Definition: Crocell (also spelled Crokel, Procell, or Procella) is a Great Duke of Hell who commands 48 legions of spirits. He appears in the form of an angel, teaches geometry and the liberal sciences, and can produce the sound of rushing waters. He is the 49th spirit listed in the Ars Goetia, the first book of the Lesser Key of Solomon.
A 17th-century scribe copies the seal of Crocell into a grimoire, his hand steady. He knows that the spirit appears as an angel, not a beast. That detail matters. In a catalog of demons where most manifest as lions, wolves, or men with serpents’ tails, an angelic form is rare. It signals something about the spirit’s origin, its rank, and the kind of work it can do.
Crocell is the 49th spirit of the Ars Goetia, a Great Duke of Hell ruling 48 legions. He teaches geometry, rhetoric, and the liberal sciences. He can also produce the sound of rushing waters, a detail that ties his name to storms and the sea. The grimoires describe him as obedient to the magician and willing to bestow knowledge without deception.
That is the bare definition. What follows is what the grimoires actually say about him, where those details came from, and how they have been interpreted over four centuries of occult practice.
Where Does Crocell First Appear in the Grimoire Tradition?
The earliest known mention of Crocell is in Johann Weyer’s Pseudomonarchia Daemonum (1563). Weyer, a Dutch physician and student of Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa, compiled a list of 69 demons based on earlier magical manuscripts. In Weyer’s text, the spirit is called Procella, a Latin word meaning “storm” or “tempest.” Weyer writes that Procella appears as an angel, teaches geometry and the liberal arts, and can produce the sound of rushing waters. He rules 48 legions.
Thirty years later, the English translation of Weyer’s work by Reginald Scot in The Discoverie of Witchcraft (1584) repeats the entry. Scot’s version was widely read by later occultists.
The spirit next appears in the 17th-century manuscript known as the Lemegeton Clavicula Salomonis (the Lesser Key of Solomon). Here the name shifts from Procella to Crocell. The text expands the description slightly: Crocell is a Great Duke, appears as an angel, teaches geometry and the liberal sciences, and can produce the sound of rushing waters. He is ranked 49th among the 72 Goetic spirits.
The name change from Procella to Crocell may be a scribal error, a deliberate alteration, or a transliteration from a Hebrew or Aramaic source. Some scholars suggest Crocell derives from the Hebrew k’ru’el (meaning “the angel of God”), but this is speculative. Weyer’s Latin Procella is more straightforward: a storm spirit.
Why Does Crocell Appear as an Angel?
In the hierarchy of the Ars Goetia, most spirits appear in monstrous or hybrid forms. Buer appears as a starfish with five legs. Paimon rides a dromedary with a crown. Crocell appears as an angel. That is unusual.
The angelic form may indicate that Crocell belongs to a higher order of spirits, one that has not fully fallen. The grimoires do not explain the backstory of each demon, but the tradition of the Lesser Key draws on earlier Jewish angelology and Christian demonology. In that framework, some demons retain their original angelic appearance because they were not cast down as far as others. They are still bound to God’s order, even if they serve Hell.
Alternatively, the angelic form may be a deception. The magician is warned in the Ars Goetia that spirits may lie or appear in pleasing forms to gain trust. But Crocell is described as “obedient” and truthful, so the angelic appearance may be genuine.
The practical consequence for the magician is clear: when Crocell appears, you do not need to banish or compel him with the same force required for a hostile spirit. He will answer questions about geometry, rhetoric, and the liberal sciences without resistance.
What Does Crocell Teach? The Liberal Sciences
The grimoires specify that Crocell teaches geometry and the liberal sciences. In the Renaissance context, the liberal arts included the trivium (grammar, logic, rhetoric) and the quadrivium (arithmetic, geometry, music, astronomy). Crocell’s domain is geometry and rhetoric specifically.
Geometry was not just mathematics. It was the science of measurement, proportion, and sacred architecture. In occult philosophy, geometry was the language of creation. Agrippa’s Three Books of Occult Philosophy (1533) devotes entire chapters to the numerical and geometric properties of the universe. A spirit who teaches geometry could instruct the magician in the construction of magical circles, seals, and talismans.
Rhetoric, the art of persuasion, was equally practical. A magician who could speak with eloquence could command spirits more effectively. The conjurations in the Ars Goetia are long, formal speeches. Knowing how to deliver them with the right tone and authority was part of the art.
Crocell’s teaching is not abstract. It is directly useful for the practice of magic itself.
The Sound of Rushing Waters
One of the most distinctive details about Crocell is his ability to produce the sound of rushing waters. Weyer writes that he “maketh a noise like the rushing of many waters.” The Lesser Key repeats this.
