Misc. Alchemical Images + Text to Sort

Approximate reconstruction of the text: "Here is shown the vessel of the Work, crowned and sealed, within which the living matter is enclosed. This matter is twofold in appearance but one in essence, for it is the dragon that devours itself and is reborn from its own dissolution. The volatile ascends and the fixed descends, and by their continual circulation they are made one body. This is the secret fire, not the common flame, but the inward heat which Nature herself provides. In the belly of the vessel the dragon is slain, yet from its death arises the winged one, for corruption is the beginning of generation. Thus the venom becomes medicine, and the poison is turned into the greatest remedy. This work must not be hastened, for Nature rejoices in slow perfection. He who forces the matter destroys the harmony of the elements. Below are shown the three faces, which are one head: body, soul, and spirit; past, present, and future; salt, sulphur, and mercury. These three are born from one root and return again to unity. Blessed is he who understands this figure, for he has seen with the eyes of the intellect what cannot be spoken openly." - Textus varii ad medicinam spectantes, c. 1280-1420, Biblioteka Jagiellońska, BJ Rkp. 837 IV

"The Sages speak of it as a kind of root. Take, they say, the whole virtue of the Tincture, and concentrate it in the Root. If a body which has no earthy elements receive this Tincture, it receives more benefit than less excellent bodies. The Stone overcomes everything to which it is applied, and tinges foreign bodies with its own colour. The dry fire tinges bodies, the air strengthens them, the white water washes away their blackness, and their earth receives the Tincture."

• The Book of Alze

Hermaphrodite figure with male and female halves. It symbolizes the union of opposites like sun/moon, male/female, hot/cold.

Nunc ipsa vīvit Sapientia “Now Wisdom herself lives."

Ego sum et origo omnium metallorum. “I am the origin of all metals”

Intelligentes Speculum ... Ignorantes Ridiculum. “A mirror for the wise ... a joke for the ignorant.”

Lapis noster quesitus a multis, inventus a paucis "Our stone is sought by many, found by few"

"In summary, regenerated man is the philosopher's stone of fallen nature, just as unregenerate man is the materia bruta of that Great Work of which the divine Word is the Alchemist and the Holy Spirit the secret fire: there are two Ways in the Work, but there is only one Agent: Love! And all true Christian hermetists - not prompters - are unanimous on this point as on that of the subordination of the physical Work to the mystical Work." — What is Alchemy? by André Savoret (1898-1977)

Flamel writes that on this page was "painted a faire flowre on the top of a very high mountaine, which was sore shaken by the north wind; it had the foot blew [blue], the flowers white and red, the leaves shining like fine gold: And round about it the dragons and griffins of the north made their nests and abode"

Dixon comments that "Poisson and Grillot de Givry interpret this image respectively as an allegory of the 'two sperms, sulfur and mercury', and as the sublimation of mercury". She goes on to suggest other possible meanings: the tree is the "golden flower", symbol of the womb of the Virgin Mary; symbol of the stage of the 'lapis' in alchemy; and "the precarious situation of the alchemical flower as it is buffeted by north winds and menaced by monsters"

"Since thus out of Water [∇] and the Spirit, Heaven flows only from above." "As often as the Salamander now Takes a fiery [Δ] draught [drink], It gives the artist understanding and satisfaction, To become wise again, and Young. When one ignites the bush through me, [Which] in my Fire [Δ] does not burn up, Then I become the true glow for you, Wherein the Salamander lives." - Alchemical and rosicrucian compendium, c. 1760, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library

The Sixth Key teaches the Multiplication of the Stone, by the reiteration of the same operation, which consists but in opening and shutting, dissolving and coagulating, imbibing and drying; whereby the virtues of the Stone are infinitely augmentable."

• The Six Keys of Eudoxus

"Now, the Philosopher, who is in a position to discern what is good seed, extracts it from its centre, consigns it to its proper earth, when it has been well cured and prepared, and therein he rarefies it in such a manner that its prolific virtue is increased and indefinitely multiplied."

• Alchemical Catechism

"The tinging power of the substance will thus be exalted a thousandfold."

• An Open Entrance to the Shut Palace of the King

"For the wise, a mirror; for the ignorant, a laughingstock — the wise man is far happier than a king." "Our stone, found by many but known by few."

"Golden Age Reborn I sought, I found, I purified often, and I combined, I matured, the Tincture followed. The Golden Elixir, which is now called the center of the world; hence So many senses, so many writings of men, and various forms. To all I frankly confess, Medicine from metals Is for both the strong and the weak. A point divinely arisen." — Thesaurus et armamentarium medico-chymicum, by Adrian von Mynsicht (1603–1638)

"This, our child, is most often Fed with its mother's milk, So that it may grow gradually, And gain new strength for itself. The Triangle in such matters Brings forth the rough dragon, Which yields the fruit, O lovely Moon, As well as the fair Sun. Three eagles stand on one side, Which the Triangle here indicates. These together you may Assign to the three spirits."

