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Well, most of the time, when people thought some sort of magic or sorcery existed, it was entirely imaginary. Usually tied in some way to religious beliefs (service to Satan, invocation of demons, etc) or based on philosophical concepts (imaginary principles of sympathy, contagion, etc.)Others may have already said this, but magic has always just been science that isn't recognized as science yet. Alchemists were a real thing but they're magical in fantasy settings because at the time (18th or 19th century I believe) what they did was considered impossible. Think on that, and think of scientific properties that fit your need in the story.
Hope this helps!
Alchemists deliberately kept their art obscure to protect trade secrets. They did make some real discoveries, like the common strong acids, but were operating without the benefit of the scientific method, and came up with elaborate protoscientific systems of organization that were based on philosophy, not real physical principles. (Their most famous subject, the Philosopher's Stone, was totally mythical.)
By the 18th century, real science was picking up steam, real chemistry was starting to be understood and alchemy was a fringe belief, but there was still plenty of pseudoscience (Mesmerism, etc.) (One piece of 18th century nonsense, homeopathy, somehow still is around.)
Aguywhotypes, can you give us any more context?