The alchemist Paolo Coelho differs from the alchemists of medieval Europe in little ways, except that the image of the latter was greatly distorted, and Coelho’s story is an element of mass culture, intended for a wide audience and does not hide the true alchemical secrets. But, if we sin by generalization and do not go into details, alchemists of the past and present pursue one goal - to know themselves and transform their inner “base metal” into “gold”.
One of the most famous medieval alchemists is George Ripley. He was born in the 15th century in England, where alchemy was alive and well, despite the parliamentary ban of 1404, which outlawed the alchemical production of gold and silver. Today such a ban looks funny, but special problems it did not bring the seekers the philosopher's stone, because alchemists did not achieve much success in the production of noble metals - they were more often accused of witchcraft, connections with dark forces and other demonic things.
Despite the fear and misunderstanding of the vast majority of contemporaries, alchemy continued to exist and develop. This was greatly facilitated by the work of Roger Bacon, who is sometimes credited with the authorship of the one we recently recalled. Interest in alchemy from the outside world's strongest of this time, for example, the English king Henry VI or the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II. Among the many other alchemists whose works have been partially preserved or are mentioned in the works of their followers, George Ripley occupies a special place.
It is known that George did not inherit any wealth from his ancestors. He was a very educated man - he spent more than two decades studying science at universities in Italy. During the same period of his life, Ripley became a canon and even became one of the favorites of Pope Innocent VIII, the same one whose bull “Summis desiderantes” later gave birth.
In 1477, George returned to England, where he wrote his most famous work, The Alchemical Mixture, or the Twelve Gates Leading to the Discovery of the Philosopher's Stone. He dedicated the work to King Edward IV. The "gates" leading to obtaining the philosopher's stone, according to Ripley, are calcination, dissolution, separation, connection, decomposition, solidification, distillation, sublimation, fermentation, intensification, multiplication and surface contact, to which he added the process of restlessness as the most important of everyone and therefore left out of the brackets.
“The Ripley Scroll” consists of 20 scrolls, the longest of which reaches 6.5 meters in length. Actually, the original scrolls by George, if they existed, are considered lost, and the existing copies signed with his name are contemporary or later reproductions or interpretations. They all depict a single plot, and some of them contain poems by George Ripley, which is why the scrolls were named after him. Of the existing scrolls, 16 are kept in museums in England, and 4 in the USA.
The text of the book "The Alchemical Mixture, or the Twelve Gates Leading to the Discovery of the Philosopher's Stone" is preserved, having been included in Jean-Jacques Manget's 1702 book "Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa" (Latin: "Library of Chemical Curiosities"). In his work, Ripley describes in poetic form the recipe for obtaining the philosopher's stone, using, as was customary among all alchemists, many allegories, metaphors and symbols, which only an initiate can correctly decipher.
There is conflicting information that shortly before his death, George Ripley renounced all his research and urged everyone to burn their works, disappointed in the results of the experiments. According to other information, he went into reclusion and wrote about 25 works on alchemy, of which only two have survived to this day: Opera omnia chemica and Cantilena Riplaei. But his works were studied and referenced by such prominent figures as John Dee, Robert Boyle (considered the first true chemist) and even Isaac Newton.
As evidence of Ripley's success on the precious metals front, there is evidence from the eminent English historian Thomas Fuller that Ripley donated huge sums of money. As we have already mentioned, the alchemist did not inherit any wealth, and he also did not engage in usury or trade. But at the same time, he is remembered as a rich man and an incredibly generous philanthropist who ended his life as a hermit around 1490, in Yorkshire, near the city of Boston.
There may be many versions about George Ripley's renunciation of his works, because the original texts have not survived. But, having traced the history of his life that has survived to this day, it is most logical to assume that he simply comprehended the true essence of alchemical science. Try to comprehend it too by deciphering the symbolism of the legendary Ripley scrolls.
P. S. If you are interested in the topic of alchemy, do not hesitate to say so in the comments, and then we will definitely return to the consideration of various aspects of the occult sciences - to the interpretation of alchemical symbolism in particular.
