Owen Davies je čtenářem sociálních dějin na University of Hertfordshire. Jeho výzkum se zaměřuje na historii moderního a současného čarodějnictví a magie, což vychází z jeho celoživotního zájmu o folklór a mytologii. Davies zkoumá přetrvávání a úpadek lidových představ o čarodějnictví a magii v moderní době. Jeho práce se ponořuje do rituálních praktik a věroučných systémů, které ovlivňovaly společnost.
Cofiant a Llythyrau y Parch Robert Jones Llanllyfni is a Welsh biography of Robert Jones Llanllyfni, an influential Welsh preacher, and pastor. The book provides rare insights into the life and work of Robert Jones Llanllyfni, including his contributions to Welsh literature. The book is written in Welsh and will appeal to Welsh scholars and fans of Welsh literature.
The 19th century was a time of extraordinary scientific innovation, but with the rise of psychiatry, faiths and popular beliefs were often seen as signs of a diseased mind. By exploring the beliefs of asylum patients, we see the 19th century in a new light, with science, faith, and the supernatural deeply entangled in a fast-changing world.
A copiously illustrated global history of magic books, from ancient papyri to pulp paperbacks
Challenging conventional interpretations, this book delves into the intriguing discoveries of concealed objects in post-medieval buildings, such as old shoes and mummified cats. It critiques the common tendency to categorize these finds as mere survivals or protective talismans. Instead, the author investigates the deeper meanings and evolving traditions surrounding these practices, offering fresh insights into the cultural significance of building magic. Through this exploration, readers gain a nuanced understanding of historical beliefs and rituals related to architecture.
The story of how widespread belief in fortune-telling, prophecies, spirits, magic, and protective talismans gripped the battlefields and home fronts of Europe during the First World War.
The 4000-year story of witchcraft and magic - from the ancient world to Harry Potter... and beyond...
Criminal Bodies and the Gallows in Popular Medicine
This book is open access under a CC BY 4.0 license This book explores the magical and medical history of executions from the eighteenth to the early twentieth century by looking at the afterlife potency of criminal corpses, the healing activities of the executioner, and the magic of the gallows site. The use of corpses in medicine and magic has been recorded back into antiquity. The lacerated bodies of Roman gladiators were used as a source of curative blood, for instance. In early modern Europe, a great trade opened up in ancient Egyptian mummies and the fat of executed criminals, plundered as medicinal cure-alls. However, this is the first book to consider the demand for the blood of the executed, the desire for human fat, the resort to the hanged man’s hand, and the trade in hanging rope in the modern era. It ends by look at the spiritual afterlife of dead criminals.
Magic continues to be an enduring topic of fascination, managing to pervade the popular imagination. In this Very Short Introduction Owen Davies explores the definitions and practice of magic over the millennia; highlighting the controversy, conflict, and debate it has caused.
From its origins to the present day, Owen Davies explores ideas about paganism that have existed over the last two millennia. He takes a chronological look at changing attitudes towards its beliefs, its practices, and its relationship with the Church.
The first ever history of magic books - or grimoires - from the ancient Middle East through to the modern day, from harmless charms and remedies to sinister pacts with the Devil.