The Last Alchemist: Count Cagliostro, Master of Magic in the Age of Reason

McCalman, Iain

ISBN 10: 0060006900 / ISBN 13: 9780060006907

Published by HarperCollins Publishers, New York, 2003

About this Item

xii, 272p. Illustrations. Notes. In this biography of the 18th-century occultist, a scholar provides the historical facts as well as the controversy. Cagliostro was well-known across Europe, and knew the rich, famous, and powerful, such as Catherine the Great. He elicited strong reactions from others, including the Church, which had him imprisoned. Was he a total fake? Professor McAlman here explores Cagliostro's ideas of freemasonry and of healing, which seem to prefigure the New Age thought in modern times. Very good in very good dust jacket. Signed by author. Inscription belived to be signed "Iain". First edition. Stated. First printing [stated].

Seller Inventory # 61738

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Last Alchemist: Count Cagliostro, Master of Magic in the Age of Reason
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers, New York
• Publication Date: 2003
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0060006900
• ISBN 13: 9780060006907
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

A portrait of the influential freemason leader notes his influence on the works of major eighteen-century artists and his notoriety in royal circles, citing his alleged theft of Marie Antoinette's diamond necklace and his arrest by the Inquisition for heresy.

Review

"Engagingly told .the stories fly as quickly and colorfully as scarves from a magician's sleeve." -- Sacramento Bee

"A rip-roaring biography." -- Providence Journal-Bulletin

" [A] fascinating biography . recounts the astounding adventures of [a man] both revered and reviled by ... eighteenth-century celebrities." -- Booklist

"Iain McCalman writes history which has the teasing, exciting psychological ambiguity of the best fiction."--Peter Conrad, author of MODERN TIMES, MODERN PLACES

"Perceptive, intelligent and -- by no means least -- immensely entertaining"--Washington Post

"Gracefully weaves in the politics and passions of the age....Cagliostro is [an] extraordinary figure."--New York Times

"[A] fascinating life.... Smoothly written, deeply researched, and persuasively argued."--Peter Gay, author of FREUD

"[A] rich, fantastic, devilishly romantic book ... utterly absorbing ... a charming puzzle from beginning to end."--Simon Winchester, author of KRAKATOA

"A lively bio [that] opens the files on a fascinating character--a con man for the ages."--Kirkus Reviews

"An enlightening account of the career of one of the most famous charlatans of the 18th century."--Publishers Weekly