NICHOLAS FLAMMEL,
His Exposition of the Hiero∣glyphicall
Figures which he caused
to bee painted vpon an Arch in
St. Innocents Church-yard,
in PARIS.

Together with
The secret Booke of ARTEPHIVS,
And
The Epistle of Iohn Pontanus:
Concerning both the Theoricke and
the Practicke of the PHILO∣SOPHERS
STONE.

Faithfully, and (as the Maiesty of the thing
requireth) religiously done into English out
of the French and Latine Copies.

BY
EIRENaeVS ORANDVS, qui est,
Vera veris enodans.

—〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.

Imprinted at London by T. S. for Thomas
Walkley, and are to bee solde at his
Shop, at the Eagle and Childe in
Britans Bursse. 1624.

TO THE MOST excellently accomplisht LADY, the C. D. of E.
MADAME:

BEcause there are
not many worthy
such Epithets,
therfore amongst
so few, and those so disper∣sed,
it is not hard for any
man to know you, as well by
your iust titles as by your
Name. Pardon my bold∣nesse,
who owing my best
seruice vnto your vertues,
though not knowing your


person, nor knowne unto you,
vnlesse peraduenture the re∣port
of my disasters haue
come vnto your ares; doe
humbly offer vnto you, what
I am assured, when you vn∣derstand,
(if euer God in∣cline
your heart to the
search, and open your eyes
to the sight thereof) you wil
esteeme as the greatest and
most vnualuable secret,
which amongst all vnder-Moone
things, was euer
imparted and communica∣ted
to man. Your Piety and
Almes deedes, proceeding
from that boundlesse foun∣taine
of burning Charity,
which disperseth it selfe in
all formes, according to the
necessities of the poore, haue
inforced mee to tell the
world, that for you, and such


as you are, I haue caused
these little Bookes to bee
published in our vulgar
English, custome excusing
the most of your sexe from
the knowledge of the lear∣ned
Tongues, in which Ca∣binets,
these secrets are or∣dinarily
locked vp, though
there want not examples of
many women, who, by the
impartiall grace of God,
haue attained to the thing
it selfe. But it is not my
purpose to flatter any body
with the hope of that, which
I well know how rare and
reserued a blessing of the
Almighty it is: Onely, if
you will bee but pleased, by
this occasion, to cast your
eyes vpon that triumphant
Chariot, wherein Nature
rideth through her Minerall


and vnder-earth kingdome,
you will easily see what dif∣ference
there is, between the
plenteous vertues of heauen,
there thrust and crowded vp
together, (as lines though
farre distant in their first
setting foorth from the
Circumference, yet touch∣ing
one another when they
come neere the Center) and
the loose and weake compo∣sition
of Vegetables, which
being of another imposition
of Nature, are not able ei∣ther
to receiue or to hold
such plentie of those hea∣uenly
Spirits, which are the
life of euery Elementary bo∣dy,
no where idle, and there
most abounding where it
seemes most to bee hidden.
For the rest, if any of my
busie vnletter'd Countrey∣men,


who are in great num∣bers,
as bold pretenders to
this blessed Science, as they
are blinde practitioners
therein, shall by the reading
of these Treatises bee per∣swaded
(as I wish they may)
to forbeare the losse of their
time, and the expence of
their monyes, vntill they be
taught by the one of them,
the true matter to worke on,
and by the other, the true
manner of proceeding there∣with;
let them in their hearts
blesse God for you, to whose
noble deserts (that chalenge
a due acknowledgement
from all good men) I haue
paid this small tribute of
my labours. For mine owne
part, the helpe and comfort
which I haue so plenteously
reaped from these studies,


in the middest of many pres∣sures,
which without the ex∣tra-ordinary
assistance of
God, had beene insupport∣able,
hath already made
light and easie in my reso∣lution,
whatsoeuer I shall ei∣ther
doe, or suffer, for God,
or goodmen, or the trueth.
The father of the fatherlesse,
the Iudge of the widdowes,
and the hope of the helpe
lesse, bee to you and yours
ALL THINGS. So prayeth,

Your humble seruant Eirenaeus Orandus.


ET sit splendor Domini Dei
nostri super nos, & opera ma∣nuum
nostrarum dirige super nos;
& opus manuum nostrarum di∣rige.

Psal 90. 19.

And let the bright beauty of
the Lord our God be vpon vs;
and guide thou the workes of
our hands vpon vs, and the
work of our hands guide thou
it.
Psal. 90. 19.

QVis enim despexit dies par∣uos?
& laetabuntur, & vi∣debunt
lapidem stanneum in manu
Zorobabel. Septemisti, Oculi
sunt Domini, qui discurrunt in
vniuersam terram.
Zech. 4. 10.

For who hath despised the
day of little things? for they
shall reioyce, and shall see the
stone of Tinne in the hand of
Zerubbabel, with those seuen;
they are the Eyes of the Lord,
which run too & fro through
the whole earth.
Zech. 4. 10.



READER.
—〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉,
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.—
Haec partim ipse tuo perpendes pectore tecum,
Partem Diuum aliquis tibi suggeret.—
Part of these things thy mind shal prompt thee to,
And part, some God shall teach thee how to doe.
Againe.
Si te fata vocant, aliter non viribus vllis
Vincere, nec duro poteris conuellere ferro.
If Fates thee call, else with no violence,
Nor hardest Iron canst thou dig them thence.

Once againe, and so farewell.
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉,
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉,
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉:
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉.
Fortuna vices lubrica versat
Varias docilis sum•re formas.
Inopina Dei plurima peragunt;
Non succedunt quae fore speras,
Quae fore nemo posse putaret,
Saepe expediunt numina. Qualem
Haec sortita est res mihi finem.
Many shapes of Fate there bee
Much done beyond our hope, we see:
What we thinke sure, God often stayes,
And findes, for things vndream't▪ of, wayes.
For so did this succeed to mee,
And so I wish it may to thee.
Eirenaeus Orandus.



[illustration]
Place this Arch 〈…〉
NICOLAS FLAMEL, ET PER∣COMMENT LES INNOCENS FV∣RENELLE SA FEMME RENT OCCIS PAR LE COMMAN∣DEMENT DV ROY HERODES.

Page 1
THE BOOKE of the HIEROGLY∣PHICALL Figures of Nicholas Flammel.
ETernally praised
be the Lord my
God, which lif∣teth
the humble
from the base dust, and ma∣keth
the hearts of such as
hope in him to reioyce:
which of his grace openeth
to them that beleeue, the
Springs of his bountie, and
putteth vnder their feet the
worldly Sphaeres (or cir∣cles)
Page 2

of all earthly happi∣nesses:
In him bee alwayes
our trust; in his feare, our
felicitie; in his mercy, the
glory of the reparation of
our nature; and in our
prayers, our vnshaken assu∣rance.
And thou, ô God
Almighty, as thy benignity
hath vouchsafed to open
vpon earth before me (thy
vnworthy seruant) all the
treasures of the riches of
the world; so may it please
thy great Clemencie, then
when I shall be no more in
the number of the liuing, to
open vnto me the treasures
of heauen, and to let me be∣hold
thy Diuine face, the
Maiestie whereof, is a de∣light
vnspeakeable, and the
rauishing ioy whereof, ne∣uer
ascended into the heart
Page 3

of liuing man. I aske it of
thee, for our Lord Iesus
Christ they welbeloued Son
his sake, who in the vnity
of the holy Spirit, liueth
with thee world without
end. Amen.

The Explication of the
Hieroglyphicke Figures,
placed by mee Nicholas
Flammel, Scriuener, in
the Church-yard of the
Innocents, in the fourth
Arch, entring by the
great gate of St. Dennis
street, and taking the way
on the right hand.

Page 4
The Introduction.
ALthough that I Ni∣cholas
Flammel,
NOTARY, and
abiding in Paris, in this
yeere one thousand three
hundred fourescore and
nineteene, and dwelling in
my house in the street of
Notaries, neere vnto the
Chappell of St. Iames of
the Bouchery; although, I
say, that I learned but a lit∣tle
Latine, because of the
small meanes of my Pa∣rents,
which neuerthelesse
were by them that enuie
me the most, accounted ho∣nest
people; yet by the
grace of God, and the in∣tercession
of the blessed
Saints in Paradise of both
Page 5

sexes, and principally of
Saint Iames of Gallicia, I
haue not wanted the vnder∣standing
of the Bookes of
the Philosophers, and in
them learned their so hid∣den
secrets. And for this
cause, there shall neuer bee
any moment of my life,
when I remember this high
good, wherein vpon my
knees (if the place will giue
me leaue) or otherwise, in
my heart with all my affe∣ction,
I shall not render
thanks to this most benigne
God, which neuer suffereth
the child of the Iust to beg
from doore to doore, and
deceiueth not them which
wholly trust in his bles∣sing.

Whilest therefore, I
Nicholas Flammel, Notary,
Page 6

after the decease of my Pa∣rents,
got my liuing in our
Art of Writing, by making
Inuentories, dressing ac∣counts,
and summing vp
the Expences of Tutors and
Pupils, there fell into my
hands, for the sum of two
Florens, a guilded Booke,
very old and large; It was
not of Paper, nor Parch∣ment,
as other Bookes bee,
but was onely made of de∣licate
Rindes (as it seemed
vnto me) of tender yong
trees: The couer of it was
of brasse, well bound, all en∣grauen
with letters, or
strange figures; and for my
part, I thinke they might
well be Greeke Characters,
or some such like ancient
language: Sure I am, I
could not reade them, and I
Page 7

know well they were not
notes nor letters of the La∣tine
nor of the Gaule, for
of them wee vnderstand a
little. As for that which
was within it, the leaues of
barke or rinde, were ingra∣uen,
and with admirable
diligence written, with a
point of Iron, in faire and
neate Latine letters colou∣red.
It contained thrice se∣uen
leaues, for so were they
counted in the top of the
leaues, and alwayes euery
seuenth leafe was without
any writing, but in stead
thereof, vpon the first se∣uenth
leafe, there was pain∣ted
a Virgin, and Serpents
swallowing her vp; In the
second seuenth, a Crosse
where a Serpent was cru∣cified;
and in the last se∣uenth
Page 8

there were painted
Desarts, or Wildernesses,
in the middest whereof ran
many faire fountaines, from
whence there issued out a
number of Serpents, which
ran vp and downe here and
there. Vpon the first of the
leaues, was written in great
Capitall Letters of gold,
ABRAHAM THE
IEW, PRINCE,
PRIEST, LEVITE,
ASTROLOGER,
AND PHILOSO∣PHER,
TO THE
NATION OF THE
IEWES, BY THE
WRATH OF GOD
DISPERSED A∣MONG
THE GAVLES,
SENDETH HEALTH.
After this it was filled with
great execrations and curses
Page 9

(with this word MARA∣NATHA,
which was
often repeated there) against
euery person that should
cast his eyes vpon it, if
hee were not Sacrificer or
Scribe.

Hee that sold mee this
Booke, knew not what it
was worth, no more than I
when I bought it; I beleeue
it had beene stolne or taken
from the miserable Iewes;
or found hid in some part
of the ancient place of their
abode. Within the Booke,
in the second leafe, hee com∣forted
his Nation, councel∣ling
them to flie vices, and
aboue all, Idolatry, atten∣ding
with sweete patience
the comming of the Mes∣sias,
which should vanquish
all the Kings of the Earth,
Page 10

and should raigne with his
people in glory eternally.
Without doubt this had
beene some very wise and
vnderstanding man. In the
third leafe, and in all the
other writings that fol∣lowed,
to helpe his Captiue
nation to pay their tributes
vnto the Romane Empe∣rours,
and to doe other
things, which I will not
speake of, he taught them in
common words the trans∣mutation
of Mettalls; hee
painted the Vessels by the
sides, and hee aduertised
them of the colours, and of
all the rest, sauing of the first
Agent, of the which hee
spake not a word, but onely
(as hee said) in the fourth
and fifth leaues entire hee
painted it, and figured it
Page 11

with very great cunning
and workemanship: for al∣though
it was well and in∣telligibly
figured and pain∣ted,
yet no man could euer
haue beene able to vnder∣stand
it, without being well
skilled in their Cabala,
which goeth by tradition,
and without hauing well
studied their bookes The
fourth and fifth leafe there∣fore,
was without any wri∣ting,
all full of faire figures
enlightened, or as it were
enlightened, for the worke
was very exquisite. First he
painted a yong man, with
wings at his anckles, ha∣uing
in his hand a Caducae∣an
rodde, writhen about
with two Serpents, where∣with
hee strooke vpon a
helmet which couered his
Page 12

head; he seemed to my small
iudgement, to be the God
Mercury of the Pagans:
against him there came run∣ning
and flying with open
wings, a great old man,
who vpon his head had an
houre-glasse fastened, and in
his hands a hooke (or sithe)
like Death, with the which,
in terrible and furious man∣ner,
hee would haue cut off
the feet of Mercury. On the
other side of the fourth
leafe, hee painted a faire
flowre on the top of a very
high mountaine, which was
sore shaken with the North
wind; it had the foot blew,
the flowres white and red,
the leaues shining like fine
gold: And round about it
the Dragons and Griffons
of the North made their
Page 13

nests and abode. On the
fifth leafe there was a faire
Rose-tree flowred in the
middest of a sweet Garden,
climbing vp against a hol∣low
Oake; at the foot wher∣of
boyled a fountaine of
most white water, which
ranne head-long downe in∣to
the depths, notwithstan∣ding
it first passed among
the hands of infinite people,
which digged in the Earth
seeking for it; but because
they were blinde, none of
them knew it, except here
and there one which consi∣dered
the weight.

On the last side of the
fift leafe, there was a King
with a great Fauchion, who
made to be killed in his pre∣senc•
by some Souldiers a
great multitude of little In∣fants,
Page 14

whose Mothers wept
at the feet of the vnpittifull
Souldiers: the bloud of
which Infants was after∣wards
by other Souldiers
gathered vp, and put in a
great vessell, wherein the
Sunne and the Moone came
to bathe themselues. And
because that this History
did represent the more part
of that of the Innocents
slaine by Herod, and that in
this Booke I learned the
greatest part of the Art,
this was one of the causes,
why I placed in their
Churchyard these Hierogly∣phick
Symbols of this secret
science. And thus you see
that which was in the first
fiue leaues: I will not repre∣sent
vnto you that which
was written in good and in∣telligible
Page 15

Latine in all the
other written leaues, for
God would punish me, be∣cause
I should commit a
greater wickednesse, then
he who (as it is said) wished
that all the men of the
World had but one head
that hee might cut it off at
one blow. Hauing with me
therefore this faire Booke,
I did nothing else day nor
night, but study vpon it, vn∣derstanding
very well all
the operations that it shew∣ed,
but not knowing with
what matter I should be∣ginne,
which made me very
heauy and sollitary, and
caused me to fetch many a
sigh. My wife Perrenelle,
whom I loued as my selfe,
and had lately married, was
much astonished at this,
Page 16

comforting mee, and ear∣nestly
demanding, if shee
could by any meanes deli∣uer
mee from this trouble:
I could not possibly hold
my tongue, but told her all,
and shewed her this faire
Booke, whereof at the same
instant that shee saw it, shee
became as much enamored
as my selfe, taking extreame
pleasure to behold the faire
couer, grauings, images, and
portraicts, whereof not∣withstanding
shee vnder∣stood
as little as I: yet it
was a great comfort to mee
to talke with her, and to en∣tertaine
my selfe, what wee
should doe to haue the in∣terpretation
of them. In the
end I caused to bee painted
within my Lodging, as na∣turally
as I could, all the fi∣gures
Page 17

and portraicts of the
fourth and fifth leafe, which
I shewed to the greatest
Clerkes in Paris, who vn∣derstood
thereof no more
then my selfe; I told them
they were found in a Booke
that taught the Phyloso∣phers
stone, but the greatest
part of them made a mocke
both of me, and of that bles∣sed
Stone, excepting one cal∣led
Master Anselme, which
was a Licentiate in Physick,
and studied hard in this
Science: He had a great de∣sire
to haue seene my Book,
and there was nothing in
the world, which he would
not haue done for a sight of
it: but I alwayes told him,
that I had it not; onely I
made him a large descripti∣on
of the Method. He told
Page 18

mee that the first portraict
represented Time, which
deuoured all; and that ac∣cording
to the number of
the sixe written leaues, there
was required the space of
sixe yeeres, to perfect the
stone; and then he said, wee
must turne the glasse, and
seeth it no more. And when
I told him that this was not
painted, but onely to shew
and teach the first Agent,
(as was said in the Booke)
hee answered me, that this
decoction for sixe yeeres
space, was, as it were, a se∣cond
Agent; and that cer∣tainely
the first Agent was
there painted, which was
the white and heauy water,
which without doubt was
Argent viue, which they
could not fixe, nor cut off
Page 19

his feete, that is to say, take
away his volatility saue by
that long decoction in the
purest bloud of young In∣fants;
for in that, this Ar∣gent
viue being ioined with
gold and siluer, was first tur∣ned
with them into an herb
like that which was there
painted, and afterwards by
corruption, into Serpents;
which Serpents being then
wholly dried, and decocted
by fire, were reduced into
powder of gold, which
should be the stone. This
was the cause, that during
the space of one and twenty
yeeres, I tryed a thousand
broulleryes, yet neuer with
bloud, for that was wicked
and villanous: for I found
in my Booke, that the Phy∣losophers
called Bloud, the
Page 20

minerall spirit, which is in
the Mettals, principally in
the Sunne, Moone, and Mer∣cury,
to the assembling
whereof, I alwayes tended;
yet these interpretations for
the most part were more
subtile then true. Not seeing
therefore in my workes the
signes, at the time written in
my Booke, I was alwayes
to beginne againe. In the
end hauing lost all hope of
euer vnderstanding those
figures, for my last refuge, I
made a vow to God, and St Iames of Gallicia, to de∣mand
the interpretation of
them, at some Iewish Priest,
in some Synagogue of
Spaine: whereupon with
the consent of Perrenelle,
carrying with me the Ex∣tract
of the Pictures, hauing
Page 21

taken the Pilgrims habit
and staffe, in the same fashi∣on
as you may see me, with∣out
this same Arch in the
Church-yard, in the which
I put these hyeroglyphicall
figures, where I haue also
set against the wall, on the
one and the other side, a
Procession, in which are re∣presented
by order all the
colours of the stone, so as
they come & goe, with this
writing in French.

