particular. I do wish there was a bit more coherence to the book, but I would still recommend it.
November 3, 2018
An excellent collection of scholarly articles written for a wider audience on the history of witchcraft and our perception of witchcraft. The chapters on early modern into modern witchcraft, especially chapter seven, The Rise of Modern Magic, were fascinating. And the final two chapters were a bit odd given the more straightforward historical bent of the previous chapters: they were anthropology and film discussion, respectively. Nonetheless, I think they were strong additions to the lot. I would highly recommend this to anyone interested in the topic; even if you have a firm handle on the medieval/post medieval stuff, all of the chapters are detailed and well-written.
November 23, 2017
Not exactly what I expected, but a very interesting read. The book is packed with lots of information by a variety of different authors, some interesting illustrations and photos. I really think that anyone who is interested in Witchcraft and Magic will really enjoy this book, which is of great quality and really well done. I won this book on GoodReads and like I do with most my wins I will be paying it forward by giving it to either a friend or library to enjoy. A big thanks to Owen Davies!
December 6, 2017
An excellent history going back through the ages and into modern times. It's a book that I read a bit at a time because of all the material presented. However, I did skip ahead and read the last chapter "witches on screen". Just could not wait to get there!
March 18, 2018
An interesting, although slightly academic, look at witchcraft throughout history. Each of the chapters is written by someone different — which means, of course, that some are better than others. I don’t regret reading this at all.
November 13, 2017
Not what I expected, but an interesting read. Each chapter is by a different author so the writing style changes.
November 26, 2018
This is an eminently readable history of magic. Like so much scholarship in the humanities since the 1980s, the basic interpretive frame is power-who has it and who doesn't. The book begins with an overview of ancient religious practices in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Israel, Athens, and Rome, that is prelude to the story that will emerge. Popular religion becomes magic when it is defined by organized religion as alien (what begins in ancient Athens, since magic is religion practiced by foreigners by definition). Fast forward to late antiquity and the middle ages, and in Europe magic is all that folk religion prohibited by the Church, even as the Church domesticates certain rituals and ceremonies.
Then the beginnings of humanism and scientific study happens at the end of the middle ages and scholarly elite, who study of ancient magical texts in translation from Arabic translations of originals, set the stage for the emergence of a rarefied magic that we see in our new religious movements and art. The persecution of witches by the Church is tied to institutional responses to heresy--e.g., the Cathar heresy. Doctrinal changes enabled the simultaneous study of high magic by clerics (exorcisisms, conjuring demons and controlling them with the name of God, etc.) and at the same time set the stage for persecution of women for alternative folk practices. (At the same time, it is abundantly clear that the Church itself had trouble getting convictions in witchcraft, because the claims were too fantastical.)
Fast forward to the modern era and we have the emergence of modern magic (Crowley, et al.) and the study of magic (religion) anthropologically. Modern magic is a set of new religious movements in this context. I would go further and apply Geertz's concept of ideologization of religion and say that modern magic is actually a form of scripturalism in response to modernity. The modern wiccans, et al. are really constructing based on texts produced in the high middle ages, a more "authentic" form of ancient religion, which of course never really existed, but assuages alienation caused by modernity.
Magic and witchcraft is a pretty narrow field of folklore studies in academia, and it is reflected in a spare selection of works in the bibliography. The book also is not footnoted, so it is difficult to know scholarly background for points made. For these reasons I knocked off a star.
The book is lavishly illustrated. What you will not find is how to practice magic. For those looking for an introduction to Wicca, look elsewhere. This is a dispassionate scholarly treatment of the subject.
Then the beginnings of humanism and scientific study happens at the end of the middle ages and scholarly elite, who study of ancient magical texts in translation from Arabic translations of originals, set the stage for the emergence of a rarefied magic that we see in our new religious movements and art. The persecution of witches by the Church is tied to institutional responses to heresy--e.g., the Cathar heresy. Doctrinal changes enabled the simultaneous study of high magic by clerics (exorcisisms, conjuring demons and controlling them with the name of God, etc.) and at the same time set the stage for persecution of women for alternative folk practices. (At the same time, it is abundantly clear that the Church itself had trouble getting convictions in witchcraft, because the claims were too fantastical.)
Fast forward to the modern era and we have the emergence of modern magic (Crowley, et al.) and the study of magic (religion) anthropologically. Modern magic is a set of new religious movements in this context. I would go further and apply Geertz's concept of ideologization of religion and say that modern magic is actually a form of scripturalism in response to modernity. The modern wiccans, et al. are really constructing based on texts produced in the high middle ages, a more "authentic" form of ancient religion, which of course never really existed, but assuages alienation caused by modernity.
Magic and witchcraft is a pretty narrow field of folklore studies in academia, and it is reflected in a spare selection of works in the bibliography. The book also is not footnoted, so it is difficult to know scholarly background for points made. For these reasons I knocked off a star.
The book is lavishly illustrated. What you will not find is how to practice magic. For those looking for an introduction to Wicca, look elsewhere. This is a dispassionate scholarly treatment of the subject.
August 21, 2023
A broad historical text on witchcraft with an illuminating selection of essays about the mindsets, accusations and purpose of those who believed in it or used it for their own gains. I'm reminded of my Medieval History teacher who emphasized that an essay written on Witchcraft must go beyond practice into the understanding of what it meant for the people at the time, and this does a good job summarizing different cultures and beliefs as well as how they were changed over time due to the ruling powers.
January 20, 2018
Highly academic in tone and structure, this book is interesting but not for leisurely reading. Based on the title's use of "Illustrated History," I was expecting the book to be more visual but it's not. It is very text heavy, dense in subject matter and although illustrated, not visually engaging. I didn't enjoy this title, but I can appreciate the well-written chapters and rich academic dialogue it offers.
October 17, 2019
I'm using this book for a research project and it is phenomenal. While much of it is stuff I was aware of, the back up of that with copies of texts, charts and tables, paintings, engravings, everything was outstanding. It's incredibly helpful and comprehensive, well-written, well organized, and a generally fascinating read.
June 10, 2024
Really good deep dive into the history of witchcraft with the addition of a fantastic chapter from an anthropology standpoint, which was very interesting to read. It's interesting to hear different theories about what role superstition plays in human society
December 5, 2017
Recommended by Kris, Main Library, Adult Services, Three Stars, December 2017.
October 2, 2021
Fascinating!
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews