Kabbalah · Anonymous · King Solomon (traditional attribution) · 19th c. · Central or Eastern Europe · Codex · Practical Kabbalah · Jewish Magic · Demonology · Illustrated

ספר חכמת שלמה — הנקרא ספיאנציאה סלומניס

Sefer Chochmat Shlomo (Sapientia Salomonis) — a practical occult manual of the kings of the demons

1849–1850 (5610) · The Library of The Jewish Theological Seminary — MS 1870

A Hebrew occult manual attributed to King Solomon — known by its Italian name Sapientia Salomonis ("The Wisdom of Solomon") — that catalogues the names of one hundred kings of the demons. For each king the manuscript lists the demons under his command and explains how each can be made to help a person, accompanied on the facing page by a color portrait of the king drawn by hand. Written in Central or Eastern Europe in 1849–1850 on parchment in square and semi-square Hebrew letters, with magical signs and kabbalistic glyphs throughout, the volume was clearly produced not as a curiosity but as a working manual — the four closing leaves on paper, written in a different Ashkenazic cursive hand, give further instructions in the proper deportment for actually using it. Bound in its original leather; 110 leaves total, 20 × 15.5 cm. Held at The Library of The Jewish Theological Seminary (MS 1870); digitized as part of the Dr. Georgette Bennett and Dr. Leonard Polonsky Digitization Project. A downloadable PDF facsimile is also available.