The Hammer of Witches: A Complete Translation of the Malleus Maleficarum

by Christopher S. Mackay

Overview

The Malleus Maleficarum, first published in 1486–7, is the standard medieval text on witchcraft and it remained in print throughout the early modern period. Its descriptions of the evil acts of witches and the ways to exterminate them continue to contribute to our knowledge of early modern law, religion and society. Mackay’s highly acclaimed translation, based on his extensive research and detailed analysis of the Latin text, is the only complete English version available, and the most reliable. Now available in a single volume, this key text is at last accessible to students and scholars of medieval history and literature. With detailed explanatory notes and a guide to further reading, this volume offers a unique insight into the fifteenth-century mind and its sense of sin, punishment and retribution.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521747875
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	05/28/2009
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	664
Sales rank:	262,517
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Christopher S. Mackay is Professor in the Department of History and Classics at the University of Alberta.

Table of Contents

Introduction; The Hammer of Witches; Explanatory notes; Glossary.

Editorial Reviews

"Mackay has done a splendid job with the translation of this important work, and his commentary is a book in itself...provides useful information to both the general reader or undergraduate student and to graduate students or other scholars...sure to take its place among several recent and well-done translations of important demonological texts." —Jane P. Davidson, University of Nevada: Sixteenth Century Journal

"Overall, however, the effort and achievement in this volume are significant, allowing this important work to be accessed by a fab broader audience in a critical edition placed in its proper historical and intellectual context."
—Elizabeth Hyde, Kean University

From the Publisher