A decorative woodcut border at the top of the page consists of a horizontal row of ornate fleurons—stylized flower-shaped ornaments common in 17th-century printing.

TO THE READERS

PREFACE.

BEHOLD, candid readers, the work of Magic Porta refers here to "Natural Magic," which he defined as the peak of the natural sciences and the study of the hidden properties of things, rather than forbidden sorcery. now almost complete. If this work—published when I was a teenager barely fifteen years old, just emerging from boyhood—was received with such applause and eagerness that it was translated into many languages (namely Italian, French, Spanish, and Arabic) and printed so often in those places that it "flew through the hands and mouths" original: "per multorum manus & ora volitauerit," a classical idiom for being widely read and discussed. of many, now that it comes from a man of fifty years, I hope it will be received even more dearly and with greater praise. Indeed, when I saw the first fruits of my labor received so gratefully, moved by these favorable omens, I strove to ensure that this edition would be printed larger, richer, and more noble.

From that time it was first published (thirty-five years have passed since then), if any man has ever labored under a heavier burden of care to reveal the secrets of nature, I can plainly profess that I am he. With my whole heart and all my strength, I have turned through the monuments The surviving writings and historical records of our ancestors, and if they wrote anything secret or hidden, I have culled the best of it. Then, having traveled through Italy, France, and Spain, I visited libraries and all the most learned men. I also met with craftsmen Artifices: Porta was notable for valuing the practical knowledge of artisans and laborers alongside academic study. to learn if they had discovered anything new or curious, and to identify what they had proven to be most true and useful through long experience. Those cities and men whom I could not visit in person, I solicited with frequent letters, asking them to share copies of hidden books or any new discoveries they might have. I did not neglect pleas, gifts, exchanges, skill, or hard work. Consequently, in all this time, whatever was exceptional anywhere in the world...