Tarbell 1: Magic and Charms

Ever since man began to think, he has tried to explain his environment. Our ancestor marveled at the course of the sun and the change from day to night and feared the forces of nature. He came to the conclusion that the world must be ruled by supernatural beings - gods. He wished to appease and appease them, and with that he found himself right at the origin of magic and religion.

 Harlan Tarbell spans the arc from these early days of mankind and the birth of magic to our time, in which the Enlightenment has driven out the spirits and demons of past centuries. He shows how religions and natural sciences and pseudosciences developed from the magic of antiquity and also how magic, which was used solely for entertainment, came about.

On a fascinating journey through the centuries, we meet, among others, such extraordinary personalities as Zarathustra, Cicero , Merlin  and Robert-Houdin.

We meet alchemists, astrologers, theologians, magicians and visionaries. We visit mystical places like this Oracle of Delphi, the Temple of Alexandria or the Stonehenge monoliths. And we learn the secrets of true magic and the consequences of such actions can have.

For anyone seriously interested in the art of magic, knowledge of its origins is essential. Harlan Tarbell conveys it vividly, excitingly and very entertainingly.