The book has been the main source of information and knowledge for people since time immemorial. Throughout its history, humanity has created billions of various encyclopedias, reference books, novels and lyrical poems. However, there are also those whose secrets, despite many years of study, cannot be learned to modern man So far it hasn't been possible. We bring to your attention 5 of the most mysterious and impressive books that have come down to us from the past.
Ripley's Scrolls
Perhaps this book holds as many secrets as the unknown pages that remain to this day in the chronicle of the life of its author, the famous 15th century British alchemist George Ripley. In total, twenty-five volumes on alchemy were written by this mysterious figure of English medieval history.
George Ripley's life was shrouded in a mystical aura almost during his lifetime. After all, some historians still adhere to the point of view that he drew his enormous wealth using the now lost knowledge of alchemy. And the English chemist had a lot: according to the website, he annually financed the Order of Malta with impressive sums.
Being a very educated man - Ripley studied chemistry and other natural sciences for more than twenty years - he created works whose secrets remain unsolved to this day, despite the many years of efforts of dozens of eminent scientists. At least one direction of the alchemist’s research is known for certain - he studied the theories of human cloning.
"The Prophecies of Master Michel Nostradamus"
Michel Nostradamus, better known as Nostradamus, has been considered the “main prophet of the world” for centuries. His predictions continue to be referenced today. First of all, thanks to his work “The Prophecies of Master Michel Nostradamus.”
Interesting fact: Today there is another name for the work - “Centuries”.
This book was first published in a limited form in the city of Lyon in 1555. The full text of the rhyming prophecies was published three years later. The book contains 942 quatrains covering events of ten centuries. These poems, fraught with secrets of the past and future, have not yet been solved.
Of the total number of quatrains in the work, there is only one that did not contain rhyme. A number of researchers believe that it was written this way on purpose, as it is the key to deciphering the rest. But, despite these guesses, the mysterious book of Nostradamus still keeps its secrets from us.
Codex Serafini
It is interesting that the author of this work is not a research scientist, but an Italian artist. We are talking about La Scala theater costume designer Luigi Serafini. And his book is distinguished from others by its comparative “youth” - it was written in the 1970s.
The work consists of 360 pages of encrypted text, divided into 11 sections: architecture, biology and sexuality, two-legged creatures, machines, history and religions, languages, customs, entertainment, physics and chemistry, flora, fauna.
Presumably, the book encrypts the existence of a parallel world, which only at first glance is almost identical to ours. However, neither the approximate content nor the language in which the code was written could be deciphered.
Interesting fact: the author of the work is still alive, but continues to hide the secrets of his book. The only thing he mentioned in his cover letter to the publisher was that the code was an encyclopedia of an imaginary world.
Voynich manuscript
The history of this strange and mysterious book goes back about five hundred years, but only this year scientists were able to take the first step towards deciphering it. Absolutely nothing is known about it: neither the author, nor the exact time of creation, nor the content, nor even the language in which it was written.
Interesting fact: The mysterious book received its current name - the Voynich manuscript - after the first known owner, who acquired it in 1912 and presented it to the public.
The book consists of 240 pages, on which you can find text in a language that is similar to several existing ones, and hundreds of illustrations. It was from the images that the manuscript’s researchers concluded that the contents of the book reflect some knowledge in the fields of astronomy, biology, pharmaceuticals and even cosmology.
Only in 2019, British scientists took a small step towards unraveling the secrets of the Voynich manuscript, which can rightly be considered a breakthrough after decades of unsuccessful research. Several pages of the book were deciphered, which contain information about plants, and the language in which the text was written was identified as closely related to Latin.
Chronicle of wonderful and significant events
This book with a rather enticing title, authored by Conrad Lycosthenes, was published in Basel in 1557. It is a unique illustrated publication, which with its images puzzles most modern historians.
The fact is that a number of pictures depicting animals were made with amazing precision for the Renaissance. And we are not talking about their quality, but about the detail of the animals themselves. For example, page 17 contains an image of the Canadian moose, which was officially discovered just a couple of years before the book was created. But on page 31 there is a drawing of a dodo bird, which, according to modern historians, Europeans saw only 40 years after the publication of the “Chronicles...”
In addition, a number of animals depicted in the book still remain unknown to science. In addition to fauna, the Chronicle of Miraculous and Significant Events contains many illustrations natural disasters and astronomical phenomena. Among the engravings you can even find an image spaceship- perhaps he was seen in Arabia in 1497.
