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A circular, hand-colored emblem is pasted in the center of the page. It features a central blue oval framed by a green Ouroboros, which is a serpent biting its own tail to represent eternity and the cycle of nature. Inside the oval, a white pelican is shown in her piety, an image where the bird feeds three chicks with blood from her own breast. This symbol represents self-sacrifice and the alchemical stage of nourishment. Above the pelican is a radiant golden sun. At the bottom of the oval, a small heraldic shield displays a chevron and three red roses, likely referencing Rosicrucian traditions. The entire composition is surrounded by the inscription Hermetic Philosophy in capital letters.
original: "PHILOSOPHIA HERMETICA"
Hermetic Philosophy: A tradition of knowledge based on the writings attributed to the legendary figure Hermes Trismegistus. It focuses on the hidden relationships between the human, the divine, and the natural world.
Pelican in its piety: A heraldic and alchemical symbol of a mother pelican wounding her breast to feed her young. In alchemy, it represents the stage of multiplication and the sacrifice required to achieve spiritual perfection.
Ouroboros: An ancient symbol of a serpent eating its own tail. It signifies the unity of all things, the cycle of birth and death, and the eternal nature of the cosmos.
Alchemy: A philosophical and proto-scientific tradition aimed at the transformation of matter and the attainment of spiritual enlightenment or "the philosopher's stone."
Rosicrucian: Relating to a secret philosophical society of the seventeenth century. They used the symbol of a rose and a cross to represent the union of the divine and the physical realms.