D. G. BELGA.

HERMETIS TRISMEGISTI Tractatus Vere D- G. Beiga. Aureus de Lapidis Philosophici Secreto, scholiis illustratus, opera D. Gnosii Belgae in lucem editus, with diagrams. Sm. 8vo., vellum, Lipsice, 1610. Rare. 30s.
This work (one of the utmost importance to Alchemists) consists of brief but pregnant chapters attributed to Hermes, and a lengthy commentary explaining the mysterious sen- tences of the great adept. Thus Hermes says, " Guard therefore that living silver which is in the inmost chambers where it was congealed." The commentator begins : " It is agreed amongst philosophers that living silver is the first matter of all the metals. But it is by no means common silver or common mercury ; for the common mercury is dead and in no wise fitted for the work, but this is living and philosophical : this is duly prepared with the help of nature and art," &c, &c. A curious passage is that in which Hermes bids his son " take up his shadow from the light " ; on which the scholium runs, " as one walking in the sun is followed by his shadow like a companion, so our Hermaphro- dite, the child of Adam, though he have the form of a man, yet ever bears about him in his body Eve, his wife."
O. CROLLIUS.
BASILICA CHYMICA, Osualdi Crollii, con- o. Croiiius. tinens descriptionem et usum Remediorum Chymicorum, additus est Tractatus DE SIGNATURIS Rerum Internis. With ex- tremely curious emblematical frontispiece, containing cabalistic diagrams and the portraits of Paracelsus, Geber, Lully, Morien. and others ; also tables of the characters used by the B 2 19
Thomas Marvell,
o. CroiHus. Alchemists to denote the Metals, Elements, &*c.
\to., vellum, Francofurti, 1609. Rare. jQi. " All herbs, flowers, trees, and all the fruits of the earth," says the author in his treatise on Signatures, "are books and magic signs given us by the mercy of God." This is the text on which he preaches the sermon that the whole universe is Magical, a chain of symbols mounting from the herb of the field to the splendour of the Ayin Soph ; everything is shown to be permeated with magic force and meaning. The first part of the work, the Basilica Chymica is a system of Mystic Medicine, for which the writer is evidently a good deal indebted to Paracelsus. "No one, who is not an alchemist, can know anything either of theoretical or practical medicine,'"' says Crollius. Many a strange sublime fancy will be found in the no pages of the " Praefatio Admonitoria " : that precious stones are elementary stars, for instance ; that Man contains in himself the whole universe, Material and Spiritual ; that the grain of wheat sown in the ground hath in itself the soul of a star ; much, in fact, that anticipates the teaching of the Rosicrucians.
G. DORNEUS.
CDomeus. TREVISANUS de Chymico Miraculo, quod Lapidem Philosophise appellent, DIONYS. ZACHARIUS de eodem (The OPUS- CULUM), Annotata qusdam ex NICOLAO FLAMELLO, illustrati per G. Dorneum. Sm. Svo., sheep, Basil, 1600. Fine copy, very rare. ^4. 4s.
A volume of the utmost rarity and interest. It comprises Four Books on Alchemy by the celebrated Bernard of Trevisan ; the famous Opusculum of Denis Zachaire, at once an autobiography and a treatise on Alchemy by
98, Great Russell Street, London, W.C.
an adept ; and the Annotations of Nicolas G. Domcus. Flam el, the fortunate possessor of the Book of Abraham the Jew, who founded and en- dowed several churches and hospitals in Paris, with the gold he obtained by his art. To these are added annotations from various authors, among them being Arnold de Villanova, Avicenna, Lully, and Geber, and more lengthy extracts from other ancient writers. A work like this should afford an answer to the much-debated question — What was the aim and object of those searchers after the Hermetic Mystery, commonly called Alchemists ?
NICHOLAS FLAMEL, ARTEPHLUS, &c.
