Books Magic, Witchcraft and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Sourcebook 2nd Edition by Daniel Ogden

"Magic, Witchcraft, and Ghosts in the Greek and Roman Worlds: A Sourcebook," second edition by Daniel Ogden, is a comprehensive collection of around three hundred texts from ancient Greece and Rome, translated and accompanied by brief commentaries that place them in cultural context.

The book's centerpiece is a detailed chapter on ghosts, followed by sections on necromancy, curses, erotic magic, magical devices like amulets and dolls, and discussions of magic's legal aspects. Ogden aims to provide an accessible yet scholarly resource for understanding the diverse practices and beliefs about magic and spirits in antiquity, making it suitable for students and general readers interested in ancient supernatural practices.

The sourcebook covers both literary sources—such as texts by Sophocles, Plato, and Virgil—and documentary evidence, including curse tablets, magical recipes, and inscriptions from amulets. Ogden's approach emphasizes the centrality of ghosts in ancient magic, although he also acknowledges the broad and varied spectrum of magical practices beyond necromancy and ghost-related rituals.