The King Showing Himself to All the World

original: "PHILOSOPHIA HERMETICA"

Faint pencil mark on the main page surface below the inserted slip
H - B?
These initials likely refer to a previous owner or the person who compiled the volume.

Symbolic Elements:

• Hermetic Philosophy A tradition of knowledge based on the spiritual and alchemical pursuit of "the Great Work," seeking to understand the hidden laws of nature and the soul.
• Pelican in its piety An ancient symbol of self-sacrifice, depicting a mother pelican wounding her own breast to feed her young with her blood. In alchemy, this represents the "multiplication" stage or the spiritual nourishment required for transformation.
• Rosicrucianism A mystical movement using the rose and the cross to symbolize the union of nature and the divine; the four roses on the plinth here strongly suggest this influence.
• alchemy The ancestral science of chemistry, focused on the purification and transformation of materials, often used as a metaphor for spiritual perfection.
• esotericism Knowledge intended for or likely to be understood by only a small number of people with specialized interest or hidden insight.

The emblem described in the technical notes depicts the pelican standing upon a cubic stone (or plinth) marked with four red roses and a saltire cross. Golden rays shine from above, signifying divine light or enlightenment.