Rites Necromantic; The Witch as Intercessor Between the Quick and the Dead

by Martin Duffy

Necromancy, the magical art of calling the dead, emerges from many ancient traditions of sorcery. A vile and repugnant magic to the civilised, the dead have been invoked to gain magical power, and to wrest divinatory knowledge from their shadowy realm. Human remains have often been to employed to summon the shades of the dead, whether via fetish, music, or philter, linking corpse and skeleton to ancestral reservoirs of power. The use of cranii, longbones, teeth and other human remains have played a part of this tradition. Rites Necromantic examines these practices from the lens of the witch-tradition, from medieval Sabbats to early modern malefactors, to the post magical revival witchcraft of the twentieth century and beyond. Also examined are the locales of such magic: graveyards, ruins, deserts, and other spirit-haunted places shunned by humanity.

40 pages, Paperback

Published April 15, 2020

About the author

Martin Duffy lives in Sussex, England and writes on the subjects of folk magic, mythology and the occult arts; in particular the manner in which they relate to traditional witch-lore and practices. He has most recently composed a series of articles treating foci and mysteries pertinent to the witch-cult. These works have appeared in the pages of THE CAULDRON and CLAVIS JOURNAL.

He also contributed an essay to an anthology published by Llewellyn, concerning the manner in which occult philosophy informs and permeates the working of practical folk-magic. Mr. Duffy’s first title for Three Hands Press is The Devil’s Raiments, treating the subject of traditional ritual vestments and attire, and their symbolism. His latest book, concerning image magic, is Effigy: Of Graven Image and Holy Idol.