The most mysterious books
Please forgive me for returning to the topic of books again, but I really liked the idea of sharing with you a selection of the strangest books that have baffled more than one generation of people who want to read them.
1. Codex Seraphinianus.
The Codex Serafini is a book written by Italian architect Luigi Serafini in the late 1970s in an unknown language, accompanied by crazy and incomprehensible illustrations. The author himself, when publishing the book, presented it as a scientific work.
Although in fact it is very far from science, at least from earthly science, and modern scientists call it nothing less than “the strangest encyclopedia in the world.” In my opinion, the illustrations of this book are the most unpleasant of all the books I wrote about below.
2. Ripley's Scrolls.
Scrolls were born thanks to George Ripley in the 15th century in England just at the time when alchemy flourished there. The alchemical treatise is written in Old English and outlines the path to obtaining the philosopher's stone.
The scrolls have never been translated into Russian, and there is practically no point in this, because 75% of the scrolls consist of illustrations.
The original version of Ripley's Scrolls was lost, but in the 16th century several artists recreated the book. Copies have survived to this day, 16 of which are kept in England and 3 in the USA. The length of the largest scroll is 6.5 meters.
3. Mayan Bible “Popol Vuh”.
“Popol Vuh” is a Mayan sacred book describing the period in history from the creation of the world to the time the book was written, also including a number of myths. The Popol Vuh miraculously survived the beginning of Spanish colonization; all other Mayan books, manuscripts and scrolls were burned by the Spaniards. The surviving manuscript of the Popol Vuh was rewritten in the 16th century and translated into Spanish.
4. Rokhontsi Code.
The Rohontsi Codex is a still undeciphered manuscript of 448 sheets, written in an unknown language, originating from the library of the Battyany princes in Rohontsi, who donated their book collection to the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in 1838, where this mysterious manuscript was discovered.
The brightest Hungarian minds struggled to decipher the manuscript, but this did not lead to any positive result. Currently, most scholars share the opinion of Karol Szabó, who in 1866 declared that the codex was a hoax carried out by the Transylvanian antiquarian Samuil Nemes.
5. Decretals of Gregory IX.
The Decretals of Gregory IX is an equally mysterious manuscript from the past dating back to the 13th century, containing a collection of canon law. Pope Gregory IX, who sat on the throne at that time, ordered the writing of this manuscript. The text of the manuscript contains nothing mysterious, but the illustrations accompanying the text are surprising.
In the decretals of the head of all catholic church, the supreme ruler of the Holy See, you can find pictures depicting scenes of violence, giant rabbits, unicorns, large snails attacking knights and, most interestingly, there is an image of a creature exactly like Yoda from Star Wars.
6. Book of miracles.
Written by
Varvara
Creativity, work on the modern idea of world knowledge and the constant search for answers
The Ripley Scroll is an important 15th century work of emblematic symbolism. Twenty one copies are known, dating from the early 16th century to the mid-17th. There are two different forms of the symbolism, with 17 manuscripts of the main version, and 4 manuscripts of the variant form. There are very wide variations in the English text on the different manuscripts, and for the text here I have modernized and unified a number of versions. This is not a properly researched edition, but a reworking of the text into a modern readable form. I add the engravings of the Scroll printed in David Beuther, Universal und Particularia... Hamburg, 1718.
You must make Water of the Earth, and Earth of the Air, and Air of the Fire, and Fire of the Earth.
The Black Sea. The Black Moon. The Black Sol.
Here is the last of the White Stone and the beginning of the Red.
Of the son take the light
The Red gum that is so bright
And of the Moon do also
The which gum they both trowe
The philosophers Sulfur vive
This I call it without strife
Kybright and Kebright it is called also
And other names many more
Of them drawe out a tincture
And make of them a marriage pure
Between the husband and the wife
Espoused with the water of life
But of this water thou must beware
Or else your work will be full bare
He must be made of his own kind
Mark thou now in your mind
Acetome of philosophers men call this
A water abiding so it is
The maidens milk of the dew
That all the work doth renew
The Serpent of life it is called also
And other names many more
The which causes generation
Betwixt the man and the woman
But looke thou no division
Be there in the conjunction
Of the moon and of sun
After the marriage begins
And all the while they be a wedding
Give to them their drinking
Acetome that is good and fine
Better to them then any wine
Now when this marriage is done
Philosophers call it a stone
The which hates a great nature
To bring a stone that is so pure
So he have kindly nourishment
Perfect heat and decoction
But in the matrix when they be put
Let never the glass be unshut
Till they have ingendred a stone
In the world there is not such a one
The Red Lune. The Spirit of Water. Red Sol. The Red Sea.
