Isis unveiled, Volume 2 (of 2), Theology

A series of twelve fac-simile engravings, after pictures by Gérome, Rosa Bonheur, Corot, Pierre Billet, Legros, Ch. Jacque, Veyrassat, Hébert, Jules Breton, etc., with Biographical Notices by René Ménard. Folio, tastefully bound in cloth, gilt, $10.00.

By René Ménard (Editor of “Gazette des Beaux-Arts”). Translated under the superintendence of Philip Gilbert Hamerton. Illustrated with a series of forty superb etchings, by Flameng, Coutry, Masson, Le Rat, Jacquemart, Chauvel, etc., the text beautifully printed by Claye, of Paris. Royal 4to, paper, uncut, $25.00. Half polished levant mor., gilt top, $30.00.

The Symbolical Language of Ancient Art and Mythology. An Inquiry. By Richard Payne Knight, author of “Worship of Priapus.” A new edition, with Introduction, Notes translated into English, and a new and complete Index. By Alexander Wilder, M.D. 1 vol. 8vo, cloth, handsomely printed, $3.00.

“Not only do these explanations afford a key to the religion and mythology of the ancients, but they also enable a more thorough understanding of the canons and principles of art. It is well known that the latter was closely allied to the other; so that the symbolism of which the religious emblems and furniture consisted likewise constituted the essentials of architectural style and decoration, textile embellishments, as well as the arts of sculpture, painting, and engraving. Mr. Knight has treated the subject with rare erudition and ingenuity, and with such success that the labor of those who come after him rather add to the results of his investigations than replace them in important particulars. The labors of Champollion, Bunsen, Layard, Bonomi, the Rawlinsons, and others, comprise his deductions so remarkably as to dissipate whatever of his assertions that appeared fanciful. Not only are the writings of Greek and Roman authors now more easy to comprehend, but additional light has been afforded to a correct understanding of the canon of the Holy Scripture.”—Extract from Editor’s Preface.

A Dissertation upon Worships, Legends, and Divinities in Central and Western Asia, Europe, and Elsewhere, before the Christian Era. Showing their Relations to Religious Customs as they now exist. By Thomas Inman, M.D., author of “Ancient Faiths Embodied in Ancient Names,” etc., etc. 1 vol. 8vo, cloth, $5.00.

This work is most aptly expressed by the title, and the author, who is one of our most learned and accomplished modern writers, has done ample justice to his subject. He pries boldly into Bluebeard’s closet, little recking whether he shall find a ghost, skeleton, or a living being; and he tells us very bluntly and explicitly what he has witnessed. Several years since he gave to the learned world his treatise on Ancient Faiths Embodied in Ancient Names, in which were disclosed the ideas underlying the old-world religions, and the nature of hieroglyphical symbols employed in the East. The present volume complements that work, elaborates more perfectly the ideas there set forth, and traces their relations to the faiths, worship, and religious dogmas of modern time. We are astonished to find resemblances where it would be supposed that none would exist, betraying either a similar origin or analogous modes of thinking and reasoning among nations and peoples widely apart in race, country, and period of history. The author is bold and often strong in his expressions, from the intensity of his convictions, but this serves to deepen the interest in his subject.

Those who have read his former works with advantage will greet this volume with a cordial welcome; and all who desire to understand the original religions of mankind, the ideas which lie back of the revelations of Holy Scripture, and particularly, those who are not easily shocked when they come in contact with sentiments with which they have not been familiar, will find this book full of entertainment as well as of instruction. Dr. Inman is working up a new mine of thought, and the lover of knowledge will give his labor a welcome which few of our modern authors receive.

Embodied in Ancient Names; or, an Attempt to trace the Religious Belief, Sacred Rites, and Holy Emblems of certain Nations, by an Interpretation of the Names given to Children by Priestly Authority, or assumed by Prophets, Kings, and Hierarchs. By Thomas Inman, M.D. Profusely illustrated with Engravings on Wood. 2 vols., 8vo, cloth, $20.00.

“Dr. Inman’s present attempt to trace the religious belief, sacred rites, and holy emblems of certain nations, has opened up to him many hitherto unexplored fields of research, or, at least, fields that have not been over-cultivated, and the result is a most curious and miscellaneous harvest of facts. The ideas on priapism developed in a former volume receive further extension in this. Dr. Inman, as will be seen, does not fear to touch subjects usually considered sacred in an independent manner, and some of the results at which he has arrived are such as will undoubtedly startle, if not shock, the orthodox. But this is what the author expects, and for this he has thoroughly prepared himself. In illustration of his peculiar views he has ransacked a vast variety of historical storehouses, and with great trouble and at a considerable cost, he places the conclusions at which he has arrived before the world. With the arguments employed, the majority of readers will, we expect, disagree; even when the facts adduced will remain undisputed, their application is frequently inconsequent. In showing the absurdity of a narrative or an event in which he disbelieves, the Doctor is powerful. No expense has been spared on the work, which is well and fully illustrated, and contains a good index.”—Bookseller.

Influence of the Phallic Idea in the Religions of Antiquity. By Hodder M. Westropp and C. Staniland Wake. With an Introduction, additional Notes, and Appendix, by Alexander Wilder, M.D. New Edition, with eleven full-page Illustrations. 1 vol. 8vo, cloth, $3.00.

The favor with which this treatise has been received has induced the publisher to bring out a new edition. It makes a valuable addition to our knowledge, enabling us to acquire a more accurate perception of the ancient-world religions. We may now understand Phallism, not as a subject of ribaldry and leering pruriency, but as a matter of veneration and respect. The Biblical student, desirous to understand the nature and character of the idolatry of the Israelites during the Commonwealth and Monarchy, the missionary to heathen lands fitting for his work, and the classic scholar endeavoring to comprehend the ideas and principles which underlie Mythology, will find their curiosity gratified; and they will be enabled at the same time to perceive how not only many of our modern systems of religion, but our arts and architecture, are to be traced to the same archaic source. The books examined and quoted by the authors constitute a library by themselves, and their writers are among the ripest scholars of their time. Science is rending asunder the veil that conceals the adytum of every temple, and revealing to men the sanctities revered so confidingly during the world’s childhood. With these disclosures, there may be somewhat of the awe removed with which we have regarded the symbols, mysteries, and usages of that period; but the true mind will not be vulgarized by the spectacle.

A Dissertation, by Thomas Taylor, Translator of “Plato,” “Plotinus,” “Porphyry,” “Iamblichus,” “Proclus,” “Aristotle,” etc., etc. Third edition. Edited, with Introduction, Notes, Emendations, and Glossary, by Alexander Wilder, M.D. 1 vol. 8vo, cloth, $3.00.

In the Mysteries, the dramas acted at Eleusis and other sacred places, were embodied the deeper thoughts and religious sentiment of the archaic world. The men and women initiated into them were believed to be thenceforth under special care of God, for this life and the future. So holy and interior were the doctrines considered which had been learned in the Sanctuary from the two tablets of stone, that it was not lawful to utter them to another. What was seen and learned elsewhere might be admirable; but the exercises of Eleusis and Olympia had in them the something divine, and those who observed them were “the children of God,” and imaging Him in wisdom, intuitive discernment, and love.

Being fac-simile reprints of the entire text of each author, without note or comment, with Life and Memoir. Handsomely printed on ribbed paper, made expressly for the purpose, and bound in antique boards, uncut edges, in exact imitation of the rare originals.