. Three Virgin Saints

[Illen A. Cluf]

Each time one rereads a good alchemical text, one discovers something new. Especially when also reading others and making own experiments and then come back to some books you consider very good. It's almost as if reading a whole new book sometimes.

Yes, I found that when reading and re-reading Fulcanelli and other books. The picture at the beginning of his Le Mystere des Cathedrales shows a book with the Latin words from the Mutus Liber: "Lege, lege, relege, labora et invenies" ("Read, read and reread, work and discover").

 

[Florius Frammel]

Finally St. Catherine. It's from Wikipedia with highlights by me.

Note that among others she has the patronage of the philosophers.

St. Barbara's: architects, miners, chemists, firemen

St. Margaret's: pregnant women, peasants (there are some important alchemical texts on the big and the small peasant who performed "celestial agriculture")

From a young age she devoted herself to study. A vision of Saint Mary and Baby Jesus persuaded her to become a Christian. When the persecutions began under Maxentius, she went to the emperor and rebuked him for his cruelty. The emperor summoned 50 of the best pagan philosophers and orators to dispute with her, hoping that they would refute her pro-Christian arguments, but Catherine won the debate. Several of her adversaries, conquered by her eloquence, declared themselves Christians and were at once put to death.

Catherine was then scourged and imprisoned. She was scourged so cruelly and for so long that her whole body was covered with wounds, from which the blood flowed in streams. The spectators wept with pity, but Catherine stood with her eyes raised to heaven, without giving a sign of suffering or fear. Maxentius ordered her to be imprisoned without food, so she would starve to death. During the confinement, angels tended her wounds with salve. Catherine was fed daily by a dove from Heaven and Christ also visited her, encouraging her to fight bravely, and promised her the crown of everlasting glory.

Twelve days later, when the dungeon was opened, a bright light and fragrant perfume filled it, and Catherine came forth even more radiant and beautiful.

The furious emperor condemned Catherine to death on a spiked breaking wheel, but, at her touch, it shattered. Maxentius ordered her to be beheaded. Catherine herself ordered the execution to commence. A milk-like substance rather than blood flowed from her neck.

Angels transported her body to the highest mountain (now called Mt. Saint Catherine) next to Mount Sinai. In 850, her incorrupt body was discovered by monks from the Sinai Monastery. The monks found on the surface of the granite on which her body lay an impression of the form of her body. Her hair still growing, and a constant stream of the most heavenly fragranced healing oil issuing from her body. This oil produced countless miracles.

All in all it is my opinion that all three girls, their legends and their symbols evidentally fit not only quite well to the alchemical symbolism propagated by Fulcanelli, but also to other texts and descriptions (like the Buch der heiligen Dreifaltigkeit that was already mentioned before).

It can be noted that for some researchers the legend is greek and the roles of the christians and pagans were switched. For the alchemical message this is not important at all.

 

[Seraphim]

Thanks for sharing everyone. Was reading more Fulcanelli and the VITRIOL image you shared Florius reminded me of this:

Fulcanelli: Dwellings of the Philosophers

As for the treatise of Azoth, it is a huge angel --- that of the parable of St John in the Book of Revelation --- who treads the earth with one foot and the sea with the other, while raising a burning torch with his right hand and compressing an air-inflated goatskin with the left one, clear images of the quaternary of the primal elements: earth, water, air, fire. The body of this angel, whose two wings replace the head, is covered by the seal of the open book, ornamented by the cabalistic star, and the seven words, emblem of Vitriol: Visita Interiora Terrae, Rectificandoque, Invenies Occultum Lapidem. "I then saw", writes St John, "another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was, as it were, the sun, and his feet were as pillars of fire. He had in his hand a little open book, and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth. And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth; and when he had cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices. And when the seven thunders had resounded their voices, I was about to write; and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me: Keep under seal the words of the seven thunders, and write them not... And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said: Go and take the little open book which is in the hand of the angel who standeth upon the sea and upon the earth. And he said unto me: Take it and eat it; it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey".

