Count Louis Hamon 'Cheiro' Palmistry For All, Second Edition c.1916
SOLD
Origin: English
Period: Early Twentieth Century
Provenance: Unknown
Date: c.1916, Second Edition
Length: 7 inches
Width: 4.5 inches
Pages: 180+, Published by Wyman & Sons, London
Condition: Some wear, binding firm in most places with occasional loose page. Some wear to edges and loose at base of spine. Slight tanning overall. Slightly bumped and creased corners.
With upwards of sixty illustrations, this second edition hardcover is a rare copy, though in average condition it remains a desirable book “appealing to all classes, and cause such an interest in the study of character that, instead of such an art being left in the hands of a few, it will, on the contrary, become universally used for the benefit of all”.
William John Warner, known as Cheiro, (November 1, 1866 - October 8, 1936) was an Irish astrologer and colorful occult figure of the early 20th century. His sobriquet, Cheiro, derives from the word cheiromancy, meaning palmistry. He was a self-described clairvoyant who taught palmistry, astrology, and Chaldean numerology. During his career, he was celebrated for using these forms of divination to make personal predictions for famous clients and to foresee world events.
Cheiro had a wide following of famous European and American clients during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He read palms and told the fortunes of famous celebrities like Mark Twain, W. T. Stead, Sarah Bernhardt, Mata Hari, Oscar Wilde, Grover Cleveland, Thomas Edison, the Prince of Wales, General Kitchener, William Ewart Gladstone, and Joseph Chamberlain. The book "Titanic's Last Secrets" includes a detailed account of one of Cheiro's palm readings with William Pirrie, chairman of Harland and Wolf, builders of the Titanic. Cheiro predicted that he would soon be in a fight for his life, talking about the battle surrounding the Titanic sinking. He also predicted the date of Queen Victoria's death, the year and month when King Edward VII would pass away, the grim destiny that awaited the late Czar of Russia, the assassination of King Humbert of Italy, the attempt on the Shah's life in Paris, and in thousands of well-known persons' lives he foretold with equal accuracy the outstanding events of their careers.
This is an atheistically beautiful and early copy of a fascinating book and an edition that is hard to obtain.