Moult plaist a Dieu pro∣cession,
S' elle est faicte en deuo∣tion: that is,
Much pleaseth God pro∣cession,
If't be done in deuotion.
Page 22
which is as it wete the be∣ginning of King Hercules his Book, which entreateth of the colours of the stone, entituled Iris, or the Raine∣bow, in these termes, Operis processio multùm naturae placet, that is, The processi∣on of the worke is very plea∣sant vnto Nature: the which I haue put there ex∣presly for the great Clerkes, who shall vnderstand the Allusion. In this same fa∣shion, I say, I put my selfe vpon my way; and so much I did, that I arriued at Montioy, and afterwards at Saint Iames, where with great deuotion I accompli∣shed my vow. This done, in Leon at my returne I met with a Merchant of Boloyn, which made me knowne to
Page 23
a Physician, a Iew by Nati∣on, and as then a Christian, dwelling in Leon aforesaid, who was very skilfull in sublime Sciences, called Master Canches. Assoone as I had showen him the fi∣gures of my Extraict, hee being rauished with great astonishment and ioy, de∣manded of me incontinent∣ly, if I could tell him any newes of the Booke, from whence they were drawne? I answered him in Latine (wherein hee asked me the question) that I hoped to haue some good newes of the Book, if any body could decipher vnto me the Enig∣maes: All at that instant transported with great Ar∣dor and ioy, hee began to decipher vnto mee the be∣ning:
Page 24
But to be short, hee wel content to learn newes where this Book should be, and I to heare him speake; and certainly he had heard much discourse of the Booke, but (as he said) as of a thing which was beleeued to be vtterly lost, we resol∣ued of our voyage, and from Leon wee passed to O∣uiedo, and from thence to Sanson, where wee put our selues to Sea to come into France: Our voyage had beene fortunate enough, & all ready, since we were en∣tred into this Kingdome, he had most truly interpre∣ted vnto mee the greatest part of my figures, where euen vnto the very points and prickes, he found great misteries, which seemed
Page 25
vnto mee wonderfull, when arriuing at Orleans, this learned man fell extreamely sicke, being afflicted with excessiue vomitings, which remained still with him of those he had suffered at Sea, and he was in such a conti∣nuall feare of my forsaking him, that hee could imagine nothing like vnto it. And although I was alwayes by his side, yet would he inces∣santly call for mee, but in summe hee dyed, at the end of the seuenth day of his sicknesse, by reason whereof I was much grieued, yet as well as I could, I caused him to be buried in the Church of the holy Crosse at Orleans, where hee yet resteth; God haue his soule, for hee dyed a good Christian: And
Page 26
surely, if I be not hindered by death, I will giue vnto that Church some reuenew, to cause some Masses to bee said for his soule euery day. He that would see the man∣ner of my arriuall, and the ioy of Perenelle, let him looke vpon vs two, in this City of Paris, vpon the doore of the Chappell of St Iames of the Bouchery, close by the one side of my house, where wee are both painted, my selfe giuing thankes at the feet of Saint Iames of Gallicia, and Per∣renelle at the feet of St Iohn, whom shee had so often called vpon. So it was, that by the grace of God, and the intercession of the happy and holy Virgin, and the blessed Saints,
Page 27
Iames and Iohn, I knew all that I desired, that is to say, The first Principles, yet not their first prepara∣tion, which is a thing most difficult, aboue all the things in the world: But in the end I had that also, after long errours of three yeeres, or thereabouts; du∣ring which time, I did no∣thing but study and labour, so as you may see me with∣out this Arch, where I haue placed my Processions a∣gainst the two Pillars of it, vnder the feet of St. Iames and St. Iohn, praying al∣wayes to God, with my Beades in my hand, rea∣ding attentiuely within a Booke, and poysing the words of the Philosophers: and afterwards trying and
Page 28
proouing the diuerse ope∣rations, which I imagined to my selfe, by their onely words. Finally, I found that which I desired, which I also soone knew by the strong sent and odour there∣of. Hauing this, I easily ac∣complished the Mastery, for knowing the preparation of the first Agents, and after following my Booke accor∣ding to the letter, I could not haue missed it, though I would. Then the first time that I made proiection, was vpon Mercurie, whereof I turned halfe a pound, or thereabouts, into pure Sil∣uer, better than that of the Mine, as I my selfe assayed, and made others assay ma∣ny times. This was vpon a Munday, the 17. of Ianuary
Page 29
about noone, in my house, Perrenelle onely being pre∣sent; in the yeere of the re∣storing of mankind, 1382. And afterwards, following alwayes my Booke, from word to word, I made pro∣iection of the Red stone vp∣on the like quantity of Mer∣curie, in the presence like∣wise of Perrenelle onely, in the same house, the fiue and twentieth day of Aprill following, the same yeere, about fiue a clocke in the Euening; which I transmu∣ted truely into almost as much pure Gold, better assuredly than common Golde, more soft, and more plyable. I may speake it with truth, I haue made it three times, with the helpe of Perrenelle, who
Page 30
vnderstood it as well as I, because she helped mee in my operations, and without doubt, if shee would haue enterprised to haue done it alone, shee had attained to the end and perfection thereof. I had indeed e∣nough when I had once done it, but I found excee∣ding great pleasure and de∣light, in seeing and contem∣plating the Admirable workes of Nature, within the Vessels. To signifie vn∣to thee then, how I haue done it three times, thou shalt see in this Arch, if thou haue any skil to know them, three furnaces, like vnto them which serue for our opperations: was afraid a long time, that Perrenelle could not hide the extreme
Page 31
ioy of her felicitie, which I measured by mine owne, and lest shee should let fall some word amongst her kindred, of the great trea∣sures which wee possessed: for extreme ioy takes away the vnderstanding, as well as great heauinesse; but the goodnesse of the most great God, had not onely filled mee with this blessing, to giue mee a wife chaste and sage, for she was moreouer, not onely capeable of rea∣son, but also to doe all that was reasonable, and more discreet and secret, than or∣dinarily other women are. Aboue all, shee was excee∣ding deuout, and therefore seeing her selfe without hope of children, and now well stricken in yeeres, shee
Page 32
began as I did, to thinke of God, and to giue or selues to the workes of mercy. At that time when I wrote this Commentarie, in the yeere one thousand foure hundred and thirteene, in the end of the yeere, after the decease of my faithfull companion, which I shall lament all the dayes of my life: she and I had already founded, and endued with reuenewes 14. Hospitals in this Citie of Paris, wee had new built from the ground three Chappels, we had inriched with great gifts and good rents, seuen Churches, with many reparations in their Church-yards, besides that which we haue done at Bo∣loigne, which is not much lesse than that which wee
Page 33
haue done heere. I will not speake of the good which both of vs haue done to particular poore folkes, principally to wid∣dowes and poore Orphans, whose names if I should tel, and how I did it, besides that my reward should be giuen mee in this World, I should likewise doe displea¦sure to those good persons, whom I pray God blesse, which I would not doe for any thing in the World. Building therefore these Churches, Churchyards, and Hospitals in this City, I re∣solued my selfe, to cause to be painted in the fourth Arch of the Church-yard of the Innocents, as you en∣ter in by the great gate in St. Dennis street, and taking
Page 34
the way on the right hand, the most true and essentiall markes of the Arte, yet vn∣der vailes, and Hieroglyphi∣call couertures, in imitation of those which are in the gilded Booke of Abraham the Iew, which may repre∣sent two things, according to the capacity and vnder∣standing of them that be∣hold them: First, the myste∣ries of our future and vn∣doubted Resurrection, at the day of Iudgement, and comming of good Iesus, (whom may it please to haue mercy vpon vs) a Hi∣storie which is well agree∣ing to a Churchyard. And secondly, they may signifie to them, which are skilled in Naturall Philosophy, all the principall and necessary
Page 35
operations of the Maistery. These Hieroglyphicke fi∣gures shall serue as two wayes to leade vnto the heauenly life: the first and most open sence, teaching the sacred Mysteries of our saluation; (as I will shew heereafter) the other teach∣ing euery man, that hath any small vnderstanding in the Stone, the lineary way of the worke; which being perfected by any one, the change of euill into good, takes away from him the roote of all sinne (which is couetousnesse) making him liberall, gentle, pious religi∣ous, and fearing God, how euill soeuer hee was before, for from thence forward, hee is continually rauished, with the great grace and
Page 36
mercy which hee hath ob∣tained from God, and with the profoundnesse of his Diuine & admirable works. These are the reasons which haue mooued mee to set these formes in this fa∣shion, and in this place which is a Churchyard, to the end that if any man ob∣taine this inestimable good, to conquere this rich golden Fleece, he may thinke with himselfe (as I did) not to keepe the talent of God dig∣ged in the Earth, buying Lands and Possessions, which are the vanities of this world: but rather to worke charitably towards his brethren, remembring himselfe that hee learned this secret amongst the bones of the dead, in whose
Page 37
number hee shall shortly be found; and that after this life, hee must render an ac∣count, before a iust and re∣doubtable Iudge, which will censure euen to an idle and vaine word. Let him therefore, which hauing well weighed my words, and well knowne and vn∣derstood my figures, hath first gotten elsewhere the knowledge of the first be∣ginnings and Agents, (for certainely in these Figures and Commentaries, he shall not finde any step or infor∣mation thereof) perfect to the glory of God the Mai∣stery of Hermes, remem∣bring himself of the Church Catholike, Apostolike, and Romane; and of all other Churches, Churchyards, and
Page 38
Hospitals; and aboue all, of the Church of the Innocents in this Citie, (in the Churchyard whereof hee shall haue contemplated these true demonstrations) opening bounteously his purse, to them that are se∣cretly poore, honest people desolate, weake women, widdowes, and forlorne or∣phanes. So be it.
Page 39
CHAP. I.
Of the Theologicall Inter∣pretations, which may be giuen to these Hierogly∣phickes, according to the sence of mee the Au∣thour.
I Haue giuen to this
Churchyard, a Charnell-house,
which is right
ouer against this fourth
Arch, in the middest of
the Churchyard, and a∣gainst
one of the Pillers of
this Charnell house, I haue
made bee drawne with a
coale, and grosely painted,
a man all blacke, which
Page 40

lookes straight vpon these
Hieroglyphickes, about
whom there is written in
French; Ie voy merueille
done moult Ie m'esbahi:
that is, I see a marueile,
whereat I am much ama∣zed:
This, as also three
plates of Iron and Copper
gilt, on the East, West, and
South of the Arch, where
these Hieroglyphickes are, in
the middest of the Church∣yard,
representing the holy
Passion and Resurrection of
the Sonne of God; this
ought not to be otherwise
interpreted, than according
to the common Theologicall
sence, sauing that this black
man, may as well proclaime
it a wonder to see the ad∣mirable
workes of God in
the transmutation of Met∣tals,
Page 41

which is figured in
these Hieroglyphicks, which
he so attentiuely lookes vp∣on,
as to see buried so many
bodies, which shall rise a∣gaine
out of their Tombes
at the feareful day of iudge∣ment.
On the other part I
doe not thinke it needfull
to interpret in a Theological
sence, that vessell of Earth
on the right hand of these
figures, within the which
there is a Pen and Inkhorne,
or rather a vessell of Phylo∣sophy,
if thou take away the
strings, and ioyne the Pen∣ner
to the Inkhorne: nor the
other two like it, which are
on the two sides of the fi∣gures
of Saint Peter, and
Saint Paul, within one of
the which, there is an N.
which signifieth Nicholas,
Page 42

and within the other an F.
which signifieth Flammell.
For these vessels signifie no∣thing
else, but that in the
like of them, I haue done
the Maistery three times.
Moreouer, he that will also
beleeue, that I haue put
these vessels in forme of
Scutchions, to represent this
Pen and Inkhorne, and the
capitall letters of my name,
let him beleeue it if he will,
because both these interpre∣tations
are true.

Neither must you inter∣pret
in a Theological sence,
that writing which follow∣eth,
in these termes, NI∣CHOLAS
FLAM∣MEL,
ET PERRE∣NELLE
SA FEM∣ME,
that is, Nicholas
Flammel, and Perrenelle
Page 43

his wife, in as much as that
signifieth nothing, but that
I and my wife haue giuen
that Arche.

As to the third, fourth,
and fifth Tables following,
by the sides whereof is
written, COMMENT
LES INNOCENTS
FVRENT OCCIS
PAR LE COMMAN∣DEMENT
DV ROY
HERODES, that is,
How the Innocents were kil∣led
by the commandement of
King Herod. The theologi∣call
sence is well enough
vnderstood by the writing,
we must onely speake of the
rest, which is aboue.

The two Dragons vnited
together the one within the
other, of colour blacke and
blew, in a field sable, that is
Page 44

to say, blacke, whereof the
one hath the wings gilded,
and the other hath none at
all, are the sinnes which na∣turally
are enterchayned, for
the one hath his originall
and birth from another:
Of them some may be easi∣ly
chased away, as they
come easily, for they flie to∣wards
vs euery houre; and
those which haue no wings,
can neuer be chased away,
such as is the sinne against
the holy Ghost. The gold
which is in the wings, sig∣nifieth
that the greatest part
of sinnes commeth from the
vnholy hunger after gold;
which makes so many peo∣ple
diligently to hearken
from whence they may
haue it: and the colour black
and blew, sheweth that these
Page 45

are the desires that come
out of the darke pits of hell,
which we ought wholly to
flye from. These two Dra∣gons
may also morally re∣present
vnto vs the Legi∣ons
of euill spirits which
are alwayes about vs, and
which will accuse vs before
the iust Iudge, at the feare∣ful
day of iudgement, which
doe aske, nor seeke nothing
else but to sift vs.

The man and the woman
which are next them, of an
orange colour, vpon a field
azure and blew, signifie that
men and women ought not
to haue their hope in this
World, for the orange co∣lour
intimates despaire, or
the letting goe of hope, as
here; and the colour azure
and blew, vpon the which
Page 46

they are painted, shewes vs
that we must thinke of hea∣uenly
things to come, and
say as the roule of the man
doth, HOMO VENI∣ET
AD IVDICIVM
DEI, that is, Man must
come to the iudgement of
God, or as that of the wo∣man,
VERE ILLA
DIES TERRIBILIS
ERIT, that is, That day
will be terrible indeed, to
the end that keeping our
selues from the Dragons,
which are sinnes, God may
shew mercy vnto vs.

Next after this, in a field
of Synople, that is greene, are
painted two men and one
woman rising againe, of the
which one comes out of a
Sepulchre, the other two
out of the Earth, all three
Page 47

of colour exceeding white
and pure, lifting their hands
towards their eyes, & their
eyes towards Heauen on
high: Aboue these three bo∣dies
there are two Angels
sounding musicall Instru∣ments,
as if they had called
these dead to the day of
iudgement; for ouer these
two Angels is the figure of
our Lord Iesus Christ, hol∣ding
the world in his hand,
vpon whose head an Angell
setteth a Crowne, assisted
by two others, which say in
their roules, O pater Omni∣potens,
ô Iesu bone, that is, O
Father Almighty, ô good
Iesu. On the right side of
this Sauiour is painted St Paul, clothed with white &
yellow, with a Sword, at
whose feete there is a man
Page 48

clothed in a gowne of o∣range
colour, in which there
appeared pleights or folds
of blacke and white, (which
picture resembleth mee to
the life) and demandeth
pardon of his sinnes, hol∣ding
his hands ioined toge∣ther,
from betweene which
proceed these words writ∣ten
in a roule, DELE
MALA QVAE FECI,
that is to say, Blot out the e∣uils
that I haue done: On
the other side on the left
hand, is Saint Peter with
his Key, clothed in reddish
yellow, holding his hand vp∣on
a woman clad in a gown
of orange colour, which is
on her knees, representing
to the life Perrenelle, which
holdeth her hands ioyned
together, hauing a roule
Page 49

where is written, CHRI∣STE
PRECOR ES∣TO
PIVS, that is, Christ
I beseech thee be pittifull:
Behind whom there is an
Angell on his knees, with
a roule, that saith, SALVE
DOMINE ANGE∣LORVM,
that is, All haile
thou Lord of Angels. There
is also another Angel on his
knees, behind my Image, on
the same side that S. Paul
is on, which likewise hol∣deth
a roule, saying, O
REX SEMPITER∣NE,
that is, O King euer∣lasting.
All this is so cleere,
according to the explicati∣on
of the Resurrection and
future iudgement, that it
may easi•y be fitted there∣to.
So it seemes this Arch
was not painted for any o∣ther
Page 50

purpose, but to repre∣sent
this. And therefore we
neede not stay any longer
vpon it, considering that the
least and most ignorant,
may well know how to
giue it this interpretation.

Next after the three that
are rising againe, come two
Angels more of an Orange
colour vpon a blew field,
saying in their rowles, SVR∣GITE
MORTVI,
VENITE AD IV∣DICIVM
DOMINI
MEI, that is, Arise you
dead, come to the Iudge∣ment
of my Lord. This al∣so
serues to the interpreta∣tion
of the Resurrection:
As also the last Figures fol∣lowing,
which are, A man
red vermillion, vpon a field
of Violet colour, who hol∣deth
Page 51

the foot of a winged
Lyon, painted of red ver∣million
also, opening his
throate, as it were to de∣noure
the man: For one
may say that this is the Fi∣gure
of an vnhappy sinner,
who sleeping in a Lethargy
of his corruption and vices,
dieth without repentance
and confession; who with∣out
doubt, in this terrible
Day shall bee deliuered to
the Deuill, heere painted in
forme of a red roaring Ly∣on,
which will swallow and
deuoure him.

Page 52
CHAP. II.
The interpretations Philo∣sophicall, according to the Maistery of Hermes.
I Desire with all my
heart, that he who sear∣cheth
the secrets of the
Sages, hauing in his Spirit
passed ouer these Idaea's of
the life and resurrection to
come, should first make his
profit of them: And in the
second place, that hee bee
more aduised than before,
that hee sound and search
the depth of my Figures,
colours, and rowles; prin∣cipally
of my rowles, be∣cause
that in this Art they
speake not vulgarly. After¦ward
let him aske of him∣selfe,
Page 53

why the Figure of
Saint Paul is on the right
hand, in the place where
the custome is to paint S.
Peter? And on the other
side that of Saint Peter, in
the place of the figure of
Saint Paul? Why the Fi∣gure
of Saint Paul is clo∣thed
in colours white and
yellow, and that of S. Peter
in yellow and red? Why
also the man and the wo∣man
which are at the feet
of these two Saints, pray∣ing
to God, as if it were at
the Day of Iudgement, are
apparrelled in diuers co∣lours,
and not naked, or else
nothing but bones, like
them that are rising againe?
Why in this Day of Iudge∣ment
they haue painted
this man and this woman at
Page 54

the feet of the Saints? for
they ought to haue beene
more low on earth, and not
in heauen. Why also the
two Angels in Orange co∣lour,
which say in their
rowles, SVR GITE
MORTVI, VENITE
AD IVDICIVM
DOMINI MEI, that
is, Arise you dead, come vn∣to
the Iudgement of my
Lord, are clad in this co∣lour,
and out of their place,
for they ought to bee on
high in heauen, with the
two other which play vp∣on
the Instruments? Why
they haue a field Violet and
blew? but principally why
their roule, which speaks to
the dead, ends in the open
throate of the red and fly∣ing
Lyon? I would then,
Page 55

that after these, and many
other questions which may
iustly bee made, opening
wide the eyes of his spirit,
he come to conclude, that
all this, not hauing beene
done without cause, there
must bee represented vnder
this barke, some great se∣crets,
which hee ought to
pray God to discouer vnto
him. Hauing then brought
his beliefe by degrees to
this passe, I wish also that he
would further beleeue, that
these figures and explicati∣ons
are not made for them
that haue neuer seene the
Bookes of the Philosophers,
and who not knowing the
Mettallicke principles, can∣not
bee named Children of
this Science; for if they
thinke to vnderstand per∣fectly
Page 56

these figures, being
ignorant of the first Agent,
they will vndoubtedly de∣ceiue
themselues, and neuer
bee able to know any thing
at all. Let no man therefore
blame me, if he doe not easi∣ly
vnderstand mee, for hee
will be more blame-worthy
than I, inasmuch as not be∣ing
initiated into these sa∣cred
and secret interpreta∣tions
of the first Agent,
(which is the key opening
the gates of all Sciences)
he would notwithstanding,
comprehend the most sub∣tile
conceptions of the en∣uious
Philosophers, which
are not written but for
them who already know
these principles, which are
neuer found in any booke,
because they leaue them
Page 57

vnto God, who reuealeth
them to whom he please, or
else causeth them to bee
taught by the liuing voyce
of a Maister, by Cabalisti∣call
tradition, which hap∣peneth
very seldome. Now
then, my Sonne, let mee so
call thee, both because I am
now come to a great age,
and also for that, it may be,
thou art otherwise a child
of this knowledge, (God
inable thee to learne, and
after to worke to his glory)
Hearken vnto mee then at∣tentiuely,
but passe no fur∣ther
if thou bee ignorant of
the foresaid Principles.

