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Podcast: New Books in Italian Studies
Episode: David Frankfurter ed., "Guide to the Study of Ancient Magic" (Brill, 2019)
Description: In the midst of academic debates about the utility of the term âmagicâ and the cultural meaning of ancient words like mageia or khesheph, this Guide to the Study of Ancient Magic seeks to advance the discussion by separating out three topics essential to the very idea of magic. The three major sections of this volume address (1) indigenous terminologies for ambiguous or illicit ritual in antiquity; (2) the ancient texts, manuals, and artifacts commonly designated âmagicalâ or used to represent ancient magic; and (3) a series of contexts, from the written word to materiality itself, to which the term âmagicâ might usefully pertain...