Crystal-Gazing (Collector’s Library of the Unknown), by Theodore Besterman

Crystal-Gazing (Collector’s Library of the Unknown), by Theodore Besterman. 1993 hardcover, silver gilt pages & silk bookmark. 183 pages, very nice condition.

Perhaps the first comprehensive exploration of the ancient art of crystal gazing ever written-and still considered the best. This intriguing volume, originally published in 1924, spans the history of civilization, from Greece and Rome to modern Europe to aboriginal Australia, to gather fascinating commonalities in the global practice of "scrying." Besterman, a student of the paranormal, discusses: scrying in legend and tradition, scrying in literature, the procedures of scrying, related phenomena: automatic writing, hauntings, and multiple personalities, why scrying works, and more.

British bibliographer, and editor Theodore Besterman (1904-1976) is remembered chiefly as a scholar of the philosopher Voltaire, though his interests ranged from anthropology to the paranormal. His many books also include Annie Besant: A Modern Prophet and Divining Rod: An Experimental and Psychological Investigation. TIME/LIFE’s Collector’s Library of the Unknown series reprinted classic, important, and essential reference books from the occult/paranormal realm.