The Apis Bull (Oedipus Aegyptiacus)

This black-and-white print depicts the Apis bull, characterized by its muscular form and a prominent, rounded sun disk set between its horns. The bull is rendered with heavy black hatching on its shoulders and tail, while its rib cage is defined by thin, parallel lines. The image is stylized in the manner of 17th-century woodcut illustrations, focusing on symbolic representation rather than anatomical realism.

This image is taken from Athanasius Kircher's 'Oedipus Aegyptiacus' (1652–1654), a massive compendium that attempted to decode Egyptian hieroglyphics through the lens of Hermetic, Kabbalistic, and Christian syncretism. It represents the 17th-century European fascination with Egypt as a repository of primordial, divinely revealed wisdom.