Item #129 Hortulus Hermeticus, Flosculis Philosophorum Cuprincisis Conformatus, & brevissimis versiculis explicatus. Quo Chymiatriae Studiosi pro Philotheca uti, fessique Laboratorium ministri recreari possint. Daniel Stolcius de Stolcenberg, c.1600–c.1630.

Daniel Stolcius de Stolcenberg (c.1600–c.1630)

Hortulus Hermeticus, Flosculis Philosophorum Cuprincisis Conformatus, & brevissimis versiculis explicatus. Quo Chymiatriae Studiosi pro Philotheca uti, fessique Laboratorium ministri recreari possint.

Publisher: Frankfurt am Main. Lucas Jennis — the most celebrated publisher of alchemical and Hermetic texts, noted for printing Michael Maier, Robert Fludd, and the Rosicrucian corpus. 1627.

Illustration: Engraved emblematic plates by the workshop of Lucas Jennis.

Edition: First edition

Binding: Contemporary full calf, gilt sunburst ornaments to boards and spine compartments, raised bands with gilt tooling. Some losses to spine leather, corners rubbed, joints starting, but binding remains sound; attractive patina with period character.

Description: A cornerstone emblem book of the Hermetic tradition, Stolcius’ Hortulus Hermeticus (1627) offers a rich compendium of alchemical wisdom in verse, accompanied by over one hundred finely engraved emblems emblematic of Hermetic thought. Each emblem, with its accompanying distich, encapsulates the teachings of philosophers both ancient and early modern, from Hermes Trismegistus and Cleopatra to Paracelsus and contemporary Rosicrucians.

Printed by Lucas Jennis, the premier publisher of alchemical and esoteric texts in the early 17th century, this volume stands in direct lineage with Michael Maier’s Atalanta Fugiens. Its engraved title device, medallions, and allegorical imagery exemplify the height of alchemical emblem literature at the dawn of modern science.

The author, Daniel Stolcius de Stolcenberg (c.1600–c.1630), was a Bohemian physician, poet, and alchemist whose promising career was tragically cut short. Amid the upheavals of the Thirty Years’ War, Stolcius died in his early thirties, leaving behind only this volume and the Viridarium Chymicum. His premature death ensured that these emblem books became not only intellectual treasures but the entire surviving legacy of a lost Hermetic voice, making them especially sought after by collectors.

This example bears contemporary and later ownership annotations, including a note of purchase dated 1789 at the Hôtel Bullion in Paris, as well as valuation notes by previous bibliophiles. Such manuscript traces enrich the historical character of the copy, linking it to generations of Hermetic readers.

Condition commensurate with age: binding with surface wear, spine leather chipped with losses, light scattered foxing and toning, occasional small stains. Yet the engraved emblems remain clean and deeply struck, their imagery sharp and compelling.

A highly desirable survival of one of the great emblem books of alchemy. For collectors of Hermetica, alchemy, and Rosicrucian thought, Stolcius stands as an essential acquisition, his work transforming any library into a true cabinet of esoteric consequence.

Condition: Good antiquarian condition. Binding worn, spine cracked with losses, gilt sunbursts still visible; textblock solid, engravings well-struck and appealing.

Annotation: Manuscript notes on endpapers including provenance record (“acheté… Hôtel Bullion 1789”) and bibliophilic valuation marks.

Item #129

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