On the ground there is a hill
Also a serpent within a well
His tail is long with wings wide
All ready to flee by every side
Repair the well fast about
That thy serpent pass not out
For if that he be there a gone
Thou lose the virtue of the stone
Where is the ground you must know here
And the well that is so clear
And what is the dragon with the tail
Or else the work shall little avail
The well must run in water clear
Take good heed for this your fire
The fire with water bright shall be burnt
And water with fire washed shall be
The earth on fire shall be put
And water with air shall be knit
Thus ye shall go to purification
And bring the serpent to redemption
First he shall be black as a crow
And down in his day shall lie full low
Swelling as a toad that lies on the ground
Burst with bladders sitting so round
They shall burst and lie full plain
And this with craft the serpent is slain
He shall shine colors here many a one
And turn as white as whale's bone
With the water that he was in
Wash him clear from his sin
And let him drink a little and a light
And that shall make him fair and white
The which whiteness be abiding
Lo here is a very full finishing
Of the white stone and the red
Lo here is the very true deed.
The Red Lion. The Green Lion. The Mouth of Choleric beware.
Here is the last of the Red, and the beginning to put away the dead. The Elixir Vitae.
Take the father that Phoebus so high
That sits so high in majesty
With his beams that shines so bright
In all places wherever that he be
For he is father to all things
Maintainer of life to crop and root
And cause nature for to spring
With the wife beginneth soothe
For he is save to every sore
To bring about this prosperous work
Take good heed to this lore
I say learned unto and unto the clerk
And Homogenie is my name
Which God made with his own hand
And Magnesia is my lady
You shall verily understand.
Now I shall begin here
For to teach them a ready way
Or else little shall thou win
Take good heed what I do say
Divide thou Phoebus in many parts
With his beams that be so bright
And this with nature him convert
The which is mirror of all light
This Phoebus hat full many a name
Which that is full hard to know
And but thou take the very same
The philosophers stone ye shall not know
Therefore I counsel here ye begin
Know it well what it should be
And that is thick make it thin
For then it shall full well like them
Now understand what I mean
And take good heed thereto
Our work else shall little be seen
And turn thee to much woe
As I have said this our lore
Many a name I wish he hat
Some behind and some before
As philosophers doth give him
In the sea without leaves
Standeth the bird of Hermes
Eating his wings variable
And make himself yet full stable
When all his feathers be from him gone
He standeth still here as a stone
Here is now both white and red
And all so the stone to quicken the dead
All and some without fable
Both hard and soft and malleable
Understand now well and right
And thank you God of this sight
The bird of Hermes is my name eating my wings to make me tame.
The Red Sea. The Red Sol. The Red Elixir Vitae.
Red Stone. White Stone. Elixir Vitae. Luna in Crescent.
I shall you tell with plain declaration
Where, how, and what is my generation
Omogeni is my Father
And Magnesia is my Mother
And Azot truly is my Sister
And Kibrick forsooth is my Brother
The Serpent of Arabia is my name
The which is leader of all this game
That sometime was both wood and wild
And now I am both meek and mild
The Sun and the Moon with their might
Have chastised me that was so light
My wings that I brought
Hither and thither where I thought
Now with them might they down me pull,
And bring me where they will
The Blood of mine heart I wish
Now cause both joy and blisse
And dissolve the very Stone
And knitteth him here he have done
Now maketh hard that was lix
And cause him to be fixed
Of my blood and water I wish
Plenty in all the World there is
It runs in every place
Who it finds he hath grace
In the World it runs over all
And goeth round as a ball
But thou understand well this
Of the worke thou shalt miss
Therefore know here you begin
What he is and all his kin
Many a name he hat full sure
And all is but one Nature
Thou must part him in three
And then knit him as the Trinity
And make them all but one
Lo here is the Philosophers Stone
If you have problems understanding these alchemical texts, Adam McLean now provides a study course entitled
The alchemist Paolo Coelho differs from the alchemists of medieval Europe in little ways, except that the image of the latter was greatly distorted, and Coelho’s story is an element of mass culture, intended for a wide audience and does not hide the true alchemical secrets. But, if we sin by generalization and do not go into details, alchemists of the past and present pursue one goal - to know themselves and transform their inner “base metal” into “gold”.
