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July 2003

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Subject: ACADEMY : Water of Paradise
From: Sophie Weeks
Date: Mon, 30 Jun 2003

I'm wondering if you can help me - I'm trying to track down
alchemical texts that use the specific phrase "Water of Paradise".

I've found one on the alchemy web site (by Johann Isaac Hollandus)
but I wondered if you know of any others? I'm particularly looking
for texts prior to 1630. I'd also be very grateful for any information y
ou can give me about the properties alchemists thought this water
had. If someone used the phrase "Water of Paradise" in an
alchemical context, would it have been obvioius what they were
referring to?

I'm interested because I'm doing some work on Francis Bacon's
New Atlantis and he mentions it there.

"We have also a number of artificial wells and fountains,
made in imitation of the natural sources and baths, as tincted
upon vitriol, sulphur, steel, brass, lead, nitre, and other minerals;
and again, we have little wells for infusions of many things,
where the waters take the virtue quicker and better than in
vessels or basins. And among them we have a water, which
we call water of paradise, being by that we do it made very
sovereign for health and prolongation of life."

I'm wondering whether the alchemical meanings of this
term were obvious to readers at the time.

Best wishes

Sophie Weeks

Subject: ACADEMY : Water of Paradise
From: Adam McLean
Date: 1 July 2003

On searching my computer's hard discs I found the following
texts mentioning the 'Water of Paradise'.

1.
Basilius Valentinus, A Benedictine Monk, Of natural &
supernatural things.
London, 1670.
p182-238 A Work of Saturn of Mr. John Isaac Holland.
The Preface. - In the Name of the Lord, Amen. - Example. -
Why is it as white as Snow? - Why is it sweet? - What hath
God in us, for whose sake he hath created all these Wonders,
and all these things? - Now, my Child, why is Saturn fluxible
as Wax? - The second way of preparing the Water of Paradise. -
The Multiplication of the Stone now perfected. - Projection
upon Metal. - Its Use in Physick. - Its Use in External Diseases.

"Wherefore the Matter melts presently, and though it be clean,
yet it is most fixed; wherefore give so gentle fire to it, that it
may not flux; so keep it six weeks, then take out a little of it, lay it
on a glowing hot Plate, if it immediately melts and fumes, it is
not yet fixed, but if the Matter remain unmelted, the Sulphur
is then fixed which is therein; then strengthen the Fire notably,
till the Matter in the Glass begins to look yellow, and continually
more and more yellow, like to powdered Saffron, then augment
the Fire yet stronger, till the Matter begin to be red, then prosecute
your Fire from one degree to another, even as the Powder
becomes redder and redder by degrees, so hold on your Fire,
till the Matter be red as a Ruby, then augment the Fire yet more,
that the Matter may be glowing hot, then is it fixed, and ready to
pour the curious Water of Paradise upon it."

2.
A Philosophical Account of Nature in General, And of the Generation of the Three Principles of Nature, viz. Mercury, Sulphur, and Salt, out of The Four Elements. Translated from the French. By John Digby, Esq;
London, 1722.

"For he who knows exactly the generation of metals, is not
ignorant also of their melioration and transmutation: and after
he has by that mean got the knowledge of our fountain of salt,
he shall here find the remaining instructions that are necessary
for him, to the end, that having addressed himself to the Almighty
with an ardent devotion, he may through his holy grace and
blessing, acquire that precious salt, white as the very snow;
that he may draw up the living water of Paradise; and may
therewith prepare the philosophical tincture, which is the
greatest treasure, and most noble gift that God has ever
bestowed in this life on the wise philosophers."

3.
Joannes Agricola - Treatise on Gold
Johann AGRICOLA. Commentariorum, Notarum, Observationum
& Animadversionum in Johannis Poppii chymische Medicin...
Leipzig. 1638-39.

"Thus the author's vitriol is nothing else: For it is only corroded
by Aqua Regis, and nothing concerning the Art can be learned
from it, although the Aqua Regis is called a Mercury,
and rainwater Paradise Water."

4.
Paris, Biblioth�que Nationale MS. Fran�ais 25320 [Oratoire 260]
76 folios. Paper. 175x120mm. 17th Century.
Elixir de vie.
[Recipes and alchemical formulae for making the water of paradise,
the elixir of Raymond Lully, the arcana of Flamel.]

