The Devil's Doctor

Paracelsus and the World of Renaissance Magic and Science

Philip Ball

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English

Arrow
01 June 2007

Biography: general; Non-Western philosophy; Magic, alchemy & hermetic thought; Mathematics & Sciences

The first 'life and times' in over forty years of one of the most fascinating figures of scientific history, by the winner of the 2005 Aventis Science Book Prize.

Brings to life the ferment of post-Reformation Europe, in the spirit of Frances Stonor Saunders' Hawkwood.

Philip Theophrastus Aureolus Bombastus von Hohenheim - known to later ages as Paracelsus - stands on the borderline between medieval and modern; a name that is familiar but a man who has been hard to perceive or understand. Contemporary of Luther, enemy of established medicine, scourge of the universities ('at all the German schools you cannot learn as much as at the Frankfurt Fair'), army surgeon and alchemist, myths about him - from his treating diseases from beyond the grave in mid-nineteenth century Salzburg to his Faustian bargain with the devil to regain his youth - have been far more lasting than his actual story. Even during his lifetime, he was rumoured to travel with a magical white horse and to store the elixir of life in the pommel of his sword.

But who was Paracelsus and what did he really believe and practice? Although Paracelsus has been seen as both a charlatan and as a founder of modern science, Philip Ball's book reveals a more richly complex man - who used his eyes and ears to learn from nature how to heal, and who wrote influential books on medicine, surgery, alchemy and theology while living a drunken, combative, vagabond life. Above all, Ball reveals a man who was a product of his time - an age of great change in which the church was divided and the classics were rediscovered - and whose bringing together of the seemingly diverse disciplines of alchemy and biology signalled the beginning of the age of rationalism.

By: Philip Ball
Imprint: Arrow
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 129mm, Spine: 27mm
Weight: 309g
ISBN: 9780099457879
ISBN 10: 0099457873
Pages: 448
Publication Date: 01 June 2007
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Formerly on the staff of Nature, Philip Ball is now a full-time writer. He lives in London. His books include Critical Mass, winner of the Aventis Prize for Science Books, H20 and Bright Earth. He lives in London.

Reviews for The Devil's Doctor: Paracelsus and the World of Renaissance Magic and Science

Praise for Critical Mass: 'This is a wide-ranging and dazzlingly informed book. I can promise you'll be amazed.' Bill Bryson * Daily Express * [A] wonderfully rich biography... Inspiring and important.' * Guardian * 'This biography is a study of a culture as well as of a man, and in analysing the life and thought of Paracelsus, Ball brings to light a largely forgotten phase of human understanding. It is a considerable achievement.' Peter Ackroyd * The Times * Stirring and fascinating reading... This is a remarkable piece of work, entertaining and edifying in a way in which so few biographies are. Niall Griffiths * Telegraph * Praise for The Devil's Doctor Brilliant... This prodigiously learned volume can only reinforce Ball's reputation as one of our most versatile and gripping science writers. John Carey * Sunday Times *