On this month's episode of Magus we are travelling all about Renaissance Europe and up through the layers of the heavens to undertake divine revelations into the life, times, and accomplishments of Giordano Bruno!
From Bruno's early life as a Dominican priest, forced to flee one of six popes he thoroughly annoyed, right up to his horrid execution in the Campo de' Fiori, we're running through a wild highlights reel of his accomplishments - both in the development of his pioneering mnemonic memory systems through to creation of his occult philosophy, rooted in 'Egyptian Magic.'
It's a wild journey, ranging from forbidden texts, hidden in the walls of a latrine, back through time to the birth of Renaissance Magic care of the likes of Pico and Ficino, into the heart of the French and English courts, to all the Universities where Bruno made himself so unpopular, wizardry aside this would still be a fascinating story.
Yet, Giordano Bruno also preached a unique gospel, informed by the mythology of Hermes Trismegistus, which involved using hieroglyphics to talk to angels, flirting with Queen Elisabeth I, writing pretty ripe poetry, and trying to debate the failings of Christianity with the Pope himself...
With examples of Bruno's wilder mystic beliefs as well as examples of how he shaped Renaissance science and culture, and even inspired aspects of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, if you know nothing about Bruno then this one is going to be a face-melter.
And if you do, we bet the wealth of a mid-rank Medici that there will be things in this episode that will still surprise you!
About Three Ravens 🔮
Three Ravens is a completely independent English myth and folklore podcast where we share stories, celebrate folk culture, and fall backwards through the hedgerows of history.
Hosted by real-life couple Eleanor Conlon and Martin Vaux, and mostly recorded at our home in rural Sussex in southern England, Three Ravens is rated 4.8/5 from over 500 reviews and has grown by word of mouth care of our lovely listener community ‘The Conspiracy of Ravens.’
We release three episodes a week, on Mondays, Thursday and Saturdays, through which we explore folktales, folkways, fairy stories, folk songs, mythology, local heritage, seasonal customs and traditional beliefs.
Our research inspires our retellings of stories from across history and culture, with episodes standing alone but connected together across over 500 chatty, mostly light-hearted, swear-free installments driven by passion, kindness and curiosity.
Now ranked as an all-time Top 5 podcast across several categories by Goodpods, charting in the Spotify, Apple and Rephonic UK Fiction Top 10 across 2024, 2025 and 2026, if you’re interested in ghosts, monsters, regional beliefs, and the things that unite us all, then join us round the campfire and listen in…
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