5.
Hydropyrographum Hermeticum from
Aurifontina Chymica... London 1680.

"This Virgin and blessed Water the Philosophers named in their
Books with many thousand names; they call it Heaven,
Celestial Water, Celestial Rain, the dew of Heaven, May-dew,
Water of Paradise, parting Water, Aqua Regis, a corrosive
Aquafort, sharp Vinegar, Brandy, Quintessence of Wine,
growthful green juice, a growing Mercury, a viridescent Water,
and Leo Viridis, Quick Silver, Menstruum, Blood, Urine, Horse-piss,
Milk, and Virgins Milk, white Arsenick, Silver, Lune, and juice
of Lune... [&c.]"

6. Aqua Coelestis
Vaughan's Preface to the Rosicrucian Manifestos
The Fame and Confession of the Fraternity of R: C: commonly,
of the Rosie Cross. With a pr�face annexed thereto, and
a short declaration of their physicall work.
By Eugenius Philalethes London: J. M. for Giles Calvert. 1652.

"As for the Water, it was of kin with the Fire, for it was not common, but
aethereal. In all Centers this Fire was not the same, for in some it
was only a Solar Spirit, and such a Center was called, Aqua Solis,

Aqua Coelestis, Aqua Auri, et Argenti: In some again the Spirit
was more then Solar, for it was super-coelestial, and Metaphysical"

7. [From a modern writer]
Archibald Cockren. Alchemy rediscovered and restored.

"It may perhaps simplify matters a little if I give at this point
some of the alchemical terms used. The Spirit of Mercury,
alternatively called the Quintessence of the Philosophers,
Aqua Vitae, Water of Paradise, Azoth, Mercury of the
Philosophers, has also on account of its extreme volatility
been termed the Eagle, for unless its container be very
efficiently sealed, it rises into the air and is lost."

Adam McLean

Subject: ACADEMY : Bernareggi's 'Transmutatione metallorum'
From: Ross Caldwell
Date: Tue, 01 Jul 2003

I am looking for more information on the following (apparently
unpublished) manuscript in Pavia, not listed in Adam's
database of alchemical manuscripts in Italian libraries -

"Ars sive doctrina de transmutatione metallorum"
Pavia, Bibl. Univ., Aldini 74, ff. 79-80.; ms. dated 1461.

Attributed to Antonio Bernareggi (professor at Pavia,
later physician to Filippo Maria Visconti and Bianca Maria
Visconti-Sforza).

Noted by Monica Pedralli, "Il medico ducale Milanese Antonio
Bernareggi e i suoi libri" (Aevum 70/2, May-August, 1996,
pp. 307-349), p 325, and note 95.

Pedralli gives the following two references in note 95 -

Belloni, "La medicina [a Milano fino al Seicento", in _Storia
di Milano_, XI, Milano 1958], 621;

C. Casagrande, M.A. Casagrande and S. Vecchio,
"Pavia. Bibliloteca Universitaria: Fondo Aldini", in _Catalogo
dei manoscritti filosofici nelle biblioteche italiane, VII. Novara,
Palermo, Pavia_, Firenze, 1993 (Corpus Philosophorum Medii
Aevi. Subsidia, 8), 142-3.

Unfortunately neither of these books is available to me.

Anyone here live in Pavia?

Short of that, does anyone know anything more about this
(apparently short) manuscript, or would someone be so
kind as to check these references and write a summary?

Thank you in advance,

Ross Caldwell

Subject: ACADEMY : Ficino's treatise
Date: Mon, 07 Jul 2003
From: Rafal T. Prinke

There is an alchemical text attributed to Marsilio Ficino
(English translation at Adam's site:)

http://www.levity.com/alchemy/ficino.html

As far as I could ascertain, the Latin version was published
only by Manget in 1702, while a German translation (?) was
first printed in 1667 (Ferguson's BC).

I am working on a Polish manuscript which is dated 1626 and
contains fragments of the same treatise, also stating that
it is by an unknown author believed to be Marsilio Ficino.

Was there any earlier printing of this text unknown
to Ferguson? Is there any known MS version that can be
dated to before 1626?