 

[Argento Vivo]

Great thread! Thank you all, i will need some time reading it all, but promises good.

In italy there was a famous painter, people didnt really expect him to be alchemist, but by this painting it can appear a very familiar topic to the alchemists, there we have:
-Zefiro (wind god)
-Cloris nymph, who impregnated by him becomes Flora
-Venus
-Cupido
-Three girls, named le Tre Grazie
-Mercury Red.
Oh, and the golden apples indicate that is Hesperides Garden.

 

[Florius Frammel]

Yes, some say Boticelli also influenced the Tarot. There are certain aspects, for example like he used to draw the neck (see Venus, or Spring in your example) and the Temperance (XIIII).

There are a lot of alchemical symbols in that picture you posted. Actually quite obviously with Mercury on the left.

 

[Argento Vivo]

Some say you need a mercury from air, and a stibium purification for that operation that leads to a good medicine.

Some say it is about regulus purification, but I don't think so.

Do you think tarot has a value in alchemy? If yes how? Inf it indicates alchemical works, are they in numerical order sequence?

 

[Florius Frammel]

Fulcanelli says that the Tarot (de Marseille) shows you the whole Great Work in sequence.

The best book about the alchemical relationship of the Tarot I encountered so far is by Oswald Wirth.

He also is talking about your example. The magician holds his wand into the air. In a direct (thought) line the wand leads to his other hand where he holds a coin and thus is a symbol how the mercury from air is catched in an earthly matter (the coin).

 

[vigilance]

When the 3 female saints was first posted, I knew it reminded me of something Greek. Argento Vivo touched on it with the 3 graces and the golden apples. I just came across it again last night looking up Hesperides again.

"Ordinarily, the Hesperides number three, like the other Greek triads (the Three Graces and the Moirai). "

The greek triads of goddesses and the legend of the golden apples far predates the painting. I guess you could say they are "hermetic" ideas.

I have no idea if there are any other parallels to draw between the three saints and other greek triads and the associated attributes.

 

[Argento Vivo]

When the 3 female saints was first posted, I knew it reminded me of something Greek. Argento Vivo touched on it with the 3 graces and the golden apples. I just came across it again last night looking up Hesperides again.

"Ordinarily, the Hesperides number three, like the other Greek triads (the Three Graces and the Moirai). "

The greek triads of goddesses and the legend of the golden apples far predates the painting. I guess you could say they are "hermetic" ideas.

I have no idea if there are any other parallels to draw between the three saints and other greek triads and the associated attributes.

Hi,

Let's see then, the Three Graces were the spring spirits of vegetation, according to Roman cult (same in Greek). They were:

Aglaia - Splendor;

Eufrosine - Joy;

Talia - Prosperity.

In addition to this it is believed that to understand fully the Primavera of Botticelli, we must study all his Mythological Cycle of paintings, which include several alchemical topics, such as the one depicting "Venus and Mars", or the "Birth of Venus" etc...

Let's remember that Botticelli was an actual hermetist, as he was part of Ficino's Hermetic and Neoplatonic Circle of Florence (alongside with many big names, like Giovanni Pico della Mirandola), some great names in the italian scene...


Now coming to the Three Virgins, it appears that Barbara may be linked to iron and saltgemmae, as for this picture, where she is worshipped in salt and iron mining places:

Instead these are the images of the Three, at the moment of being schnip-schnapped:

Katharina:

Barbara (left) and Margaritha (right):

First thing that jumps into my eyes is that i'd associate Katharina to Aglaia by means of their brightness, compared to the other two.

Curious association of Barbara with the Grail in the tower. But for now i need to read better their stories as to be able to make right parallels between the Graces and the Madls.

Now i'm curious to find a similar Triad in Egyptian and Islamic or Zoroastrian culture.

 

[Chiliasticus]

This thread is amazing. Need this subject more in my life. The Alchemist IS the Stone, thats why taking the Stone makes you a Stone in the Temple of Zion.