Meddling with the Goetia (1)

Being something of a sucker for vaguely occult Goth tat (though not enough for the more extravagent entries in the Alchemy Gothic catalogue), I recently acquired from a local vendor of such products, something represented by the manufactor as "The Seal of Furfur":

and associated, according to the blurb on the shop's display, with "power and knowledge."

Now the name Furfur appears in a 17th-century English work on magic (deriving from multiple sources of the previous century or earlier) known as the Goetia, where we learn:

The Thirty-fourth Spirit is Furfur. He is a Great and Mighty Earl, appearing in the Form of an Hart with a Fiery Tail. He never speaketh the truth unless he be compelled, or brought up within a triangle Δ. Being therein, he will take upon himself the Form of an Angel. Being bidden, he speaketh with a hoarse voice. Also he will wittingly urge Love between Man and Woman. He can raise Lightnings and Thunders, Blasts and Great Tempestuous Storms. And he giveth True Answers both of Things Secret and Divine, if commanded. He ruleth over 26 Legions of Spirits.

A website selling this tat assures us that each item in the range "is supplied with a colour leaflet giving full details of it's [sic] origins, benefits and qualities together with a simple ceremony to enable it's wearer to consecrate and empower their piece." Evidently the one that should have been with mine got lost somewhere along the line. Anyway, the Goetia gives the seal of Furfur as:

Whereas the "seal" I bought, once out of its little black bag, looked rather more like:

(see also this photo on another seller's website). Not much similarity, is there? This design in fact appears to be the seal of Astaroth, of whom the Goetia informs us:

The Twenty-ninth Spirit is Astaroth. He is a Mighty, Strong Duke, and appeareth in the form of an hurtful Angel riding on an Infernal Beast like a Dragon, and carrying in his right hand a Viper. Thou must in no wise let him approach too near unto thee, lest he do thee damage by his Noisome Breath. Wherefore the Magician must hold the Magical Ring near his face, and that will defend him. He giveth true answers of things Past, Present, and to Come, and can discover all Secrets. He will declare wittingly how the Spirits fell, if desired, and the reason of his own fall. He can make men wonderfully knowing in all Liberal Sciences.

So, was someone working for the manufacturers of this object unable to read--since in the Mathers-Crowley Goetia, which is the source for the versions of the seals with circular borders, the name is written around each--or was there some other motive for the substitution?

The immediate source of the error at least is identifiable. In the printed edition of the Goetia as issued by Aleister Crowley on his Society for the Propagation of Religion Truth imprint in 1904, and reprinted as facsimile by Equinox Books and First Impressions in more recent years, the illustrations are grouped on three plates, some way separated from the text referring to them. The figures are numbered sequentially 1-184 (though those from 176 on in fact belonged to the Theurgia-Goetia, the second book of the 17th-century compilation known as the Lemegeton, whose text was not published by Crowley), beginning with the seals of the Spirits., the seal of the first Spirit, Bael as fig 1, that of the second Spirit, Agares as fig. 2, and so on. So, the seal of the thirty-fourth spirit would be fig. 34, right?

Wrong. Mathers was working from multiple MSS., which had suffered divergence from repeated copying; in eight cases the seals of the spirits differed sufficiently in his examplars that two forms are given (#26, Bune, has two significantly different seals in some exant MSS., one apparently being a radically simplifed form of the other). Result: figure 34 is the seal of Astaroth, and this outfit's QC is so bad they didn't bother checking. Similarly, FB2 in their line is called "Cross of Zagan," its supposed power being "transformation," since

The Sixty-first Spirit is Zagan. He is a Great King and President, appearing at first in the Form of a Bull with Gryphon’s Wings; but after a while he putteth on Human Shape. He maketh Men Witty. He can turn Wine into Water, and Blood into Wine. He can turn all Metals into Coin of the Domninion that Metal is of. He can even make Fools Wise.

but seeing as fig. 61 is actually the seal of Murmur, of whom we are told:

He is a Great Duke, and an Earl; and appeareth in the Form of a Warrior riding upon a Gryphon, with a Ducal Crown upon his Head. There do go before him his Ministers with great Trumpets sounding. His Office is to teach Philosophy perfectly, and to constrain Souls of the Deceased to come before the Exorcist to answer those questions which he may wish to put to them, if desired. He was partly of the Order of Thrones, and partly of that of Angels. He now ruleth 30 Legions of Spirits.

that was the seal that got etched on said cross (clearly visible in this photo on the website of Kyro UK). The seal of Murmer also once turned up on an Alchemy Gothic pendant (not in their current range).

In other words, the most credible explanation would indeed appear to be sheer incompetence; there seems to be no obvious benefit to marketing the seal of Astaroth as that of Furfur, since the former name in any case is far better known. Possibly indeed, the loss of elementary critical faculties and observation skills is just one of various effects of meddling with the Goetia.