Best regards,

Rafal

Subject: ACADEMY : Ficino's treatise
From: Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero
Date: Mon, 7 Jul 2003

> There is an alchemical text attributed to Marsilio Ficino
> (English translation at Adam's site)
> Was there any earlier printing of this text unknown
> to Ferguson? Is there any known MS version that can be
> dated to before 1626?

Dear Rafal:

According my notebooks the treatise was first cited by Theobald van
Hoghelande in his _ De alchemi� difficultatibus_ (Cologne, 1594, ff. A3v,
A5v; pp. 112-113, 119-120, 122-123, 127-128) and in his _De lapidis physici
conditionibus_ (Cologne, 1595, pp. 97-98, 125-126, 226). Hoghelande quotes
the text under the names _Lib. de arte chymica_ or _Lib. de alchemia_ and he
attributed it to Masilio Ficino.

You can find all those references in:

- SYLVAIN MATTON, (1991), "Marsilie Ficin et l'alchimie; sa position, son
influence", in: J. C. Margolin y Sylvain Matton (eds.), "Alchimie et
Philosophie � la Renaissance", J. Vrin, Paris, pp. 123-192, cf. pp. 128-130.

There is an early printed version in the alchemical compendia entitled
"Artis Aurifera, quam Chemiam vocat" (Bale, 1593, I, pp. 575-631; Bale 1610;
t. I, pp. 369-405). It appears as an anonymous work.

It is clear that the original version must have been copied in manuscripts
at least in the second halft of the 16th century. Some years ago I analyzed
a spanish poem (composed by Luis de Centelles arrond 1560-1570) strongly
related to your text. I think _Liber de arte chymica_ could be one of its
sources.

- ELENA CASTRO SOLER & JOS� RODR�GUEZ GUERRERO,
"Luis de Centelles y las Coplas de la Piedra Philosophal", "Azogue",
n� 4, 2001, << http://idd00dnu.eresmas.net/centelle3.htm >>,
cf. sec. III.2.b. and notes105-106.

Concerning the authorship, Paul O. Kristeller and Sylvain Matton rejected
the Ficino attribution. There is a clear argumentation in Kristeller's
Supplementum Ficinianum:

- P. O. KRISTELLER, (1937. repr. 1973), Supplementum Ficinianum, 2 vols.,
Florence, cf. t. I, pp. CLXVI-CLXVII. Kristeller refers a copy in: Venice,
Biblioteca Marciana MS. Latin XIV. 291 f. 159 sqq (end of 16th century).

Other references:

- P. O. KRISTELLER, (1987), Marsilio Ficino and His Works after Five Hundred
Years, Florence, p. 9: "He [s. e. Ficino] never concened himself with

alchemy, and the alchemical texts attributed to him are all apocryphal".

- Ibid., p. 92: "[Catalogue of Marsilio Ficino's writtings.] LONDON,
Wellcome Historical Medical Library, ms. 3574. misc. XVIII. ff. 132r-134r.
Ficinus, De arte chymica, inc.: Omnium recte philosophantium eadem est
opinio. Apocryphal."

- Ibid., p. 142: "[Additions and Corrections to the Catalogue of Marsilio
Ficino's writtings.] item LXXXI. De arte chymica (SF, I, pp. CLVI-CLXVII).
This apocryphal treatise (inc.: "Omnium recte philosophantium") appears aso
in London, Wellcome Historical Medical Library, ms. 3574. ff. 132r-134r
(misc. XVIII), probably copied from the edition of Mangetus".

Regars,

Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero

Subject: ACADEMY : Ficino's treatise
Date: Wed, 09 Jul 2003
From: Rafal T. Prinke

Dear Jos�,

Many thanks for the exhaustive reply.

> There is an early printed version in the alchemical compendia entitled
> "Artis Aurifera, quam Chemiam vocat" (Bale, 1593, I, pp. 575-631; Bale 1610;
> t. I, pp. 369-405). It appears as an anonymous work.

As this edition is anonymous, I believe my 1626 author must
have had access to a manuscript that attributed the text to
Ficino. Perhaps one of the same tradition of MSS as that used
by Hoghelande.

