Pentagrams are associated with occult magic and symbolism, and for many, this association creates thoughts of witches,  dark magic, or satanic rites. But pentagrams have a long history as a symbol of health and well-being, and it is only their recent history that links the symbol to dark and demonic entities. The Pentagram is a unicursal, five-pointed star that is connected to many occult practices, such as Kabbalism, Pythagorean Mysticism, Hermeticism, as well as Tarot and Freemasonry. Known by many names, pentangle, pentalpha, pentacle, flaming star, remphan, Solomon’s seal, and druid’s foot or drudenfuss, the pentagram is probably the most widely revered of all esoteric symbols, and surrounding the star with an unbroken circle was supposed to increase its ability to protect the user. Manly P. Hall’s groundbreaking 1928 publication, simply known as The Secret Teachings of All Ages, described the inverted symbol of the pentagram as a perversion of its power, and it is this symbol that would be adopted by the Church of Satan in 1966, which likely led to the negative associations the symbol has today. Since that time, the symbol has been co-opted by film, music, and other pop culture entities to create an association with demonic and satanic ideas it has come to represent.

TIMELINE

4000 BC – earliest evidence of the pentagram is found on pot sherds in Palestine

2700 BC – Pentagrams commonly used by Sumerians

500 BC – Pythagorean Mysticism is founded, adopts Pentagram as a symbol of good health

300-150 BC –  Solomon’s seal incorporates a pentagram or hexagram as a symbol of the city of Jerusalem

1st Century – Alchemy is first practiced

11th century – Kabbalism, or Kabbalah, is founded

15th century – Hermeticism is founded; Rosicrucianism is founded

15th century – Rosicrucianism is rediscovered

1641 – sigil for the Scottish Freemason Sir Robert Moray includes a pentagram

1674  – the Surgeons' Guild of Gouda used a heraldic device featuring a pentagram

1717 – Freemasonry, or Freemasons, is founded (though sources include earlier dates)

19th century – French Occult Revival, Spiritualism is founded

1808 – pentagram is illustrated in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s Faust

1856 – Éliphas Lévi’s iconography of Baphomet includes a pentagram

1875 – Theosophical Society is founded

1896 – Éliphas Lévi’s iconography Macrocosm and Microcosm includes a pentagram

1909 – Rider Waite Smith Tarot deck associates a pentagram with the devil; Symbolisme Hermetique dans ses Rapports avec L’Alchemie et la Franc-maconnerie published by Oswald Wirth 

1928 – The Secret Teachings of All Ages published by Manly P. Hall

1966 – The Mendes Pentacle, also known as the Sigil of Baphomet is adopted by the Church of Satan

1980 – Michelle Remembers is published by Lawrence Pazder, starts Satanic Panic

1983 – Shout at the Devil album by Mötley Crüe features a pentagram on the cover 

1985 – Serial Killer Richard Ramirez associated with pentagrams

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