Gypsy Sorcery and Fortune Telling, by American humorist and folklorist Charles Godfrey Leland, was originally published in 1891. The work looks at the gypsies, who call themselves the Rom or Romany, a nomadic culture who are considered to have originated in India during the Middle-Ages. The Romany migrated widely, in particular to Europe, to work as farm labourers, metalworkers, scrap-dealers, and horse-traders, but also made a living as entertainers, fortune tellers, and grifters. The Rom have a long tradition of magic and shamanism. As Leland points out, these practices have parallels with those of other traditional pagan cultures around the world.This book discusses spells, incantations and talismans used within Rom culture, as well as the more practical magic they use in their interaction with the Gorgios—the non-Gypsies. It is this latter topic which provides some of the most interesting and instructional reading. Leland gives some generalised methods of fortune-telling which any prospective psychic would do well to study; as well as the details of the 'Great Secret', a magic trick in which all of your money disappears...Gypsy life has a romantic appeal, and Leland, who popularised Gypsy lore in this and other books played no small part in this image-making. However, Leland makes it abundantly clear that life on the road was hard. The Rom people are to be admired for their survival skills in a hostile world, and for the longevity and persistence of their culture.
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