Page 58

[illustration]
This Vessell of earth, in
this forme, is called by the
Philosophers, their triple
Vessell, for within it, there is
in the middest a Stage, or a
floore, and vpon that a dish
or a platter full of lue∣warme
ashes, within the
which is set the Philosophi∣call
Egge, that is, a viall of
glasse full of confections of
Art (as of the scumme of
the red Sea, and the fat of
the Mercuriall winde:)
which thou seest painted in
forme of a Penner and Inke∣horne.
Now this Vessell of
Page 59
earth is open aboue, to put
in the dish and the viall,
vnder which by the open
gate, is put in the Philoso∣phicall
fire, as thou know∣est.
So thou hast three ves∣sels;
and the threefold ves∣sell:
The enuious haue cal∣led
an Athanor, a siue, dung,
Balneum Mariae, a Furnace,
a Spaere, the greene Lyon,
a prison, a graue, a vrinall,
a phioll, and a Bolts-head:
I my selfe in my Summarie
or Abridgement of Philo∣sophy,
which I composed
foure yeeres and two mo∣neths
past, in the end there∣of
named it the house and
habitation of the Poulet,
and the ashes of the Plat∣ter,
the chaffe of the Poulet;
The common name is an
Ouen, which I should neuer
Page 60

haue found, if Abraham
the Iew had not painted it,
together with the fire pro∣portionable,
wherein con∣sists
a great part of the se∣cret.
For it is as it were the
belly, or the wombe, contai∣ning
the true naturall heate
to animate our yong King:
If this fire be not measured
Clibanically, saith Calid
the Persian, sonne of Iasi∣chus;
If it be kindled with
a sword, saith Pithagoras:
If thou fire thy Vessell, saith
Morien, and makest it feele
the heate of the fire, it will
giue thee a box on the eare,
and burne his flowres be∣fore
they be risen from the
depth of his Marrow, ma∣king
them come out red,
rather than white, and then
thy worke is spoiled; as
Page 61

also if thou make too little
fire, for then thou shalt ne∣uer
see the end, because of
the coldnesse of the natures,
which shall not haue had
motion sufficient to digest
them together.

The heate then of thy
fire in this vessell, shall be
(as saith Hermes and Rosi∣nus)
according to the Win∣ter;
or rather, as saith Dio∣medes,
according to the
heate of a Bird, which be∣ginnes
to flie so softly from
the signe of Aries to that of
Cancer: for know that the
Infant at the beginning is
full of cold flegme▪ and of
milke, and that too vehe∣ment
heate is an enemy of
the cold and moisture of our
Embrion, and that the two
enemies, that is to say, our
Page 62

two elements of cold and
heate will neuer perfectly
imbrace one another, but
by little and little, hauing
first long dwelt together, in
the middest of the tempe∣rate
heate of their bath, and
being changed by long de∣coction,
into Sulphur in∣combustible.
Gouern there∣fore
sweetly with equality
and proportion, thy proud
and haughty natures, for
feare lest if thou fauour one
more then another, they
which naturally are ene∣mies,
doe grow angry a∣gainst
thee through Ielousy,
and dry Choller, and make
thee sigh for it a long time
after: Besides this, thou must
entertain them in this tem∣perate
heate perpetually,
that is to say, night and day,
Page 63

vntill the time that Winter,
the time of the moisture of
the matters, be passed, be∣cause
they make their peace,
and ioyne hands in being
heated together, whereas
should these natures finde
themselues but one onely
half houre without fire, they
would become for euer ir∣reconcileable.
See therefore
the reason why it is said in
the Book of the seuenty pre∣cepts,
Looke that their heate
cōtinue indefatigably with∣out
ceasing, and that none of
their dayes bee forgotten.
And Rasis, the haste, saith
hee, that brings with it too
much fire, is alwaies followed
by the Diuell, and Errour.
When the golden Bird, saith
Diomedes, shall be come iust
to Cancer, and that from
Page 64

thence it shall runne toward
Libra, then thou maist aug∣ment
the fire a little: And
in like manner, when this
faire Bird, shall fly from Li∣bra
towards Capricorne,
which is the desired Au∣tumne,
the time of haruest,
and of the fruits that are
now ripe.

CHAP. III.
The two Dragons of colour yellowish, blew, and black like the field.
[illustration]
LOoke well vpon these
two Dragons, for they
Page 65

are the true principles or
beginnings of this Phy∣losophy,
which the Sages
haue not dared to shew to
their owne Children. Hee
which is vndermost, with∣out
wings, hee is the fixed,
or the male; that which is
vppermost, is the volatile,
or the female, blacke and ob∣scure,
which goes about to
get the domination for ma∣ny
moneths. The first is
called Sulphur, or heat and
drinesse, and the latter Ar∣gent
viue, or cold, and moi∣sture.
These are the Sunne
and Moone of the Mercurial
source, and sulphurous ori∣ginall,
which by continual
fire are adorned with royall
habiliments, that being vni∣ted,
and afterward changed
into a quintessence, they
Page 66

may ouercome euery thing
Mettallick, how solid hard
and strong soeuer it bee.
These are the Serpents and
Dragons which the ancient
Aegyptians haue painted in
a Circle, the head biting the
tayle, to signifie that they
proceeded from one and
the same thing, and that it
alone was sufficient, and
that in the turning and cir∣culation
thereof, it made it
selfe perfect: These are the
Dragons which the ancient
Poets haue fained did with∣out
sleeping keepe & watch
the golden Apples of the
Gardens of the Virgins He∣sperides.
These are they vp∣on
whom Iason in his ad∣uenture
for the Golden
Fleece, powred the brothe
or liquor prepared by the
Page 67

faire Medea, of the dis∣course
of whom the Books
of the Phylosophers are so
full, that there is no Phylo∣sopher
that euer was, but he
hath written of it, from the
time of the truth-telling
Hermes Trismegistus, Or∣pheus,
Pythagoras, Arte∣phius,
Morienus, and the o∣ther
following, euen vnto
my selfe. These are the two
Serpents, giuen and sent by
Iuno, (that is, the nature
Mettallicke) the which the
strong Hercules, that is to
say, the sage and wise man
must strangle in his cradle,
that is, ouercome and kill
them, to make them putri∣fie,
corrupt, and ingender,
at the beginning of his
worke. These are the two
Serpents, wrapped and twi∣sted
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round about the Cadu∣ceus
or rod of Mercury,
with the which hee exerci∣seth
his great power, and
transformeth himselfe as
he listeth. He, saith Haly,
that shall kill the one, shall
also kill the other, because
the one cannot die but with
his brother. These two
then, (which Auicen cal∣leth
the Corassene bitch and
the Armenian dogge) these
two I say, being put toge∣ther
in the vessell of the Se∣pulcher,
doe bite one ano∣ther
cruelly, and by their
great poyson, and furious
rage, they neuer leaue one
another, from the moment
that they haue seized on
one another (if the cold hin∣der
them not) till both of
them by their slauering ve∣nome,
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and mortall hurts, be
all of a goarebloud, ouer all
the parts of their bodies;
and finally, killing one ano∣ther,
be stewed in their pro∣per
venome, which after
their death, changeth them
into liuing and permanent
water; before which time,
they loose in their corrupti∣on
and putrifaction, their
first naturall formes, to take
afterwards one onely new,
more noble, and better
forme. These are the two
Spermes, masculine and sae∣minine,
described at the be∣ginning
of my Abridge∣ment
of Phylosophy, which
are engendred (say Rasis, A∣uicen,
and Abraham the
Iew) within the Reynes, and
entrails, and of the opera∣tions
of the foure Elements.
Page 70

These are the radicall moy∣sture
of mettalls, Sulphur,
and Argent viue, not vul∣gar,
and such as are sold by
the Merchants and Apothe∣caries,
but those which giue
vs those two faire & deare
bodies which wee loue so
much. These two spermes,
saith Democritus, are not
found vpon the earth of
the liuing: The same, saith
Auicen, but he addeth, that
they gather them from the
dung, ordure, and rotten∣nesse
of the Sunne and
Moone. O happy are they
that know how to gather
them; for of them they af∣terwards
make a triacle,
which hath power ouer all
griefes, maladies, sorrowes,
infirmities, and weaknesses,
and which sighteth puis∣santly
Page 71

against death, leng∣thening
the life, according
to the permission of God,
euen to the time determi∣ned,
triumphing ouer the
miseries of this world, and
filling a man with the ri∣ches
thereof. Of these two
Dragons or Principles Met∣tallicke,
I haue said in my
fore-alledged Summarie,
that the Enemy would by
his heate inflame his ene∣my,
and that then if they
take not heed, they should
see in the ayre a venomous
fume & a stinking, worse in
flame, and in poyson, than
the enuenomed head of a
Serpent, and Babylonian
Dragon. The cause why I
haue painted these two
Spermes in the forme of
Dragons, is because their
Page 72

stinch is exceeding great,
and like the stinch of them,
and the exhalations which
arise within the glasse, are
darke, blacke, blew, and yel∣lowish,
(like as these two
Dragons are painted) the
force of which, and of the
bodies dissolued, is so veno∣mous,
that truely there is
not in the world a ranker
poyson; for it is able by the
force and stench thereof,
to mortifie and kill euery
thing liuing: The Philoso∣pher
neuer feeles this stinch,
if he breake not his vessels,
but only he iudgeth it to be
such, by the sight, and the
changing of colo•rs, pro∣ceeding
from the rotten∣nesse
of his confections.

These colours then signi∣fie
the putrefaction and ge∣neration
Page 73

which is giuen vs,
by the biting and dissoluti∣on
of our perfect bodies,
which dissolution procee∣deth
from externall heate
ayding, and from the Pon∣tique
fierienesse, and admi∣rable
sharpe vertue of the
poyson of our Mercurie,
which maketh and resol∣ueth
into a pure cloud, that
is, into impalpable powder,
all that which it finds to re∣sist
it: So the heate working
vpon and against the radi∣call,
mettallicke, viscous, or
oylie moisture, ingendereth
vpon the subiect, blacke∣nesse.
For at the same time,
the Matter is dissolued, is
corrupted, groweth blacke,
and conceiueth to ingender;
for all corruption is genera∣tion,
and therefore ought
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blacknesse to be much desi∣red;
for that is the blacke
saile with the which the
Ship of Theseus came back
victorious frō Crete, which
was the cause of the death
of his Father; so must this
father die, to the intent, that
from the ashes of this Phoe∣nix
another may spring,
and that the sonne may bee
King. Assuredly hee that
seeth not this blackenesse at
the beginning of his opera∣tions,
during the dayes of
the Stone; what other co∣lour
soeuer he see, hee shall
altogether fayle in the Mai∣sterie,
and can doe no more
with that Chaos: for hee
workes not well, if hee pu∣trifie
not; because if he doe
not putrifie, hee doeth not
corrupt, nor ingender, and
Page 75

by consequent, the Stone
cannot take vegetatiue life
to increase and multiply.
And in all truth, I tell thee
againe, that though thou
work vpon the true matter,
if at the beginning, after
thou hast put thy Confecti∣ons
in the Philosophers
Egge, that is to say, some∣time
after the fire haue stir∣red
them vp, if then, I say,
thou seest not this head of
the Crow, the blacke of the
blackest blacke, thou must
begin againe, for this fault
is irreparable, and not to be
amended; especially the
Orange colour, or halfe red,
is to be feared, for if at the
beg•nning thou see that in
thine Egge, without doubt,
thou burnest, or hast burnt
the verdure and iuelinesse
Page 76

of thy Stone. The colour
which thou must haue,
ought to bee intirely per∣fected
in Blacknesse, like to
that of these Dragons in the
space of fortie dayes: Let
them therefore which shall
not haue these essentiall
markes, retire themselues
betimes from their operati∣ons,
that they may redeeme
themselues from assured
losse. Know also, and note
it well, that in this Art it is
but nothing to haue this
blacknesse, there is nothing
more easie to come by: for
from almost all things in
the world, mixed with
moysture, thou mayest haue
a blacknesse, by the fire: but
thou must haue a blacknesse
which comes of the perfect
Mettallicke bodies, which
Page 77

lasts a long space of time,
and is not destroyed in lesse
than fiue moneths, after the
which followeth immedi∣ately
the desired white∣nesse.
If thou hast this,
thou hast enough, but
not all. As for the colour
blewish and yellowish, that
signifieth that Solution and
Putrefaction is not yet fini∣shed,
and that the colours
of our Mercury are not as
yet well mingled, and rot∣ten
with the rest. Then
this blacknesse, and these
colours, teach plainly, that
in this beginning the mat∣ter,
and compound begins
to rotte and dissolue into
powder, lesse than the A∣tomes
of the Sunne, the
which afterwards are chan∣ged
into coator permanent.
Page 78

And this dissolution is by
the enuious Philosophers
called Death, Destruction,
and Perdition, because that
the natures change their
forme, and from hence are
proceeded so many Allego∣ries
of dead men, tombes,
and sepulchres. Others
haue called it Calcination,
Denudation, Separation,
Erituration, and Assation,
because the Confections are
changed and reduced into
most small pieces and parts.
Others haue called it Re∣duction
into the first mat∣ter,
Mollification, Extracti∣on,
Commixtion, Liquefa∣ction,
Conuersion of Ele∣ments,
Subtiliation, Diui∣sion,
Humation, Impasta∣tion,
and Distillation, be∣cause
that the Confections,
Page 79

are melted, brought backe
into s•ed, softned, and
circulated within the glasse.
Others haue called it Xir,
or Iris, Putrefaction, Cor∣ruption,
Cymmerian darke∣nesse,
a gulfe, Hell, Dra∣gons,
Generation, Ingression,
Submersion, Complection,
Coniunction, and impreg∣nation,
because that the
matter is black & waterish,
and that the natures are
perfectly mingled, and hold
one of another. For when
the heate of the Sunne wor∣keth
vpon them, they are
changed, first into powder,
or fat and glutinous water,
which feeling the heate,
flyeth on high to the Pou∣lets
head, with the smoake,
that is to say, with the wind
and ayre; from thence this
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water melted, and drawne
out of the confections, go∣eth
downe againe, and in
descending reduceth, and
resolueth, as much as it can,
the rest of the Aromatical
confections, alwayes doing
so, vntill the whole bee like
a blacke broath somewhat
fat. Now you see, why
they call this sublimation,
and volatization, because it
flyeth on high, and Ascen∣sion
and Descension, because
it mounteth, & descendeth
within the glasse. A while
after, the water beginneth
to thicken and coagulate
somewhat more, growing
very blacke, like vnto pitch,
and finally comes the Body
and earth, which the enui∣ous
haue called Terra foeti∣da,
that is, stinking earth:
Page 81

for then because of the per∣fect
putrefaction, which is
as naturall as any other can
be; this earth stincks, and
giues a smell like the odour
of graues filled with rotten∣nesse,
and with bodies as yet
charged with their naturall
moysture. This earth was
by Hermes called Terra fo∣liata,
or the Earth of leaues,
yet his true & proper name
is Leton, which must after∣ward
bee whitened. The
Ancient Sages that were
Cabalists, haue described it
in their Metamorphoses, vn∣der
the History of the Ser∣pent
of Mars, which had
deuoured the companions
of Cadmus, who shew him,
percing him with his lance
against a hollow Oake. Note
this Oake.

Page 82
CHAP. IIII.
Of the man and the woman clothed in a gowne of O∣range colour vpon a field azure and blew, and of their rowles.
[illustration]
THe man painted here
doth expresly resem∣ble
my selfe to the
naturall, as the woman doth
liuely figure Perrenelle:
The cause why wee are
painted to the life, is not
particular to this purpose,
Page 83

for it needed but to repre∣sent
a male and a female,
to the which our two par∣ticular
resemblance was not
necessarily required, but it
pleased the Painter to put
vs there, iust as hee hath
done higher in this Arch,
at the feet of the Figure of
Saint Paul and Saint Peter,
according to that wee were
in our youth; as hee hath
likewise done in other pla∣ces,
as ouer the doore of the
Chappell of Saint Iames in
the Bouchery neere to my
house, (although that for
this last there is a particular
cause) as also ouer the doore
of Saincte Geneuiefue de's
Ardans, where thou maist
see me. I ma•e then to bee
painted heere two bodies,
one of a Male, and another
Page 84

of a Female, to teach thee,
that in this second opera∣tion,
thou hast truely, but
yet not perfectly, two na∣tures
conioyned and mar∣ried
together, the Mascu∣line
and the Foeminine; or
rather the foure Elements;
and that the foure naturall
enemies, the hote and cold,
dry and moist, begin to ap∣proach
amiably one to∣wards
another, and by
meanes of the Mediators
and Peace-makers, lay
downe by little and little,
the ancient enmity of the
old Chaos. Thou knowest
well enough who these Me∣diators
and Peace-makers
are, betweene the hote and
the cold there is moisture,
for he is kinsman and allyed
to them both; to hote by
Page 85

his heate, and to cold by
his moisture: And this is
the reason, why to begin
to make this peace, thou
hast already in the prece∣dent
operation, conuerted
all the confections into wa∣ter
by dissolution. And af∣terward
thou hast made to
coagulate the water, which
is turned into this Earth,
blacke of the blacke most
blacke, wholly to accom∣plish
this peace; for the
Earth, which is cold and
dry, finding himself of
kindred and allyance with
the dry and moist, which
are enemies, will wholly
appease and ac•ord them.
Doest thou not then consi∣der
a most perfect mixture
of all the foure Elements,
hauing first turned them in∣to
Page 86
water, and now into
Earth? I will also teach
thee heereafter the other
conuersions, into ayer when
it shall be all white, and into
fire, when it shall bee of a
most perfect purple. Then
thou hast heere two natures
marri•d together, whereof
the one hath conceiued by
the other, and by this con∣ception
it is turned into the
body of the Male, and the
Male into that of the Fe∣male;
that is to say, they are
made one onely body,
which is the Androgyne,
or Hermaphrodite of the
Ancients, which they haue
also called otherwise, the
head of the Crow, or na∣tures
conuerted. In this fa∣shion
I paint them heere,
because thou hast two na∣tures
Page 87

reconciled, which (if
they be gu•ded and gouer∣ned
wisely) can forme an
Embrion in the wombe of
the Vessell, and afterwards
bring foorth a most puissant
King, inuincible and incor∣ruptible,
because it will bee
an admirable quintessence.
Thus thou seest the prin∣cipall
and most necessary
reason of this representa∣tion:
The second cause
(which is also well to bee
noted) was because I must
of necessitie paint two bo∣dies,
because in this opera∣tion
it behooueth that thou
diuide that which hath
beene coagulated, to giue
afterwards▪ nourishment,
which is milke of life, to
the little Infant when it is
borne, which is endued (by
Page 88

the liuing God) with a ve∣getable
soule.

