The Starry Wisdom Library


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The Greatest Occult Book Auction of All Time

Scholars and book collectors across the country have long pondered the intended fate of the infamous collection of rare occult books left to rot in the Church of Starry Wisdom in Providence, Rhode Island, after the Starry Wisdom cult dispersed to parts unknown in the late 19th century.

The recent shocking discovery of a previously unknown book auction catalogue issued in 1877 offers insight into the myriad mysteries of the cult. Entitled Catalogue of the Occult Library of the Recently Disbanded Church of Starry Wisdom of Providence, Rhode Island, and issued by the notorious Arkham firm Pent & Serenade, the catalogue reveals the long-suspected fact that the church intended to sell its library to finance its removal from Providence. The sale, of course, never materialized, as later events make obvious, but the book auction catalogue informs us of the cult's original intent and leaves for us an enormously valuable and fascinating piece of ephemera detailing the infamous collection of rare occult books in all of its dark and foreboding glory.

Furthermore, the book auction catalogue is unique among its contemporaries in that the auction firm Pent & Serenade, recognizing the importance of the exceedingly rare volumes in the cult's possession, commissioned a wide variety of 19th-century scholars to write essays on the histories of the books offered at auction. As such, the catalogue is a uniquely, almost absurdly valuable item for scholars and collectors around the world and is presented here in exacting facsimile by PS Publishing, designed by the HPLHS' own Andrew Leman.

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ PS Publishing; First Edition (1 Dec. 2014)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 176 pages

Customer Reviews

Based on 11 reviews
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CMH
Outstanding Volume of Occult Ephemera

Sorry for the delay in Review - I've been on the road. This is one of those books that is difficult to put down once you have it in your sweaty palms. Filled with juicy (or maybe moldy) tidbits of occult lore, it is difficult to separate the flyspecks from the pepper as an acquaintance of mine would frequently advise me. Is it real, fiction, or a product of another place and time and from a forgotten or unknown reality. It has earned a place alongside my 1651 version of Agrippa's Occult Philosophy and several unnamed and undated Grimoire's in my personal library -- although I am concerned about keeping multiple works of this power in close proximity. Great job to all the collaborators!!

J
Jason Slaughter
Starry Wisdom

I love the whole "fiction as nonfiction" genre, where a fictional story is presented in a way that is nonlinear and doesn't follow the rules of standard narrative yet tells a rich and fantastic story regardless.

If you love that sort of storytelling, this book (and its companion/sequel, The Dagon Collection) is a must-have.

Reading it almost feels like playing some sort of immersive computer game, exploring this fictional world in the first person in the form of a richly detailed artifact from that world.

R
Robert Miller
Very cool

This is a unique and cool addition

T
T.
A fun read

As a bit of a book hound, this was right up my alley. I love stories of ancient and mysterious texts - even fictional ones. Overall, this is really well done. The catalogue entries are well thought out and entertaining. There are, however, a couple that don't quite measure up to the standard of the rest of the book and just leave you scratching your head. A worthwhile purchase.

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Philip Lebow
Entertaining reading about possible gatherings

I enjoyed this ad an adjunct to the HPL Canon. It helps the atmospheric reading of the stories by supposing what might happen if these items got out into the world..