Musaeum Hermeticum

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The Musaeum Hermeticum is a collection of alchemical texts that was published in Latin by Lucas Jennis in Frankfurt in 1625 and in an expanded form by Hermann Sande in Frankfurt in 1678 (reprinted in 1749).

In the 1678 edition there are illustrations by Matthaeus Merian . An English translation by Arthur Edward Waite was published in London in 1893 in 2 volumes.

Compared to the large collection of the Theatrum Chemicum (from 1602) it contains shorter texts, mostly more recent. The collection is one of the classics of alchemical literature and was z. Used by Isaac Newton . Copies of both editions were in Isaac Newton's library.

Emblem from the beginning of the 1625 edition

First edition 1625

The full title reads: Musaeum hermeticum, omnes sopho-spagyricae artis discipulos fidelissime erudiens, quo pacto summa illa veraque Medicina, quo res omnes, qualemcumque defectum patientes, instaurari possunt (quae alias Benedictus Lapis Sapientum appellatur) inveniri ac haberi quellatur. Continens Tractatus chymicos novem praestantissimos quorum nomina & seriem versa pagella indicabit. In gratiam filiorum doctrinae, quibus Germanicum Idioma ignotum, in Latinum conversum ac juris publici factum. Francofurti, Sumptibus Lucae Jennisii. Anno MDCXXV

At the end it says that some texts have been translated from German into Latin for the benefit of students who cannot speak German. In 1625 Lucas Jennis also published Dyas Chymica Tripartita, that is six wonderful German philosophical treatises , the content of which partly overlaps with the Musaeum Hermeticum (e.g. Lambspring, Madathanus, Tractatus aureus, Liber Alze), but contains German texts.

In the edition of 1625 and that of 1678, the emblem shown on the right is also at the beginning, which illustrates the hermetic motto That above is like that below ( Tabula Smaragdina ), on the one hand by the three female figures sitting under trees (which correspond to the lower six to add to the nine muses ) with each other to a hexagram (as a seal of Solomon) in the middle complementing upward or downward triangles, on the other hand by sun, moon (simultaneously male / female principle) separated by the five planets (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn) in the lighter upper band and in the darker lower band. The four elements, an underground assembly of six muses with Apollo at the lyre in the middle and a fountain of wisdom are also depicted at the corners . The signature is: Quae sunt in superis, hac inferioribus insunt / quod monstrat coelum, id terra frequentur habet / Ignis, Aqua et fluitans duo sunt contraria: felix, / talia si jungis, sit tibi scire fatis !, DM a CBPLC (The things from the upper areas are like those from the lower ones, what heaven shows is often to be found on earth, fire and water, flowing, are opposed to each other, happy, if you can unite them, let it be enough for you to know this)

The DM stands for Daniel Meisner , poet from Chomutov .

The first edition contained:

  • ( Johann von Laatz ) Tractatus aureus de Lapide Philosophico.
  • Henricus Madathanus (pseudonym of Adrian von Mynsicht ), Aureum Seculum Redivivum.
  • Hydrolithus Sophicus, seu Aquarium sapientum (also appeared separately as the Philosopher's Water Stone).
  • Joannes de Mehung ( attributed to Jean de Meung ), Demonstratio Naturae, quam errantibus chymicis facit.
  • Nicolas Flamel , Summarium Philosophicum.
  • Via Veritatis Unicæ.
  • Gloria Mundi, see Tabula Paradisi.
  • Tractatus de Generatione Metallorum.
  • Liber, cuius nomen Alze (Liber Alze, also De Lapide Philosophico perbreve opusculum).
  • Lambspring , de lapide Philosophorum Figuræ et Emblemata.

Second edition 1678

In the edition of 1678 (Musaeum Hermeticum reformatum et amplificatum) there are also:

  • Michael Maier : Tripus aureus, hoc est tres tractatus chymici selectissimi, in detail:
    • Basilius Valentinus : Basilii Valentini, benedictini ordinis monachi, Germani, practica una cum 12.clavibus et appendice (The Twelve Keys)
    • Thomas Norton : Crede mihi seu ordinale
    • John Cremer: Testamentum cremeri, abbatis westmonasteriensis, angli, ordinis benedictine
  • Sendivogius : Novum lumen chemicum
  • Sendivogius: Aenigma Philosophicum
  • Sendivogius: Novi luminis tractatus alter de sulfur
  • Sendivogius: Dialogus Mercurii, Alchymistae et Naturae
  • Michael Maier: Subtilis allegoria super secreta chymiae
  • Irenaeus Philalethes : Introitus apertus, ad occlusum regis palatium
  • Irenaeus Philalethes: Metallorum metamorphosis
  • Irenaeus Philalethes: Brevis manuductio ad rubinum coelestum
  • Irenaeus Philalethes: Fons chymicae veritatis
  • Johann Friedrich Schweitzer (Helvetius): Vitulus aureus quem mundus adorat et orat
  • Janitor Pansophus, seu figura Aenea quadripartita cunctis Museum hoc introeuntibus, superiorum ac inferiorum scientiam Mosaico-Hermeticum, analytice exhibens

literature

  • John Ferguson: Bibliotheca Chemica, Glasgow 1906, Volume 2, pp. 119f

Online editions

Web links

Commons : Musaeum Hermeticum  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Newton Project, Newton's Alchemical Library
  2. ↑ It is sometimes attributed to Johann Grasshoff as editor or Johannes Rhenanus (medical practitioner)
  3. ↑ Gernot Böhme, Hartmut Böhme fire, water, earth, air. A cultural history of the elements , Beck, 2004, p. 231
  4. ↑ John Cremer, here referred to as the Abbot of Westminster (he is not found in any official list), is a pseudonym. The will is an apocryphal story about Ramon Lull (see pseudo-Lull ), according to which he is said to have visited Lull in Italy in 1330 and brought him to England, where, according to history, he was supposed to make gold for his crusade project, but from King Edward III. was deceived and then fled. At the Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum , Elias Ashmole assigned him the translation of the poem Hermes Bird , which is said to have come from Lull, and prints an alleged portrait of Cremer. See John Ferguson, Bibliotheca Chemica, Volume 1, pp. 184f., Schmieder, Geschichte der Alchemie, 1832, pp. 182f