One of the most famous medieval alchemists is George Ripley. He was born in the 15th century in England, where alchemy was alive and well, despite the parliamentary ban of 1404, which outlawed the alchemical production of gold and silver. Today, such a ban looks funny, but it did not bring any special problems to the seekers of the philosopher's stone, because alchemists did not achieve much success in the production of noble metals - they were more often accused of witchcraft, connections with dark forces and other demonic things.
Despite the fear and misunderstanding of the vast majority of contemporaries, alchemy continued to exist and develop. This was seriously facilitated by the work of Roger Bacon, who is sometimes credited with the authorship of the Voynich manuscript, and by the interest in alchemy on the part of the world's most powerful people of that time, for example, the English king Henry VI or the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II. Among the many other alchemists whose works have been partially preserved or are mentioned in the works of their followers, George Ripley occupies a special place.
It is known that George did not inherit any wealth from his ancestors. He was a very educated man - he spent more than two decades studying science at universities in Italy. During the same period of his life, Ripley became a canon and even became one of the favorites of Pope Innocent VIII, the same one whose bull “Summis desiderantes” later launched the witch hunt.
In 1477, George returned to England, where he wrote his most famous work, The Alchemical Mixture, or the Twelve Gates Leading to the Discovery of the Philosopher's Stone. He dedicated the work to King Edward IV. The "gates" leading to obtaining the philosopher's stone, according to Ripley, are calcination, dissolution, separation, connection, decomposition, solidification, distillation, sublimation, fermentation, intensification, multiplication and surface contact, to which he added the process of restlessness as the most important of everyone and therefore left out of the brackets.
“The Ripley Scroll” consists of 20 scrolls, the longest of which reaches 6.5 meters in length. Actually, the original scrolls by George, if they existed, are considered lost, and the existing copies signed with his name are contemporary or later reproductions or interpretations. They all depict a single plot, and some of them contain poems by George Ripley, which is why the scrolls were named after him. Of the existing scrolls, 16 are kept in museums in England, and 4 in the United States.
The text of the book "The Alchemical Mixture, or the Twelve Gates Leading to the Discovery of the Philosopher's Stone" is preserved, having been included in Jean-Jacques Manget's 1702 book "Bibliotheca Chemica Curiosa" (Latin: "Library of Chemical Curiosities"). In his work, Ripley describes in poetic form the recipe for obtaining the philosopher's stone, using, as was customary among all alchemists, many allegories, metaphors and symbols, which only an initiate can correctly decipher.
There is conflicting information that shortly before his death, George Ripley renounced all his research and urged everyone to burn their works, disappointed in the results of the experiments. According to other information, he went into reclusion and wrote about 25 works on alchemy, of which only two have survived to this day: Opera omnia chemica and Cantilena Riplaei. But his works were studied and referenced by such prominent figures as John Dee, Robert Boyle (considered the first true chemist) and even Isaac Newton.
As evidence of Ripley's success on the precious metals front, there is evidence from the eminent English historian Thomas Fuller that Ripley donated huge sums of money to the Order of Malta. As we have already mentioned, the alchemist did not inherit any wealth, and he also did not engage in usury or trade. But at the same time, he is remembered as a rich man and an incredibly generous philanthropist who ended his life as a hermit around 1490, in Yorkshire, near the city of Boston.
There may be many versions about George Ripley's renunciation of his works, because the original texts have not survived. But, having traced the history of his life that has survived to this day, it is most logical to assume that he simply comprehended the true essence of alchemical science. Try to comprehend it too by deciphering the symbolism of the legendary Ripley scrolls.
