Biological Implications of the Nuclear Age, 1969 and Harpel’s Typograph, or Book of Specimens, 1870. From Wellcome Library and Double-M on Flickr
Esoteric Eden
Pustahas were books of magic, made of tree bark, used by spiritual leaders of the Batak people of Northern Sumatra. The first of these pustahas is inscribed with instructions on how to protect oneself from evil. Source: KITLV & Rijksmuseum voor Volkenkunde
A Supreme Council 33 bookplate found in a book about Hermeticism. This secret society is the first Supreme Council of Scottish Rite Freemasonry. Their full name is “The Supreme Council (Mother Council of the World) of the Inspectors General Knights Commander of the House of the Temple of Solomon of the Thirty-third Degree of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry of the Southern Jurisdiction of the United States of America”. Source: Embassy of the Free Mind.
Rangda is the Demon Queen of the Leyaks, flying heads with dangling entrails, such as a heart and lungs, from Balinese folklore. They have long tongues and fangs, drink the blood of new born children, and feast on corpses in graveyards. At day, they appear human.
Image is an edit of a photo by Yves Picq, CC3 Attribution
Related posts:
Palmistry diagrams from a German Chiromantia. The left hands are meant are meant for men and the right hands are meant for women. Unknown Author, Late 15th century. From the Bavarian State Library
Diagrams of Alchemical Instruments from a book by Johann de Monte Hermetis, 1680. The Latin/German title, roughly translates to to Explanation of the Center of the Triangle of the Center of a Dream; That is: Explanation of the Hermetic Golden Flow. From Embassy of the Free Mind
A superstition of the American South: If you wash a dog and then wash your face in the same water, you will be able to see spirits. – from North Carolina Folklore Journal, July 1966 Issue
Hmyail are Armenian prayer scrolls, meant for the home and travel, that were used in the 17th century for sermons, magical formulas, and warding off demons. From: The Library of Congress
“The Mirror of Art and Nature” a diagram from Cabala, Speculum Artis et Naturae, in Alchymia by Stephan Michelspacher, 1616
The Golden Wheel of Fortune is a divination tool, used by occultist Cagliostro. To tell your fortune, place it face down & prick the back with a needle. Read the message of the marked number. The messages are related to the typical concerns of divination: money, sex, relationships, and health.
From A Handbook of Cartomancy, Fortune-telling and Occult Divination, 1889
Akton is a demon that causes aches and pains in humans, afflicting the ribs and lower back. According to the Testament of Solomon, he can be rid by saying the names Marmaraoth and Sabaoth. The latter being one of the Hebrew names for God.
Related posts:
According to Kabbalah, when a person’s body decomposes or is cremated, a tiny bone at the base of the spine, called the luz, always remains intact. When the dead are resurrected, their physical bodies will reconstitute from this seed-like bone. Image: J. Gamelin, 1778⠀
