One of the most curious works of the Faustian cycle must be the five-volume Doktor Johannes Fausts Magia naturalis et innaturalis, oder dreifacher
Höllenzwang, letztes Testament und Siegelkunst : nach einer kostbar
ausgestatteten Handschrift in der Herzoglichen Bibliothek zu Koburg, 1849
The fifth volume of this work, very rich in pentacles and seals, contains a number of plates with pentacles ascribed to the seven planetary angels.
I have a used the scanned copy hosted by the Herzogin Anna Amalia Bibliothek in Weimar:
Plate 30 features he seal of Anael in a very distinctive fashion, perhaps tributary to a manuscript source, with the first mark containing a sort of heart-shape instead of a teardrop, and a snake-figure replacing the somewhat phallic mark of the Heptameron.
Plate 38 features a distinctive version of the seal of Raphael, a sort of abbreviated version of the Heptameron.
The following plates are more systematic in their representation and feature the whole scale of the seven planetary angels.
Plate 99, titled I. The Seal of St. Michael, abounds in seals that so far are unknown from other sources, but the seal in the enclosure certainly is extracted from the Heptameron. The perimeter has the names of the angels of the day of the Lord and the spirits of the air, king and ministers alike, which draw directly from the Heptameron. Not only that, but the order of the angels is the order of the days of the week, starting with Sunday, and the attribution is Michael-Sun, Raphael-Mercury. There is no doubt about it that the Heptameron is the source of the seals, one instance where the inspiration can be absolutely certain.
Plate 100: II. The Seal of St. Gabriel
Plate 101: III. The Seal of St. Raphael
note: this should have been Mars, and Samael.
Plate 102: IV. The Seal of St.Samael
note: this should have been Raphael.
Plate 103: V. The Seal of St. Sachiel
Plate 104: VI. The Seal of St. Anael
Plate 105: VII. The Seal of St. Gabriel
I realize there is no point in analyzing the seals in comparison to the figures of the Heptameron to establish a link to them. However, I shall nonetheless proceed to note the differences recorded for two reasons. The first is for recording just how much a seal can be morphed and changed from one direct source to another document, that is, just how much a scribe, a compiler or a draftsman can change the design of a seal. The second reason is establishing the peculiarities of the seals from this edition in order to ascertain what later documents had this version of the seals as a source, and not the Heptameron or another.
Mostly all the seals here are faithful replicas of the ones in the Heptameron, only of far better draftsmanship, so no notes will be mentioned, except in extraordinary cases.
The seal of Michael
The seal of Gabriel
The seal of Raphael
The seal of Samael
The seal of Sachiel
Notes: to testify to the Heptameron as a direct source, this seal even keeps the lower left hook in the third mark.
The seal of Anael
Notes: as in plate 30, we find a heart shape instead of the familiar teardrop from the Hept. seals, in the first mark. Also, the second mark is smaller, fainter and thinner than the first one, an uncommon occurrence when we consider the general aesthetic graphical balance of the lines that the artist so dearly cultivated.
The seal of Cassiel
Notes: The first sign begins with a sort of curl that is reminiscent of the slightly curved end line occurring in Hept.1.
Re:seal of Anael, I believe the triangle and heart shape to be representing the union of male and female, with the shapes implying genitalia of both sexes. In this case the "heart" being the parts of the male genitalia that remain "outside" during union. IE: the balls :-)
ReplyDeleteDear sir, this is purely speculation, and it has no place in the academic analisys of these seals. We might as well assume, like the pseudo-scientists on Hystory channel, that the seal of Raphael is ”some kind” of machine meant to ”some how” lift off.
ReplyDelete1. I was not aware that sexual union was meant to be represented by the parts that remain outside.
2. This is a very unique seal, evolved from other forms, that evolved from other forms that maybe evolved from yet other forms, that bear no resemblence to what you describe.
3. Like Freud, we could see sexual meaning anywhere we choose to.
Of course, the seal of Anael might be prone to that especially, i agree, but nevertheless we could not indulge in such symbolic deconstruction unless we have full data from it s creators.
It s funny how all along history people always knew and thout others that the seal of Anael was a sketch of sexual content for sure, while the other seals were not even attempted at decypherement.
Love your work I had a dream of the sign of St. Michael. It has taken a long time to piece this past together again
ReplyDeleteCan you please also post the seal of Archangel Chamuel? Thank in advance!
ReplyDeleteNo archangel by that name appears in the Heptameron. It s Samael.
Deleteyour histories on the migration of sigils is alway interesting. thank you.
ReplyDeleteit is interesting how the pages, especially compared to the Heptameron exemplars
seem to be Talismanic in themselves. that is to say ; whereas the Heptameron examples were meant to be copied used by an experimenter; these pages give the Impression that the book containing them is meant to be Talismanic/magical itself
not really. Just that German editors did put in the effort to pay a draghtsman to draw all seals neatly so that the pages are ornate and more likely to sell.
DeleteHi ...so i have a question im not as educated as everyone els but like learning all kinds of thing it keeps my brain busy... so all these seals could they say in ....well english if not my language what is written on every seal....in english and why??? my English is not very good but i try....i want to understand this i want to understand this other language aldo they call Angelico or something...if ppl can learn chinese and russian that i think is not easy to learn then this Angelico language cant be that dificault ...i want to learn i want to understand and i want to speak it....i dont care much about our languages ...but these tipe of language that ppl don't speak read or write i want to understand ....please help me with this....
ReplyDeletethe language above is Latin. The other stuff is not a language, but signs. You can know what signs mean, without speaking them. When you see a Nuclear Hazard Sign or Aries sign, they mean somethhing. But you cannot put sentences together with them.
DeleteFor the plates 101 you've noted: this should have been Mars, and Samael. and likewise with Plate 102. What do you mean by this? Are the symbols in those seals representing the wrong angels?
ReplyDeleteno, only the order is wrong, the seals are ok.
DeleteHello, is it okay to get a seal tattoo? I am thinking to get of St. Michael.
ReplyDeletei HAVE MANY
Delete