La Lumière Magique. [13 poèmes magiques et poème en epilogue] [Manuscript]
by Croze, Austin de [1866-1937]
- Used
- near fine
- Hardcover
- Condition
- Near Fine
- Seller
-
Portland, Maine, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
This volume, which positively reeks of an attempt to expand upon the Calendrier artistically, has its scope broadened to encompass practical witchcraft (there is a beautifully illustrated section on the gathering of magic herbs), talismans, the construction of magic circles, a striking section on the zodiac, an incantation for summoning the devil, a variety of magical formulas, "Le Chanson du Sabbat" and a poetic piece entitled "Le Vampire" all decorated and embellished in gorgeous colour and detail. A favourite image has to be a striking full colour illustration of the elements of some sympathetic magic ritual consisting of pierced portraits, hearts with nails through them, the head of a very unhappy looking owl and a suspended series of small wax figurines illustrated in detail bearing the names of people with whom the practitioner clearly has a problem; Andre Gide (depicted during his beard and moustache period) is one of the suspended voodoo dolls, along with de Fouquieres, two unfortunate ladies named Yvone and Aurel, and a mutilated doll labelled Sacha, that has already been divested of its hands and feet.
At this point in the 1920's, Austin de Croze was an enthusiastic and roving food writer, soon to pen his "Plats Regionaux de France," a deep and sultry homage to the culinary joys of rural France. It is almost certainly for his exploits as a food writer that he is better known, but La Lumiere Magique is a clear indication that his interests in the occult and esoteric underside of life had not abated, but merely been simmering for awhile.
One of the most notable things to take away from this volume, aside from its beauty, the obvious fascination of it being a lost book, a work in progress and a previously unconsidered addition to an area of study and fascination that is growing on swift wings; lies in the fact that it highlights just how much of the Calendrier Magique was Austin de Croze, and how much was Orazi. La Lumiere Magique has fewer of the gorgeous and mysterious depictions of lust and occult dissipation seen in La Calendrier (although gaps exist in the text, possibly suggesting that this volume would have been handed over to Orazi for further embellishment if the two of them decided to go all out on duplicating their previous successes), but de Croze's typography, pen embellishments, watercolours and layouts contain numerous repeated motifs from the previous work, and it requires little more than a couple of Orazi's shadowy confections to become a fully grown sibling. Wondrous, beautiful and unique. 4to. 92pp. 37pp. text and illustrations, distributed over 92pp. overall. Various papers and media utilised running the gamut from heavy card to glassine via what appears to be brown wrapping paper and other diverse elements. Bound in later full burnt yellow morocco gilt, black title labels to spine, embellished with pentagrams to both boards. A beautiful volume, strong, clean and clearly well looked after. Original cover and spine bound in. Filled with numerous pen, ink and watercolours designs with the unpublished poems in typescript.
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Details
- Bookseller
- Lux Mentis, Booksellers (US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- 9640
- Title
- La Lumière Magique. [13 poèmes magiques et poème en epilogue] [Manuscript]
- Author
- Croze, Austin de [1866-1937]
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Near Fine
- Quantity Available
- 1
- Edition
- Unique
- Publisher
- mss
- Place of Publication
- Paris
- Date Published
- 1920
- Weight
- 0.00 lbs
- Keywords
- Occult
- Bookseller catalogs
- Occult;
Terms of Sale
Lux Mentis, Booksellers
U.S. postage is $6.50 for the 1st title/volume and $2.00 for each additional title/volume and are sent Media Mail, Insured (except for sets and oversized items, which are calculated on a per order basis). Express mail, overseas rates and special handling are available on request. Payment is expected in advance by all but institutional buyers unless arrangements are made in advance. All orders are shipped via the United States Post Office or FedEx unless otherwise requested. Maine residents must add 5.5% sales tax unless a resale or tax exemption certificate is sent. Items are returnable within 10 days if not as described for full refund. Any other return is handled on a case by case basis, our goal being the complete satisfaction of all parties involved. If you have any additional questions or concerns, please contact us at http://www.luxmentis.com.
About the Seller
Lux Mentis, Booksellers
About Lux Mentis, Booksellers
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...