Tuberculosis, syphilis, breast cancer, and diphtheria from Richard Tennant Cooper’s series of symbolic paintings depicting death and disease, 1920s. A official war artist, Cooper painted these after returning from World War I before moving to commercial work.
Gartiraf is a flying demon of disease described in the Liber de Angelis who serves under Bilet. Summoners can invoke his name for a curse or send him, and his flying underlings, to afflict their enemies with illness, fever, trembling & weakness. Digital collage by Eve Harms, licensed under CC-BY-SA
Abracadabra isn’t just something hokey magicians say at kid’s birthday parties. It’s a genuine incantation to ward off malaria and other ailments, and was used in protection talismans. The origins of the word are theorized to be Hebrew or the magic word abraxas.
Nymgarraman is a demon of disease, and one of the servants of the demon king Bilet. He can inflict fever and trembling, and is usually called by conjurers for revenge. Art by Eve Harms.
