Magus

Anthony Grafton

At the heart of the extraordinary ferment of the High Renaissance stood a distinctive, strange and beguiling figure: the magus. An unstable mix of scientist, bibliophile, engineer, fabulist and fraud, the magus ushered in modern physics and chemistry while also working on everything from secret codes to siege engines to magic tricks. Anthony Grafton's wonderfully original book discusses the careers of men who somehow managed to be both figures of startling genius and - by some measures - credulous or worse. The historical Faust, Marsilio Ficino, Pico della Mirandola, Johannes Trithemius and Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa are all fascinating characters, closely linked to monarchs, artists and soldiers and sitting at the heart of any definition of why the Renaissance was a time of such restless innovation.

Author(s): Grafton, Anthony
Binding: Paperback
Date of Publication: 02/01/2025
Pagination: 304 pages
Series: N/A
Imprint: Penguin Books
Published By: Penguin Books
Book Classification: European history: Renaissance|Early 16th century c 1500 to c 1550|Social & cultural history|History of science
Dimensions: 198x128x18
Weight: 223
ISBN13\EAN\SKU: 9780140276916