GRIMOIRE SILVANUS #6

TITLE - GRIMOIRE SILVANUS #6

GENRE - FOLKLORE/MAGIC/MYTH

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN - UNITED KINGDOM 

A5/64 PAGES/FULL COLOUR 

PRICE - £6.00 

AVAILABLE FROM THE GRIMOIRE SILVANUS WEBSITE.

"Grimoire Silvanus" is a folky zine in the same vein as "Hellebore", "Weird Walk" etc. This issue contains prose, poetry, artwork and photography, alongside articles on stone circles, ancient locations, recipes, herbal magic etc.

I confess to being a little late to the grim party, having only recently got around to picking up all the issues of "Grimoire Silvanus" (What can I say, I'm a completist), including a soon-to-be rare copy of issue one, which at time of writing, is sold out on the GS website. The welcome page offers a definition of "grimoire"-an instructional book of spells both good and bad to conjure up artefacts, talismans and demons; and a brief introduction to the ancient woodland deity and protector of the forests, Silvanus, who may predate even the Roman occupation. The creators hope that, by reading the zine, we will begin to see that the "wild places of the world are still out there, and that magic still exists". The zine does indeed seem steeped in the magic of nature and the land itself, with evocative imagery and an otherworldly feel throughout. Glancing through the previous five issues, it seems this is the usual Grimoire way, so it's all good. 

Silvy Torr takes a deep dive into the folklore of Elder tree, and Ginnever May shares two elderberry recipes, for syrup medicine and port. “Dead Leaves and Dust” by Pomona Resurgenta is a timely essay about how we must learn from the past to rescue and preserve the land for future generations, whilst Ioannes Kettelius’ piece “Hammers and Hellhounds” explores the power of thunderstorms along with a collection of ancient thunder-lore, from Thor to the Black Dog of Bungay!

“The Devil’s Bridge” is a jolly folktale by Hordeum Salix (which is true, honest) about the “clapper bridge” at Tarr Steps, allegedly the site where the Devil lost a swearing competition, and Jasminium Libani explores the folklore, etymology and nature of bluebells. Some lovely photography in this piece.

The articles are punctuated with two earthy, vivid poems: "Return to the Earth" by Josh Maybrook and “Hymn To Her” by Bella B. W. Bella also contributes “This Piece of Magic”, an esoteric study of the idea of “place” and the use of language to give solidity to objects, and how that relates to writing. “A Journey” is the regular feature, the Grimoire Silvanus mixtape, (available on Spotify), but extended to form a “guided meditation”, best undertaken whilst listening to the music.

We are also treated to an audience with representatives of Stone Club, (First rule of Stone Club? Tell everyone about Stone Club) which is an inclusive and fun organisation which is dotty about dolmens and crazy about cromlechs. They can be found on social media and at the Stone Club website, where there is more information, a space for clubbers to share their own stony adventures and merch aplenty. 

Grimoire completus...

"Grimoire Silvanus"' chosen zine-niche is a crowded one, but it retains its own individuality and deserves its spot on the folklore zines shelf. Production values are very good and the contributions are of a consistently high standard, and overall it is a calming, informative and non-confrontational read.