Sibly's Astrology.

Rebound with brown antique calf binding with red title plate, gilt banding and title on the spine. Some tanning.

Embossed 'Cambridge panel' on both boards.

(A New and Complete Illustration of the Celestial Science of Astrology.

This book (a grimoire) is expertly restored and rebound by the craftsman bookbinder, Mr Brian Cole. In the traditional sense Volumes 1, 2. & 3 are orthodoxly intact (vol 3 in particular pertaining to the USA). There is NO separate Volume 4, though as was the want of the publication, matters that relate to Volume 4 are inserted back into the previous three volumes. This book has an interesting history, being held in a masonic library for many years of its life. The book was then given to a Yorkshire Reference Library from which the book was purchased, prior to its restoration by Mr. Brian Cole.

In Britain, grimoires continued to be produced throughout the 18th century, such as Ebenezer Sibly's A New and Complete Illustration of the Celestial Science of Astrology. In the last decades of that century, London experienced a revival of interest in the occult which was further propagated by Francis Barrett's publication of The Magus in 1801. The Magus contained many things taken from older grimoires—particularly those of Cornelius Agrippa—and, while not achieving initial popularity upon release, it gradually became an influential text.

This is a very early, complete set of Ebenezer Sibly's (1751-1799) masterwork on astrology and occult practices, being one of the most influential and comprehensive of such publications of the 18th century. A New and Complete Illustration.covered aspects of the classical tradition of astrology, but also "its so called magical strain of divination (as exemplified in horary practice and elections and also worked with ingress charts and solar returns". Examples of Sibly's divination questions include: "An Engagement at Sea. Which shall have victory?" "Shall the Querent Marry the Gentleman she loves?" "Question on theft." "Shall the Querent attain the Promotion desierd?" It is generally thought the first volume appeared in 1784. Subsequent volumes were printed in the years following, and then reprinted and sold as mixed sets, with revisions and under various titles, depending on availability. This immensely popular publication was something of a textbook of the time, containing much practical knowledge on astrology and magical procedure, and was quite comprehensive in nature. It also contained in the third part, which of particular interest today, an astrological study of the American Revolution, with accompanying illustration.

Ebenezer Sibly (1751 – c. 1799) was an English physician, astrologer and writer on the occult.

Ebenezer Sibly was the son of Edmund Sibly and Mary Larkholm, born in the parish of Cripplegate ward, London. He was the brother of Manoah Sibly. Early on he devoted himself to medicine and astrology. He studied surgery in London.

In 1785 he was working as an astrologer in Bristol; and by about 1788 had moved to London. In 1789 he became the first master of the Lodge of Joppa #188, one of the founding masonic lodges under the Ancient Grand Lodge of England. In 1790 he was temporarily in Ipswich, supporting Sir John Hadley D'Oyly, the Whig member, at the general election. On 20 April 1792 he graduated M.D. from King's College, Aberdeen.

As a student of medicine, he became interested in the theories on animal magnetism by Anton Mesmer, joining Mesmer's Harmonic Philosophical School, and later also theosophy.

Sibly died in London around 1799.

Sibly is celebrated for the natal horoscope he cast of the United States of America, published in 1787 and is still cited.

Ebenezer Sibly used an eclectic mixture of early modern esoteric works. His brother Manoah Sibly (1757–1840) was a linguist, as well as a Swedenborgian preacher. Under Manoah's name appeared texts including a revision of John Whalley's translation of the Tetrabiblos, and a translation of Placidus de Titis; as an astrologer, Ebenezer is said to have used the Placidian system of houses; as a student of alchemy, he translated Bernard of Treviso (the fountain allegory). It has been said that experts of the time would have seen that Sibly was not very discriminating about the sources he chose, and drew on unpublished translations that he had borrowed. He knew the Book of Enoch via Charles Rainsford.

Ebenezer Sibly was strongly influenced by Sir Isaac Newton's occult studies.

English physicist and mathematician Isaac Newton produced works exploring chronology, and biblical interpretation (especially of the Apocalypse), and alchemy. Some of this could be considered occult. Newton's scientific work may have been of lesser personal importance to him, as he placed emphasis on rediscovering the wisdom of the ancients. Historical research on Newton's occult studies in relation to his science have also been used to challenge the disenchantment narrative within critical theory. In the Early Modern Period of Newton's lifetime, the educated embraced a world view different from that of later centuries. Distinctions between science, superstition, and pseudoscience were still being formulated.