This is a secret most ad∣mirable
and secret, which
for want of vnderstanding,
it hath made fooles of all
those that haue sought it
without finding it, and hath
made euery man wise, that
beholds it with the eyes of
his body, or of his spirit.

Thou must then make
two parts and portions of
this Coagulated body, the
one of which shall serue for
Azoth, to wash and clense
the other, which is called
Leton, which must be whi∣tened:
He which is washed,
is the Serpent Python,
which (hauing taken his be∣ing
from the corruption of
the slime of the Earth ga∣thered
together by the wa∣ters
Page 89

of the deluge, when all
the confections were wa∣ter)
must be killed and ouer∣come
by the arrowes of the
God Apollo, by the yellow
Sunne, that is to say, by our
fire, equall to that of the
Sunne.

He which washeth, or ra∣ther
the washings, which
must be continued with the
other moity; these are the
teeth of that Serpent, which
the sage workeman, the va∣liant
Theseus, wil sow in the
same Earth, from whence
there shall spring vp armed
Souldiers, which shal in the
end discomsit themselues,
suffering themselues by op∣position
to resolue into the
same nature of the Earth,
and the workman to beare
away his deserued con∣quests.
Page 90

It is of this, that the
Phylosophers haue written
so often, and so often repea∣ted
it, It dissolues it selfe, it
congeales it selfe, it makes it
selfe blacke, it makes it selfe
white, it kils it selfe, and it
quickens it selfe. I haue
made their field be painted
azure and blew, to shew
that I doe but now beginne
to get out from the most
blacke blacknesse; for the a∣zure
and blew, is one of the
first colours, that the darke
woman lets vs see, that is to
say, moisture giuing place
a little to heate and drinesse:
The man and woman are
almost all orange-coloured,
to shew that our Bodies, (or
our body, which the wise
men here call Rebis) hath
not as yet digestion enough,
Page 91

and that the moisture from
whence comes the blacke
blew and azure, is but halfe
vanquished by the drinesse.

For when drinesse beares
rule, all will be white, and
when it fighteth with, or is
equall to the moisture, all
will be in part according to
these present colours. The
enuious haue also called
these confections in this o∣peration,
Nummus, Ethelia,
Arena, Boritis, Co•sufle,
Cambar, Albar aeris, Due∣nech,
Randeric, Kukul, Tha∣bricis,
Ebisemech, Ixir, &c.
which they haue comman∣ded
to make white.

The woman hath a white
circle in forme of a rowle
round about her body, to
shew thee, that Rebis will
beginne to become white in
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that very fashion, beginning
first at the extremities,
round about this white cir∣cle.
Scala Phylosophorū, that
is the Booke entituled, The
Phylosophers Ladder, saith
thus; The signe of the first
perfect whitenesse, is the ma∣nifestation
of a certaine lit∣tle
circle of haire, that is
passing ouer the head, which
will appeare on the sides of
the vessels round about the
matter, in a kind of a cierine
or yellowish colour.

There is written in their
Rowles, Homo veniet ad iu∣dicium
Dei, that is, Man
shall come to the Iudgement
of God: Verè (saith the wo∣man)
illa dies terribilis erit,
that is, Truly that will be a
terrible day. These are not
passages of holy Scripture,
Page 93

but onely sayings which
speake according to the
Theological sence, of the
Iudgement to come, I haue
put them there, to serue my
selfe of them towards him,
that beholds onely the
grosse outward, and most
naturall Artifice, taking the
interpretation th•reof to
concerne onely the Resur∣rection;
and also it may
serue for them, that gathe∣ring
together the Parables
of the Science, take to them
the eyes of Lynceus, to
pierce deeper then the visi∣ble
obiects. There is then,
Man shall come to the iudge∣ment
of God: Certainly that
day shall be terrible. That is
as if I should haue said; It
behoues that this come to
the colour of perfection, to
Page 94

be iudged & clensed from
all his blacknesse and filth,
and to be spiritualized and
whitened. Surely that day
will be terrible, yet certain∣ly,
as you shall find in the
Allegory of Aristeus. Horror
holds vs in prison by the
space of fourescore dayes, in
the darknesse of the waters,
in the extreme heate of the
Summer, and in the trou∣bles
of the Sea. All which
things ought first to passe,
before our King can become
white, comming from death
to life, to ouercome after∣wards
all his enemies. To
make thee vnderstand yet
somewhat better this Al∣bification,
which is harder
and more difficult then all
the rest, (for till that time
thou mayest erre at euery
Page 95

steppe, but afterwards thou
canst not, except thou break
thy vessels) I haue also made
for thee this Table follow∣ing.

CHAP. V.
The figure of a man, like that of Saint Paul, cloa∣thed with a robe white and yellow, bordered with gold, holding a naked Sword, hauing at his feet a man on his knees, clad in a robe of orange colour, blacke and white, holding a roule.
Page 96
[illustration]
MArke well this man
in the forme of Saint
Paul, cloathed in a
robe entirely of a yellowish
white. If thou consider him
well, he turnes his body in
Page 97

such a posture, as shewes
that he would take the na∣ked
Sword, either to cut off
the head, or to doe some o∣ther
thing, to that man
which is on his knees at his
feete, cloathed in a robe of
orange colour, white and
blacke, which saith in his
roule, DELE MALA
QVAE FECI, that is,
Blot out all the euill which I
haue done; as if hee should
say, TOLLE NIGRE∣DINEM,
Take away from
me my blacknesse; A term of
Art: for Euill signifieth in
the Allegory, Blacknesse,
as it is often found in Tur∣ba
Phylosophorum: Seethe
it vntill it come to blacke∣nesse,
which will be thought
Euill. But wouldest thou
know what is meant by
Page 98

this man, that taketh the
Sword? It signifies that
thou must cut off the head
of the Crow, that is to say,
of the man cloathed in di∣uers
Colours, which is on
his knees. I haue taken this
pourtraict and figure out of
Hermes Trismegistus, in his
Booke of the Secret Art,
where he saith, Take away
the head of this blacke man,
cut off the head of the Crow,
that is to say, Whiten our
blacke. Lambspringk that
noble Germane, hath also
vsed it in the Commentary
of his Hieroglyphicks, say∣ing,
In this wood there is a
Beast all couered with black,
if any man cut off his head,
he will loose his blacknesse,
and put on a most white co∣lour.
Will you vnderstand
Page 99

what that is? The blacknesse
is called the head of the
Crow, the which being taken
away, at the instant comes
the white colour: Then that
is to say, when the Cloud ap∣peares
no more, this body is
said to bee without an head.
These are his proper
words. In the same sence,
the Sages haue also said in
other places, Take the Viper
which is called, De rexa, cut
off his head, &c. that is to
say, Take away from him
his blacknesse. They haue
also vsed this Periphrasis,
when to signifie the multi∣plication
of the Stone, they
haue fained a Serpent Hy∣dra,
whereof, if one cur off
one head, there will spring
in the place thereof ten; for
the stone augments tenfold,
Page 100

euery time that they cut off
this head of the Crow, that
they make it blacke, and af∣terwards
white; that is to
say, that they dissolue it a∣new,
and afterward coagu∣late
it againe.

Marke how this naked
Sword is wreathed about
with a blacke girdle, and
that the ends thereof are
not so wreathed at all. This
naked shining Sword, is the
stone for the white, or the
white stone, so often by the
Phylosophers described vn∣der
this forme. To come
then to this perfect and
sparkling whitenesse, thou
must vnderstand the wrea∣things
of this blacke girdle,
and follow that which they
teach, which is the quanti∣ty
of the imbitions. The
Page 101

two ends which are not
wreathed about at all, repre∣sent
the beginning and the
ending: for the beginning
it teacheth that you must
imbibe it at the first time
gently and scarcely, giuing
it then a little milke, as to a
little Child new borne, to
the intent that Isir, (as the
Authors say) be not drow∣ned:
The like must we doe
at the end, when wee see
that our King is full, and
will haue no more. The
middle of these operations
is painted by the fiue whole
wreathes, or rounds, of the
blacke girdle, at what time
(because our Salamander
liues of the fire, and in the
middest of the fire, and in∣d•ed
is a fire, and an Argent
viue, or quicksiluer, that
Page 102

runnes in the middest of
the fire, fearing nothing)
thou must giue him abun∣dantly,
in such sort that the
Virgins milke compasse all
the matter round about.

I haue made to be pain∣ted
blacke all these wreaths
or rounds of the girdle, be∣cause
these are the imbibiti∣ons,
and by consequent,
blacknesses: for the fire with
the moisture (as it hath been
often said) causeth blacke∣nesse.
And as these fiue
whole wreathes or rounds
shew that you must doe this
fiue times wholly, so like∣wise
they let you know,
that you must doe this in
fiue whole moneths, a mo∣neth
to euery imbibition:
See here the reason why
Haly Abenragel said, The
Page 103

Coction or boiling of the
things is done in three times
fifty dayes: It is true, that if
thou count these little im∣bibitions
at the beginning
and at the end, there are se∣uen.
Whereupon one of
the most enuious hath said,
Our head of the Crow is le∣prous,
and therefore he that
would clense it, hee must
make it goe downe seuen
times into the Riuer of rege∣neration
of Iordan, as the
Prophet commanded the le∣prous
Naaman the Syrian.
Comprehending herein the
beginning, which is, but of
a few dayes, the middle and
the end, which is also very
short. I haue then giuen
thee this Table, to tell thee
that thou must whiten my
body, which is vpon the
〈2 pages missing〉
Page 106

World is deceiued. This o∣peration
is indeed a Laby∣rinth,
for here there pre∣sent
themselues a thousand
wayes at the same instant,
besides that, thou must goe
to the end of it, directly
contrary to the beginning,
in coagulating that which
before thou dissoluedst, and
in making earth that which
before thou madest water.
When thou hast made it
white, then hast thou ouer∣come
the enchanted Bulles,
that cast fire and smoake
out of their nostrils. Her∣cules
hath clensed the stable
full of ordure, of rotten∣nesse,
and of blackenesse.
Iason hath powred the de∣coction
or broath, vpon
the Dragons of Colchos,
and thou hast in thy power
Page 107

the horne of Amalthaea,
which (although it bee
white) may fill thee all the
rest of thy life with glory,
honour, and riches. To
haue the which, it hath be∣hooued
thee to fight vali∣antly,
and in manner of an
Hercules; for this Achelous,
this moist riuer, is indewed
with a most mighty force,
besides that hee often trans∣figures
himselfe from one
forme to another: Thus
hast thou done all, because
the rest is without difficul∣tie:
These transfigurations
are particularly described
in the Booke of the seuen
Egyptian seales, where it is
said (as also by all Authors)
that the Stone, before it will
wholly forsake his blacke∣nesse,
and become white in
Page 108

the fashion of a most shining
marble, and of a naked fla∣ming
sword, will put on all
the colours that thou canst
possibly imagine, often will
it melt, and often coagulate
it selfe, and amidst these
diuers and contrary opera∣tions,
(which the vegetable
soule which is in it makes it
performe at one and the
same time) it will grow
Citrine, greene, red, (but
not of a true red) it will
become yellow, blew, and
orange colour, vntill that
being wholly ouercome by
drynesse and heate, all these
infinite colours will end in
this admirable Citrine
whitenesse, of the colour
of Saint Pauls garments,
which in a short time will
become like the colour of
Page 109

the naked sword; after∣wards
by the meanes of a
more strong and long de∣coction;
it will take in the
end a red Citrine colour,
and afterward the perfect
redde of the vermillion,
where it will repose it selfe
for euer. I will not for∣get,
by the way, to aduer∣tise
thee, that the milke of
the Moone, is not as the
Virgins milke of the Sunne;
thinke then that the inbi∣bitions
of whitenesse, re∣quire
a more white milke,
than those of a golden red∣nesse;
for in this passage I
had thought I should haue
missed, and so I had done
indeed had it not beene for
Abraham the Iew; for
this reason I haue made to
bee painted for thee, the
Page 110

Figure which taketh the
naked sword, in the co∣lour
which is necessary for
thee; for it is the Figure of
that which whiteneth.

CHAP. VI.
Vpon a greene field, three resuscitants, or which rise againe, two men and one woman, altogether white: Two Angels be∣neath, and ouer the An∣gels the figure of our Sa∣uiour comming to iudge the world, clothed with a robe which is perfectly Citrine white.
Page 111
[illustration]
Page 112

I Haue so made to bee
painted for thee a field
vert, because that in this
decoction the confections
become greene, and keepe
this colour longer than any
other after the blacke. This
greenenesse shewes particu∣larly
that our Stone hath a
vegetable soule, and that
by the Industrie of Arte
it is turned into a true and
pure tree, to bud abundant∣ly,
and afterwards to bring
foorth infinite little sprigs
and branches. O happy
greene (saith the Rosary)
which doest produce all
things, without thee no∣thing
can increase, vege∣tate,
nor multiply. The
three folke rising againe,
clothed in sparkling white,
represent the Body, Soule,
Page 113

and Spirit, of our white
Stone. The Philosophers
doe ordinarily vse these
termes of Art to hide the
secret from euill men. They
call the Body that blacke
earth, obscure and darke,
which wee make white:
They call the Soule the
other halfe diuided from
the Body, which by the will
of God, and power of na∣ture,
giues to the body by
his inbibitions and fermen∣tations
a vegetable soule,
that is to say, power and
vertue to bud encrease, mul∣tiply,
and to become white,
as a naked shining sword:
They call the Spirit, the
tincture & drynesse; which
as a Spirit hath power to
pierce all Mettallick things;
I should be too tedious, if
Page 114

I should shew thee how
good reason they had to
say alwayes and in all pla∣ces,
Our Stone hath sembla∣bly
to a man, a Body, Soule,
and Spirit: I would onely
that thou note well, that
as a man indued with a
Body, Soule, and Spirit, is
notwithstanding but one;
so likewise thou hast now,
but one onely white con∣fection,
in the which neuer∣thelesse
there are a Body, a
Soule, and a Spirit, which
are inseparably vnited. I
could easily giue very cleare
comparisons and expositi∣ons
of this Body, Soule, and
Spirit; but to explicate
them, I must of necessitie,
speake things, which God
reserues to reueale vnto
them that feare and loue
Page 115

him, and consequently
ought not to bee written.
I haue then made to bee
painted heere, a Body, a
Soule, and a Spirit, all white,
as if they were rising againe,
to shew thee, that the Sun,
and Moone, and Mercurie,
are raised againe in this o∣peration,
that is to say, are
made Elements of ayre, and
whitened: for wee haue
heretofore called the Black∣nesse,
Death; and so conti∣nuing
the Metaphor, wee
may call Whitenesse, Life;
which commeth not, but
with, and by a Resurrection:
The Body, to shew this
more plainely, I haue made
to be painted lifting vp the
stone of his tombe, wherein
it was inclosed: The Soule,
because it cannot bee put
Page 116

into the earth, it comes not
out of a tombe, but onely I
haue made it bee painted
amōgst the Tombs, seeking
its body, in forme of a wo∣man,
hauing her haire dis∣cheuelled;
The Spirit
which likewise cannot bee
put in a graue, I haue made
to bee painted in fashion of
a man comming out of the
earth, not from a Tombe.
They are all white; so the
blacknesse, that is, death is
vanquished, and they being
whitened, are from hence∣forward
incorruptible. Now
lift vp thine eyes on high,
and see our King comming,
crowned and raised againe,
which hath ouercome
Death, the darkenesses, and
moistures; behold him in
the forme wherein our Sa∣uiour
Page 117

shall come, who
shall eternally vnite vnto
him all pure and cleane
soules, and will driue away
all impurity and vnclean∣nesse,
as being vnworthy to
bee vnited to his diuine
Body. So by comparison
(but first asking leaue of the
Catholicke, Apostolicke, and
Romane Church, to speake
in this manner, and praying
euery debonaire soule to
permit me to vse this simi∣litude)
see heere our white
Elixir, which from hence∣forward
will inseparably v∣nite
vnto himselfe euery
pure Mettallicke nature,
changing it into his owne
most sine siluery nature, re∣iecting
all that is impure,
strange, and Heterogeneall,
or of another kind. Blessed
Page 118

be God, which of his good∣nesse
giues vs grace to bee
able to consider this sparck∣ling
white, more perfect
and shining than any com∣pound
nature, and more
noble next after the im∣mortall
soule, than any sub∣stance
hauing life, or not
hauing life; for it is a quin∣tessence,
a most pure siluer,
that hath passed the Coppell,
and is seuen times refined,
saith the royall Prophet
Dauid.

It is not needfull to in∣terprete
what the two An∣gels
signifie, that play on
Instruments ouer the heads
of them which are raised
againe: These are rather
diuine spirits, singing the
meruailes of God in this mi∣raculous
operation, than
Page 119

Angels that call to iudge∣ment:
To make an expresse
difference betweene these
and them, I haue giuen the
one of them a Lute, the
other a haultboy, but none
of them trumpets, which
yet are wont to be giuen to
them that are to call vs to
Iudgement. The like may
be said of the three Angels,
which are ouer the head of
our Sauiour, whereof the
one crowneth him, and the
other two assisting, say in
their Rowles, O PATER
OMNIPOTENS, O
IESV BONE, that is,
O Almighty Father, O good
Iesu, in rendring vnto him
eternall thanks.

