The Chaldean Magician
by Ernst Eckstein (1845–1900)
- Free to read
- 1 hour to read
- 5 chapters
- Reading level: 8th & 9th grade
"The Chaldean Magician" by Ernst Eckstein is a historical novel set in the late 19th century. The story unfolds in ancient Rome during the reign of Emperor Diocletian, focusing on the intense and intricate relationship between two young friends, Lucius Rutilius and Caius Bononius. Their lives become complicated by the presence of a Chaldean magician, Olbasanus, who casts a dark prophecy that threatens their happiness and love interests. The opening of the novel introduces us to a captivating scene on a beautiful October evening in A.D. 299, where Lucius Rutilius encounters his friend Caius Bononius while grappling with new, tumultuous feelings for a woman named Hero. Tension escalates when Lucius reveals that he is deeply in love with Hero, only to be met with the ominous warning from the Chaldean magician regarding their ill-fated future together. They soon learn of a dark prophecy that predicts misfortune, particularly for Lucius, stemming from his affection for Hero. This sets the stage for a journey filled with emotion, moral dilemmas, and the supernatural, as the friends seek to navigate the fallout of Olbasanus's foreboding declarations.
- Rome · History · Diocletian, 284-305
Read the opening
Chapter I
A cloudless October day, A. D. 299, was drawing to a close; the western sky behind the crest of Mt. Janiculum still glowed with crimson light, but the population in the streets and squares of the world’s capital were already moving in a bluish twilight and yellow-red lamps shone, veiled by smoke, from the taverns of the many-gabled Subura.
A youth with a white toga thrown over his shoulders, coming from the Querquetulanian Gate, turned into the Cyprian Way. His manner of walking was somewhat peculiar. Sometimes he rushed hastily forward, like a man impatiently striving to reach his destination; at others he glanced hesitatingly around or stopped a few seconds as though repenting his design. Passing the Baths of Titus he perceived, only a few yards distant, another youth who had entered the Cyprian Way from a side street on the left and with bowed head was pursuing the same direction over the lava stones of the pavement. Looking more closely, he recognized a friend’s countenance in the new-comer’s pallid features.
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About this edition
This free edition of The Chaldean Magician by Ernst Eckstein comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #59851, released 2019-07-04. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Historical Novels, Novels.
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