Much of what is known as Isaac Newton's occult studies can largely be attributed to his study of alchemy. From a young age, Newton was deeply interested in all forms of natural sciences and materials science, an interest which would ultimately lead to some of his better-known contributions to science. His earliest encounters with certain alchemical theories and practices were during his childhood, when a twelve year old Isaac Newton was boarding in the attic of an apothecary's shop. During Newton's lifetime, the study of chemistry was still in its infancy, so many of his experimental studies used esoteric language and vague terminology more typically associated with alchemy and occultism. It was not until several decades after Newton's death that experiments of stoichiometry under the pioneering works of Antoine Lavoisier were conducted, and analytical chemistry, with its associated nomenclature, came to resemble modern chemistry as we know it today. However, Newton's contemporary and fellow Royal Society member, Robert Boyle, had already discovered the basic concepts of modern chemistry and began establishing modern norms of experimental practice and communication in chemistry, information which Newton did not use.

Much of Newton's writing on alchemy may have been lost in a fire in his laboratory, so the true extent of his work in this area may have been larger than is currently known. Newton also suffered a nervous breakdown during his period of alchemical work.

Newton's writings suggest that one of the main goals of his alchemy may have been the discovery of the philosopher's stone (a material believed to turn base metals into gold), and perhaps to a lesser extent, the discovery of the highly coveted Elixir of Life. Newton reportedly believed that a Diana's Tree, an alchemical demonstration producing a dendritic "growth" of silver from solution, was evidence that metals "possessed a sort of life."

Some practices of alchemy were banned in England during Newton's lifetime, due in part to unscrupulous practitioners who would often promise wealthy benefactors unrealistic results in an attempt to swindle them. The English Crown, also fearing the potential devaluation of gold because of the creation of fake gold, made penalties for alchemy very severe. In some cases the punishment for unsanctioned alchemy would include the public hanging of an offender on a gilded scaffold while adorned with tinsel and other items.

Sibly's Astrology is but one of a number of books offered via Frost related websites on magic, alchemy, divination, witchcraft etc. Others to be found herein are:

The 'Conjurors Magazine'

The Works of Aleister Crowley: Volumes I,II,& III.

Letters on Witchcraft by Sir Walter Scott

Introduction to Sir Isaac Sibly's Astrology First Principles of Philosophy by John Ryland

The Cat in Magic, Mythology and Religion: by Oldfield Howey

It is regularly forgotten that 'magic' in all its attributes still dwells within the hierarchy of Western Society with explicit examples being no less than the decoration upon the United States dollar and within the bulk of the writings of Sir Isaac Newton.

Below are some general observations on the magic topic:

A grimoire (also known as a "book of spells", "magic book", or a "spellbook") is a textbook of magic, typically including instructions on how to create magical objects like talismans and amulets, how to perform magical spells, charms, and divination, and how to summon or invoke supernatural entities such as angels, spirits, deities, and demons. In many cases, the books themselves are believed to be imbued with magical powers, although in many cultures, other sacred texts that are not grimoires (such as the Bible) have been believed to have supernatural properties intrinsically. The only contents found in a grimoire would be information on spells, rituals, the preparation of magical tools, and lists of ingredients and their magical correspondences. In this manner, while all books on magic could be thought of as grimoires, not all magical books should be thought of as grimoires.

While the term grimoire is originally European—and many Europeans throughout history, particularly ceremonial magicians and cunning folk, have used grimoires—the historian Owen Davies has noted that similar books can be found all around the world, ranging from Jamaica to Sumatra. He also noted that in this sense, the world's first grimoires were created in Europe and the ancient Near East.

The 18th century saw the rise of the Enlightenment, a movement devoted to science and rationalism, predominantly amongst the ruling classes. However, amongst much of Europe, belief in magic and witchcraft persisted, as did the witch trials in certain areas. Governments tried to crack down on magicians and fortune tellers, particularly in France, where the police viewed them as social pests who took money from the gullible, often in a search for treasure. In doing so, they confiscated many grimoires.

Beginning in the 17th century, a new, ephemeral form of printed literature developed in France; the Bibliothèque bleue. Many grimoires published through this circulated among a growing percentage of the populace; in particular, the Grand Albert, the Petit Albert (1782), the Grimoire du Pape Honorius, and the Enchiridion Leonis Papae. The Petit Albert contained a wide variety of magic; for instance, dealing in simple charms for ailments, along with more complex things, such as the instructions for making a Hand of Glory.