Page 120
CHAP. VII.
Vpon a field violet and blew, two Angels of an Orange colour, and their Rowles.
[illustration]
THis violet and blew
field sheweth, that
being to passe from
the white Stone to the red,
thou must inbibe it with a
little virgins milke of the
Sun, and that these colours
come out of the Mercuriall
moysture which thou hast
Page 121

dried vpon the Stone. In
this operation of rubifying,
although thou doe imbibe,
thou shalt not haue much
blacke, but of violet, blew,
and of the colour of the
Peacocks taile: For our
Stone is so triumphant in
drynesse, that assoone as
thy Mercury toucheth it,
the nature thereof reioycing
in his like nature, it is ioyned
vnto it, and drinketh it
greedily, and therefore the
blacke that comes of moy∣sture,
can shew it selfe but
a little, and that vnder these
colours violet and blew, be∣cause
that drynesse (as is
said) doth by and by go∣uerne
absolutely. I haue
also made to be painted for
thee, these two Angels with
wings, to represent vnto
Page 122

thee, that the two substan∣ces
of thy confections, the
Mercuriall, and the sulphu∣rous
substance, the fixed as
well as the volatile, being
perfectly fixed together, do
also flie together within thy
vessell: for in this operati∣on,
the fixed body wil gent∣ly
mount to heauen, being
all spirituall, and from
thence it will descend vnto
the earth, and whetherso∣euer
thou wilt, following
euery where the Spirit,
which is alwayes mooued
vpon the fire: Inasmuch as
they are made one selfe∣same
nature, and the com∣pound
is all spirituall, and
the spirituall all corporall,
so much hath it beene sub∣tilized
vpon our Marble,
by the precedent operati∣ons.
Page 123

The natures then are
heere transmuted into An∣gels,
that is to say, are made
spirituall and most subtle,
so are they now the true
tinctures. Now remember
thee to begin the rubifying,
by the apposition of Mer∣cury
Citrine red, but thou
must not powre on much,
and onely once or twice, ac∣cording
as thou shalt see
occasion; for this operation
ought to bee done by a dry
fire, and by a dry sublima∣tion
and calcination. And
truely I tell thee heere a se∣cret
which thou shalt very
seldome finde written, so
farre am I from being enui∣ous,
that would to God e∣uery
man knew how to
make gold to his owne will,
that they might liue, and
Page 124

leade foorth to pasture their
faire flocks, without Vsury
or going to Law, in imita∣tion
of the holy Patriarkes,
vsing onely (as our first Fa∣thers
did) to exchange one
thing for another; and yet
to haue that, they must la∣bour
as well as now. How∣beit
for feare to offend God,
and to be the instrument of
such a change, which per∣aduenture
would prooue
euill, I must take heed to
represent or write where it
is that wee hide the keyes,
which can open all the
doores of the secrets of na∣ture,
or to open or cast vp
the earth in that place con∣tenting
my selfe to shew the
things which will teach e∣uery
one to whom God shall
giue permission to know,
Page 125

what property the signe of
the Balance or Libra hath,
when it is inlightened by
the Sunne and Mercury in
the moneth of October.
These Angels are painted
of an orange colour, to let
thee know, that thy white
confections haue beene a
little more digested, or boy∣led,
and that the blacke of
the violet and blew hath
beene already chased away
by the fire: for this orange
colour is compounded of
the faire golden Citrine red
(which thou hast so long
waited for) and of the re∣mainder
of this violet and
blew, which thou hast al∣ready
in part, banished and
vndone. Furthermore this
orange colour sheweth, that
the natures are digested, and
Page 126

by little and little perfected
by the grace of God. As for
their Rowle, which saith,
SVRGITE MORTVI,
VENITE AD IV∣DICIVM
DOMINI
MEI, that is, Arise you
dead, and come vnto the
iudgement of God my Lord;
I haue made it be put there,
onely for the Theologicall
sence, rather than any o∣ther:
It ends in the throate
of a Lyon which is all red,
to teach that this operation
must not bee discontinued
vntill they see the true red
purple, wholly like vnto the
Poppey of the Hermitage,
and the vermillion of the
painted Lyon, sauing for
multiplying.

Page 127
CHAP. VIII.
The figure of a man, like vnto Saint Peter, cloa∣thed in a robe Ci∣trine red, holding a key in his right hand, and laying his left hand vpon a woman, in an orange coloured robe, which is on her knees at his feete, holding a Rowle.
Page 128
[illustration]
LOoke vpon this wo∣man
clothed in a robe
of orange colour, which
doth so naturally resemble
Pe••enelle as she was in her
youth; Shee is painted in
Page 129

the fashion of a suppliant
vpon her knees, her hands
ioyned together, at the
feete of a man which hath
a key in his right hand,
which heares her gracious∣ly,
and afterwards stretch∣eth
out his left hand vpon
her. Wouldest thou know
what this meaneth? This
is the Stone, which in this
operation demandeth two
things, of the Mercury of
the Sunne, of the Philoso∣phers,
(painted vnder the
forme of a man) that is to
say Multiplication, and a
more rich Accoustrement;
which at this time it is
needfull for her to obtaine,
and therefore the man so
laying his hand vpon her
shoulder accords & grants
it vnto her. But why haue I
Page 130

made to bee painted a wo∣man?
I could as well haue
made to bee painted a man,
as a woman, or an Angell
rather, (for the whole na∣tures
are now spirituall and
corporall, masculine and
foeminine:) But I haue ra∣ther
chosen to cause paint
a woman, to the end that
thou mayest iudge, that
shee demaunds rather this,
than any other thing, be∣cause
these are the most
naturall and proper de∣sires
of a woman. To shew
further vnto thee, that
shee demandeth Multipli∣cation,
I haue made paint
the man, vnto whom shee
addresseth her prayers in
the forme of Saint Peter,
holding a key, hauing power
to open and to shut, to binde
Page 131

and to loose; because the en∣uious
Phylosophers haue ne∣uer
spoken of Multiplicati∣on,
but vnder these common
termes of Art, APERI,
CLAVDE, SOLVE, = LIGA, that is, Open, shut,
binde, loose; opening and loo∣sing,
they haue called the
making of the Body (which
is alwayes hard and fixt)
soft fluid▪ and running like
water: To shut and to bind,
is with them afterwards by
a more strong decoction to
coagulate it, and to bring it
backe againe into the forme
of a body.

It behoued mee then, in
this place to represent a
man with a key, to teach
thee that thou must now
open and shut, that is to say,
Multiply the budding and
Page 132

encreasing natures: for look
how often thou shalt dis∣solue
and fixe, so often will
these natures multiply, in
quantity, quality, and ver∣tue,
according to the multi∣plication
of ten; comming
from this number to an
hundred, from an hundred
to a thousand, from a thou∣sand
to ten thousand, from
ten thousand to an hundred
thousand, from an hundred
thousand to a million, and
from thence by the same o∣peration
to Infinity, as I
haue done three times, prai∣sed
be God. And when thy
Elixir is so brought vnto
Infinity, one graine thereof
falling vpon a quantity of
molten mettall as deepe and
vaste as the Ocean, it will
teine it, and conuert it into
Page 133

most perfect mettall, that is
to say, into siluer or gold, ac∣cording
as it shall haue been
imbibed and fermented, ex∣pelling
& driuing out farre
from himself all the impure
and strange matter, which
was ioyned with the met∣tall
in the first coagulation:
for this reason therefore
haue I made to bee painted
a Key in the hand of the
man, which is in the forme
of Saint Peter, to signifie
that the stone desireth to be
opened and shut for multi∣plication;
and likewise to
shew thee with what Mer∣cury
thou oughtest to doe
this, & when; I haue giuen
the man a garment Citrine
red, and the woman one of
orange colour. Let this suf∣fice,
lest I transgresse the si∣lence
Page 130
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Page 131
〈1 page duplicate〉
Page 132
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Page 133
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Page 134

of Pythagoras, to
teach thee that the woman,
that is, our stone, asketh to
haue the rich Accoustre∣ments
and colour of Saint
Peter. Shee hath written in
her Rowle, CHRISTE
PRECOR ESTO¦PIVS,
that is, Iesu Christ
be pittifull vnto mee, as if
shee said, Lord be good vnto
mee, and suffer not that hee
that shal become thus farre,
should spoile all with too
much fire: It is true, that
from henceforward I shal no
more feare mine enemies,
and that all fire shall be alike
vnto me, yet the vessell that
containes me, is alwaies brit∣tle
and easie to be broken: for
if they exalt the fire ouer∣much,
it will cracke, and fly∣ing
a pieces, will carry mee,
Page 135

and sow mee vnfortunately
amongst the ashes. Take
heed therefore to thy fire in
this place, and gouerne
sweetly with patience, this
admirable quintessence, for
the fire must be augmented
vnto it, but not too much.
And pray the soueraigne
Goodnesse, that it will not
suffer the euill spirits, which
keepe the Mines and Trea∣sures,
to destroy thy worke,
or to bewitch thy sight,
when thou cōsiderest these
incomprehensible motions
of this Quintessence within
thy vessell.

Page 136
CHAP. IX.
Vpon a darke violet field, a man red purple, holding the foote of a Lyon red as vermillion, which hath wings, & it seemes would rauish and carry away the man.
[illustration]
THis field violet and
darke, tels vs that the
stone hath obtained
by her full decoction, the
faire Garments, that are
wholly Citrine and red,
Page 137

which shee demanded of
Saint Peter, who was cloa∣thed
therewith, and that
her compleat and perfect
digestion (signified by the
entire Citrinity) hath made
her leaue her old robe of o∣range
colour. The vermili∣on
red colour of this flying
Lyon, like the pure & cleere
skarlet in graine, which is
of the true Granadored, de∣monstrates
that it is now
accomplished in all right
and equality. And that shee
is now like a Lyon, deuou∣ring
euery pure mettallicke
nature, and changing it in∣to
her true substance, into
true & pure gold, more fine
then that of the best mines.
Also shee now carrieth this
man out of this vale of mi∣series,
that is to say, out of
Page 138

the discommodities of po∣uerty
& infirmity, and with
her wings gloriously lifts
him vp, out of the dead and
standing waters of Aegypt,
(which are the ordinary
thoughts of mortall men)
making him despise this life
and the riches thereof, and
causing him night and day
to meditate on God, and his
Saints, to dwell in the
Emperiall Heauen, and to
drinke the sweet springs of
the Fountains of euerlasting
hope. Praised be God eter∣nally,
which hath giuen vs
grace to see this most fair &
all-perfect purple colour;
this pleasant colour of the
wilde poppy of the Rocke,
this Tyrian, sparkling and
flaming colour, which is in∣capable
of Alteration or
Page 139
change, ouer which the hea∣uen
it selfe, nor his Zodiacke
can haue no more domina∣tion
nor power, whose
bright shining rayes, that
dazle the eyes, seeme as
though they did communi∣cate
vnto a man some su∣percoelestiall
thing, making
him (when he beholds and
knowes it) to be astonisht,
to tremble, and to be afraid
at the same time. O Lord,
giue vs grace to vse it well,
to the augmentation of the
Faith, to the profit of our
Soules, and to the en∣crease
of the glory
of this noble
REALME.
Amen.

FINIS.


ARTEPHIVS
HIS SECRET
BOOKE,
Concerning the PHI∣LOSOPHERS
STONE.

LONDON
Printed by T. S. for Tho. Walkley,
and are to be sold at his Shop
at the Eagle and Childe
in Britans Bursse.
1624.


Page 143
THE PREFACE to the READER, in the French and Latine Copies.
AMongst all the
other Philoso∣phers
(louing
Reader) only
our Artephius
is not enuious, as himself af∣firmeth
of himselfe in many
places, and therefore he lay∣eth
downe the whole Art in
most open words in this
Treatise, interpreting as
farre as he may, the doubt∣full
speeches and Sophismes
Page 144

of others; Neuerthelesse
least he should giue vnto the
wicked, ignorant, and euill
men, occasion and meanes to
doe hurt, hee hath a little
vailed the truth in the
Principalls of the Science
vnder an Arteficiall Me∣thode,
sometimes affirming,
sometimes denying, and ma∣king
as though hee often re∣peated
one and the same
thing, whereas in those re∣petitions
hee alwayes chan∣geth
some words, seeming
often to say the contrary of
what hee had said before,
willing to leaue vnto the
iudgement of the Reader,
the way of Trueth, Vertue,
and true Working, which
if any man finde, let him
giue immortall thankes to
God alone; but if hee see
Page 145

that hee walketh not in the
right way, let him reade o∣uer
this Author againe and
againe, vntill hee vnder∣stand
his meaning. So did
the learned Iohn Pontanus,
which saith in his Epistle
Printed in Theatrum Chi∣micum:
They erre (saith
hee, speaking of them that
labour in this Arte) they
haue erred, and they will
alwayes erre, because the
Philosophers in their books
haue neuer set downe the
proper Agent, except onely
one, which is called Arte∣phius,
but hee speakes for
himselfe; and if I had not
read Artephius, and vnder∣stood
whereof hee spake,
I had neuer come to the
Complement of the worke:
Therefore reade this Booke,
Page 146

and reade it againe, vntill
thou vnderstand his speech,
and so obtaine thy desired
end. It shall bee needlesse to
speake any more concerning
our Authour; It sufficeth
that by the grace of God,
and the vse of this wonder∣full
Quintessence, hee liued
a thousand yeeres, as wit∣nesseth
Roger Bacon, in his
Booke of the wonderfull
workes of nature, and also
the most learned Theo∣phrastus
Baracelsus, in his
Booke of long life: Which
terme of a thousand yeeres,
none of the other Philoso∣phers,
no nor the Father
of them, Hermes himselfe,
was able to attaine vnto.
Looke therefore, whether
peraduenture this man haue
not vnderstood the vertues
Page 147

of our Stone, and the man∣ner
how to vse it, better
than the rest. Howsoeuer
it bee, vse thou it and our
labours, to the glory of
God, and the profit of
this Kingdome.

Farewell.

Page 149

---

ARTEPHIVS HIS SECRET BOOKE.

ANtimony is of
the parts of
Saturne, and
hath in euery
respect the
nature thereof: so this Sa∣turnine
Antimonie agrees
with the Sunne, hauing in
it selfe Argent viue, where∣in
no mettall is drowned
but gold; that is to say;
Gold onely is drowned in
Antimoniall Saturnine Ar∣gent
Page 150

viue, and without that
Argent viue, no mettall
can bee whitened: It whi∣teneth
therefore Leton, that
is, Gold, and it reduceth a
perfect Body into its first
matter, that is, into Sulphur
and Argent viue of a white
colour, and shining more
than glasse. It dissolues I
say, the perfect Body which
is of his nature; for this
water is friendly, and plea∣sant
to the Mettalls, whi∣tening
the Sunne, because it
containes a white Argent
viue. And from hence thou
mayest draw a great secret,
to wit, that the water of Sa∣turnine
Antimony ought to
be Mercuriall and white,
to the end that it may whi∣ten
the Gold, not burning
it, but dissoluing and after∣wards
Page 151

congealing it to the
forme of white Creame.
Therefore, saith the Philo∣sopher,
that this water ma∣keth
the Body to bee vola∣tile,
because after it hath
beene dissolued in this wa∣ter,
and cooled againe, it
mounts aloft vpon the sur∣face
of the water; Take
(saith he) gold crude, folia∣ted,
laminated, or calcined
with Mercury, and put it
into our Vinegre Antimo∣niall,
Saturnine, Mercuri∣all,
and drawne from Sal
Ammoniack (as is said) in a
broad vessell of glasse, foure
fingers high or more, and
leaue it there in a temperate
heate; and in short time
thou wilt see lifted vp, as
it were a liquor of oyle
swimming aloft, in manner
Page 152

of a thinne skinne: That ga∣ther
with a spoone, or with
a feather, dipping it in, and
so doing many times in a
day, vntill there doe no∣thing
more arise; afterward
make the water vapour a∣way
by the fire, that is to
say, the superfluous humor
of the vinegre, and there
will remain vnto thee a fifth
essence of Gold, in forme of
a white oyle incombustible,
wherein the Phylosophers
haue placed their greatest
secrets; and this oyle is ex∣ceeding
sweete, and is of
great power to mitigate the
pain and griefe of wounds.
All the secret then of this
secret Antimoniall, is that
by vertue thereof we know
how to extract & draw out
of the body of the Mag∣nesia,
Page 153

Argent viue, not
burning, (and this is Anti∣mony
and Mercuriall subli∣mate)
that is, we must draw
a water liuing, incombusti∣ble,
and then congeale it
with the perfect Body of
the Sunne, which is dissol∣ued
therein, into a nature
and substance white, con∣gealed
as if it were creame,
which maketh it all to be∣come
white: Neuerthelesse,
first of all this Sunne in his
putrifaction and resolution
in this water, in the begin∣ning
will loose his light, be
darkened, & become black,
and afterward will lift him∣selfe
vpon the water, and
there will swimme vpon it
by little and little a white
colour i• a white substance.
And this is called to whiten
Page 154

the red Leton, to sublime it
Phylosophically, and to re∣duce
it into his first matter,
that is to say, into white
Sulphur incombustible, and
into Argent viue fixed;
and so the terminated moi∣sture,
that is to say, Gold,
our Body, by the reiteration
of liquefaction in this our
dissoluing water, is turned
and reduced into Sulphur,
and Argent viue fixed:
And so the perfect Body of
the Sunne taketh life in this
water, is reuiued, inspired,
encreased, and multiplied in
his kind, as all other things
are; for in this water it com∣meth
to passe, that the Body
compounded of two bodies,
of the Sunne and of the
Moone, puffeth vp, swelleth,
putrisieth as a graine of
Page 155

Corne, becommeth great
with young, is lifted vp, and
encreaseth, taking the sub∣stance
& nature, liuing and
vegetable.

Also our water, or our
foresaid vinegre, is the vi∣negre
of Mountaines, that
is to say, of the Sunne and
Moone, and therefore it is
mixed with the Sunne and
Moon, and cleaueth to them
perpetually: to wit, the Bo∣dy
taketh from this water
the tincture of whitenesse,
and with it (the water)
shineth with inestimable
brightnesse. Hee therefore
that knowes how to turne
the Body into white siluer
medicinall, hee may after∣ward
by this white gold, ea∣sily
turne all imperfect met∣tals
into very good and fine
Page 156

siluer. And this white gold,
is by the Phylosophers cal∣led,
their white Moone, the
white Argent viue fixed, the
Gold of Alchimy, and the
white smoake. Therefore
without that our Antimo∣niall
vinegre, the white gold
of Alchimy, cānot be made.
And because in our vinegre
there is a double substance
of Argent viue, one of An∣timony,
and another of
Mercury sublimed; it doth
therefore giue a double
weight & substance of Ar∣gent
viue fixed, and also
augments therein (in the
gold) the naturall colour,
weight, substance, and tin∣cture
thereof.

