An ancient magic spell claimed to enable prisoners to escape has gone on display at the British Library in London. To perform the feat, a prisoner must draw a boat on the floor of their cell and step into it. If the correct words are uttered, spirits should appear to carry him or her away to freedom.

The spell features in the Key of Solomon, a spell book or “grimoire” said to have been written by King Solomon who ruled Israel 3,000 years ago. A copy of the book, scribed and illustrated by hand around the year 1700, features in an exhibition called Hebrew Manuscripts which opens at the library last month.

The book (above) states: “If one wishes to escape from prison in a boat, draw the image of that boat, and [this spell is also good] for breaking every bar and opening every lock.”A drawing of the spell in action shows the boat crewed by scaly-skinned creatures with wings, horns and tails.

According to the book’s introduction, King Solomon wrote it for his son Rehoboam and told him to hide it in his tomb upon his death. It was discovered by a group of Babylonian philosophers, who could not understand it until the Angel of the Lord appeared and made the book readable in return for a promise that its magic would never be used by the unworthy, the wicked, or non-believers.

However, modern scholars believe that the text actually dates from 14th or 15th century Italy, with its authors drawing on earlier works by Arab magicians, Jewish mystics and spells from ancient Greece and Rome.

For security reasons, Inside Time is not disclosing precise details of the spell.