When all is said and done, the Western Magical Tradition seems to have one clear and definable feature- it has mainly been about attempting to solicit the aid of spiritual creatures or entities for all manner of magical ends. There is no better encapsulation of this than what is called Solomonic Magic. Guided by grimoires or magic books, the techniques and protocols of Solomonic Magic are fairly specific but require elucidation none the less. Helping introduce us to the history as well as taking us through a Solomonic Grimoire to showcase the protocols as well as Solomonic method is the host of the greatest podcast about Magic and the Occult in existence- Alexander Eth of Glitch Bottle Podcast!
Alexander Eth is a classical ceremonial magician and researcher into magical texts from the Middle Ages, to the Renaissance and onwards. He is the host of the inestimable podcast Glitch Bottle, where he has had numerous conversations with many Magicians and Occultists of all stripes. Absolutely essential, Glitch Bottle has done a service to Modern Magic which is beyond value and which should be supported via Patreon by every Magician worthy enough to acknowledge what Glitch Bottle has added to our Magical world. Alex can be found on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and one can listen to Glitch Bottle everywhere Podcasts are found.
As mentioned in the show, this is only an introductory episode on Solomonic Magic. Alex will be back on WMiT? to hash out more on Solomonic Magic very soon! If you can’t wait to hear more about Solomonic Magic, be sure to listen to many Glitch Bottle episodes, particularly those involving the invaluable Dr. Stephen Skinner, who is the absolute authority on this austere and amazing form of Magic.
Show Notes
- The Study of Solomonic Magic in English by Don Karr – An amazing guide and annotated bibliography. Don Karr just absolutely crushed it with this document. You won’t find a better guide as to where to go as far as Solomonic Magic is concerned. Read it through and while you might not understand all of it, stick with it and decide where you wish to direct your attention
- Dr. Stephen Skinner’s Books on Magic – Be sure to grab Techniques of Solomonic Magic. This is in my opinion one of the most important Magic books released in the last 20 years, maybe of all time. Seriously. It is an extremely important work. Other than that, pretty much everything Stephen has released is worth its weight in Gold
- Esoteric Archives – Twilight Grotto: Archives of Western Esoterica – Without a doubt the most important website for Magicians at this moment. Many Grimoires are available here, free to read and well worth looking over. Joseph H. Peterson has done an absolutely amazing job bringing these to us. We all owe him a debt of gratitude. Now go buy some of his Translations. Oh! And his Recommended Reading lists are quite fantastic as well! If you wish to support, you can do so here
- My guest Alex is one of the moderators of the Facebook group Western Medieval Magic. A great group of folks here and well worth joining!
- Be sure to grab The Elucidation of Necromancy with text, translation and commentary by Joseph H. Peterson
- Heptameron, or Magical Elements by Peter D’Abano – Full grimoire with some notes on the Lucidarium put up by Joseph H. Peterson
- The Routledge History of Medieval Magic edited by Sophie Page. Wonderful book with a chapter on Solomonic Magic
- Stephen Skinner discusses the evolution of Magic
- The Testament of Solomon – Give it a read
- Testament of Solomon: Recension C translated by Brian Johnson
- The Testament of Solomon: The Origins of Solomonic Magic, Occultism & Demonology – Dr. Sledge goes through it. Well worth watching
- The Testament of Solomon from Late Antiquity to the Renaissance by Sarah Illes Johnston
- Exorcistic Prayer and Demonology in Byzantium. A brief survey throughout the history.
- A History of Venice by John Julius Norwich – One of my favourite History books of all time
- On Magical Ceremonies in The Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy – Within lies most of what we call the Solomonic Method, although it is a bit scrambled as far as steps and the order in which to do them. Dr. Skinner in Techniques of Solomonic Magic has it all laid out nicely in the appendix
- Key of Solomon or Clavicula Salomonis – Joseph H. Peterson has one translated on his website
- Tools of the Greater Key by S. Aldarnay
- The Heptameron – Medieval Guide to Summoning Angels, Demons & Planetary Spirits – Esoterica
- The Conjuror’s Toolkit 1400-1800: Ciphers, Images, and Magical Cultures of Power Within the Solomonic Grimoires
- Forbidden Rites: A Necromancer’s Manual of the Fifteenth Century by Richard Kieckhefer – An amazing book in and of itself which helped kickstart the Grimoire Renaissance. Part of a series by PSUP called Magic in History which is in my opinion the greatest academic resource on magic in existence, along with their Magic in History Sourebooks
- Lesser Key of Solomon: Detailing the Ceremonial Art of Commanding Spirits Both Good and Evil edited by Joseph H. Peterson
- Secrets of the Magickal Grimoires by Aaron Leitch
- Solomonic Magic in Alfonso X’s Cantiga 125. Romance Notes
- The Sworn and Secret Grimoire by Jake Stratton-Kent
- A couple Episodes that are well worth listening to are How to Read Grimoires, my appearance on Arnemancy talking about The Fourth Book of Occult Philosophy with Reverend Erik, Goetia as well as Grimoires with Alexander Cummins
What Magic is This? 