From the wise and mysterious soothsayer with his long grey beard to the
deathless necromancer practicing his dark magics in a forgotten dungeon,
wizards have captured our imaginations since the earliest days of human
storytelling, presenting us with some of our greatest heroes and
villains. This book collects the tales of the most interesting, popular,
and important spell-casters from history, including such legendary
figures as Merlin, Simon Magus, Hermes Trismegistus, Koschei the
Deathless, Nicholas Flamel, Dr John Dee, and Johann Georg Faust. Written
to appeal to the modern reader, each tale captures the drama, the
tragedy, and the wonderment that has ensured that these stories have
survived the passing centuries. Each story is also examined in its
historical, mythological, and thaumaturgical contexts.