1951 KABBALAH UNVEILED Mathers 6th Impression DJ Occult Zohar Golden Dawn For Sale

MATHERS, S. L. MacGregor. Kabbala Denudata: The Kabbalah Unveiled. Containing the Following Books of the Zohar: The Book of Concealed Mystery; The Greater Holy Assembly; The Lesser Holy Assembly. Translated into English from the Latin version of Knorr von Rosenroth and collated with the original Chaldee and Hebrew text. With a preface by M. MacGregor Mathers.

London: Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., 1951. Sixth Impression.

An especially attractive copy of S. L. MacGregor Mathers\'s influential English translation of selections from the Zohar, preserved in its original dust jacket and retaining the important diagrammatic and folding plates.

First published in 1887, The Kabbalah Unveiled became one of the principal English-language texts through which Kabbalistic ideas entered the modern Western occult and Hermetic traditions. Mathers translated the work from the Latin Kabbala Denudata of Christian Knorr von Rosenroth, while consulting the original Hebrew and Aramaic sources.

Mathers was one of the principal founders of the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, and his translations and occult writings exerted a considerable influence on the development of ceremonial magic, Hermeticism, and later twentieth-century esoteric thought.

The volume contains three major sections drawn from the Zoharic tradition:

I. The Book of Concealed Mystery
Siphra Dzeniouta

II. The Greater Holy Assembly
Idra Rabba Qadisha

III. The Lesser Holy Assembly
Idra Zuta Qadisha

The text treats such central Kabbalistic subjects as the Sephiroth, Ain Soph, divine emanation, the Divine Name, the structure of the spiritual worlds, and the symbolic relationships among the ten Sephiroth.

Of particular interest are the book\'s elaborate diagrams and folding tables, several of which became familiar to generations of readers of Hermetic and occult literature.

Among those present is the striking Plate II, “The Cloud-Veils of the Ain Formulating the Hidden Sephiroth and Concentrating in Kether, the First Sephira,” as well as the impressive multi-panel folding Plate IX, “Table Showing the Reception and Transmission of the Sephiroth in the Four Worlds.”

The latter unfolds to display the Sephiroth across the four Kabbalistic worlds of Atziluth, Briah, Yetzirah, and Assiah.

The title page states:

KABBALA DENUDATA

THE KABBALAH UNVEILED

SIXTH IMPRESSION

London:
Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd.
Broadway House, 68–74 Carter Lane, E.C.4
1951

This is therefore a clearly identifiable mid-century Routledge issue, rather than one of the numerous later modern reprints.

The original dust jacket is likewise explicitly marked “Sixth Impression.”

An important feature of this copy is the survival of the original publisher\'s dust jacket, printed in red on tan paper.

The front reproduces the full title and identifies Mathers as translator, while the spine reads:

THE KABBALAH UNVEILED
MATHERS
Sixth Impression
ROUTLEDGE & KEGAN PAUL

The rear panel advertises a selection of the publisher\'s contemporary books on “Mysticism and Occultism,” including works by D. Anrias, Cyril Scott, Princess Karadja, and others.

The jacket is now protected in a clear removable protector.

Publisher\'s dark blue cloth with blind-ruled borders to both boards and gilt lettering and rules to the spine.

The cloth remains notably clean and dark, with the gilt lettering still bright and attractive.

An original bookseller\'s label is present on the rear pastedown:

MACOY PUBLISHING & MASONIC SUPPLY CO.
35 West 32nd St.
New York 1, N.Y.

Macoy was a long-established American dealer and publisher specializing in Masonic, occult, and esoteric literature, making this a particularly appropriate piece of bookselling provenance for the volume.

There are also several old pencil notations to the upper corner of the front free endpaper, apparently including former price or inventory notations.

Near fine book in a very good to near fine original dust jacket.

The publisher\'s dark blue cloth remains exceptionally clean and well preserved, with bright gilt spine lettering and only very minor shelf wear. Corners remain sharp and the binding is sound.

The text block edges show light age toning and scattered spotting. Some foxing is present to the endpapers and occasionally internally, principally toward the preliminaries and margins.

Several old pencil notations appear at the upper corner of the front free endpaper. Original Macoy Publishing & Masonic Supply Co. label to rear pastedown.

The plates and folding diagrams are present and very well preserved. The large folding plate opens fully and remains an especially striking feature of the book.

The original dust jacket is unusually well preserved, with strong, clear red printing, only light general age toning, and minor wear at the spine ends and corners. It is substantially complete and presents very well. The shiny areas visible in some photographs are reflections from the clear protective jacket cover, not damage or staining to the dust jacket itself.

Please examine the photographs closely, as they form an important part of the condition description.

An unusually appealing mid-century copy of one of the foundational English-language works of Hermetic Kabbalah and modern Western occultism, retaining the original dust jacket, folding diagrams, and an appropriate early Macoy Masonic and occult bookseller\'s label.