Various – The Archaeology of Ancient Magic

The Roman Baths (Thermae) of Bath, Great Britain. Photo by David Iliff, CC BY-SA 3.0

Aquae Sulis – The Ancient Sacred Spring and the Lead Tablets

The Roman name of modern Bath was Aquae Sulis which means “Water of Sulis”. Sulis was a goddess of the Celtic Brythons. They had constructed…

Small fragment to the left: PGM LXXII = P.Oslo III 75 (inv. 365), © Papyrus Collection Oslo University (Papyri Osloenses) (Norway). Larger papyrus to the right: PGM LVII: P.Mich.inv. 534, recto, University of Michigan Library, Papyrus Collection (USA) (Public Domain)

The Meaning of Threatening Higher Powers in Graeco-Egyptian Magic

In last sunday’s lecture we discussed the partially destroyed Bear Ritual in the encrypted Greek ritual manual “PGM LVII / LXXII” (ca. late first to…

Cuff Bracelets Decorated with Cats, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 26.8.121a, Public Domain

Ancient Egyptian Cuff Bracelets Decorated with Cats

These adorable carnelian and gold cats on the ancient Egyptian bracelet are similar to elements of royal jewelry dating to the beginning of Dynasty 18.…

Transcription of the encoded prayer to Isis in PGM LVII (by Kirsten D. Dzwiza) - P.Mich.inv. 534, recto, University of Michigan Library, Papyrus Collection (USA)

Prayer to Isis to Move the Constellation of the Great Bear – Encrypted – Translated

This is the prayer to Isis in the fascinating, fully encrypted ritual manual PGM LVII (PGM 57). Due to the fragmentary condition of the papyrus,…

I just learnd where “delete” comes from …

I love these moments when you come across a word in an ancient language and think: Wait, that’s what it sounds in my language, too!…

Metmuseum-21.2.62a, b-Magical-Water-Jar-Sithathoryunet

Magical Water Jar of Sithathoryunet with Lid

Material: Travertine (Egyptian alabaster) Date: Middle Kingdom, ca. 1887–1813 B.C. Dimensions: 56 cm (22 1/16 in); diam. 26.7 cm (10 1/2 in); h. of jar…

Image: British Library, PGM-VII,-155-167-Days-and-Hours-for-Divination - Papyrus London 121 (PGM VII) © The British Library Board

Hemerology: Ancient Egyptian Day Picking Calendars – Lucky and Unlucky Days for Ritual Practice

Ancient Egyptian “day-picking calendars” – also called “fate calendars” – classified the days of the month or year as positive or negative, similar to omens.…

Falcon Box with Wrapped Feathers Inside

The elaborately decorated box features a falcon statuette on top of its lid. Inside is a tightly wrapped linen bundle. X-rays have shown that it…

“O Omnipotent, whose body is the color of fire”

This is the first page of the ritual manual with the beginning of the invocation. “O God, O Lord, O Lord, O Omnipotent, whose body…

The Archaeology of Ancient Magic - Ancient Egyptian Execration Figurine - Rijksmuseum van Oudheden Leiden F1941/8

Ancient Egyptian Execration Rites

In ancient Egypt, as early as the third millenium BCE, a special kind of ritual was conducted to ensure enemies and opponents weren’t able to…