Therefore our dissoluing
water, carries a great tin∣cture
and great fusion, be∣cause
Page 157

that when it feeles
the common fire, if there be
in it the perfect Body of the
Sunne or of the Moone, it
suddenly maketh it to bee
melted, and to be turned in∣to
his substance, white as it
is, & addes colour, weight,
and tincture to the Body.
It hath also power to dis∣solue
all things that may be
melted, and it is a ponde∣rous
body, viscous, preci∣ous,
and honourable, resol∣uing
all crude bodies into
their first matter, that is, in∣to
Earth, & a viscous pow∣der,
that is to say, into Sul∣phur
and Argent viue. If
therefore thou put into this
water any mettall, filed, or
attenuated, and leauest it for
a time in a gentle heate, it
will bee all dissolued, and
Page 158

changed into a viscous wa∣ter,
or a white oyle, as is said.
And so it molifies the Body,
and prepares it to fusion &
liquefaction, nay, it makes
all things fusible, that is,
stones and mettals, and af∣terwards
giues them spirit
and life. Therefore it dis∣solues
all things with a
wonderful solution, turning
the perfect Body into a fusi∣ble
medicine, melting, pene∣trating,
and more fixed, en∣creasing
the weight and co∣lour.

Worke therefore with
it, and thou shalt obtaine
from it that which thou
desirest; for it is the spirit
and the soule of the Sunne
and the Moone, it is the oyle,
the dissoluing water, the
fountaine, the Balneum Ma∣riae,
Page 159

the fire against Nature,
the moist fire, the secret, hid∣den,
and inuisible fire, and
the most sharpe vinegre, of
which a certaine ancient
Phylosopher said, I besought
the Lord, and hee shewed me
a certain cleane water, which
I knew to be the pure vine∣gre,
altering, piercing, and
digesting. The vinegre I say
penetratiue, and the instru∣ment
mouing the gold or
the siluer, to putrifie, re∣solue,
and to be reduced in∣to
his first matter, and it is
the onely Agent in the
whole World for this Art,
that can resolue and rein∣crudate,
or make raw againe
the Mettallicke Bodies, with
the conseruation of their
species. It is therefore the
onely fit and natural mean,
Page 160

by which we ought to re∣solue
the perfect Bodies of
the Sunne and Moone, by an
admirable and solemne dis∣solution,
vnder the conser∣uation
of their species, and
without any destruction,
vnlesse it be to a new, more
noble, and better forme, or
generation, that is to say,
into the perfect Stone of the
Phylosophers, which is their
wonderfull, and hidden se∣cret.

Now this water is a cer∣tain
middle substance, cleere
as pure siluer, which ought
to receiue the tinctures of
the Sunne and Moone, to
the end that it may be con∣gealed
and conuerted into
white and liuing Earth; for
this water hath need of the
perfect bodies, that with
Page 161

them after dissolution, it
may bee congealed, fixed,
and coagulated into white
Earth; and their solution is
also their congelation, for
they haue one and the same
operation, for the one is not
dissolued, but that the other
is congealed; neither is
there any other water
which can dissolue the Bo∣dies,
but that which abideth
with them in matter and
forme; nay, it cannot be per∣manent,
except it bee of the
nature of the other body,
that they may be made one
together. Therefore when
thou seest the water coagu∣late
it selfe with the Bodies
that bee dissolued therein,
rest assured that thy Sci∣ence,
Methode, and operati∣ons,
are true and Phyloso∣phicall,
Page 162

and that thou pro∣ceedest
aright in the Art.

Nature then is amended
in its like nature; that is,
Gold and Siluer are amen∣ded
in our water, as our wa∣ter
also with the Bodies;
which water is called the
meane of the Soule, without
the which wee can doe no∣thing
in this Art; and it is
the vegetable, animall, and
minerall fire, preseruing the
fixed spirits of the Sunne
and Moone, the destroyer
and the Conquerour of Bo∣dies,
because it destroyes,
dissolues, and changeth Bo∣dies,
and mettallick formes,
and makes them to bee no
Bodies, but a fixed spirit, and
turneth them into a moist,
soft, and fluid substance,
which hath ingression and
Page 163

power to enter into other
imperfect Bodies, and to be
mixed with them by the
smallest parts, and to colour
them and make them per∣fect;
which they could not
doe when they were Met∣tallicke
bodies dry & hard,
which haue no entrance,
nor power to colour and
make perfect imperfect Bo∣dies.
And therefore to good
purpose doe wee turne the
bodies into a fluid substance,
because euery tincture will
colour a thousand times
more, when it is in a soft and
liquid substance, then when
it is in a dry one, as appeares
by Saffron: and conse∣quently
the transmutation
of imperfect Bodies, is im∣possible
to be done by per∣fect
Bodies, while they are
Page 164

dry, except they bee first
brought backe into their
first matter, soft and fluid:
from hence wee conclude,
that we must make the Moi∣sture
returne, and so reueale
that which is hidden;
which is called the reincru∣dation,
or the making raw
againe of the Bodies, that is,
the boyling and the softe∣ning
them, vntill they bee
depriued of their hard and
dry corporality, or bodily∣nesse;
because that which is
dry, doth not enter, nor co∣lour
any more then it selfe.
Therefore the dry Earthly
Body doth not teine, except
it be teined, because as is a∣boue-said,
that which is
thicke and Earthy, entreth
not, nor coloureth; and be∣cause
it entreth not, there∣fore
Page 165

it alters not; wherefore
Gold coloureth not, vntill
the hidden spirit be drawne
from the belly thereof by
our white water, and that it
be made altogether a spiri∣tuall
and white fume, the
white spirit, and the won∣derfull
soule.

Wherefore wee ought
by our water, to attenuate,
alter, and soften the perfect
Bodies, that they may after∣ward
be mixed with the o∣ther
imperfect Bodies: And
therefore if wee had no o∣ther
profit by that Anti∣moniall
water, then this,
that it makes the Bodies
subtile, soft, and fluid, accor∣ding
to his owne nature,
yet it were sufficient for vs:
for it brings backe the Bo∣dies
to their first originall
Page 166

of Sulphur and Mercury,
that of these, we may after∣wards
in a short time, in lesse
then one houre of the day,
doe that aboue ground,
which Nature wrought vn∣der
ground in the mines of
the Earth in a thousand
yeeres, which is as it were
miraculous. And therefore
our finall secret, is by our
water to make the Bodies
volatile, spirituall, and a tei∣ning
water, which hath in∣gression
or entrance into
the other Bodies: for it
makes the Bodies to be a ve∣ry
spirit, because it doth in∣cerate,
(that is, bring to the
temper and consistence of
waxe) the hard and dry Bo∣dies,
and prepares them to
fusion, that is, turnes them
into a permanent or abiding
Page 167

water. It makes then of the
Bodies a most precious bles∣sed
Oyle, which is the true
tincture, and the white per∣manent
water, of nature hot
& moist, temperate, subtile,
and fusible as waxe, which
pierceth, reacheth to the
bottome, coloureth, & ma∣keth
perfect. Therefore our
water doth incontinently
dissolue gold and siluer, and
maketh them an incombu∣stible
Oyle, which may
then be mixed with other
imperfect Bodies: for our
water turnes the Bodies in∣to
the nature of a fusible
salt, which is by the Phylo∣sophers
called, Sal Albroe,
which is the best and the
noblest of all salts, being in
the regiment thereof fixed,
and not flying the fire, and
Page 168

it is indeed an oyle, of a na∣ture
hot, subtile, penetra∣ting,
reaching to the depth
and entring, called the com∣pleat
Elixir, and it is the
hidden secret of the wise
Alchimists. Hee therefore
that knoweth this salt of
the Sunne and Moone, and
the generation, or prepara∣tion
thereof, and afterwards
how to mixe it, and make it
friendly to the other imper∣fect
bodies; hee in truth
knoweth one of the greatest
secrets of Nature, and one
way of perfection.

These Bodies thus dissol∣ued
by our water, are called
Argent viue, which is not
without Sulphur, nor Sul∣phur
without the nature of
the Luminaries (or lights)
because that the Lights (the
Page 169
Sunne and Moone) are the
principall meanes, or mid∣dle
things, in the forme, by
which Nature passeth in
the perfecting and accom∣plishing
the generation
thereof: And this Quick-siluer,
is called the Salt
honoured, and animated
and pregnant, (or great
with Childe) and fire,
seeing that it is nothing
but fire, nor fire, but Sul∣phur,
nor Sulphur, but
quicke-siluer, drawne from
the Sunne and Moon by our
water, and reduced to a
stone of great price; that is
to say, it is the matter of the
Lights, altered from base∣nesse
vnto noblenesse. Note
that this white Sulphur is
the Father of Mettals, and
their Mother together, it is
Page 170

our Mercury; and the Mine∣ra
of Gold, and the Soule,
and the ferment, and the
minerall vertue, and the li∣uing
Body, and the perfect
Medicine, our Sulphur, and
our Quick-siluer, that is,
Sulphur of Sulphur, and
Quick-siluer of Quick-sil∣uer,
and Mercury of Mer∣cury.
The property there∣fore
of our water is that it
melteth gold and siluer, and
augments in them their na∣tiue
colour; for it turnes the
Bodies from Corporality, in∣to
Spirituality, and this wa∣ter
it is which sends into
the Body a white fume,
which is the white soule,
subtile, hot, and of much
fierinesse. This water is also
called the bloudy stone, and
it is the vertue of the spiri∣tuall
Page 171

bloud, without which
nothing is done, & the sub∣iect
of all liquable things,
and of liquefaction, which
agrees very well, and clea∣ueth
to the Sunne and the
Moone, neither is it euer se∣parated
from them, for it is
of kinne to the Sunne and
to the Moone, but more to
the Sun then to the Moone;
Note this well: It is also cal∣led
the mean of conioyning
the tinctures of the Sunne
and Moone with imperfect
Mettals; for it turnes the
Bodies into a true tincture
to teine the other imperfect
Mettals, and it is the water
which whiteneth, as it is
white, which quickeneth as
it is a soule; and therefore (as
the Phylosopher saith) soone
entreth into its body. For it
Page 172

is a liuing water, which
commeth to moisten its
earth, that it may budde,
and bring forth fruit in his
time, as all things springing
from the Earth, are engen∣dred
by the dew or moi∣sture.
The Earth therefore
buddeth not without wa∣tring
and moisture: It is the
water of May-dew, that
clenseth the Bodies, that
pierceth them like raine wa∣ter,
whiteneth them, and
maketh one new Body of
two Bodies. This water of
life being rightly ordered
with his Body, whiteneth it,
& turneth it into his white
colour; for the water is a
white fume, and therefore
the Body is whitened by it:
whiten the Body then, and
burne thy Bookes. And be∣tween
Page 173

these two, that is, be∣tweene
the Body and the
water, there is friendship,
desire, and lust, as betweene
the male and the foemale,
because of the neerenesse of
their like natures: for our se∣cond
liuing water is called
Azot, washing the Leton,
that is, the Body, compoun∣ded
of the Sunne and Moon
by our first water. This se∣cond
water is also called the
soule of our dissolued Bo∣dies,
of which Bodies wee
haue already tyed the soules
together, to the end that
they may serue the wise
Phylosophers. O how per∣fect
and magnificent is this
water, for without it the
worke could neuer bee
brought to passe! It is also
called the vessell of Nature,
Page 174

the belly, the wombe, the
receptacle of the tincture,
the Earth, and the Nurse. It
is the Fountaine in which
the King and Queene wash
themselues, and the Mother
which must be put and sea∣led
in the belly of her In∣fant,
that is, the Sun which
proceeded from her, and
which shee brought forth:
and therefore they loue one
another as a Mother and a
Sonne, and are easily ioyned
together, because they came
from one & the same roote,
and are of the same sub∣stance
and nature. And be∣cause
this water is the wa∣ter
of the vegetable life,
therefore it giueth life, and
maketh the dead body to
vegetate, encrease, & spring
forth, and to rise from death
Page 175

to life, by solution and sub∣limation;
and in so doing,
the Body is turned into a spi∣rit,
and the spirit into a bo∣dy,
and then is made amity,
peace, concord, and vnion
between the contraries, that
is, betweene the Body and
the spirit, which reciprocal∣ly
change their natures,
which they receiue and
communicate to one ano∣ther
by the least parts, so
that the hot is mixed with
the cold, the dry with the
moist, and the hard with
the soft; and thus is there a
mixture made of contrary
natures, that is, of cold with
hot, and of moist with dry,
an admirable connexion &
coniunction of enemies.
Then our dissolution of bo∣dies,
which is made in this
Page 176

first water, is no other thing
then a killing of the moist
with the dry, because the
moist is coagulated with
the dry, for the moisture is
contained, terminated, and
coagulated into a Body, or
into Earth, onely by dri∣nesse.
Let therefore the hard
and dry bodies be put in our
first water in a vessell well
shut, where they may abide
vntill they be dissolued, and
ascend on high, and then
they may bee called a new
Body, the white gold of Al∣chimy,
the white stone, the
white Sulphur, not burning,
and the stone of Paradice,
that is, the stone which con∣uerts
imperfect Mettals into
fine white siluer: Hauing
this, we haue also the Body,
Soule, and Spirit, all toge∣ther,
Page 177

of the which spirit and
soule it is said, that they can∣not
be drawn from the per∣fect
Bodies, but by the con∣iunction
of our dissoluing
water, because it is certaine
that the thing fixed, cannot
belifted vp, but by the con∣iunction
of the thing vola∣tile.
The spirit then by the
mediation of water and the
soule, is drawne from the
Bodies, and the Body is made
no Body, because at the same
instant the spirit with the
soule of the Bodies moun∣teth
on high into the vpper
part, which is the perfecti∣on
of the stone, and is called
sublimation. This sublima∣tion
(saith Florentius Cata∣lanus)
is done by things
sharpe, spirituall, and vola∣tile,
which are of a sulphu∣rous
Page 178

and viscous nature,
which dissolue the Bodies,
and make them to be lifted
vp into the Ayre in the spi∣rit.
And in this sublimation
a certaine part and portion
of our said first water ascen∣deth
with the Bodies, ioy∣ning
it selfe to them, ascen∣ding
and subliming into a
middle substance, which
holdeth of the nature of the
two, that is, of the Bodies,
and of the water; and there∣fore
it is called the Corpo∣rall
& spirituall compound,
Corsufle, Cambdr, Ethelia,
Zandarach, the good Due∣nech,
but properly it is one∣ly
called the water perma∣nent,
because it flyeth not in
the fire, alwayes adhering
to the commixed Bodies,
that is, to the Sunne and
Page 179
Moone, and communica∣ting
vnto them a liuing tin∣cture,
incombustible, and
most firme, more noble and
precious then the former
which these bodies had, be∣cause
from hence-forward
this tincture can run as oyle
vpon the bodies, perforating
and piercing with a won∣derfull
fixion, because this
Tincture is the spirit, and
the spirit is the soule, and
the soule is the body, because
in this operation the body is
made a spirit of a most sub∣tile
nature, and likewise the
spirit is incorporated, and
is made of the nature of a
body with bodies, and so our
stone contains a body, a soule,
and a spirit. O Nature how
thou changest the body into
a spirit, which thou couldst
Page 180

not doe, if the spirit were
not incorporated with the
bodies, and the bodies with
the spirits made volatile, or
flying, and afterward per∣manent
or abiding. There∣fore
they haue passed into
one another, and are turned
the one into the other by
wisdome. O wisdome, how
thou makest Gold to be vo∣latile
and fugitiue, although
by nature it be most fixed.
It behoueth therefore to
dissolue and melt these Bo∣dies
by our water, and to
make them a permanent
water, a golden water subli∣med,
leauing in the bottom
the grosse, earthly, and su∣perfluous
dry. And in this
sublimation the fire ought
to be soft, and gentle; for if
in this sublimation the Bo∣dies
Page 181

bee not purified in a
lent or slow fire, and the
grosser earthly parts (note
well) separated from the
vncleannesse of the dead,
thou shalt be hindred from
euer making thy worke
perfect; for thou needest
onely this subtile and light
nature of the dissolued Bo∣dies,
which our water will
easily giue thee, if thou pro∣ceed
with a slow fire, for it
will separate the Heteroge∣neall
(or that which is of
another kinde) from the
Homogeneall, (or that
which is all of one kinde.)

Our compound there∣fore
receiueth mundificati∣on
or clensing by our moist
fire, that is to say, dissoluing
and subliming that which
is pure and white, and cast∣ing
Page 182

aside the foeces, like a
voluntary vomit (saith A∣zinaban.)
For in such a dis∣solution,
and naturall sub∣limation,
there is made a
loosing, or an vntying of
the Elements, a clensing and
a separation of the pure
from the impure, so that the
pure and white ascendeth
vpward, and the impure
and earthly fixed remaines
in the bottome of the wa∣ter,
or the vessell, which
must be taken a way and re∣mooued,
because it is of no
value, taking onely the mid∣dle
white substance, flowing
and melting, and leauing
the foeculent earth, which
remained below in the bot∣tome,
which came princi∣pally
from the water, and
is the drosse, and the dam∣ned
Page 183

earth, which is nothing
worth, nor can euer doe
any good, as doth the pure,
cleare, white and cleane
matter, which wee ought
onely to take. And against
this Capharaean rocke, the
ship and knowledge of the
Schollers and students in
Philosophy, is often (as it
happened also vnto mee
sometimes) most improui∣dently
dashed and beaten,
because the Phylosophers
doe very often affirme the
contrary, namely, that no∣thing
must be remooued or
taken away, but the moy∣sture,
that is, the Blacknesse,
which notwithstanding
they say and write, onely to
deceiue the vnwise, grosse,
and ignorant, which of
themselues without a Mai∣ster,
Page 184

vnwearied reading,
or Prayer vnto God Al∣mighty,
would like conque∣rours
carry away this gol∣den
fleece.

