Hair implants, the posthumous display of rulers' bodies, recording executions of overthrown dictators, or the visually perfect staging of potent bodies submitted to a regime of permanent fitness - working on the »spell of power« is still a crucial characteristic of the political present. This volume looks at phenomena of political representation from different cultural and social studies perspectives, combining theoretical treatises on charisma and the »magical residue« of political reign with case studies from different cultural spheres and periods.