A digital version of this book is available here Sample pages Since the publication of Amulets and Magic Bowls: Aramaic Incantations of Late Antiquity in 1985, several additional magic texts came to the attention of the authors. This volume comprises a new collection of seventeen Palestinian metal amulets, accompanied by 14 Babylonian incantations on earthenware bowls, and 21 magic texts from the Cairo Geniza. As in Amulets and Magic Bowls, all texts are presented with translations, commentaries and photographs. The amulets are also reproduced in facsimile drawings. The book contains an introduction which deals with the relationship between liturgy and magic, as well as medicine and magic. There is also a glossary and detailed indices.

It was a widespread practice in the area of Palestine, Syria and Asia Minor during the fourth to the seventh centuries of the current era to use talismans written on metal sheets in order to ward off the powers of evil, to heal people, or to gain the love of a person. The common Babylonian practice of the same period was to write incantation texts on earthenware bowls. This book contains the texts of all the legible amulets in Aramaic known today, as well as 13 hitherto unpublished bowls. The texts are proved with translations and commentaries, and a detailed glossary of all the words is given. The study of these incantations provides a glimpse into the religious feelings and practices of common people in the Talmudic period and enriches our knowledge of Palestinian and Babylonian Aramaic usage. This book contains a wealth of new material for the history of magic in the Near East, edited and interpreted with meticulous scholarship. Sample pages A digital version of this book is available here