29. Astaroth: a duke of the Ars Goetia

How to read the labels Historical what the old sources say. Later tradition what later writers added. Modern modern practice and my own notes.

Spirit 29 of the Ars Goetia is Astaroth. The 1904 edition by S. L. MacGregor Mathers and Aleister Crowley calls him a duke ruling 40 legions, and the first office it gives him is this: Astaroth gives true answers of things past, present, and to come.

I read his entry in layers. The old texts come first, later additions second and modern practice last, and every part carries a label so the layers never blur.

If you came here wondering whether Astaroth suits a beginner, the short answer is in the Practical notes below: he does not meet the three beginner criteria I use, and I explain why.

At a glance

Historical These are the facts of the entry itself, from the 1904 text and its Observations.

• Number: 29 of 72, in the 1904 order.
• Name and spellings: Astaroth in 1904; other spellings: Ashtaroth, Astarot.
• Rank and legions: Duke, 40 legions.
• Metal of his rank (Observations): copper.
• Hours for dukes (Observations): “From Sunrise till Noonday in Clear Weather.”
• In Weyer’s catalog (1577): yes, as the source comparison below shows.

The Observations also say to work only when the Moon is 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 or 14 days old. These rules show how the Goetia imagined its spirits, as officials with office hours. You do not need them to read the entry, and the facts table above gives the short version.

The seal (1904)

Historical The seal shown above is Astaroth’s seal as printed in the 1904 edition, in a faithful vector drawing of that public-domain printing. The Observations ask for each seal to be made in the metal of the spirit’s rank, which for Astaroth means copper. In the text’s world the seal identifies the spirit and protects the magician; several entries say it is worn on the breast as a lamen.

No two editions draw every seal the same way. The 1904 seals reflect Mathers’s reading of the manuscripts, and many modern versions online are copies of copies. If you compare, keep track of where each drawing comes from.

Modern Looking at a seal does nothing on its own; it is a drawing in an old book. Modern practitioners almost always draw seals on paper rather than casting them in metal. Copying Astaroth’s seal slowly by hand is also a good study exercise, because you notice lines and circles that the eye skips.

Appearance

Historical Astaroth appears “in the Form of an hurtful Angel riding on an Infernal Beast like a Dragon, and carrying in his right hand a Viper.” The text warns: “Thou must in no wise let him approach too near unto thee, lest he do thee damage by his Noisome Breath.” The magician must hold the magical ring near his face for protection.

Offices in the Ars Goetia

Historical These are all the offices the 1904 text gives him, in the order it gives them.

• Gives true answers of things past, present, and to come.
• Can discover all secrets.
• Will declare “wittingly how the Spirits fell, if desired, and the reason of his own fall.” Reported as history; not taught here.
• Can make men “wonderfully knowing in all Liberal Sciences.”

He rules 40 legions. His seal must be worn “or else he will not appear nor yet obey thee.”

Offices of harm or compulsion are part of the historical record, and reporting them is not endorsing them. For how offices work across the 72, see ranks and offices.

Source comparison: Weyer and Scot

Historical In Scot’s English, Weyer gives Astaroth as “a great and a strong duke, comming foorth in the shape of a fowle angell, sitting upon an infernall dragon, and carrieng on his right hand a viper.” Weyer has “foul,” the Goetia “hurtful.” Weyer adds that Astaroth “saith he fell not of his owne accord.” Both give 40 legions.

Weyer’s catalog appeared in 1577 and Reginald Scot translated it into English in 1584. Comparing the two with the 1904 text shows how much the Goetia owes to them, and where it changed or added things. More in Weyer and Scot.

Later tradition

Later tradition The name comes from Ashtoreth, the Hebrew Bible’s form of Astarte, a major goddess of the ancient Levant. The plural form Ashtaroth appears in the Bible for her images or for goddesses in general. In Christian demonology, the goddess became a male demon.

In the Grand Grimoire (eighteenth century) and related texts, Astaroth is one of the three chief spirits of hell, with Lucifer and Beelzebub. Collin de Plancy shows Astaroth as a nude figure with wings and a crown, riding a dragon and holding a serpent.

Modern practice and pop culture

Modern Some modern practitioners, especially in devotional and Pagan circles, reconnect Astaroth with Astarte and approach the spirit as female. That reconnection is modern.

Many modern claims about Astaroth, such as his personality, his likes and dislikes, or the idea that he chooses certain people, appear in no grimoire. They grew in modern books and online. You can read them with interest, and you can also leave them aside.

Beginner’s quick reference

Each line below is labeled by layer, so you can see how old each piece is.

• Rank metal and hours (Goetia): Duke: copper; sunrise to noon, in clear weather.
• Planet (later tradition: Golden Dawn and Crowley’s 777): Venus.
• Decan and day or night spirit (later tradition: 777): Capricorn, second decan (10 to 20 degrees); day spirit. 777 decan incense: “Colophonum.”
• Commonly reported color, incense, and plant (modern UPG; sources copy each other): Color green; incense sandalwood; plant laurel (toxic to cats).
• Associated symbols: Goetia image: a hurtful angel riding a dragon-like beast, a viper in his right hand; a noisome breath. 777 Magical Image: the same image. Le Breton engraving (1863): a winged figure holding a serpent, riding a beast. Modern Demonolatry/UPG: the seal, used as an altar image.
• Associated offerings: Modern practice, not in the Goetia manuscripts: most often listed, sandalwood and bay laurel (toxic to cats: an unlit stick of sandalwood is a safe swap).

Incense means smoke. If you burn any, use a stick or cone with a window open, no charcoal indoors, and none at all in a home with pet birds or anyone with asthma. A plant listed here is a correspondence, not something to eat or burn, and a plant without a warning is not automatically safe. Modern offering lists copy one another, so “most often listed” means widely copied, not confirmed. Water, light, time or a note of thanks is always enough.

Practical notes

Astaroth is a duke with a teaching office, the liberal sciences, and an office of explaining the fall of the angels. But the text treats him as dangerous to approach, with special protections. Not a choice for a first contact under the beginner criteria. His history is one of the richest in the Directory and well worth study.

The beginner criteria I use have three parts: the spirit is not a king, at least one office is teaching, and the entry does not center on harm, deception or compulsion. In the directory, Astaroth is not among the 31 spirits that fit.

To compare Astaroth with other spirits of his rank, read Berith and Bune. Dukes are the largest group in the Goetia. The 1904 Classified List counts 23 of them, and their offices range from teaching languages to causing storms. A duke sits below kings and princes in the court the text imagines, and in the Observations dukes have the shortest hours: from sunrise to noon, in clear weather.

How to study this entry

If Astaroth interests you, start with study. These steps work for any of the 72.

1. Read the offices above in order and write each one in your own words.
2. Compare the 1904 wording with Scot’s English in The Discoverie of Witchcraft (Book 15, chapter 2), which is free to read online.
3. Copy the seal by hand, slowly, and note anything you missed at first glance.
4. Keep a two-column log: what the text says on the left, and what you have read online or feel about it on the right.

Then go back to all 72 spirits and read a neighbor or two. The entries make more sense side by side than alone.