The Magical Ritual of the Sanctum Regnum by Eliphas Levi
Publication: 1970 Crispin Press, London First Impression not to be confused with the 1973 Weiser Edition.
The Magical Ritual of the Sanctum Regnum is a mystical work created by Eliphas Levi and translated posthumously into English by W. Wynn Westcott in 1896. The work stems from an original manuscript in Levi’s handwriting which was written upon the pages interleaved with the test of a 1567 printing of De Septum Sacundeis by the Abbot Trithemius of Spanheim. The work by Spanheim was a dissertation on the ruling of the world by the seven great Archangels, this work explores the relationship between the archangels and tarot trumps, as well as the general attributes of the latter. The work subjugates various magical principles and ideas to the tarot trumps, such as the tower, the magician, the hierophant, and such. The color plates in the book are facsimiles of Levi's own drawings. The end of the work is a lengthy section of ritual practices and prayers along similar lines.A note by Westcott at the end of the work indicates a belief that Levi essentially renounces the entire work at the end with a decidedly Catholic screed. Whether this is actually indicative of the same, or of an attempt to evade censorship, is debatable.
Condition: Speckled white and black cloth boards, gilt title to spine, dust jacket with a few smudges but in very nice condition, overall the book is Near Fine