Reliable sources for studying the history of palmistry!

I would like to add that one should not believe everything that is written about the history of palmistry.

For example, some people belief that in the 20th century 'palmistry' became an academic science that it also thought at respected Universities in the world. However, such claims are not true.


So, one should not mix-up 'palmistry' with the academic research tradition on fingerprints & dermatoglyphics, and digit ratio.

For, the major difference is that 'palmistry' is meant for the application on the lives of individuals - while scientific studies are focussed on populations (groups of people), and usually these studies are so far not used/applied to individuals.

Hi Martijn,

Very interesting read. It really does clear up a lot of questions one might have. I was a little confused about Noel Jaquin though. As a doctor, he was suggesting that medical diagnosis could be made on some ailments such as heart disease...do you happen to know if he did this as a predictive measure or a current diagnostic measure. E.G. the person had the ailment at the time or would have it in the future? Also, would such a thing be determined by the lines of the hand as it would in classical palmistry or would he look to other factors?

Thanks.

Hi Martijn,

Thanks for the info! I think the history of palmistry in itself is a worthwhile study to differentiate the wheat from the chaff.

Regarding Jaquin's work, it is interesting to note, as you say that much of his use of dermatoglyphics with regard to diagnostics were not classical in their nature. This is a much easier pill to swallow (no pun intended) I do wonder however if any physician or scientist has lent any support to the classical idea of predictive palmistry e.g. using the heartline to diagnose heart disease, or if that has simply gone the way of the dodo save for parlor tricks. One might even hazard that were such a thing even possible, we would not even need doctors. lol.

I was actually reading an article in an American Magazine called "Frank Leslie's Popular Monthly" Vol. XXVIII c. 1889. that analyzed the premises of classical palmistry, especially with regard to its relation to astrology. In it, the other suggested that that ancient astrologer/astronomers, in giving names to the planets also arbitrarily assigned the characteristics of those gods to their place in astrology. Later, palmists adopted these same arbitrary meanings and thus we have that language of classical palmistry being what it became. Ultimately, this shows that classical predictive palmistry rested upon a foundation that was conjecture at best.

One does wonder, and perhaps you can point me in the right direction with this, when and where the idea of headlines, healthlines etc. were devised? I suspect they originated out of the gypsy tradition (not the most trustworthy) and were propagated by the likes of 14th and 15th century thinkers while still under the influence of superstition and vitalism. Could this also be where the 'old' palmistry books that perpetuate an atmosphere of death and doom find their inspiration?

Many thanks sir!

*other=author

As a follow up. I did some more digging into this wonderful work and found this... http://www.cheirology.net/history/fifteenth.htm It seems that much of predictive, especially fatalistic palmistry did indeed come out of the 15th Century.

I am still searching for the when, where, and why certain lines were given the names and meanings they have been given though...

In light of all this, Jones, without saying it directly, seems to suggest that the branch of predictive palmistry is sliding into oblivion...that any claim it might have to accuracy lies beyond the realm of modern hand analysis proper. Is this the general consensus these days?

A very enlightening read.

Wanderer78 wrote:... In light of all this, Jones, without saying it directly, seems to suggest that the branch of predictive palmistry is sliding into oblivion...that any claim it might have to accuracy lies beyond the realm of modern hand analysis proper. Is this the general consensus these days?

A very enlightening read.

Hello Wanderer,

I observe the same regarding 'predictive palmistry', but this has not (yet) become general consensus in the fields of hand reading - specifically not in Asia (because the many cultures outthere have a long history with a strong need & economy focussed on 'prediction' - while the Western world is much more focussed on capitalism and thus the needs to today, not the future).

Glad to see that you enjoyed reading Christopher Jones' reviews about the various fields of hand reading (at cheirology.net).

Hi Wanderer,

thanks for your kind comments about my work on the History of Handreading. I have to agree with Martijn that the pre-eminence of predictive palmistry probably still prevails, though anyone who has looked at the hands with any seriousness will have quickly realised that prediction (in the sense of 'fortune telling') is not possible from the hands.

I also agree with the comments made about Jaquin but please note, he was not a qualified doctor and was never a practitioner of medicine - though he was quite interested in homeopathy and had always been interested in micro-biology. It was this that led him to observe the minute changes that occur in the skin ridges in various conditions of ill-health when he came to studying hands. His importance in the history of handreading is that he is the first handreader to enumerate the different types of dermatoglyphic patterns and give them some psychological interpretation; he is the first person to note certain disease formations in the hand, especially in the skin ridges; and he founded a society for the study of hands, the SSPP in 1946 which carried on for about 60yrs until about 2006. He was also an important influence on Beryl Hutchinson, who carried on his work through the 1960's and 1970's, making some significant discoveries of her own. So, whilst we can easily disagree with many of the things he says, criticise his populist works for not being 'scientific and statistical', point out that his writings are very much a product of the times in which he was writing, he was nonetheless a pioneer in the field of handreading and needs to be honoured and respected for that. If I appear to be over-stating his case, it is simply for that reason and that reason alone!

Now, back to my own website at www.cheirology.net , you may be interested and pleased to know that I am currently updating it and have uploaded a great many transcriptions of ancient and mediaeval texts on handreading/palmetrie/chiromancie. I invite you to come and visit again !

Christopher your link doesn't work due to the comma.

www.cheirology.net

Lynn wrote: Christopher your link doesn't work due to the comma.

www.cheirology.net

[Space added]

Christopher Jones wrote:
Now, back to my own website at www.cheirology.net , you may be interested and pleased to know that I am currently updating it and have uploaded a great many transcriptions of ancient and mediaeval texts on handreading/palmetrie/chiromancie. I invite you to come and visit again !

Hi Christopher,

I was going thru the hisotry of Britain's Cheirological Society at your website. And while searching for more info on the net, I hit up on this link(the current page). Infact, I wanted to know - what are you currently working on? Can we get more and more info on palmistry from you etc. I am very happy to read - "I am currently updating it and have uploaded a great many transcriptions of ancient and mediaeval texts on handreading/palmetrie/chiromancie."
Looking forward to read more and more from you website.