Occult

A clear, concise and detailed historical analysis of the eclectic and arcane visual and material culture of the occult. Focusing on a carefully curated selection of esoteric art and artefacts, this book explains the meaning and mystic power of occult ritual objects and symbols from around the world. The author identifies four key elements of occultism – mysticism, alchemy, magic and divination. Key symbols are identified and examined close up, and key rituals and practices are explained to provide new insights into the philosophies and beliefs of occultists from antiquity to today. Occult begins with an introduction that clarifies what we mean by ‘occult’. It traces the pre-Christian origins of esotericism in Hermeticism, Gnosticism and Neoplatonism, and its development as the occult sciences during the Renaissance to its rebirth in the 19th century with spiritualism, theosophy and the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and the 20th-century’s anthroposophy, ‘New Age’ and occulture