Best regards,

Rafal

Subject: ACADEMY : Thesaurus Thesaurorum A Fraternitate Rosae et Aureae Crucis Testamento
From: Hereward Tilton
Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2003

Dear Academy,

I have received a microfilm copy of the "Testamentum der
Fraternitet Roseae et Aureae Crucis" from the �sterreichische
Nationalbibliothek and have had a quick look through it.

The version given by Archarion in his "Von wahrer Alchemie"
seems to be a fairly accurate transcription of the original.
Christopher McIntosh in his "Rose Cross and the Age of Reason"
points out some similarities between the laws appended to Richter's
"Warhaffte und vollkommene Bereitung des Philosophischen Steins"
and those given at the beginning of the Testamentum; it is also pertinent
to note the fact that in both documents the Brethren have meeting
places in N�rnberg and Ancona (the latter providing a connection
with the late 17th century Italian Gold and Rosy Cross, perhaps?).
The manuscript seems to have been written sometime between
Richter's work (1710) and the date of its acquisition by Johann
Adalbert in 1735 mentioned in the endpapers.

With regard to its similarities with the "Thesaurus Thesaurorum a
Fraternitate Rosae et Aureae Crucis Testamento" we have discussed,
there is the odd fact that whereas Waite mentions "Anno 1580" as
the date given on the front of the Thesaurus, the Testamentum gives
"Anno 580" on its title-page. Given that the year 1641 is mentioned
explicitly in the text of the Testamentum (in relation to the two lost
Brethren also mentioned in the laws appended to the "vollkommene
Bereitung "), there doesn't seem to be any desire here to deceive
readers as to the true date of the manuscript's origins. The number
of laws given also differs: 35 (Thesaurus) versus 28 (Testamentum).
Although both works begin with a description of the transmission
of the mysteries from the time of Abraham, Waite remarks that
the laws in the Thesaurus Thesaurorum are followed by a "Juramentum
Fraternitatis"; in the Testamentum they are followed by "die geheimen
Extases oder Operationen im Mysterio", which forms the vast bulk
of the manuscript. Whilst the alchemical text forming the main body
of the Thesaurus contains references to Sendivogius (which
Waite used to show that the title-page date of 1580 was impossible
for the manuscript), the Testamentum does not (though there are
citations from Paracelsus, Basil Valentine, Eckartshausen, and
R. Abraham Eleazar).

Judging by its emblems, the Testamentum also appears to be very
different to the Wellcome Institute Library MS. 4775 [c. 1725]
"Thesaurus thesaurorum et secretum secretissimum" that Adam
once mentioned (see attached emblems). It seems that it was merely
a custom to attach the Fraternity's laws (in the various forms they
took in the earlier 18th century) to alchemical texts relating to the
praxis of the brotherhood/s; sometimes a standard account of the
historical transmission of the mysteries seems also to have been
appended.

I'm afraid I don't have time to look at the work in any detail now,
but I am sending the microfilm on to Beat. I'm also attaching scans
of the first two emblems from the Testamentum.

Cheers
Hereward

Subject: ACADEMY : Thesaurus Thesaurorum A Fraternitate Rosae et Aureae Crucis Testamento
From: Hereward Tilton
Date: Thu, 17 Jul 2003

Dear Academy,

Having looked through the "Testamentum der Fraternitet Roseae
et Aureae Crucis" once again before sending it off to Beat, I
see that the transcription of the manuscript provided by Archarion
in his "Von wahrer Alchemie" is fairly accurate except for one point:
he has omitted the final, fourteenth chapter! I'm not sure how you
knew that something was amiss with Archarion's transcription, Beat,
but you were certainly right. In any case, I dare say that this was
not an oversight of Archarion's.

The chapter deals with the following theme:

Wie ein Magus durch die constellation ein Metall bereithen kann,
und aus solchen allerhand gr�ndliche spiegl bereithen, in welchen
man alles sehen kan, und solches nur in seinem Zimmer.

The chapter heading goes on to say that just such a magic mirror
was given to each of the brethren for their own personal use;
attached to this e-mail is the emblem of the 14th chapter, which
depicts a Rosicrucian brother in his house with a mirror on the
wall of his room. Oddly enough, when browsing my Windows
Explorer the 'miniature view' of this 14th emblem file always
shows a different picture, so I hope I'm sending the right one.

