Encyclopedia

Frankfurt am Main

A major German city that served as a vital center for the early modern book trade and the publication of alchemical, Rosicrucian, and scientific texts. It hosted the famous Book Fair where many influential Hermetic works were disseminated across Europe.

113 books · 2239 mentions

Flavius Josephus

A first-century Romano-Jewish historian whose works provide crucial historical context for the Second Temple period and early Christian history.

49 books · 715 mentions

Free Will

The philosophical and theological concept of the capacity of agents to choose between different possible courses of action, a central theme in debates between Hermeticists and Reformers.

45 books · 842 mentions

Foreign lands

In the context of early modern astronomy and astrology, regions outside one's native territory often associated with specific planetary influences or the movement of celestial bodies across different latitudes.

44 books · 1221 mentions

Fifth Essence (Quintessence)

The purest and most subtle element, distinct from the four terrestrial elements, believed to compose celestial bodies and the Philosopher's Stone.

44 books · 854 mentions

Fixation

An alchemical process involving the transformation of a volatile substance into a stable, solid state that can withstand fire.

32 books · 1223 mentions

Fermentation

In alchemy, the stage of the Great Work where a substance is transformed or 'leavened' to achieve a higher state of perfection and potency. It is often compared to the spiritual process of the soul's maturation or the multiplication of the Philosopher's Stone.

31 books · 607 mentions

First Matter

Known as 'Prima Materia,' it is the formless, primordial substance required for the creation of the Philosopher's Stone in the alchemical Great Work.

23 books · 625 mentions

Four Elements

The classical theory that all matter is composed of earth, water, air, and fire, a foundational concept in alchemy, astrology, and natural philosophy until the early modern period.

23 books · 287 mentions

Ferrara

An Italian city that was a major center of Renaissance culture and learning under the House of Este, hosting significant figures in medicine, alchemy, and humanism.

21 books · 367 mentions

First Matter (Prima Materia)

The formless, primordial substance that alchemists believed was the starting point for the Great Work and the creation of the Philosopher's Stone.

19 books · 378 mentions

Fifth Essence

In ancient and medieval philosophy, the fifth element that composes the celestial bodies, often sought by alchemists as a universal medicine or solvent.

19 books · 353 mentions

Ferment

In alchemical theory, a substance added to a base material to catalyze its transformation into a higher state, such as gold or the Philosopher's Stone. It represents the principle of spiritual and physical multiplication.

18 books · 553 mentions

Fixed Stars

Celestial objects that appear to remain stationary relative to one another in the night sky, traditionally located on the outermost sphere of the Aristotelian-Ptolemaic universe.

18 books · 331 mentions

First Mover

In Aristotelian and Ptolemaic cosmology, the outermost celestial sphere that provides the initial motion to all other spheres in the universe.

18 books · 240 mentions

Fortitude

One of the four cardinal virtues in Western ethics, representing the moral strength and courage to endure pain or adversity for a greater good.

17 books · 311 mentions

Firmament

In pre-modern cosmology, the solid or crystalline vault of the heavens that separates the earthly realm from the celestial or divine waters above.

17 books · 262 mentions

Falling Sickness (Epilepsy)

A historical term for epilepsy, often interpreted in early modern medicine as a neurological disorder or as a condition with spiritual or astrological causes.

16 books · 363 mentions

Fifth Essence (Quinta Essentia)

The celestial element, also known as ether, believed in alchemy and natural philosophy to be the purest substance from which the heavens were composed.

16 books · 289 mentions

First Cause

A philosophical concept referring to the initial cause of all things, often identified with God in scholastic and Neoplatonic systems of thought.

16 books · 166 mentions

Forest

A symbolic and physical space in esoteric literature representing the wild, the unconscious, and a site for ascetic retreat or the gathering of medicinal and magical herbs.

15 books · 297 mentions

First Matter (Materia Prima)

The formless, primordial substance that is the basis of all physical reality in Aristotelian and alchemical thought.

15 books · 273 mentions

Fumigation

The practice of using smoke or vapors from burning substances for medicinal, ritual, or purification purposes in alchemy, magic, and early modern medicine.

15 books · 230 mentions

Fortune

A personified force or goddess representing the unpredictability of human fate and the cyclical nature of luck. In Renaissance thought, the struggle between Virtù (human agency) and Fortuna was a central theme in ethics and political philosophy.

