"In the Middle Ages the art of predicting earthly events and human characteristics from the movements of the stars and planets was a scientific branch of learning with a philosophical basis. Its influence extended to natural philosophy and cosmology, medicine, agriculture, weather-forecasting and alchemy. Yet astrology was never an entirely acceptable practice, attracting both religious and scientific objections. These ambivalent medieval attitudes are just one aspect of this wide-ranging and clearly-written account of astrological ideas and practices in medieval society, comprehensively illustrated from a wide range of manuscripts."--.