In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, following the French Revolution of 1789, a hugely influential grimoire was published under the title of the Grand Grimoire, which was considered particularly powerful, because it involved conjuring and making a pact with the devil's chief minister, Lucifugé Rofocale, to gain wealth from him. A new version of this grimoire was later published under the title of the Dragon rouge and was available for sale in many Parisian bookstores. Similar books published in France at this time included the Black Pullet and the Grimoirium Verum. The Black Pullet, probably authored in late-18th-century Rome or France, differs from the typical grimoires in that it does not claim to be a manuscript from antiquity, but told by a man who was a member of Napoleon's armed expeditionary forces in Egypt.

The widespread availability of printed grimoires in France—despite the opposition of both the rationalists and the church—soon

spread to neighbouring countries, such as Spain and Germany. In Switzerland, Geneva was commonly associated with the occult at the time, particularly by Catholics, because it had been a stronghold of Protestantism. Many of those interested in the esoteric traveled from Roman Catholic nations to Switzerland to purchase grimoires or to study with occultists. Soon, grimoires appeared that involved Catholic saints; one example that appeared during the 19th century, and became relatively popular—particularly in Spain—was the Libro de San Cipriano, or The Book of St. Ciprian, which falsely claimed to date from c. 1000. As with most grimoires of this period, it dealt with (among other things) how to discover treasure.

In Germany, with the increased interest in folklore during the 19th century, many historians took an interest in magic and in grimoires. Several published extracts of such grimoires in their own books on the history of magic, thereby helping to further propagate them. Perhaps the most notable of these was the Protestant pastor Georg Conrad Horst (1779–1832) who, from 1821 to 1826, published a six-volume collection of magical texts in which he studied grimoires as a peculiarity of the Medieval mindset.

Another scholar of the time interested in grimoires, the antiquarian bookseller Johann Scheible first published the Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses; two influential magical texts that claimed to have been written by the ancient Jewish figure Moses. The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses were among the works which later spread to the countries of Scandinavia, where—in Danish and Swedish—grimoires were known as black books and were commonly found among members of the army.

In Britain, new grimoires continued to be produced throughout the 18th century, such as Ebenezer Sibly's A New and Complete Illustration of the Celestial Science of Astrology. In the last decades of that century, London experienced a revival of interest in the occult which was further propagated by Francis Barrett's publication of The Magus in 1801. The Magus contained many things taken from older grimoires—particularly those of Cornelius Agrippa—and, while not achieving initial popularity upon release,

it gradually became an influential text.

One of Barrett's pupils, John Parkin, created his own handwritten grimoire The Grand Oracle of Heaven, or, The Art of Divine Magic, although it was never published, largely because Britain was at war with France, and grimoires were commonly associated with the French. The only writer to publish British grimoires widely in the early 19th century was Robert Cross Smith, who released The Philosophical Merlin (1822) and The Astrologer of the Nineteenth Century (1825), but neither sold well.

In the late 19th century, several of these texts (including The Book of Abramelin and the Key of Solomon) were reclaimed by para-Masonic magical organisations, such as the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn and Ordo Templi Orientis.

Magic publications are books and periodicals which are created on the subject of magic. They include reviews of new equipment and techniques, announcements of upcoming events, interviews with prominent magicians, announcements of awards, and columns on such subjects as the history and ethics of the art of magic. Most also feature various explanations and ideas pertaining to magic tricks/effects. Additionally, you can commonly advertise for businesses and events with little charge.

Black magic has traditionally referred to the use of supernatural powers or magic for evil and selfish purposes.

The links and interaction between black magic and religion are many and varied. Beyond black magic's historical persecution by Christianity and its inquisitions, there are links between religious and black magic rituals. For

example, 17th-century priest Étienne Guibourg is said to have performed a series of Black Mass rituals with alleged witch Catherine Monvoisin for Madame de Montespan. During his period of scholarship, A. E. Waite provided a comprehensive account of black magic practices, rituals and traditions in The Book of Ceremonial Magic (1911).

The influence of popular culture has allowed other practices to be drawn in under the broad banner of black magic, including the concept of Satanism. While the invocation of demons or spirits is an accepted part of black magic, this practice is distinct from the worship or deification of such spiritual beings. The two are usually combined in medieval beliefs about witchcraft.