15 books · 196 mentions

Fabricius

A German astronomer and correspondent of Kepler who was one of the first to use a telescope for astronomical observations.

14 books · 248 mentions

Final Cause

One of Aristotle's four causes, referring to the purpose, end, or goal (telos) for which a thing exists or is done, central to teleological arguments in natural philosophy.

14 books · 171 mentions

Fate

A central philosophical and astrological concept concerning the predetermined order of events, often contrasted with providence and free will in Renaissance thought.

14 books · 155 mentions

Francis Bacon

An English philosopher and statesman known for his development of the scientific method and his influence on the scientific revolution.

13 books · 874 mentions

Fiesole

An ancient hill town near Florence, significant in the Renaissance as a site of Neoplatonic activity and the location of the Medici Villa where Marsilio Ficino and Pico della Mirandola met.

13 books · 243 mentions

Forests

In natural philosophy and alchemy, these represent both literal sources of botanical materia medica and symbolic spaces of wild nature or 'silva' containing hidden wisdom.

13 books · 229 mentions

Four Humors

13 books · 186 mentions

Free Will (Liberum Arbitrium)

13 books · 147 mentions

Flanders

A historical region in the Low Countries that was a major center of trade, art, and intellectual exchange during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.

12 books · 219 mentions

Folios

11 books · 214 mentions

Fixed vs. Volatile

A fundamental alchemical duality representing the stable, non-reactive components of matter versus the transient, vaporous, or reactive elements.

11 books · 207 mentions

Filial Piety

A virtue of respect for one's parents and ancestors, discussed in early modern moral philosophy and often illustrated in emblem books through classical or biblical examples.

11 books · 175 mentions

Formative Power

11 books · 172 mentions

Formal Cause

One of Aristotle's four causes, representing the pattern, structure, or essence that makes a thing what it is, central to Scholastic and Renaissance metaphysics.

11 books · 137 mentions

Fascination

In early modern natural magic and demonology, the power to influence or harm others through the gaze or the transmission of spirits.

11 books · 127 mentions

French disease (Syphilis)

10 books · 195 mentions

Frugality

A moral virtue emphasizing temperance and the careful management of resources, often discussed in the context of Stoic and Christian ethics. In early modern texts, it was frequently linked to the rejection of luxury and the pursuit of a contemplative life.

10 books · 148 mentions

Francesco Petrarch

An Italian scholar and poet often considered the Father of Humanism for his role in rediscovering classical texts and initiating the 14th-century Renaissance. His works, including his sonnets and Latin treatises, deeply influenced Western literature and the concept of the individual.

10 books · 139 mentions

Fleet Street

A major London street that became the historical center of the English printing and publishing trade, where many early modern alchemical and scientific works were produced.

10 books · 128 mentions

Fluid Dynamics

9 books · 249 mentions

Francesco Melzi

9 books · 241 mentions

Ferdinand III

9 books · 172 mentions

Fulda

A city in central Germany known for its influential Benedictine abbey, which was a center of learning and manuscript production in the Middle Ages. In the early modern period, it remained a significant site for Jesuit scholarship and ecclesiastical politics.

9 books · 159 mentions

Facsimile

9 books · 136 mentions

Fate (Fatum)

9 books · 118 mentions

Foxing

An age-related process that causes yellowish-brown spots on old paper, a common concern in the preservation of rare manuscripts and early modern printed books.

9 books · 117 mentions

Fixed stars

In pre-modern astronomy and astrology, these are celestial bodies that appear not to move relative to each other, residing in the outermost sphere of the cosmos.

9 books · 101 mentions

Foreshortening

8 books · 240 mentions

Fujian

A coastal province in southeastern China with a rich history of maritime trade and a distinct cultural identity within the Sinosphere.

8 books · 184 mentions

Fixed Salt

8 books · 136 mentions

Foliated Earth

8 books · 133 mentions

First Philosophy

8 books · 111 mentions

Freemasonry

7 books · 175 mentions

Fate (Heimarmene)

In Hermetic and Stoic philosophy, the cosmic order or chain of causality that governs the material world, often contrasted with the freedom of the divine mind.

7 books · 136 mentions