An ornamental woodcut headpiece featuring symmetrical foliate scrolls and acanthus leaves. In the center is a small crest or emblem depicting a mountain or furnace-like structure topped with a crown and an eye, possibly representing an alchemical furnace or the "Eye of Providence."

Philosophical Principles

Axioms.

1. That Alchemy is the oldest of all sciences, and had its origin before the creation of the world, will easily be denied by no one. Unless, that is, he were to overthrow all principles, and even the creation of the world itself The author suggests that alchemy—as the study of how matter is structured—is the same "science" God used to manifest the universe out of chaos..

2. The art of alchemy exceeds all sciences in its certainty.

3. The grandfather of all chemistsoriginal: "Chymicorum." In the 17th and 18th centuries, the terms for "chemist" and "alchemist" were often used interchangeably to describe those who studied the transformations of matter. is and remains the great HermesRefers to Hermes Trismegistus, a legendary Hellenistic figure regarded as the founder of the "Hermetic" arts, including alchemy, astrology, and magic..

4. Just as all theological books should and must be directed toward the core of Holy Scripture: so too must all philosophical books be directed toward the Emerald Tabletoriginal: "Tabulam Smaragdinam." This is a foundational alchemical text, legendary for its brevity, which supposedly contains the secret of the "Great Work." of Hermes, as the ground and foundation of Hermetic wisdom. This, however, reads with a very short and correct interpretation as follows: