Description
Simon Forman (1552-1611) is one of London's most infamous astrologers. He stood apart from the medical elite because he was not formally educated and because he represented, and boldly asserted, medical ideas that were antithetical to those held by most learned physicians. He survived the plague, was consulted thousands of times a year for medical and other questions, distilled strong waters made from beer, herbs, and sometimes chemical ingredients, pursued the philosopher's stone in experiments and ancient texts, and when he was fortunate spoke with angels. He wrote compulsively, documenting his life and protesting his expertise in thousands of pages of notes and treatises. This highly readable book provides the first full account of Forman's papers, makes sense of his notorious reputation, and vividly recovers the world of medicine and magic in Elizabethan London.
Reviews
Kassell has succeeded in transcending Forman's eccentricities and reconstructing an image of the astrologer-physician of Lambeth worthy of consideration alongside renowned contemporaries like John Dee and William Lilly * Celeste Chamberland, Magic, Ritual and Witchcraft *
The second, and best, book on Simon Forman to appear recently...its great strength is that it takes us through all the different aspects of Forman's work...and the mind of an uneducated but remarkable thinker * John Henry, EHR *
Kassell's close study of Forman's writings, sensitivity to context, and wide familiarity with his sources and contemporaries has paid dividends with a rich sense of Forman's person and activities, and their relation to the world. * Nicholas Clulee, Renaissance Quarterly *
Kassell has an unrivaled knowledge of this voluminous archieve, and her ability to disentangle its complexities, trace themes and make intelligent, perceptive judgements...has resulted in an excellent study. * P.G. Maxwell-Stuart, Social history of Medicine *
This book offers new insights into the magical melieu of Elizabethan London. * Michael Hunter, History *
a delight to read...This is an exceptional study, absorbing and solidly grounded. * THES *
Awards
Winner of Shortlisted for The Whitfield Book Prize.
Book Information
ISBN 9780199215270
Author Lauren Kassell
Format Paperback
Page Count 300
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 443g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 155mm * 15mm
Reviews
Kassell has succeeded in transcending Forman's eccentricities and reconstructing an image of the astrologer-physician of Lambeth worthy of consideration alongside renowned contemporaries like John Dee and William Lilly * Celeste Chamberland, Magic, Ritual and Witchcraft *
The second, and best, book on Simon Forman to appear recently...its great strength is that it takes us through all the different aspects of Forman's work...and the mind of an uneducated but remarkable thinker * John Henry, EHR *
Kassell's close study of Forman's writings, sensitivity to context, and wide familiarity with his sources and contemporaries has paid dividends with a rich sense of Forman's person and activities, and their relation to the world. * Nicholas Clulee, Renaissance Quarterly *
Kassell has an unrivaled knowledge of this voluminous archieve, and her ability to disentangle its complexities, trace themes and make intelligent, perceptive judgements...has resulted in an excellent study. * P.G. Maxwell-Stuart, Social history of Medicine *
This book offers new insights into the magical melieu of Elizabethan London. * Michael Hunter, History *
a delight to read...This is an exceptional study, absorbing and solidly grounded. * THES *
Awards
Winner of Shortlisted for The Whitfield Book Prize.
Book Information
ISBN 9780199215270
Author Lauren Kassell
Format Paperback
Page Count 300
Imprint Oxford University Press
Publisher Oxford University Press
Weight(grams) 443g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 155mm * 15mm
