71. Dantalion: 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 71 of the Ars Goetia is Dantalion. The 1904 edition by S. L. MacGregor Mathers and Aleister Crowley calls him a duke ruling 36 legions, and the first office it gives him is this: Dantalion teaches all arts and sciences to anyone.

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 Dantalion 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: 71 of 72, in the 1904 order.
• Name and spellings: Dantalion in 1904; other spellings: Dantalian.
• Rank and legions: Duke, 36 legions.
• Metal of his rank (Observations): copper.
• Hours for dukes (Observations): “From Sunrise till Noonday in Clear Weather.”
• In Weyer’s catalog (1577): no. Dantalion is one of four Goetia spirits missing from Weyer; the others are Vassago, Seere and Andromalius.

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 Dantalion’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 Dantalion 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 Dantalion’s seal slowly by hand is also a good study exercise, because you notice lines and circles that the eye skips.

Appearance

Historical Dantalion appears “in the Form of a Man with many Countenances, all Men’s and Women’s Faces; and he hath a Book in his right hand.”

Offices in the Ars Goetia

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

• Teaches all arts and sciences to anyone.
• Declares the secret counsel of anyone, “for he knoweth the Thoughts of all Men and Women, and can change them at his Will.” Reported as history; not taught here.
• Can cause love. Reported as history; not taught here.
• Shows the likeness of any person by a vision, wherever in the world they are.

He governs 36 legions.

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 Dantalion does not appear in Weyer’s catalog or Scot’s translation.

Because Weyer’s 1577 catalog and Scot’s 1584 translation lack him, the 1904 text is the oldest printed source for this entry. More in Weyer and Scot.

Later tradition

Later tradition This spirit has no significant later tradition outside the grimoire sources.

Modern practice and pop culture

Modern Dantalion’s many faces and book have made him a popular figure in modern art and fiction. Some modern writers present him as a spirit of empathy and psychology. That is a modern reading of an entry about knowing and changing others’ thoughts.

Many modern claims about Dantalion, 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): Pisces, second decan (10 to 20 degrees); night spirit. 777 decan incense: “Coxium” (unidentified).
• Commonly reported color, incense, and plant (modern UPG; sources copy each other): Color green; incense sandalwood; plant honeysuckle.
• Associated symbols: Goetia image: a man with many faces, of men and women, holding a book in his right hand. 777 Magical Image: the same image. Modern Demonolatry/UPG: the seal, used as an altar image.
• Associated offerings: Modern practice, not in the Goetia manuscripts: most often listed, honeysuckle and sandalwood; one source adds a glass of water.

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

Dantalion has a broad teaching office, but his other offices, reading and changing others’ thoughts, causing love, and viewing distant people, all concern other people’s minds and privacy. I do not teach those offices, and I do not recommend Dantalion for a first contact.

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, Dantalion is not among the 31 spirits that fit.

To compare Dantalion with other spirits of his rank, read Amdusias and Haures. 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 Dantalion 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. Read the 1904 entry next to a spirit that is in Weyer, and notice how a text with no older source differs.
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.