Aurora consurgens
Encyclopedia
The Aurora consurgens is an illuminated manuscript
of the 15th century in the Zurich Zentralbibliothek (MS. Rhenoviensis 172). It contains a medieval alchemical
treatise
, in the past sometimes attributed to Thomas Aquinas
, now to a writer called the "Pseudo-Aquinas". Unusually for a work of this type, the manuscript contains thirty-eight fine miniatures
in watercolour. The illustrations are allegorical representations of alchemical elements depicted in human or animal form. For example mercury
is depicted as a serpent; gold
as the Sun and silver
as the Moon.
Other illuminated manuscripts of the Aurora consurgens include:
Illuminated manuscript
An illuminated manuscript is a manuscript in which the text is supplemented by the addition of decoration, such as decorated initials, borders and miniature illustrations...
of the 15th century in the Zurich Zentralbibliothek (MS. Rhenoviensis 172). It contains a medieval alchemical
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
treatise
Treatise
A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject.-Noteworthy treatises:...
, in the past sometimes attributed to Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas, O.P. , also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican priest of the Catholic Church, and an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis, or Doctor Universalis...
, now to a writer called the "Pseudo-Aquinas". Unusually for a work of this type, the manuscript contains thirty-eight fine miniatures
Miniature (illuminated manuscript)
The word miniature, derived from the Latin minium, red lead, is a picture in an ancient or medieval illuminated manuscript; the simple decoration of the early codices having been miniated or delineated with that pigment...
in watercolour. The illustrations are allegorical representations of alchemical elements depicted in human or animal form. For example mercury
Mercury (element)
Mercury is a chemical element with the symbol Hg and atomic number 80. It is also known as quicksilver or hydrargyrum...
is depicted as a serpent; gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
as the Sun and silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
as the Moon.
Other illuminated manuscripts of the Aurora consurgens include:
- Glasgow University Library MS. Ferguson 6;
- Leiden, MS. Vossiani Chemici F. 29;
- Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, MS. Parisinus Latinus 14006;
- Prague, Universitni Knihovna, MS. VI. Fd. 26;
- Prague, Chapitre Métropolitain, MS. 1663. O. LXXIX;
- Berlin, Staatsbibliothek Preussischer Kulturbesitz, MS. Germ. qu. 848.