Papus

Traité Méthodique de Science Occulte, 1891.

Publisher: Paris: Georges Carré, Éditeur, 1891 [9.5 x 6.5 inches] (3), [XXXVI], 1092pp., (2).

[French] Very Good

Papus’ Traité Méthodique de Science Occulte is one of the major works of the late nineteenth-century French occult revival and attempts to present occult philosophy as a structured system rather than mere superstition. Drawing from Hermetic philosophy, Kabbalah, and other ancient mystical traditions, Papus argues that occultism preserves fragments of earlier systems of knowledge that once connected philosophy, science, and metaphysics before modern disciplines separated these fields. Written at the height of the Parisian occult revival, the work reflects Papus’ effort to place esoteric studies within a broader intellectual tradition reaching from antiquity into the modern era.

The book opens with a preface by the philosopher Adolphe Franck, historian of Jewish mysticism and member of the Institute, who approaches the subject from a philosophical perspective while expressing skepticism about the idea of an “occult science.” Papus responds by presenting occult study as a way of exploring hidden patterns and relationships within nature and the human mind.

Rebound in dark brown cloth with gilt titles to the spine, illustrated throughout with numerous in-text illustrations and two plates. The original printed soft covers are bound into the volume, thus preserved.

It is in Very Good condition. The binding shows minor shelf wear with lightly bumped corners but remains clean and solid. The original soft covers show foxing and toning. The text block has light toning mostly at the margins. Pencil notes and lines appear throughout the text, indicating it was used as a working copy. Pages 813 through 824 have tears at the top edges, some fairly large, though all text remains intact and readable.