Hereward

Subject: ACADEMY : Joan de Rodes
From: Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero
Date: Fri, 18 Jul 2003

Dear Academy:

I am looking for references about an alchemist and physician called
Joan de Rodes ( I found further names as Je[h]an de Rodes;
Johannes Rodiano).

I know there is a biographical notice in:
- E. WICKERSHEIMER, (1936), "Dictionnaire biographique des
m�dicins en Frace au Moyen Age", p. 473.

However I am abroad and I have not access to this book.
I wonder if anyone could send me the Wickersheimer notice.

Thanks all,

Jos� Rodr�guez

Subject: ACADEMY : Joan de Rodes
From: Adam McLean
Date: 20 Jul 2003

Dear Jos� Rodr�guez,

>I am looking for references about an alchemist and physician called
>Joan de Rodes

>E. WICKERSHEIMER, (1936), "Dictionnaire biographique des
>m�dicins en Frace au Moyen Age", p. 473.

There is a copy of this in Glasgow University Library.
I will probably be there next week and will look up the
reference for you.

Adam McLean

Subject: ACADEMY : Philotheus de Limitibus
Date: Sat, 19 Jul 2003
From: Rafal T. Prinke

I have some bibliographic questions:

There are two very late (1792) alchemical works published
in Vienna under the pseudonym "Philotheus de Limitibus":

_Allgemeine Abbildung der ganzen Sch�pfung_ and
_Das Hermetische Triklinium_

In Adam's online database the author is identified as
one G. M�rker. Is there anything else known about him?

http://www.levity.com/alchemy/books/bk2787.htm

He is not mentioned by Christopher McIntosh or Waite's
_Brotherhood..._ so I assume it is not a Rosicrucian item.
The title pages say they were translated from Latin by
one J.J. Grienstein. Is the Latin version known to have been
published?

Best regards,

Rafal

Subject: ACADEMY : Philotheus de Limitibus
From: Eugene Beshenkovsky
Date: Sun, 20 Jul 2003

Dear Rafal,

This is what I've been able to find in KVK (Union Catalog of German ...
Libraries).

Schema universale totius creati, seu genealogia mundi triplicis : una cum
explicatione aphoristica theo-philosophica / authore Philotheo de Limitibus
Gladrubii : Wolsowiz, 1772. - [4] Bl., 118, 20 S. : Ill.

Philothei de Limitibus Schema universale totius creati. Cum annexis
thesibus ex theologica polemico-dogmatica: De ecclesia malignante et
antichristo Monachii, 1774
Philotheus de Limitibus ist Pseud. f�r Gottlieb M�rker. -

Schema universale totius creati seu Genealogia mundi triplicis : Una cum
explicatione aphoristica theo-philosophica. Tractalus primus. / Authore
Philotheo de Limitibus [d. i. Gottlieb M�rker]

Autor/Herausgeber: M�rker, Gottlieb
Ver�ffentlicht: Gladrubii in Moravia: Wolsowiz, o. J.
Seiten: [3] Bl., 42 S., [4] Bl., 118 S. : Ill.

Allgemeine Abbildung der ganzen Sch�pfung oder Genealogie der dreifachen
Welt : 1. Werkchen / Philotheus de Limitibus. Aus d. Lat. von J. J.
Grienstein
Philadelphia, 1792.

Das Hermetische Triklinium oder drei Gespr�che vom Stein der Weisen /
Philotheus de Limitibus. Aus d. Lat. �bers. von J. J. Grienstein
Philadelphia, 1792

You can, probably find some information on the author in Meusel or in
Hamberger u. Meusel biographical dictionaries of German writers.

Eugene Beshenkovsky

Subject: ACADEMY : The Ring of Gyges
Date: Sun, 20 Jul 2003
From: Jeffrey Cain

For a project on one of Ben Jonson's late plays, _The New Inn_, I am
seeking to gloss a reference to the ring of Gyges (or it might
possibly be transliterated "Giges"). The myth of Gyges, a shepherd
who goes underground to find a golden ring on the body of a huge dead
giant, is told by Plato, possibly re-worked from Herodotus:

http://plato-dialogues.org/tetra_4/republic/gyges.htm

My question is: do Gyges and his ring appear anywhere in the
alchemical literature? And if so, I would appreciate know anything
you would care to tell me about the reference, its content, etc.

