The Peacock and the Hybrid Figures (from Oedipus Aegyptiacus)

This black-and-white print features an architectural pediment framing two zoomorphic figures. On the left, a figure with a canine or jackal head holds a sistrum; on the right, a donkey-headed figure stands with its tongue extended, holding a stalk of grain. A star inscribed with the number '6' sits within the arch, while a peacock with tail feathers fanned rests on a sphere at the apex of the structure. The surrounding page contains obscured Latin text and marginal numeration.

This image is a plate from Athanasius Kircher’s 'Oedipus Aegyptiacus' (1652-1654), a massive syncretic work attempting to decipher Egyptian hieroglyphs through the lenses of Hermeticism, Kabbalah, and Neoplatonism. It illustrates Kircher's esoteric interpretation of Egyptian religious iconography, conflating classical, Egyptian, and Renaissance alchemical motifs.