— Viridarium chymicum, das ist: Chymisches Lust-Gärtlein. c. 1688, by Michael Maier

"While I stood wrapt in admiration, Neptune vanished from my sight, and there stood before me a tall man, on whose forehead the name of Saturn was inscribed. He took a vessel, and scooped up ten parts of the water, in which he placed fruit from the Solar tree; and the fruit was consumed like ice in warm water. So I said unto him:—"Lord, I behold here a marvellous thing. This water is small in quantity; nevertheless, the fruit of this tree is consumed therein by a gentle heat. To what purpose is all this?" He graciously replied: "My son, it is true that this thing is wonderful. But this water is the water of life, and has such power to exalt the qualities of this fruit, that it shall afterwards, without sowing or planting—only by its fragrance—transmute the six trees which remain into its own nature. Moreover, this water is as a woman to the fruit: the fruits of this tree can putrefy nowhere but in this water; and though the fruit by itself be wonderful and precious—yet when it putrefies in this water, it brings forth out of this putrefaction a Salamander that endures the fire; its blood is more precious than all treasures, and has power to render fertile six trees such as you see here, and to make their fruit sweeter than honey." Then I said unto him:—"Lord, how is this thing done?" He replied: "I have already told thee that the fruits of the Solar tree are living, and they are sweet; but whereas the fruit while it is cooked in this water can inform but one part, after its coction has been completed it can inform a thousand.""

• Michael Sendivogius — The New Chemical Light

"When the Regimen of Venus is over, and therein has appeared the philosophical tree, with all its branches and leaves, the Reign of Mars begins with a light yellow, or dirty brown colour, but at last exhibits the transitory hues of the Rainbow, and the Peacock's Tail. At this stage the compound is drier, and often shews like a hyacinth with a tinge of gold. The mother being now sealed in her infant's belly, swells and is purified, but because of the present great purity of the compound, no putridness can have place in this regimen, but some obscure colours are chief actors, while some middle colours come and go, and they are pleasant to look on. Our Virgin Earth is now undergoing the last degree of its cultivation, and is getting ready to receive and mature the fruit of the Sun. Hence you should keep up a moderate temperature; then there will be seen, about the thirtieth day of this Reign, an orange colour, which, within two weeks from its first appearance, will tinge the whole substance with its own hue."

• Eirenaeus Philalethes — An Open Entrance to the Closed Palace of the King

"The work of a worthy philosopher is nothing else than to make the earthly thing (or body) alive". “Do not desire love nor death which brings vital life”

12 Months The Zodiac Circle Planetary Signs Inside is written: Azoth and Vitriol (Azoth — the universal life force in alchemy; the mercurial spirit that unites and animates all substances, symbolizing the totality of the Great Work.) (Vitriol an alchemical formula and substance; an acronym for Visita Interiora Terrae Rectificando Invenies Occultum Lapidem, meaning the inward journey of purification leading to hidden wisdom and transformation. Vitriol - A collective name for metallic sulfates, especially iron and copper compounds. A symbol of corrosion and purification, breaking down matter to reveal its essence. Associated with putrefaction and dissolution, necessary stages of transformation. Represents bitter knowledge and trial on the path of inner alchemy. A bridge between material substance and spiritual fire, where salt and sulfur interact.) On the four sides are the symbols of the Elements At the bottom, on the left and right: Alpha and Omega

“1. I have told you, dear friend, what belongs to the Philosopher’s Stone. Therein lies the power and the blessing.

2. But the rest is also written for the wise, that they may reflect upon it and understand its meaning.

3. In the signs and words is concealed great wisdom; he who understands them will find the treasure.

4. God has placed this secret into the world, but only the worthy will discover it.

5. Therefore, be humble and pure, and you shall not fail.

6. In the highest sun, in the purest salt, in the clear water — therein lies the key.

7. The fiery spirit moves everything, and through it, the transformation is made.

8. The one who sees with clear eyes shall find silver and gold in abundance.

9. But above all, seek wisdom and understanding; for they are the true wealth.

10. The wise one recognizes the signs; the foolish one stumbles in darkness.”

"And thus it happens in the lower world, just as in the upper world. However, everything is prepared in the lower world, whose operations are marvelous." "However, it operates in the upper and lower realms. And its operations are marvelous, just as the generation of nature is marvelous."

