An abridgement of the notable woorke of Polidore Vergile conteignyng the deuisers and firste finders out as well of artes, ministeries, feactes & ciuill ordinaunces, as of rites, and ceremonies, commo[n]ly vsed in the churche: and the originall beginnyng of the same. Co[m]pendiously gathered by Thomas Langley

¶The .xviii. Chapiter. ¶The beginnyng of Magike. Driuyng out of spirites, Charmes, prophe∣siyng in sundry maners

MAGIKE had it begin∣nyng of medicine, & was the inuencion of Zoroa∣stres kyng of the Bactri¦ās,* 1.1 whiche reigned .viii.C. yere after the siege of Troy, the same tyme that Abraham and Ninus reigned, aboute thre M.C.lxxxv. ye∣res after the creacion of the worlde. Lactantius and Eusebius thynke it was set furth among other deuelishe sciences by the euil spirites, and Pli∣nie calleth it of al artes the moost de∣ceytful. It is compacte, of medicine or phisike, supersticion, and the ma∣thematical artes.* 1.2 The Thessaloniās most specially were slaundered with the frequent vse & practisyng of this facultie: The writer of this art was Hosthanes. And Pythagoras, Empe∣docles,* 1.3 Democritus, Plato w^t diuers other sayled in far coūtries to learne it: wherin Democritus was most fa∣mous CCC. yere after the cytee was builded, in whiche time Hippocrates published the facultie of Phisike. ¶The maner to dryue oute spirites out of men that were possessed with them,* 1.4 and charmes to heale corporal

maladies, kyng Salomon taught, as Iosephus witnesseth: and he sawe it doone by Eleazar in his tyme afore Vespasianus then emperour.* 1.5 The maner to heale them was suche: He put to the nose of the possessed man a ryng wherein was enclosed a roote that Salomon had shewed, & so dreue out the spirite, and straight way the man fel doune: then he coniured him with suche orisons ande••orcismes as were appointed by Salomon, to ba∣nishe the spirite out of y^e Demoniake

The sages or wyse men of Persye, whiche in theyr language bee named Magi,* 1.6 beyng wholy addict to the ho∣noryng of their false goddes, came to suche extreme folye, that they profes∣sed openly, that they could not onely by the obseruacion of y^e sterres know thynges to come, but also by other pretensed artes and mumblyng of a fewe woordes, they could do & bryng to passe auye thyng that they would. ¶Of them were inuented these sixe kyndes of Magike, Necromancye,* 1.7 whiche is by raisyng vppe of deade men, as in Lucane one raysed from

death, telleth the aduentures of the battaile of Pharsalus.

* 1.8Pyromantie, that telleth thynges by the fyre and lightnyng as Tana∣quilla the wyfe of Tarquinius Pris∣cus, prophesied that Seruius Tullius should be kyng of Rome because she se the fyre enuiron his head. The fin∣dyng of this Plinie referreth to Am∣phiaraus.

¶Aēromantie that is a kynd of pro∣pheciyng by the ayre, as by fliyng,* 1.9 fe¦dyng, singyng of byrdes and straūge tempestes of wynd & hayle. Hydro∣mantie, was propheciyng by water: as Varro writeth that a childe did se in the water the Image of Mercury, whiche in C. and fiftie verses told al the chaūce of warre against Mythri∣dates kyng of Pontus.

Geomantie, was a diuinacion by openyng of the yearth.* 1.10

* 1.11¶Chiromantie is a coniecturyng by beholdyng the lynes, or wryncles of the hādes called cōmonly Palmistry.

All whiche dayne illusions, & false persuasions, it becōmeth al true chri∣stiens to eschewe and abhorre.

Notes

• * 1.1

  zoroastres found Ma∣gike.
• * 1.2

  Thessaly v∣sed Magike.
• * 1.3

  Hostanes wrote bohes of Magike.
• * 1.4

  Driuyng out of spirites. Charmes.
• * 1.5

  Eleazar dri∣ueth out spi∣rites.
• * 1.6

  Magi.
• * 1.7

  Negromātie.
• * 1.8

  Pyromantie.
• * 1.9

  Aēromantie
• * 1.10

  Geomantie.
• * 1.11

  Chiromantie