The article deals with the role of papyrus documents for our knowledge of the Greco-Roman magic. The essay breaks down in five paragraphs. The first one is a quick survey of the several types of documents we have for the study of the ancient magic, from which the basic and irreplaceable importance of the papyri markedly emerges. The second paragraph sketches a history of the finds and of the most significant publications and studies, while the third section treats the different types of magical practices and in particular examines, as a conspicuous example of the importance of these documents, an ancient initiatory ritual entitled “Eighth book of Moses” and preserved in a papyrus codex of the IV century CE (PLeid. J 395 = PGM XIII). The fourth and fifth paragraphs deal respectively with three magical texts previously edited by the author and with the most urgent desiderata in this field of studies.