Note therefore, that this
separation, diuision, and
sublimation, is without
doubt the key of the whole
worke. After the putrifacti∣on
then, and dissolution of
these Bodies, our Bodies doe
lift themselues vp to the
surface of the dissoluing
water, in the colour of
whitenesse, and this white∣nesse
is life; for in this
whitenesse, the Antimoniall
and Mercuriall soule, is by
the appointment of nature,
infused with the Spirits of
the Sunne & Moone, which
separateth the subtile from
the thicke, and the pure
Page 185

from the impure, lifting vp
by little and little, the sub∣tile
part of the Body, from
the dregs, vntill all the pure
be separated and lifted vp:
And in this is our Philoso∣phicall
and naturall subli∣mation
fulfilled: And in
this whitenesse is the soule
infused into the Body, that
is, the mineral vertue, which
is more subtile than fire,
being indeed the true quin∣tessence
and life, which de∣sireth
to bee borne, and to
put off the grosse earthly
foeces, which it hath taken
from the Menstruous and
corrupt place of his Origi∣nall.
And in this is our
Philosophicall sublimation,
not in the naughty com∣mon
Mercury, which hath
no qualities like vnto them,
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wherewith our Mercury
drawne from his vitriolate
cauernes, is adorned. But
let vs returne to our subli∣mation.
It is therefore most
certaine in this Art, that
this soule drawne from the
Bodies, cannot be lifted vp,
but by the putting to of a
volatile thing, which is of
his owne kinde; by the
which the Bodies are made
volatile and spirituall, lif∣ting
vp, subtiliating, and
subliming themselues, a∣gainst
their owne proper
nature, which is bodily,
heauy and ponderous; and
by this meanes they are
made no Bodies, but incor∣poreall,
and a fifth essence,
of the nature of the Spirit,
which is called Hermes his
Bird, and Mercury drawne
Page 187

from the red seruant; and
so the earthy parts re∣maine
below, or rather the
grosser parts of the Bodies,
which cannot by any wit
or deuice of man be perfect∣ly
dissolued. And this white
fume, this white gold, that
is, this quintessence, is also
called the compound Mag∣nesia,
which as a man, con∣taines,
or like a man is com∣pounded
of a Body, a Soule,
and a Spirit: For the Body
is the fixed earth of the
Sunne, which is more than
most fine, ponderously lif∣ted
vp, by the force of our
diuine water; The soule is
the tincture of the Sunne
and of the Moone, procee∣ding
from the coniunction
or communication of these
two: But the spirit is the
Page 188

minerall vertue of the two
Bodies, and of the water,
which carries the soule, or
the white tincture vpon the
Bodies, and out of the Bo∣dies,
as the tincture of Di∣ers,
is carried by water vp∣on
the cloth. And that Mer∣curiall
spirit is the Bond or
tyall of the soule of the Sun;
And the Body of the Sunne
is the Body of fiction, con∣taining
with the Moone the
spirit and soule. The spirit
therefore pierceth, the body
fixeth, the soule coupleth,
coloureth and whiteneth.
Of these three vnited toge∣ther,
is our Stone made,
that is, of the Sunne, and
Moone, and Mercury.
Then with our gilded (or
golden) water, is extracted
a nature surpassing all na∣ture,
Page 189

and therefore except
the bodies bee by this our
water dissolued, imbibed,
ground, softened, and spa∣ringly
and diligently go∣uerned,
vntill they leaue
their grossenesse and thick∣nesse;
and be turned into a
thinne and impalpable spi∣rit,
our labour will alwayes
be in vaine, for vnlesse the
bodies bee changed into no
bodies, that is, into the Phi∣losophers
Mercury, the rule
of Art is not yet found, and
the reason is, because it is
impossible to draw out of
the bodies that most thinne
or subtile soule, which hath
in it all tincture, if the bodies
be not first dissolued in our
water. Dissolue therefore
the bodies in the golden wa∣ter,
and boyle them, vntill
Page 190

by the water all the tincture
come out into a white co∣lour,
or a white oyle, and
when thou shalt see this
whitenesse vpon the water,
then know that the bodies
are dissolued or melted, and
continue the decoction, vn∣till
they bring foorth the
cloude which they haue
conceiued, darke, blacke,
and white. Put therefore
the perfect bodies in our
water, in a vessell Hermeti∣cally
sealed, vpon a soft
fire, and boyle them conti∣nually,
vntill they bee per∣fectly
resolued into a most
precious oyle: Boyle them
(saith Adfar) with a gentle
fire, as it were for the hatch∣ing
of chickens, vntill the
bodies bee dissolued, and
their tincture most neerely
Page 191

conioyned, (marke well)
be wholly drawne out: for
it is not drawne out all at
once, but it commeth forth
by little and little, euery day
and euery houre, vntill after
a long time this dissolution
be complete, & that which
is dissolued do alwaies arise
vppermost vpon the water.
And in this dissolution let
the fire bee soft and conti∣nuall,
vntill the bodies bee
loosed into a viscous impal∣pable
water, and that the
whole tincture come forth,
first in the colour of blacke∣nesse,
which is a signe of
true solution: Then con∣tinue
the decoction, vntill it
become a white permanent
water, for gouerning it in
its bath, it will afterward be
cleare, and in the end be∣come
Page 192

like common argent
viue, climing thorow the
ayre vpon the first water.
And therefore when thou
seest the bodies dissolued in∣to
a viscous water, then
know that they are turned
into a vapour, and that thou
hast the soules separated
from the dead bodies, and
by sublimation brought in∣to
the order and estate of
spirits, whereupon both of
them with a part of our wa∣ter,
are made spirits, flying
and clyming into the ayre,
and that there the body
compounded of the male
and female, of the Sunne
and Moone, and of that most
subtile nature, clensed by
sublimation, taketh life, is
inspired by his moysture,
that is, by his water, as a
Page 193

man by the Ayre, and there∣fore
from hencefoorth it
will multiply, and increase
in his kinde, like all other
things. And therefore in
such an eleuation and Phi∣losophical
sublimation, they
are all ioyned one with an∣other,
and the new body,
inspired by the Ayre, liueth
vegetably, which is a won∣der.
Wherefore vnlesse the
Bodies bee subtilized and
made thinne by fire and
water, vntill they doe arise
like spirits, and bee made
like water and fume, or like
Mercury, there is nothing
done in this Arte. But
when they ascend, they are
borne in the ayre, and chan∣ged
in the ayre, and are
made life with life, in such
sort that they can neuer bee
Page 194

separated, as water mixt
with water. And therefore
it is wisely said that the
Stone is borne in the Ayre,
because it is altogether spi∣rituall;
for the vulture
flying without wings, crieth
vpon the top of the moun∣taine,
saying, I am the white
of the blacke, and the red of
the white, and the Citrine
sonne of the red, I tell truth,
and lie not.

It sufficeth thee therefore
to put the Bodies in the ves∣sell,
and in the water once
for all, and to shut the ves∣sell
diligently, vntill a true
separation be made, which
by the enuious is called
coniunction, sublimation,
assation, extraction, putre∣faction,
ligation, despousa∣tion,
subtiliation, genera∣tion,
Page 195

&c. and that the
whole Maistery bee done.
Doe therefore as in the ge∣neration
of a man, and euery
vegetable, put the seed once
into the wombe, and shut it
well. By this meanes thou
seest that thou needest not
many things, and that our
worke requires no great
charges, because there is but
one Stone, one Medicine,
one Vessell, one Regiment,
and one successiue disposi∣tion
to the white, and to
the red. And although we
say in many places take
this, and take that, yet wee
vnderstand that it behoo∣ueth
to take but one thing,
and put it once in the vessell,
and to shut the vessell vntill
the worke be perfected; for
these things are so set down
Page 196

by the enuious Philoso∣phers,
to deceiue the vnwa∣ry,
as is aforesaid. For is
not this Art Cabalisticall,
and full of secrets? And
doest thou, foole, beleeue
that wee doe openly teach
the secrets of secrets? and
doest thou take our words
according to the literall
sound? Know assuredly,
(I am no whit enuious as
others are) he that takes the
words of the other Philo∣sophers,
according to the
ordinary signification and
sound of them, hee doeth
already, hauing lost Ariad∣nes
thread, wander in the
middest of the Laberinth,
and hath as good as ap∣pointed
his money to per∣dition.
But I, Artephius,
after I had learned all the
Page 197
Art and perfect Science in
the Bookes of the true-spea∣king
Hermes, was some∣times
enuious, as all the
rest, but when I had by the
space of a thousand yeeres,
or thereabouts (which are
now passed ouer mee since
my natiuity, by the onely
grace of God Almighty,
and the vse of this wonder∣full
fifth essence) when, I
say, for so long time I had
seene no man that could
worke the Maistery of
Hermes, by reason of the
obscurity of the Philoso∣phers
words, mooued with
pitie, and with the good∣nesse
becomming an honest
man, I haue determined in
these last times of my life
to write all things truely
and sincerely that thou
Page 198

maist want or desire no∣thing
to the perfecting of
the Philosophers Stone,
(excepting a certaine thing,
which it is not lawfull for
any person to say or to
write, because it is alwayes
reuealed by God, or by a
Maister, and yet in this
Booke, he that is not stiffe∣necked,
shall with a little
experience, easily learne it.)
I haue therefore in this
Booke written the naked
trueth, although cloathed
with a few colours, that
euery good and wise man,
may from this Philosophi∣call
Tree happily gather
the admirable Apples of
the Hesperides. Where∣fore
praised bee the most
high God, which hath put
this benignitie into our
Page 199

soule, and with a wonder∣full
long olde age, hath
giuen vs a true dilection
of heart, wherewithall it
seemeth vnto mee, that I
doe truely loue, cherish, and
imbrace all men. But let
vs returne vnto the Arte.
Surely our worke is quick∣ly
dispatched, for that
which the heate of the
Sunne doeth in a hundred
yeeres in the Mines of the
Earth for the generation of
a Mettall, (as I haue often
seene) our secret fire, that
is, our fierie sulphureous
water, which is called Bal∣neum
Mariae, worketh in
short time.

And this work is no great
labour to him that knoweth
and vnderstandeth it, nei∣ther
is the matter so deare,
Page 200

(considering a small quan∣tity
sufficeth) that it ought
to cause any man to plucke
backe his hand, because it is
so short and easie, that it
may well bee called the
worke of Women, and the
play of Children▪ Work then
cheerefully (my sonne) pray
to God, read Bookes conti∣nually,
for one Booke ope∣neth
another, thinke of it
profoundly; fly all things
that vanish in the fire, for
thou hast not thine intent
in these combustible and
consuming things, but one∣ly
in the decoction of thy
water, drawne from thy
lights. For by this water is
colour and weight giuen
infinitely, and this water is
a white fume, which as a
soule floweth in the perfect
Page 201
bodies, taking wholly from
them their blacknesse and
vncleannesse, and console∣dating
the two Bodies into
one, and multiplying their
water: And there is no o∣ther
thing that can take a∣way
their true colour from
the perfect Bodies, that is,
from the Sunne and Moone;
but Azoth, that is, this our
water, which coloureth and
maketh white the red Body,
according to the regiments
thereof.

But let vs speake of fires.
Our fire therefore is mine∣rall,
equall, continuall, it va∣pours
not, vnlesse it be too
much stirred vp, it partakes
of sulphur, it is taken other∣where
then from the mat∣ter,
it pulleth downe all
things, it dissolueth, congea∣leth,
Page 202

and calcineth, it is arti∣ficiall
to finde, it is a short
way (or an expence) with∣out
cost, at the least, with∣out
any great cost, it is
moist, vaporous, digestiue,
altering, piercing, subtle,
ayery, not violent, not bur∣ning,
compassing or enuiro∣ning,
containing but one,
and it is the Fountaine of
liuing water, which goeth
about, and containeth the
place where the King and
Queene bathe themselues.
In all the worke this moist
fire is sufficient for thee, at
the beginning, middest, and
end; for in it consisteth the
whole Art: This is the fire
naturall, against nature, vn∣naturall,
and without bur∣ning;
and finally, this fire is
hot, dry, moist, and cold,
Page 203

thinke vpon this, and work
aright, taking nothing that
is of a strange nature: And
if thou doest not well vn∣derstand
these fires, hearken
further to what I shall giue
thee, neuer as yet written in
any Booke, from out of the
abstruse and hidden cauila∣tion
of the Ancients, con∣cerning
fires.

We haue properly three
fires, without the which
the Art cannot bee done,
and hee that workes with∣out
them, takes a great deale
of care in vaine. The first is
the fire of the Lampe, which
is continuall, moist, vapo∣rous,
ayery, and artificiall to
finde; for the Lampe ought
to bee proportioned to the
closure (or enclosure) and
herein wee must vse great
Page 204

iudgement, which com∣meth
not to the knowledge
of a workeman of a stiffe
necke: for if the fire of the
Lampe be not geometrically
and duly proportioned and
fitted to the Furnace, either
for lacke of heate thou wilt
not see the expected signes
in their times, and so thou
wilt loose thy hope by too
long expectation, or else
with too much heate thou
wilt burne the flowers of
the Gold, and so sadly be∣waile
thy lost labour. The
second fire is the fire of ashes,
in which the vessell herme∣tically
sealed is shut vp; or
rather it is that most gentle
heate, which proceeding
from the temperate vapour
of the lampe, goeth equally
round about the vessell:
Page 205

This fire is not violent, if it
be not too much stirred vp,
it is digesting, a tering, it is
taken from another Body
then the matter, it is but
one, or alone, it is moist and
innaturall, &c. The third is
the naturall fire of our wa∣ter,
which for this cause is
also called fire against na∣ture,
because it is water; and
yet neuerthelesse it makes a
meere spirit of Gold, which
common fire cannot doe;
this fire is minerall, equall,
and partakes of Sulphur, it
breakes, congeales, dis∣solues,
and calcines all, this
is piercing, subtile, not bur∣ning,
and it is the Fountaine
of liuing water, wherein
the King and Queen bathe
themselues, whereof wee
haue neede in the whole
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Page 206

worke, in the beginning,
middle, and ending, but the
other two abouesaid, wee
doe not alwayes need, but
onely sometimes: Ioyne
therefore in the reading the
Bookes of Phylosophers
these three sorts of fire, and
without doubt thou shalt
vnderstand all their cauil∣lations
concerning their
fires.

As touching the Colours,
hee that doth not make
blacke, cannot make white,
because blacknesse is the be∣ginning
of whitenesse, and a
signe of putrifaction and al∣teration,
and that the Body
is now pierced and morti∣fied.
Therefore in the pu∣trifaction
in this water,
there first appeares blacke∣nesse,
like vnto the broth
Page 207

wherein bloud, or some
bloudy thing is boyled.
Secondly, the blacke Earth
by continuall decoction is
whitened, because the soule
of the two bodies swimmes
aloft vpon the water like
white creame; and in this
onely whitenesse, all the spi∣rits
are so vnited, that they
can neuer fly from one ano∣ther.
And therefore the Le∣ton
must be whitened, and
teare the Bookes, least our
hearts be broken, for this
intire whitenesse is the true
stone to the white, and the
body ennobled by the ne∣cessity
of his end, and the
tincture of whitenesse, of a
most exuberant reflexion,
and shining brightnesse,
which being mixed with a
Body, neuer ••parteth from
Page 208

it. Here then note, that the
spirits are not fixed, but in
the white colour, which by
consequent is more noble
then the other colours, and
ought more earnestly to be
desired, considering it is, as
it were, the complement &
perfection of the whole
worke. For our Earth is
first putrified in blacknesse,
then it is clensed in the ele∣uation
or lifting vp, after∣wards
being dryed, the
blacknesse departeth, and
then it is whitened, and the
darke moist dominion of
the woman perisheth, and
then the white fume pier∣ceth
into the new Body, and
the spirits are shut vp, or
bound together, in drinesse,
and that which is corrup∣ting,
deformed and blacke
Page 209

with moisture vanisheth,
and then the new Body ri∣seth
againe, cleere, white,
and immortall, getting the
victory oueral his enemies.
And as heate working vp∣on
that which is moist, cau∣seth
or engendreth blacke∣nesse,
which is the first co∣lour,
so by decoction euer
more and more, heate wor∣king
vpon that which is
dry, begetteth whitenesse,
which is the second colour;
and afterward working vp∣on
that which is purely &
perfectly dry, it causeth ci∣trinity
and rednesse; and so
much concerning the Co∣lours.

We must therefore vn∣derstand,
that the thing
which hath the head red
and white, the feete white,
Page 210

and afterwards red, and yet
before that, the eyes blacke,
this onely thing is our mai∣stery:
dissolue then the Sun
and the Moone in our dissol∣uing
water, which is fami∣liar,
friendly, and of the
next nature vnto them,
which is likewise to them
sweete and pleasant, and as
it were a wombe, a mother,
an Originall, the beginning
and the end of life, and that
is the reason why they are
amended in this water, be∣cause
Nature reioyceth in
Nature, and Nature con∣taines
Nature, and in true
Mariage they are ioyned
together, and made one na∣ture,
one new body, raised
vp, and immortall. And
thus we must ioyne consan∣guinity
with Consanguini∣ty,
Page 211

and then these natures
will meete, and follow one
another, putrifie them∣selues,
engender themselues,
and make one another re∣ioyce,
because Nature is
gouerned by Nature, which
is neerest and most friendly
to it. Our water then (saith
Danthin) is the most plea∣sant,
faire, and cleere Foun∣taine,
prepared onely for
the King & Queene, whom
it knoweth very well, and
they know it; for it drawes
them to it selfe, and they
abide therein to wash
themselues two or three
dayes, that is, two or three
moneths; and it maketh
them young againe, & faire.
And because the Sunne and
Moone haue their Originall
from this water their Mo∣ther,
Page 212

therefore it behoueth
that they enter againe into
their Mothers wombe, that
they may be borne againe,
and be made more strong,
more noble, and more va∣liant.
And therefore if these
doe not die, and be not tur∣ned
into water, they remain
alone, and without fruite;
but if they die, and be resol∣ued
in our water, they bring
fruit an hundreth fold; and
from that very place, where
it seemed they had lost
what they were, from
thence shall they appeare
that which they were not
before. Let therefore the
spirit of our liuing water,
be with great wit and sub∣tilty
fixed with the Sunne
and the Moone▪ because
they being turned into the
Page 213

nature of water, doe dye,
& seeme like vnto the dead;
yet afterward being inspi∣red
from thence, they liue,
encrease, and multiply like
all other vegetable things.
It is enough then to dispose
the matter sufficiently from
without, for from within, it
selfe doth work sufficiently
to its owne perfection. For
it hath in it selfe a certaine
and inhaerent motion, accor∣ding
to the true way, better
then any order that can be
imagined by man. And
therefore doe thou onely
prepare, and Nature will
perfect; for if shee bee not
hindered by the contrary,
shee wil not passe her owne
certaine motion, as well to
conceiue, as to bring forth.
Wherefore after the prepa∣ration
Page 214

of the matter, take
heede onely least by too
much fire thou make the
bath too hot: Secondly, take
heed least the spirit▪ doe ex∣hale,
because it would hurt
him that worketh, that is to
say, it would destroy the
worke, and cause many in∣firmities,
that is, much sad∣nesse
and anger. From this
that hath beene spoken, is
drawne this Axiome, to
wit, that by the course of na∣ture,
he doth not know the
making of Mettals, that
knoweth not the destruction
of them. It behoueth then,
to ioyne together them that
are of kindred, for Natures
doe finde their like natures,
and being▪ putrified, are
mixed together, and morti∣fie
themselues. It is necessary
Page 215

therefore to know this cor∣ruption
and generation, and
how the Natures doe im∣brace
one another, and are
pacified in a slow fire, how
Nature reioyceth in Nature,
and nature retaines nature,
and turnes it into a white
nature. After this, if thou
wilt make it red, thou must
boyle this white, in a dry
continuall fire, vntill it bee
as red as blood, which will
bee nothing else but fire
and a true tincture: And
so by a continuall dry fire,
the whitenesse is changed,
amended, perfected, made
Citrine, and acquireth red∣nesse,
a true fixed colour.
And consequently by how
much more this red is boy∣led,
so much the more is it
coloured, and made a tin∣cture
Page 216

of perfect rednesse;
Wherefore thou must with
a dry fire, and a dry calci∣nation,
without any moy∣sture,
boyle this compound,
vntill it bee clothed with a
most red colour, and then it
will be a perfect Elixir.