Thanks much for any assistance.

Best Regards,

Jeffrey Cain
Sacred Heart University

Subject: ACADEMY : Philotheus de Limitibus
Date: Sun, 20 Jul 2003
From: Rafal T. Prinke

Dear Eugene,

> Autor/Herausgeber: M�rker, Gottlieb
> Ver�ffentlicht: Gladrubii in Moravia: Wolsowiz, o. J.
> Seiten: [3] Bl., 42 S., [4] Bl., 118 S. : Ill.

Thanks a lot for the references (and reminding me about
the KVK!). So it appears that the originals were published
in Latin in "Gladrubii". I have checked the online
_Orbis Latinus_ and it says it is Kladruby (German: Kladruben)
in Bohemia. It is actually quite far from Moravia but
must be that place.

Best regards,

Rafal

Subject: ACADEMY : The Ring of Gyges
Date: Sun, 20 Jul 2003
From: Frank McCluskey

Gyges is correct spelling. A story told in Plato's Republic about
a shepherd who finds a ring that makes him invisible. It appears
in a section of the book that contrasts appearance and reality.
The point of the story is that the most incorruptible philosopher
may not be immune from the power of a ring whose actions
bear no consequence. The story that appears in Heroditus is
not so mystical and is about a servant who witnesses the
nakedness of a queen on the word of a king and then slays the
king and marries the queen. Also a reference to being able to
see without being seen. Wagner's Ring cycle and J.R. Tolkien's
Lord of the Rings are both decendents of this ring whose power
is too great for anyone to possess.

Dr.Frank McCluskey

Subject: ACADEMY : The Ring of Gyges
Date: Sun, 20 Jul 2003
From: Adam McLean

Jonson may have got this from Rabalais' 'Pantagruel'
rather than from an alchemical source.

I cannot immediately think of an alchemical text
referencing this image, but it is obviously the kind of
classical image that someone like Michael Maier
would have delighted in, however, I cannot recall
Maier using this term in his 'Atalanta fugiens'.

Adam McLean

Subject: ACADEMY : Ouroboros dagger in alchemical manuscript
From: Adam McLean
Date: 21 July 2003

Does anyone know of or has seen the manuscript containing the
image of an Ouroboros dagger, which I attach to this email ?

This was in one of the sale catalogues of the Amsterdam
book dealer Schors, back in the 1980's.

Does anyone know anything about this manuscript?

Present location.
Approximate date (it appears to me to be 18th century).
Whether there are any other illustrations in the manuscript.
Does the work have a title ?
Is there any text in the manuscript ?

I would be very grateful for any information on this
obscure, though very interesting item.

Adam McLean

Subject: ACADEMY : The Ring of Gyges
From: Steve Feite
Date: Mon, 21 Jul 2003

> Wagner's Ring cycle and J.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings
> are both decendents of this ring whose power
> is too great for anyone to possess.

But based ultimately on the epic poem the Nibelungenlied.

Sincerely,

Steve Feite

Subject: ACADEMY : Joan de Rodes
Date: Tue, 22 Jul 2003
From: Claude Gagnon

Daniele Jacquart has published some years ago a revised
edition of the Wickersheimer's dictionary.

Claude Gagnon

Subject: ACADEMY : Joan de Rodes
From: Adam McLean
Date: 20 Jul 2003

Dear Jos� Rodr�guez,

There are two different entries for Joan de Rodes in
WICKERSHEIMER, "Dictionnaire biographique des
m�dicins en Frace au Moyen Age", p. 473.

Jean de Roda. De la nation normande. Recu licencie
en medecine a Paris, en 1396, apres 51 mois et demi
d'audition, maitre en medecine la meme annee, il fit
acte de regence a la Faculte de medecine 1396-98.

Jean de Roda. Clerc du diocese de Bayeau, maitre
es-arts et etudiant en medecine, Paris, 1403.

