The Revelation of the Corpse

Abstract

The practice of necromancy is attested both in literature (since Homer) and in ‘technical’ sources, such as the Greek magical papyri. The actual reanimation of a dead body, however, occurs rather rarely. The only instances in literature appear in Lucan (VI book), in Apuleius’ Metamorphoses, and in Heliodorus’ novel. Though differing in many ways, these three necromancies exhibit several common features.