The Witches' Sabbath & Axiomata by Austin Osman Spare
Published by Fulgur . First Edition, Hardcover. Limited Edition of just 502 of the true original first issue. Shortly after publication, over half the edition was lost. Nearly 500 sets of unbound sheets were pulped when the printer filed for bankruptcy and his warehouse emptied. Original black cloth with gilt designs. Original Talismanic bookmark. Bound back to back -ie each starts at a different end of the book, with each finishing in the middle. A truly beautiful book and a MUST for the serious AOS collection. In the early ’s Austin Osman Spare experienced a renaissance in manuscript. Since the appearance of The Anathema of Zos in the development of the philosophy of Zos was truly occult. Although AOS had made several attempts at writing in the intervening years, it was the insistent requests of his close friends that provoked his astonishing literary resurgence. Lost titles from this period have become part of modern magickal folklore: Logomachy, Fragmenta, The Goetic Grimoire of Zen, and others. Coetaneous with these, The Witches’ Sabbath was definitely intended for publication, but never progressed beyond manuscript. It was later selectively represented by Kenneth Grant in his oeuvre, but is presented here, in context, for the first time. The remarkable Axiomata has never appeared in print before, and those already familiar with Spare’s work will immediately recognize recurrent themes that have been given greater depth and new perspectives. As an extension of his spirit this edition seeks an “inbetweeness” quality. Placing the two tracts dos-a-dos draws on an old method of publishing and a new method of magic. The pragmatic axioms and evocative prayers represent the twin forces of nature: the masculine and the feminine, back to back. The text illustrations, from a sketchbook, weave between image and imagination: a dancing line that partners the conscious and subconscious mind in equal measure. Condition: Book is Absolutly Mint - Dj a bit worn along the top/bottom. Read More