PHILOSOPHIE NATURELLE DE TROIS ANCIENS PHILOSOPHES, ARTE- PHIUS, FLAMEL, ET SYNESIUS, aug- mented d'un petit Traite de la Pierre des Philosophes de G. Ripleus. With large folding plate, and 8 cuts of the Hieroglyphical Figures of Flamel 4to., calf, gilt, Paris, 1682. 40s. The visitor to Paris would do well to seek at the " Cemetery of the Innocents, on the fourth arch on the right hand as you go in from the Rue St. Denis," for the mystical figures placed there by Nicholas Flamel, the famous alchemist. In appearance, as deli- neated in the above work, they are singularly fine examples of mediaeval art, showing forth the Secrets of Transmutation in a mystical, but beautiful allegory. Subjoined to these illustrations is FlamePs explanation, also his account of his life, that strange chapter in alchemy, wherein the reader will see how Flamel became possessed of the " Book of Abraham, the Jew " ; how he toiled over its leaves, experimenting, trying one intrepreta- tion after another with no success; how he
Nicholas Flamel, Artephius, &c.
Thomas Mavvell,
Nicholas painted the figures of the fourth and fifth
Arteph'ius. leaves on his house walls, and brought great
&c- clerks to see them all in vain ; how he made
a pilgrimage to Spain, and there met a man who explained the riddle, and at last Flamel knew the secret of the First Principle or Matter.
/ R. GLAUBER.
J. R. DESCRIPTION OF NEW PHILOSOPHICAL Glauber. FURNACES, whereunto is added a Descrip-
tion of the Tincture of Gold, or the true Aurum Potabile, by J. R. Glauber. With numerous cuts, sm. 4to., half calf gilt edges, by Zaehnsdorf 1651, title and first few leaves neatly mended. 25 s.
/ F. HELVETIUS.
j. f. GOLDEN CALF (THE), which the world
Heivenus. adores and desires ; in which is handled the
most rare and incomparable wonder of nature in transmuting metals, written in Latin, by John Frederick Helvetius, and faithfully Englished. i2mo., calf 1670. jQi. 10s. Very rare.
Showing "how the entire substance of lead was in one moment translated into Gold- Obrizon, with an exceeding small particle of the true Philosophick Stone. At the Hague. In the year 1666."
HORTOLANUS, JUN.
Hortoianus, GOLDEN AGE; or, the Reign of Saturn Reviewed, tending to set forth a way to pre- pare and fix our common mercury into silver and gold : with a discourse vindicating and explaining the Philosopher's Stone, by Hortoianus, Jun. 8vo., old calf 1698. 30s. A series of valuable extracts from and com- ments on " ^Eirenseus Philalethes," whom the writer calls " my master, a true Adeptist, and 22
98, Great Russell Street, London, IV. C.
the last and best Interpreter of all the Ancient Hortoianus. Philosophers." A portion of the work is cast Jun' in the form of a dialogue between Eirenseus and Hortoianus.
J. F. HOUPREGHT.
AURIFONT1NA CHEMICA; or, a Collection of Jj.£nht fourteen small Treatises concerning the first oupreg matter of Philosophers. i2mo., sheep, 1680. . ,
40s. Very rare.
Among the treatises are : " Sir George Ripley's Treatise of Mercury and the Philo- sopher's Stone"; "Nic. Flammell his Sum- mary of Philosophy, or Short Treatise of the Philosopher's Stone " ; " Bern. Trevisan's Epistle concerning the Secret Workings of Nature " ; the " Privy Seal of Secrets plainly discovering the First Matter of the Philo- sophers " ; " Colours to be observed in the Operation of the Great Work," etc., etc.
G. L. HUME.
CHEMICAL ATTRACTION, with an Historical G. l. Hume. Introduction, and illustrative Tables, by Gilbert Langdon Hume. Svo., half cloth, Cambridge, 1835. 5 s.
The Introduction contains a history of alchemy, with notices of and extracts from the works of the principal alchemists ; and also an account of Sir Kenelm Digby, Van Helmont, and the chemists of the 17th century.
PARACELSUS.
