Exhibition Themes > Theology & Religion > 136. Magical prayers and images
136. Collection of magical prayers and "images". Manuscript on parchment, 191 leaves, early 20th century. Burke Library at Union Theological Seminary, Ethiopic MS 5
This collection of Ethiopian magical prayers includes those that can be used against demons for each day of the week, and prayers for overcoming enemies. It also includes "images," an "image" being a hymn in honor of a saint in which the different members of his or her body are addressed in successive stages. The book is bound in wooden boards covered in reddish tooled leather in which crosses have been worked. The leather carrying case was used to facilitate easy and safe transport. The manuscript's elegant script is enhanced by two kinds of decoration: abstract, linear motifs that highlight textual transitions and figural representations. This is a fine example of an African-Christian culture to which the African-American community has, from earliest days, looked as a source and model.