Adam McLean

Subject: ACADEMY : Joan de Rodes
From: Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero
Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2003

Dear Adam:

Thank you for posting the reference from Wickersheimer.
It is really useful for me. Thanks to Claude too. I will check
the Jacquart's "Addenda" and "Corrigeda" (and her "Suppl�ment")
when I get back to home.

Regards,

Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero

Subject: ACADEMY : Bernareggi's 'Transmutatione metallorum'
From: Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero
Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2003

Dear Ross Caldwell,

Concerning codex 74 in Pavia you can find an extensive
description in:

- G. CARBONELI, (1925), "Sulle fonti storiche della chimica
e dell'alchimia in Italia", Roma, Istituto Nazionale Medico
Farmacologico, pp. 117-141.

It is a famous work for its images of alchemical apparatus.
There are color reproductions in:

- F. CARDINI & M. GABRIELE, (1992) "Exaltatio essenti,
essentia exaltata", Pacini editore, Pisa, pp. 228, 229, 232-235.

Black and white reproductions in several books, mainly:

- M. GABRIELE, (1997), " Alchimia e Iconologia", Forum Udine.
- J. VAN LENNEP, (1985), "Alchimie. Deuxi�me �dition revue
et agment�e...", CCB, Bruxelles [503 pp.].

Regards,

Jos� Rodr�guez Guerrero

Subject: ACADEMY : Le Cosmopolite
Date: Sat, 26 Jul 2003
From: Rafal T. Prinke

Dear All,

There is a modern French edition of Sendivogius' (and
pseudoepigraphic) works:

Le Cosmopolite ou Nouvelle lumiere chymique...
texte de l'�dition fran�aise de 1691
introduction et notes par Bernard Roger
Paris : Retz, 1976

The original 1691 edition which apparently was the basis for
this one, contains the first printing of the "55 letters"
attributed to Sendivogius.

Can anyone tell me if the above also contains the text
of the letters or just the treatises?

Best regards,

Rafal

Subject: ACADEMY : Philotheus de Limitibus
Date: Fri, 25 Jul 2003
From: Michal Pober

Dear Rafal,

>I have checked the online _Orbis Latinus_ and it
>says it is Kladruby (German: Kladruben) in Bohemia. #
>It is actually quite far from Moravia but must be that place.

Have been away for a few days and missed the beginning of
this thread.

A quick look at a Czech Atlas shows an extraordinary
prevalence of Kladruby's in the Czech lands 11, all in Bohemia.
The best known is probably Kladruby nad Labem, near Kolin,
where a special breed of magnificent horses has been bred
from at least the time of Rudolf II.

All best!

michal

Subject: ACADEMY : Philotheus de Limitibus
Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003
From: Rafal T. Prinke

Dear Michal,

> A quick look at a Czech Atlas shows an extraordinary
> prevalence of Kladruby's in the Czech lands 11, all in Bohemia.
> The best known is probably Kladruby nad Labem, near Kolin,
> where a special breed of magnificent horses has been bred
> from at least the time of Rudolf II.

Thanks you for this additional information. My initial
checking showed this Kladruby nad Labem but I have now
looked in my (very old) Czechoslovakian road atlas
and did not find any Kladruby in Moravia, anyway.

So either my (and Orbis Latinus) identification of the
Latin place name is not correct - or it was fictional.
Still, it may be assumed that the Latin first editions
of the books by Philotheus were published somewhere
in Bohemia or Moravia.

Best regards,

Rafal

Subject: ACADEMY : Michael Maier's Themis Aurea
From: Leigh Penman
Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003

Dear Academy,

Does anyone have access to the Latin text of Maier's Themis
Aurea (Frankfurt 1618)? I am in particular interested in the
passage cited by Yates concerning Maier's judgment that
Boccalini's Universal Reformation "had nothing to do with
the Fama and was only accidentally printed with it."
(Yates, RE, 136-7, citing Maier, Themis, p.186).

While examining the 1656 English translation, I was intrigued
by the lack of specific reference to any such judgment of the
Count in the text, although such a view could be implied. I would
be grateful for the opportunity to check the congruity of Maier's
original statement with its English translation, and ultimately
the later claims of Yates and A.E. Waite.

Any assistance is appreciated.

Leigh Penman