PARACELSUS HIS ARCHIDOXIS, Comprised Paracelsus,
in Ten Books disclosing the Genuine Way of making Quintessences, Arcanums, Elixirs, &>c, together with his books of Renovation and Restauration ; of the Tincture of the Philosophers ; of the Manual of the Philo-
23
TJiomas Marvell,
Paracelsus. sophical Medicinal Stone ; of the Virtues of
the Members ; of the Three Principles ; and finally, his seven books of the degrees and compositions of Receipts and Natural Things,
Englished by J. H . Oxon. i2mo., calf,
1660. Very rare. £2. 2s.
EIRENjEUS PHILALETHES.
Eirensus INTROITUS APERTUS IN OCCLUSUM s- REGIS PALATIUM, autore Anonymo
Philaletha Philosopho, in gratiam Artis Chy- micse nunc primum publicatus. Sm. Bvo., half morocco, top edges gilt, by Zaehnsdorf, Amstel., with the Sphere, 1667. The rare first
EDITION, FINE COPY. 5 OS.
This is absolutely the original edition of the famous " Open Entrance to the Shut Palace of the King," translated from the English manuscript of the mysterious author, so often confounded with another adept, Thomas Vaughan, Eugenius Philalethes, who by a curious coincidence seems to have been born in the same year.
INTROITUS APERTUS ad Occlusum Regis Palatium, novis animadversionibus illustratus, by Eiren^eus Philalethes. \zmo., half- calf gilt, Francofurti, 1706. 15 s. Rare.
Students will find in this excellent edition an attempt at unravelling the impenetrable mystery which even then surrounded the author of the " Introitus Apertus." The writer refers to his connection with Starkey, and seems unce'tain whether he were the " famulus" or " socius et amicus " of Eirenseus, and points to the bookseller, William Cooper, as the likeliest person to know who Eirenaeus really was. We must note also the list of 1 5 books and 13 manuscripts by Eirenaeus ad- . joined by the editor. 24
98, Great Russell Street, London, W. C.
RIPLEY REVIV'D ; or, an Exposition upon Sir gS5g£ George Ripley's HERMETICO-POETICAL Works. Containing the plainest and most excellent discoveries of the most hidden secrets of the Ancient Philosophers that were ever yet published. Written by Eiren^us Philalethes. Sm. 2>vo., polished calf, extra, marbled edges, 1678. £2 2s.
Contains : An Exposition upon Sir George Ripley's Epistle ; An Exposition upon Sir George Ripley's Preface ; An Exposition upon the First Six Gates of Sir George Ripley's Com- pound of Alchymie ; Experiments for the Preparation of the Sophick Mercury by Eirenseus Philalethes ; Breviary of Alchemy ; and An Exposition of Sir George Ripley's Vision. The bookseller's catalogues of the works of Eirenasus Philalethes are note- worthy. The list comprises 33 works in all ; 15 of which were printed and 18 "he wrote, but we cannot as yet find where the Copies are."
WM. SALMON.
MEDICINA PRACTICA ; or, Practical Physick w. Saimo* with the Preparation of the Universal Medi- cine of Paracelsus, &c, to which is added the philosophical works of HERMES TRISMEGISTUS, KALID, GEBER, ARTEFIUS, FLAMMEL, BACHON, and RIPLEY, translated with a Singular Com- ment on the First Book of Hermes, by William Salmon. With plates of Geber's Furnaces and FlammePs Hieroglyphics . 8vo. old calf , 1692, 50s. Very rare.
POLYGRAPHICE : Containing ... of Alchy- ' mie, and the grand elixir of philosophers ; of the 112 chymical arcana of Peter Faber ; of chiromantical signatures, &c, &c. 25 copper plates. 2 vols., &vo., panelled calf, 17 01. 25s.
