Magia Adamica

Name: Magia Adamica
Author: Thomas Vaughan

The Antiquity of Magic · With the Complete Coelum Terrae

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Magia AdamicaEgypt, Greece and the Transmission of the Art · Page 76 · Passage A

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Egypt, Greece and the Transmission of the Art · Page 76 · Passage A

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Original English

practice of that Age out of the same Theophrastus; For he mentions one Callias an Atheman, who indeavouring to make gold, brought his Materials into Cinnabar. It were an endles labour for me to recite all the Particulars, that Greece can affoord in order to my present Designe, I will Therefore close up all in this short Summarie. There is no wisdome in Nature, but what proceeded from God, for he made Nature, he first found out, and afterwards ordained the very wayes, and method how to corrupt, and how to generate. This his own wisdome and Knowledge, he communicated in some Measure to the first Man, from him his Children received it, and they taught it their postcritie; but the Jewes having the spiritual Birthright, This Mysterie was their Inheritance, and they possest it intirely, being the Annointed Nation, vpon whom God had powred forth his spirit. By Tradition of the Jewes, The AEgyptians came to be instructed, From the AEgyptians these secrets descended to the Graecians, and from the Graecians (as we all know) the Romanes received their Learning, and amongst other common Arts, this Magicall mysterious one; This is confirm'd by some proper, genuine Effects and Monuments thereof, namely that flexible malleable Glasse, produced in the

Modern English

practice of that age, reported by the same Theophrastus. He mentions Callias, an Athenian, who, attempting to make gold, turned his materials into cinnabar. Recounting everything Greece supplies for my present purpose would be endless labour. I shall close it all in this short summary. No wisdom exists in Nature except what proceeded from God. He made Nature; he first devised and then ordained the very ways and methods of corruption and generation. He communicated some measure of this wisdom and knowledge to the first human being, whose children received it from him and taught it to their descendants. The Jews, possessing the spiritual birthright, inherited this mystery and possessed it entirely: they were the anointed nation upon whom God had poured his Spirit. Through Jewish tradition the Egyptians were instructed; from them these secrets descended to the Greeks. From the Greeks, as we all know, the Romans received their learning and, among other common arts, this magical, mysterious one. Certain proper, genuine effects and monuments confirm this: namely, the flexible, malleable glass produced in

About This Reading Edition

Thomas Vaughan’s complete 1650 Magia Adamica publication, with all historical preliminaries and the complete appended Coelum Terrae, original and modern English, fresh translations of Latin, Greek and Hebrew, full poems, eight historical marginal notes, the complete recovered printed corrections, 312 annotations and the complete supplied Diotimos study apparatus.

Historical Text and Translation

Thomas Vaughan (Eugenius Philalethes), Magia Adamica: or The Antiquitie of Magic, with Coelum Terrae. London: T. W. for H. Blunden, 1650. Governing transcription: EEBO-TCP A64768.0001.001. The Getty Research Institute copy supplies surviving first-edition page images; the 1656 issue supplies explicitly disclosed missing or defective material. The complete shared 1650 errata are recovered from the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica copy of The Man-Mouse.

About Diotimos Editions

This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.

Rights

The historical text is public domain; the EEBO-TCP Phase I transcription is released under CC0. The supplied 2026 reading, translations and Diotimos editorial material are published with the site owner’s authorization.