If afterwards thou wilt
multiply it, thou must a∣gaine
resolue that red in a
new dissoluing water, and
after by decoction whiten
and rubifie it by the degrees
of fire, reiterating the first
regiment. Dissolue, con∣geale,
reiterate, shutting,
opening, and multiplying
in quantitie and qualitie at
thine owne pleasure: for
by a new corruption and
generation, there is againe
brought in a new motion,
and so we could neuer find
Page 217

an end, if we would alwayes
worke by reiteration of so∣lution
and coagulation, by
the meanes of our dissol∣uing
water, that is to say,
dissoluing and congealing,
as is said in the first regi∣ment.
And so the vertue
thereof is increased and
multiplied in quantitie and
qualitie, so that if in the first
worke, one part of thy
Stone, will teyne an hun∣dred,
in the second it will
teyne a thousand, in the
third ten thousand, and so
by pursuing thy worke, thy
proiection will come into
infinitie, teyning truly, and
perfectly, and fixedly, euery
quantitie, how great soeuer
it bee, and so by a thing of
an easie price, is added co∣lour,
and vertue, & weight.
Page 218

Therefore our fire and A∣zoth
are sufficient for thee;
boyle, boyle, reiterate, dis∣solue,
congeale, and so con∣tinue
according to thy will,
multiplying it as much as
thou wilt, and vntill thy
Medicine bee made fusible
as waxe, and that it haue
the quantitie and vertue
which thou desirest. There∣fore
all the accomplishment
of the worke, or of our
second Stone, (note it well)
consisteth in this, that thou
take the perfect Body, which
thou must put in our water,
in a house of glasse, wel shut
and stopped with Cement,
lest the ayre get in, or the
moysture inclosed get out;
and there hold it in the di∣gestion
of a gentle heate, as
if it were of a bathe, or the
Page 219

most temperate heate of
dung, vpon the which with
the fire thou shalt continue
the perfection of decoction,
vntill it bee putrified and
resolued into blacke, and
afterwards be lifted vp, and
sublimed by the water, that
it may thereby bee cleansed
from all blacknesse and dark∣nesse,
and that it may bee
whitened and made subtile,
vntill it come to the vtmost
purity of sublimation, and
at the last be made volatile,
and white, within and with∣out:
for the vulture flying
in the Ayre without wings,
cryeth that it might get vp∣on
the Mountaine, that is,
vpon the water, vpon the
which the white Spirit is
carried. Then continue a
conuenient fire, and that
Page 220
Spirit, that is, the subtile
substance of the Body and
of Mercury will ascend vp∣on
the water, which quin∣tessence
is whiter than the
snow; continue still, and in
the end strengthen thy fire,
vntill all which is spirituall
mount on high: for know
well, that all that is cleare,
pure, and spirituall, ascends
on high in the ayre, in the
forme of a white fume,
which the Philosophers call,
the Virgins milke.

It behooueth therefore,
that (as Sibill said) the
Sonne of the Virgin bee ex∣alted
from the Earth, and
that the white quintessence
after his resurrection bee
lifted vp towards the hea∣uens,
and that the grosse and
thicke remaine in the bot∣tome
Page 221

of the vessell and of
the water; for afterwards
when the vessell is colde,
thou shalt finde in the bot∣tome
thereof, the foeces,
blacke, burnt, and combust,
separate from the spirit and
white quintessence, which
dregs thou must cast away.
In these times the Argent
viue raineth from our ayre
vpon our new earth, which
is called Argent viue, sub∣limed
from the ayre, where∣of
is made a water viscous,
cleane and white, which is
the true tincture separated
from all blacke foeces, and
so our brasse or Leton, is
with our water gouerned,
purified, and adorned with
a white colour, which white
colour is not gotten, but by
decoction and coagulation
Page 222

of the water. Boyle it then
continually, wash away the
blacknesse from the Leton,
not with thy hand, but with
the Stone, or the fire, or our
second Mercuriall water,
which is the true tincture.
For this separation of the
pure from the impure, is not
done with hands, but na∣ture
her selfe alone, by
working it circularly to
perfection, bringeth it to
passe. It appeareth then
that this composition is not
a manuall worke, but onely
a change of the natures, be∣cause
nature dissolues and
conioynes it selfe, it sub∣limes
and lifts vp it selfe,
and hauing separated the
foeces, it groweth white: and
in such a sublimation the
parts are alwayes ioyned
Page 223

together, more subtile, more
pure and essentiall, because
that when the fiery nature
lifteth vp the subtile parts,
it lifteth vp alwayes the
more pure, and by conse∣quent
leaueth the grosser in
the bottome. And there∣fore
it behooueth by an in∣different
fire, to sublime in
a continuall vapour, that
the Stone may bee inspired
in the ayre, and liue. For
the nature of all things
takes life of the inspiration
of ayre, and so also all our
Maistery consists in vapour,
and in the sublimation of
water. And therefore our
brasse or Leton must by de∣grees
of fire bee lifted vp,
and freely without vio∣lence,
of himselfe, ascend
on high, wherefore vnlesse
Page 224

the Body bee by fire and
water dissolued, attenuated,
and subtilized, vntill it as∣cend
as a spirit, or climbe
like Argent viue, or as the
white soule separated from
the Body, and carried in the
sublimation of the Spirits,
there is nothing at all done
in this Arte: But when it
ascends on high, it is borne
in the ayre, and changed in
the ayre, and is made life
with life, being altogether
spirituall and incorruptible:
And so in such a regiment
the Body is made a spirit of
a subtile nature, and the spi∣rit
is incorporated with the
Body, and is made one with
it, and in such a sublimati∣on,
coniunction, and eleua∣tion,
all things are made
white.

Page 225

And therefore this Phyloso∣phicall
and natural sublima∣tion
is necessary, for that it
maketh peace betweene the
body and the spirit, which
is vnpossible otherwise to
be done, otherwise then by
this separation of the parts:
wherefore it behoueth to
sublime them both, to the
end, that in the troubles of
this stormy Sea, the pure
may ascend, and the impure
and earthly may descend:
And for this cause it must
be boyled continually, that
it may be brought to a sub∣tile
nature, and that the body
may assume and draw to it
selfe the white Mercuriall
soule, which it naturally re∣taines,
and suffereth it not
to be separated from it, be∣cause
it is like vnto it, in the
Page 226

neerenesse of the first, pure,
and simple nature. From
hence it appeares, that this
separation must be made by
decoction, vntill there re∣maine
no more of the fat of
the soule, which is not lifted
vp, and exalted into the vp∣per
part, for so they shall be
both reduced vnto a simple
equality, and vnto a simple
whitenesse. The vulture
therefore flying in the ayre,
and the Toade going vpon
the Earth, is our Maistery▪
And therefore when thou
shalt gently, and with great
discretion, separate the
Earth from the water, that
is, from the fire, and the sub∣tile
from the thicke, then
that which is pure, will as∣cend
from Earrh into Hea∣uen,
and that which is im∣pure,
Page 227

will goe downe to the
Earth, and the more subtile
part will in the vpper place
take the nature of a spirit,
and in the lower place the
nature of an Earthly Body;
wherefore let the while na∣ture
with the more subtile
part of the Body, be by this
operation lifted vp, leauing
the foeces, which is done in
a short time: for the soule is
aided by her associate and
fellow, and perfected by it.
My Mother (saith the Body)
hath begotten mee, and by
me shee her selfe is begotten;
and after shee hath taken her
slight, (or I haue taken from
her her flying) shee after the
best manner shee can, be∣comes
a pious Mother, nou∣rishing
and cherishing the
sonne whom shee hath begot∣ten,
Page 228

vntill he come to perfect
state. Heare this secret:
Keepe the Body in this our
Mercuriall water, vntill it
ascend on high with the
white soule, and the Earthly
descend to the bottome,
which is called, the Earth
that remaines: then shalt
thou see the water coagu∣late
it selfe with its body, and
shalt bee assured that the
Science is true, because the
Body coagulateth his moi∣sture
into drinesse, as the
rennet of a Lambe coagula∣teth
milke into Cheese. In
the same fashion the spirit
will pierce the body, and
there will be a perfect mix∣ture
made by the least parts,
and the Body will draw vn∣to
himself his moisture, that
is to say, his white soule,
Page 229

euen as the Load-stone
draweth the Iron, because
of the likenesse and neere∣nesse
of his nature, and his
greedinesse, and then the
one will hold the other, and
this is our sublimation and
coagulation, which retai∣neth
euery thing volatile,
and maketh that it can flye
no more. Therefore this
compositiō is not a manuall
operation, but (as I said) a
changing of natures, and a
wonderfull connexion of
their cold with hot, and
their moist with dry: for the
hot is mixed with cold, and
the dry with moist, and so
by this meanes is made the
mixture and coniunction of
the body with the spirit,
which is called the chan∣ging
of contrary natures;
Page 230

because that in such a solu∣tion
and sublimation, the
spirit is turned into a body,
and the body into a spirit;
so that the natures being
mingled together, and redu∣ced
into one, doe change
one another, in as much as
the body makes the spirit a
body, and the spirit turnes
the body into a teyned and
white spirit.

And therefore (this is
the last time that I will
tell thee) boyle it in our
white water, that is, in Mer∣cury,
vntill it bee dissolued
into blacknesse, and then by
continuall decoction, it will
bee depriued of his blacke∣nesse,
and the body so dissol∣ued,
wil at length arise with
the white soule, and then
one will bee mingled with
Page 231

the other, and they will
embrace one another, so
that they shall no more be
diuided asunder, and then
the spirit is vnited to the
body with a reall accord,
and are made one perma∣nent
thing; and this is the
solution of the body, and
the Coagulation of the
spirit, which haue one
and the selfe same opera∣tion.

Hee therefore that
knoweth how to mary,
to make with childe, to
mortifie, to putrifie, to
engender, to quicken the
species, to bring in the
white light, and to clense
the vulture from his black∣nesse
and darknesse, vntill he
be purged by fire, coloured
and purified from all his
Page 232

spots, shall bee the owner
of so great dignity, that
Kings shall reuerence
him, and doe him ho∣nour.

Wherefore let our body
abide in the water, vntill
such time as it be loosed in∣to
a new powder in the bot∣tome
of the vessell and of
the water, which is called
the blacke ashes, and this is
the corruption of the body,
which is by wise men called
Saturne, Leton, or Brasse, the
Phylosophers Lead, and the
discontinued powder. And
in this putrifaction and re∣solution
of the Body, there
appeare three signes, to wit,
the blacke colour, the discon∣tinuity
of the parts, and a
stinking smell, which is like∣ned
to the smel of sepulchres
Page 233

or graues. This ashes then
is that of which the Phylo∣sophers
haue said so much,
which remained in the
lower part of the vessell,
which wee ought not to de∣spise,
for in it is the Diademe
of our King, and the Argent
viue, blacke and vncleane,
from whence the blacknesse
must be purged by conti∣nuall
decoction in our wa∣ter,
vntill it be lifted vp in a
white colour, which is called
the Goose, and the Poulet of
Hermogenes. He therefore
that maketh the red Earth
blacke, and then white, hath
the Maistery, as also hee
that killeth the liuing, and
quickeneth the dead: there∣fore
make the blacke white,
and the white red, that thou
mayest make the worke
Page 234

perfect; and when thou seest
the true whitenesse appeare,
which shineth like a naked
Sword, know that in that
whitenesse, is rednesse hid∣den;
and then thou must not
take out of the vessell that
whitenesse, but onely boyle
it, to the end, that with dri∣nesse
and heate, there may
come vpon it a Citrine co∣lour,
and in the end, a most
shining and sparkling red;
which when thou seest,
with great feare and trem∣bling,
praise the most good,
and most great God, which
giueth wisedome, and by
consequence, riches vnto
whom he pleaseth; and ac∣cording
to the iniquity of
the Persons, taketh them a∣way
againe, and depriueth
them of them for euer,
Page 235

plunging them in the serui∣tude
and slauery of their
enemies. To him be
praise and glory
for euer and
euer. Amen.

FINIS.

---

Page 237
THE EPISTLE Of IOHN PONTANVS, (mentioned in the Pre∣face to the Reader of ARTEPHIVS his secret Booke) wherein he beareth witnesse of the BOOKE: Translated out of the Latine Copy: Extant in the third Volume of Theatrum Chymicum, at the 775. Page.
I Iohn Ponta∣nus,
haue tra∣ueiled
thorow
many Coun∣tries,
that I
might know some certainty
Page 238

of the Philosophers Stone;
and going thorow as it were
all the world, I found many
false deceiuers, but no true
Philosophers, yet continual∣ly
studying, and making
many doubts, at the length
I found the trueth: But
when I knew the matter in
generall, I yet erred two
hundred times, before I
could attaine to the true
matter, with the operation
and practise thereof. First I
begunne to worke with the
matter, by putrefaction nine
moneths together, and I
found nothing: Then I put
it into Balneum Mariae for
a certaine time, and therein
I likewise erred: After∣wards
I put it in the fire of
calcination for three mo∣neths
space, and I wrought
Page 239

amisse. I tryed all kinds of
distillations and sublimati∣ons,
(as the Philosophers,
Giber, Archelaus, and all
the rest, either say or seeme
to say) and I found nothing.
In summe, I assayed to per∣fect
the Subiect of the whole
Art of Alchimy, by all
meanes possible to be deui∣sed,
as by Dung, Bathes,
Ashes, and other fires of di∣uers
kinds, which yet are all
found in the Philosophers
Bookes, but I found no
good in them. Wherefore I
studied three whole yeeres
in the Bookes of the Philo∣sophers,
especially in Her∣mes
alone, whose briefer
words doe comprehend the
whole Stone, though hee
speake obscurely of the su∣perior,
and inferiour, (or
Page 240

that which is aboue, and
that which is below) of hea∣uen
& earth. Therefore our
Instrument which bringeth
the matter into being in the
beginning, second, and third
worke, is not the fire of a
Bath, nor of Dung, nor of
Ashes, nor of the other fires
which the Philosophers haue
put in their Bookes: What
fire is it then which perfects
the whole worke from the
beginning to the ending?
Surely the Philosophers
haue concealed it: But I
being mooued with pitie,
will declare it vnto you, to∣gether
with the complement
of the whole worke. The
Philosophers Stone there∣fore
is one, but it hath many
names, and before thou
know it, it will be very dif∣ficult;


for it is watery,
aiery, fiery, earthy, flegma∣ticke,
cholericke and me∣lancholy;
for it is sulphu∣rous,
and it is likewise Ar∣gent
viue, and it hath many
superfluities, which by the
liuing God are turned into
the true essence, our fire
being the meanes: And hee
that separates any thing
from the subiect, thinking
it to bee necessary, hee true∣ly
knoweth nothing at all
in Philosophy; for that
which is superfluous, vn∣cleane,
filthy, foeculent, and
in summe, the whole sub∣stance
of the Subiect, is per∣fected
into a fixt spirituall
body, by the meanes of our
fire. And this the wise
men neuer reuealed, and
therefore few doe come vnto


the Arte, thinking that
there is some such superflu∣ous
and vncleane thing.
Now wee must seeke out the
properties of our fire, and
whether it agree to our mat∣ter,
after the manner that
I haue sayd, to wit, that it
may bee transmuted, when
as that fire doth not burne
the matter, it separateth
nothing from the matter,
it diuideth not the pure
parts from the impure, as
all the Philosophers say,
but it turneth the whole
Subiect into puritie. It
doeth not sublime, as Ge∣ber
maketh his sublimati∣ons;
Arnold likewise and
others speaking of sublima∣tions
and distillations, to
bee done in a short time. It
is minerall, equall, conti∣nuall,


it vapours not, except
it bee too much stirred vp:
it partaketh of Sulphur,
it is taken from else-where
then from the matter; it
pulleth downe all things, it
dissolueth and congealeth,
likewise it both congeales
and calcines, and it is arti∣ficiall
to finde out, and is a
compendious and neere way,
without any cost, at least
with small cost: and that
fire is it, with a meane fi∣ring,
for with a soft fire all
the whole worke is perfect∣ed,
and it performeth with∣all,
all the due sublimati∣ons.
They that should reade
Geber, and all the other
Philosophers, though they
should liue an hundred
thousand yeeres, could not
comprehend it, because


that fire is found by deepe
and profound Meditation
onely, and then it may be
gathered out of Bookes, and
not before. And therefore
the errour of this Arte is,
not to finde the fire, which
turnes the whole matter
into the true Stone of the
Philosophers. And there∣fore
studie vpon it, for if I
had found that first, I had
neuer erred two hundred
times, in my practise vpon
the matter: wherefore I
doe not meruaile, if so ma∣ny
and great men haue not
attained vnto the worke.
They doe erre, they haue er∣red,
they will erre, because
the Philosophers haue not
put the proper Agent, saue
onely one, which is named
Artephius, but hee speakes


for himselfe, or by him∣selfe;
And vnlesse I had
read Artephius, and felt
him speake, I had neuer
come to the complement of
the work. But the practique
is this. Let it bee taken;
and ground with a physicall
contrition, as diligently as
may bee, and let it bee set
vpon the fire, and let the
proportion of the fire bee
knowne, to wit, that it onely
stirre vp the matter, and in
a short time, that fire, with∣out
any other laying on of
hands, will accomplish the
whole worke, because ii will
putrifie, corrupt, ingender,
and perfect, and make to
appeare the three principall
colours, blacke, white, and
red. And by the meanes
of our fire the Medicine


will bee multiplied, if it bee
ioyned with the crude mat∣ter,
not onely in quantitie,
but also in vertue. With
all thy strength therefore,
search out this fire, and
thou shalt attaine thy wish,
because it doeth the whole
worke, and is the Key of the
Philosophers, which they
neuer reuealed: But if thou
muse well and profoundly
vpon those things that haue
beene spoken concerning the
properties of the fire, thou
mayest know it; otherwise
not. I beeing mooued with
pitie, haue written these
things, but that I may sa∣tisfie
thee fully, this fire is
not transmuted with the
matter, because (as I said
aboue) it is not of the mat∣ter.
These things therefore I


thought fit to say, and to
warne the prudent, that
they spend not their moneys
vnprofitably, but know
what they ought to looke af∣ter.
For by this meanes they
may come to the truth
of the Arte, and
not otherwise.

Farewell.
FINIS.