Strange Texts · Manuscripts & Books

The Key of Solomon

A changing family of magical manuscripts attributed to the biblical King Solomon.

Page illustrating the Key of Solomon
Key of Solomon illustration; Wikimedia Commons

Early modern manuscript tradition · Ritual magic

Known in Latin as Clavicula Salomonis, the Key of Solomon survives in multiple forms rather than as one fixed ancient book. Manuscripts contain prayers, diagrams, ritual preparations, and instructions transmitted and revised over time. The Solomonic attribution conveys inherited authority; it is not evidence that the biblical king authored the surviving works.

A point of interest

Why names, diagrams, and manuscript variations matter when tracing a tradition.

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