In a slightly later copy made by Thomas Rudd (1583?–1656), this portion was labelled Liber Malorum Spirituum seu Goetia, and the seals and demons were paired with those of the 72 angels of the Shem HaMephorash which were intended to protect the conjurer and to control the demons he summoned. Weyer's Officium Spirituum, which is likely related to a 1583 manuscript titled The Office of Spirits, appears to have ultimately been an elaboration on a 15th-century manuscript titled Livre des Esperitz (30 of the 47 spirits are nearly identical to spirits in the Ars Goetia). Additionally, some material came from Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa's Three Books of Occult Philosophy, the Heptameron by pseudo-Pietro d'Abano, and the Magical Calendar. Indeed, it appears that the Ars Goetia is more dependent upon Scott's translation of Weyer than on Weyer's work in itself. The omission of Pruflas, a mistake that also occurs in an edition of Pseudomonarchia Daemonum cited in Reginald Scot's The Discovery of Witchcraft, indicates that the Ars Goetia could not have been compiled before 1570. The order of the spirits changed between the two, four additional spirits were added to the later work, and one spirit ( Pruflas) was omitted. Weyer does not cite, and is unaware of, any other books in the Lemegeton, suggesting that the Lemegeton was derived from his work, not the other way around. The most obvious source for the Ars Goetia is Johann Weyer's Pseudomonarchia Daemonum in his De praestigiis daemonum.

Goetia is unfortunate, by the commerces of unclean spirits made up of the rites of wicked curiosities, unlawful charms, and deprecations, and is abandoned and execrated by all laws.' Sources Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, in his Three Books of Occult Philosophy, writes 'Now the parts of ceremonial magic are goetia and theurgia. In medieval and Renaissance Europe, goetia was generally considered evil and heretical, in contrast to theurgia ( theurgy) and magia naturalis ( natural magic), which were sometimes considered more noble. It is derived from the Ancient Greek word γοητεία ( goēteía) meaning 'charm', ' witchcraft', or 'jugglery'. The Latin term goetia refers to the evocation of demons or evil spirits. Waite, in his 1898 Book of Black Magic and of Pacts does use the terms 'so-called Greater Key' and 'Lesser Key' to distinguish between the Clavicula Salomonis and Lemegeton, so he may have been the first one to coin it. The title most commonly used, The Lesser Key of Solomon, does not in fact occur in the manuscripts. The text is more properly called Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis, or, The little Key of Solomon. It is based on the Testament of Solomon and the ring mentioned within it that he used to seal demons.Īrs Goetia The magical circle and triangle, magical objects/symbols used in the evocation of the seventy-two spirits of the Ars Goetia The Secret Seal of Solomon Etymology It is divided into five books: the Ars Goetia, Ars Theurgia-Goetia, Ars Paulina, Ars Almadel, and Ars Notoria. It was compiled in the mid-17th century, mostly from materials several centuries older. The Lesser Key of Solomon, also known as Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis or simply Lemegeton, is an anonymously authored grimoire on sorcery. For other uses, see Key of Solomon (disambiguation).

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