This month commemorates the 400th anniversary of Simon Forman's death. I didn't realise this until a few hours ago when, purely co-incidentally, I was finishing off a little extract from his casenotes (transcribed by Kim Farnell) and looked around for some good external links to offer for further reference.

The Skyscript horary extract is here:
http://www.skyscript.co.uk/Forman1.html

Since we don't have much info about Forman on Skyscript, the external link I have given is to The Casebooks Project - http://www.magicandmedicine.hps.cam.ac.uk/ This is an excellent collection of Simon Forman?s & Richard Napier?s medical records between 1596 and 1634. I highly recommend a visit. It is also here that I saw the announcement: "September 2011 marks the 400th anniversary of Simon Forman?s death". To mark the occasion, Dr Lauren Kassell, senior lecturer in the history of science at the University of Cambridge, is to give a public lecture to commemorate the anniversary and celebrate the launch of the Casebooks Project (full details in link given above).

William Lilly, in his autobiography, leaves a very interesting account of how Forman predicted his own death, and that, (at the very least), deserves some mention on this occasion. After narrating a few tales about Forman, he writes:

• I could relate many such stories of his performances; as also what he wrote in a book left behind him, viz. 'This I made the devil write with his own hand in Lambeth Fields 1596, in June or July, as I now remember.' He professed to his wife there would be much trouble about Carr and the Countess of Essex, who frequently resorted unto him, and from whose company he would sometimes lock himself in his study a whole day.
  
  Now we come to his death, which happened as follows: the Sunday night before he died, his wife and he being at supper in their garden-house, she being pleasant, told him, that she had been informed he could resolve, whether man or wife should die first; 'Whether shall I' (quoth she) 'bury you or no?' 'Oh Trunco,' for so he called her, 'thou wilt bury me, but thou wilt much repent it.' 'Yea, but how long first?' 'I shall die,' said he, 'ere Thursday night.'
  
  Monday came, all was well. Tuesday came, he not sick. Wednesday came, and still he was well; with which his impertinent wife did much twit him in his teeth. Thursday came, and dinner was ended, he very well: he went down to the water-side, and took a pair of oars to go to some buildings he was in hand with in Puddle-dock. Being in the middle of the Thames, he presently fell down, only saying, 'An impost, an impost,' and so died. A most sad storm of wind immediately following.
  
  He died worth one thousand two hundred pounds, and left only one son called Clement. All his rarities, secret manuscripts, of what quality soever, Dr. Napper of Lindford in Buckinghamshire had, who had been a long time his scholar; and of whom Forman was used to say he would be a dunce: yet in continuance of time he proved a singular astrologer and physician. Sir Richard now living, I believe, has all those rarities in possession, which were Forman's, being kinsman and heir unto Dr. Napper. (His son Thomas Napper, Esq.; most generously gave most of these manuscripts to Elias Ashmole, Esq.; I hope you will pardon this digression.

And that is how the casebooks were preserved in the Ashmolian museum, Oxford, which are now being made available online in the Casebook Project.

A nicely formatted copy of Lilly's autobiography is available for free download from Project Gutenberg at http://www.gutenberg.org/files/15835/15 ... 5835-h.htm The extract above is from p.43-44 of that file.

We may be a little overdue with the actual date of death, but not much if we allow for the calendar conversion, and the fact that (according to Kim) Forman's use of the calenday was a day or two out from the norm, and he starts his astrological days from noon instead of sunrise. Applying this approach, today's the day (or thereabouts) - it's certainly close enough to raise a glass for this colourful, if somewhat scandalous past-practitioner.

Deb

Dr. Lauren Kassell (one of the founders of the Casebook Project) - who treats astrology respectfully and actually knows something about it - has written an excellent book entitled Medicine and Magic in Elizabethan London: Simon Forman - Astrologer, Alchemist, and Physician. It's pricey at around $45 US, but it was worth the expense to me - a real joy to read. It's not a text on traditional astrology or magic, but an immersion in the period and its attitudes - with enough astrology and alchemy to satisfy the traditional astrologer. It's very well written and illustrated throughout with pages from Forman's diary. Considering that it's a university press publication (Oxford Historical Monographs), the book is not overpriced. Amazon sells it.