The seven hills of the planetary metals with streams or veins, leading down to a river in the foreground. High in the sky, the figure of Nature, flying in a cloud. She squeezes her breast and expels seven stream of her milk which become the veins of the metals in the earth.

Collection of alchemical texts, c. 1625

“1. I have told you, dear friend, what belongs to the Philosopher’s Stone. Therein lies the power and the blessing.

2. But the rest is also written for the wise, that they may reflect upon it and understand its meaning.

3. In the signs and words is concealed great wisdom; he who understands them will find the treasure.

4. God has placed this secret into the world, but only the worthy will discover it.

5. Therefore, be humble and pure, and you shall not fail.

6. In the highest sun, in the purest salt, in the clear water — therein lies the key.

7. The fiery spirit moves everything, and through it, the transformation is made.

8. The one who sees with clear eyes shall find silver and gold in abundance.

9. But above all, seek wisdom and understanding; for they are the true wealth.

10. The wise one recognizes the signs; the foolish one stumbles in darkness.”

"It [the Stone] is also called the grain of wheat, which remains itself alone, unless it dies."

• Hortulanus' "Commentarius in Tabulam Smaragdinam" in Julius Ruska's 1926 study, page 186

"Everything contributes to the formation of this Stone. It is conceived below the earth, born in the earth, quickened in heaven, dies in time, obtains eternal glory."

• The Waterstone of the Wise

"Thus the philosophers have beheld the Last Judgment in this art, namely the germination and birth of this Stone, which is miraculous rather than rational; for on that day the soul to be beatified unites with its former body through the mediation of the spirit, to eternal glory

...

So also the old philosophers of this art knew and maintained that a virgin must conceive and bring forth, because in their art the Stone conceives of itself, becomes pregnant, and brings itself forth

...

And because they beheld the miraculous conception, pregnancy, birth, and nourishment of this Stone, they concluded that a woman who is a virgin will conceive without a man, become pregnant and give birth in miraculous wise, and remain a virgin as before

...

As Alphidius says, this stone is cast out into the streets, is lifted up into the clouds, dwells in the air, feeds in the streams and rests on the tops of the mountains. Its mother is a virgin, its father knows not woman

...

The philosophers also knew that God must become man on the last day of this art, whereon is the fulfilment of the work; begetter and begotten become altogether one; old man and boy, father and son, become altogether one; thus all old things are made new. God himself has entrusted this magistery to his philosophers and prophets, for whose souls he has prepared a dwelling place in his paradise."

• Petrus Bonus (of Ferrara), Pretiosa Margarita Novella, in Jean‑Jacques Manget (ed.), Bibliotheca chemica curiosa, seu rerum ad alchemiam pertinentium thesaurus instructissimus (Geneva, 1702), vol. II, p. 30 (https://www.textmanuscripts.com/.../tm0541-description.pdf)

Coral

“The coral is a kind of vegetable which comes into being in the sea, and has roots and branches, and in its original state is moist. But when the wind blows north, it hardens, and turns into a red substance, which the seafarer sees under the water and cuts off; then, when it comes out of the water, it turns into a stone, of a red colour.”

• Allegoriae super librum Turbae

"The Stone of the Philosophers is likened to these, and especially to corall. For as corall grows in the waters and draws nutriment from the Earth, so also the Philosophick Stone is concreted out of mercurial water and has taken thence whatever is worthy in it towards its own augmentation, the superfluous moisture having expired. ... And as corall is prepared into several medicines of great virtue, so also hath the Philosophickal Corall transferred into itself the virtues of all herbs, and can alone perform as much as the medicines of all vegetables. For the celestial Sun who infuses a medicinal virtue of efficacy to vegetables has given more to this Son of his than to all others. ... This is the Philosophickal Corall, vegetable, animal, and mineral, which lies hid in the vast ocean and is not known, unless it be put into the hands and exposed to the eyes of the ignorant. But it must be cut off whilst it is under the waters, and that with very great caution, lest it lose its juice and blood and nothing remain but a terrestrial chaos without its true form."

• Atalana Fugiens

"This Wisdom teaches a universal medicine, superior to all other medicines, which works not only according to the ordinary order of nature, but also participates in what is pure and spiritual. From it is produced the true essence of gold, shining with a radiant brilliance, which philosophers call the great miracle of nature. For in it lies the divine power through which a new creation may arise, as the philosophers testify. It illuminates darkness and brings forth the light of truth, leading humanity toward health and perfection. Thus the philosopher, through this art, may accomplish wonders in nature and obtain the supreme medicine, capable of restoring strength and prolonging life." - Gravel, Karl H.: Fontina Bernhardi revelata, c. 1750