EPISTLE

The soul, captivated by the brilliance of gemstones, almost forgets the things of this earth. I return, therefore, to these stones and to the illustrations of them that I have undertaken. Painting is certainly an art proper to man and a liberal one A "liberal" art refers to the artes liberales, the traditional subjects of study for a free person, such as grammar, logic, and rhetoric, deemed worthy of a higher mind., which is accustomed to affect those viewing it with both wonder and delight. Yet the images and shapes impressed upon things by Nature herself, like certain truly hieroglyphic signs original: "hieroglyphicae notae." Gesner views the natural markings and patterns in stones as a form of sacred, divine shorthand, which he considers more "authentic" than the man-made hieroglyphs of ancient Egypt.—more authentic, indeed, than those celebrated by the Egyptian priests—also carry with them a certain majesty. This is especially true of those that are not accidental, but clearly natural and, as it were, specific to their kind, appearing to belong inherently to a particular category, as is seen in the types of plants original: "Stirpium." Referring to the vegetable kingdom or the "stems" of life. and fossils original: "Fossilium." In the 16th century, "fossil" was a broad term for anything dug out of the ground, including minerals, metals, and gems, as well as organic remains..

For I am not speaking now of that other kind of terrible and rarely occurring images—those which appear either high in the air, or in monstrous births, or other portents original: "ostentis." These are "monsters" or freakish natural events that Renaissance thinkers often interpreted as omens or signs of divine judgment.. Therefore, for the sake of this wonder, and so that students of these matters may more easily attain knowledge of certain things that cannot be described clearly with words alone, I have seen fit to include as many illustrations as I could obtain at this time.

Accept, therefore, most illustrious Schadcovius original: "Schadcoui." Andreas Schadcovius, the recipient of this dedication., this