25
Thomas MarvclL
w. Salmon. ^phe part of this work treating on Alchemy
professes to be a comment and an explanation of the writings of Basil Valentine, Ripley, Paracelsus, and other of the old alchemists. Here and there we get a hint of an allegory; as, for instance, " The variety of several Furnaces intimates the variety of Labours and diversity of Matters," and when the author distinguishes between dead common gold and the "living Spiritual Gold." There are many riddles here for students of Alchemy to solve, and such dark sayings as " there is but one thing in all the world out of which our Art is made," "There is one mineral in the bowels of the earth which in the outside is marked with the figure of the Microcosme, and is in the beginning the Tree of Gold" and " if we will Pveap Sol or Luna we must use their Form or Soul and not the Matter."
THOMAS VAUGHAN.
Thomas MAGIA AD AMICA ; or, the Antiquity of Magic : Vaughan. whereunto is added a perfect and full Discoverie
of the true Coelum Terrae, or the Magician's Heavenly Chaos, by Eugenius Phila- lethes. — The Man Mouse taken- in a Trap, and tortured to death for gnawing the margins of Eugenius Philalethes. i vol. 12 mo., calf extra, gilt edges, by Zaehnsdorf, 1650. Tine copy, very rare. 50s.
BREIF NATURAL HISTORY intermixed with Variety of Philosophical Discourses ; and Observations upon the Burnings of Mount yEtna, with Refutations of such Vulgar Errours as our Modern Authours have omitted, by Eugenius Philalethes. 121110., old calf 1669. 25s.
LUMEN DE LUMINE ; or, a new magicall Light discovered, and communicated to the world 26
98, Great Russell Street, London, W. C.
Thomas an.
by Eugenius Philalethes, with the plate vaugb of the Enchanted Treasure, . . . THE SECOND WASH; or, the Moore Scour'd once more, &c., by Eugenius Philalethes, in one vol., \21no., calf, 165 1. Very rare 60s.
BASIL VALENTINE.
THEODORI KERCKRINGII COMMENTA- RIUS IN CURRUM TRIUMPHALEM ANTIMONII BASILII VALENTINI, with symbolical copper-plate frontispiece by Romyn de Hooghe, and plates, \2n10., calf. Amstel, 1671. \2S. 6d.
The famous " Triumphal Chariot of Anti- mony," by Basil Valentine, with notes and ex- planations of the text. This is one of the works relied on by those who regard Alchemy as a profound and extraordinary allegory, teaching the quest of something far higher than the Transmuting Stone.
Basil
Valentine.
J. H. WEIDENFELD.
FOUR BOOKS OF JOHANNES SEGERUS WEIDENFELD concerning the Secrets of the Adepts, collected out of the Ancient and Modern Fathers of Adept Philosophy. 4/0-., old calf , 1685, rare. 30J.
" All the Secrets of Chymy," according to the author, " depend upon the Spirit of Philo- sophical Wine. He that takes the Philoso- phers' sayings according to their common sense and signification has already lost the clew of Ariadnes, and wanders up and down the labyrinth." The philosophical wine con- sists of two Spirits, the Father and Son, " The first doth in its preparation require Laborem Sophiae, the most secret, difficult, and dan- gerous work of all true Chemistry." This most curious work consists of excerpts from
27
J.H.
Weidenfeld.
Thomas Marvell,
Wwdeufcid. an(^ comments on the writings of Paracelsus,
Ripley, Lully, Basil Valentine, and other Adepts.
/. BLA GRAVE.
j. Biagrave. ASTROLOGICAL PRACTICE OF PHYSICK, discovering the true Way to Cure all Dis- eases, also a Discovery of some notable Philosophical Secrets, by Joseph Biagrave, Student in Astrology. Sm. 8vo., mottled calf gilt, 1689, title mounted. 12s. 6d.
HIRAM E. BUTLER.
Hiram e. SOLAR BIOLOGY : a new Scientific, exact and easy Method of delineating character: diagnosing disease ; determing mental, physi- cal, and business qualifications, conjugal adaptability, &c, from date to birth, by Hiram E. Butler. Seven plate diagrams and tables of the moon and planets from 1820 to 1900. 500 pages large 8vo., bevelled doth, with symbolical designs in gold. Boston. 2 is.