Born 1980; studied Classics and Egyptology; 2012 PhD; since 2017 post-doc researcher at the department of Classical Philology at the University of Heidelberg.
Born 1953; 1979 PhD; since 2003 Associate Professor of Classics, University of Heidelberg; Senior Research Fellow of the Institute of Classical Studies (School of Advanced Studies), London.

Born 1984; studied Egyptology and Classical Archaeology; 2015 PhD; since 2017 post-doc researcher at the Institute of Egyptology at the University of Heidelberg.

Geboren 1966; Studium von Ägyptologie, Semitistik, Biblischer Archäologie, Altorientalistik und Vor- und Frühgeschichte in Tübingen und Paris; 1990 Magister, 1993 Dr. phil., 2003 Habilitation an der FU Berlin; seit 2005 Professor für Ägyptologie an der Universität Heidelberg.

A conference held in Heidelberg in 2014 resulted in this collection of essays, which explore the multifaceted aspects of magical texts and practices in antiquity, focusing especially on the Graeco-Egyptian magical papyri. The volume concentrates on questions of cultural plurality and fusion, ranging from earlier Egyptian, Mesopotamian and Greek magico-religious traditions, through the original developments of Graeco-Roman Egypt, up to and including their integration into Jewish and Byzantine magical lore. In particular, phenomena such as simple borrowing, advanced adaptation, complete assimilation or even distortion of origin and meaning stress the importance of disentangling different cultural elements and understanding their interaction. Going beyond the borders of academic fields, this book aims at giving to the transcultural perspective the importance it deserves in the study of ancient magic.