This detail connects Crocell to water symbolism. In the grimoire tradition, water is associated with emotion, intuition, and the subconscious. The sound of rushing water can induce trance states. It can also be used for scrying: the magician might listen to the sound to receive visions or answers.
But the detail may also be literal. Some later commentators suggest that Crocell’s presence is accompanied by the sound of a river or waterfall, even indoors. The magician would hear it before seeing the spirit.
In practical terms, this means that evoking Crocell in a quiet room might produce an audible phenomenon. The grimoires do not say whether the sound is pleasant or overwhelming. They simply record it as a fact.
How Crocell Is Summoned in the Goetic Tradition
The Ars Goetia provides a seal for each spirit. Crocell’s seal is a geometric design that the magician draws on parchment or engraves on metal. The seal is placed inside the triangle of art, the triangle outside the magic circle where the spirit appears.
The conjuration follows a standard formula. The magician calls on the spirit by name, invokes the authority of God and the divine names, and commands the spirit to appear in a peaceful form. If the spirit is disobedient, the magician uses stronger adjurations.
For Crocell, the process is straightforward. He is not one of the spirits that resists or threatens. The grimoires say he is “obedient” and “ready to serve.” The magician may simply state the request and receive the knowledge.
The practical details matter. The magician must be purified, the circle properly drawn, the seal correctly made. The time of day, planetary hour, and lunar phase may be chosen to align with Crocell’s nature (water, angelic, intellectual). But the Ars Goetia does not prescribe specific astrological conditions for Crocell.
Comparisons: Crocell and Other Angelic Spirits
Crocell is not the only Goetic spirit who appears as an angel. Buer (10th spirit) appears as a starfish with five legs, but his head is that of a lion. Not angelic. Vassago (3rd spirit) appears as a “good angel” and declares past and future. Seere (70th spirit) appears as a beautiful man riding a winged horse. Andromalius (72nd spirit) appears as a man holding a serpent.
But Crocell is the only one explicitly described as appearing “in the form of an angel” without additional monstrous features. That makes him unique in the hierarchy.
In terms of function, Crocell overlaps with Buer, who teaches philosophy, logic, and herbal medicine. Both are intellectual spirits who do not harm. But Buer’s domain is more medical, while Crocell’s is mathematical and rhetorical.
Crocell also resembles Sitri (12th spirit), who appears as a leopard with wings and a man’s face, and who inflames love. But Sitri is deceptive. Crocell is truthful.
The comparison shows that the Goetic spirits are not a uniform class. Each has a distinct personality, appearance, and area of expertise.
Common Misconceptions About Crocell
Misconception 1: Crocell is a fallen angel in the same sense as Satan. The Goetic spirits are not necessarily fallen angels in the Christian sense. The Ars Goetia treats them as spirits bound to serve the magician by divine authority. Their origin is not explained. Some may be pre-Adamite beings, others pagan gods, others fallen angels. Crocell’s angelic form suggests he may be a neutral spirit, not a rebel.
Misconception 2: Crocell is evil or malicious. The grimoires describe him as obedient and truthful. He does not tempt, deceive, or harm. He teaches. In the context of ceremonial magic, he is a useful spirit, not a dangerous one.
Misconception 3: Crocell’s name means “storm” and he is a weather demon. The Latin Procella does mean storm, but the Lesser Key does not give him power over weather. He produces the sound of water, not the actual element. He is not a tempest spirit like Vepar (42nd spirit), who governs waters and sinks ships.
Misconception 4: Crocell is the same as the angel Procell from other traditions. There is no angel named Procell in canonical angelology. The name appears only in the demonological lists derived from Weyer.
FAQ
What does Crocell look like?
He appears in the form of an angel. The grimoires do not specify wings, robes, or other details, only that his form is angelic.
What does Crocell teach?
He teaches geometry, rhetoric, and the liberal sciences. This includes mathematics, logic, persuasive speech, and the seven liberal arts of the medieval curriculum.
How many legions does Crocell rule?
He commands 48 legions of spirits. In the Goetic hierarchy, a legion is a unit of spirits, not a fixed number of soldiers.
Is Crocell dangerous to summon?
The grimoires describe him as obedient and truthful. He is not considered dangerous, but all Goetic evocation should be performed with proper preparation, purification, and protection.
Crocell is not a spirit of terror or destruction. He is a teacher, a source of knowledge that the magician can use to build, measure, and persuade. The sound of rushing waters that accompanies him is a reminder that even in the catalog of Hell, there are spirits who speak clearly and keep their word.
For a deeper look at the 72 spirits of the Ars Goetia, see our complete guide to the demonology of the Goetia. You can also explore the glossary of Goetic spirit names and seals or read about how the Lesser Key of Solomon was compiled.