Astrology. The Library of Esotericism

The art of astrology, from ancient science to modern practice

Since the beginning of human history, people of all cultures and belief systems have looked to the heavens for meaning. The movement of celestial bodies and their relationship to our human lives has been the main object of study in astrology for thousands of years. The practice has inspired awe and devotion, and has allowed us to deepen our own knowledge and that of the world around us.

While modern horoscopes may be the most familiar form of astrological knowledge, their lineage goes back to the ancient Babylonians, Egyptians and Greeks As author Andrea Richards recounts in Astrologythe second volume in the Library of Esotericism series, astronomy and astrology were sister sciences: the king's chamber of the Great Pyramid of Giza was built to be aligned with the constellations, Persian experts supervised some of the earliest observatories, and Galileo even made horoscopes for the Medici. But with the Enlightenment and the birth of the exact sciences, the practice moved into realms where mystery was still permitted, inspired literature, art and psychology, and influenced artists and thinkers such as Goethe, Byron and Blake. Later movements such as Theosophism and the New Age incorporated it into mass culture.

Edited by Jessica Hundleythis fascinating visual history of Western astrology is the first compendium of its kind. It explores the symbolic meaning in more than 400 images from around the world, from Egyptian temples and illuminated manuscripts to contemporary art. Works by artists ranging from Alphonse Mucha and Hilma af Klint to Arpita Singh and Manzel Bowman are sequenced to reflect the turning of the planets and the wheel of the zodiac. With a foreword by legendary astrologer Susan Miller and excerpts from new interviews with astrologers such as Robert Hand, Jessica Lanyadoo and Mecca Woods, Astrology celebrates the stars and their mysterious influence on our daily lives.