Germany, 1582 copy (text tradition c. 1532–1535)
Arma Artis — The Arms of the Art
Before a single instruction is given, the manuscript opens with a coat of arms for alchemy itself: two golden suns wearing human faces.
- Work
- Splendor Solis (Splendour of the Sun)
- Artist / creator
- Unknown illuminator (text attributed to Salomon Trismosin)
- Origin & date
- German, 1582 copy (text tradition attributed to Salomon Trismosin, c. 1532–1535)
- Held by
- British Library (Harley MS 3469, f.2)
Format
The full-resolution color-managed file — yours to print, study, and keep.
Size
Available as a digital download only — this scan’s resolution doesn’t hold up cleanly as a physical print at any size.
$24.00
The story
The opening image of the manuscript, before any text of instruction, is a heraldic device rather than a scene: two golden suns, each given a human face, one mounted on a shield like a coat of arms. Vines, birds, and a lute-playing monkey fill the border. Alchemists of the period commonly framed their craft as a noble "Art" with its own arms and lineage, and a gold sun stood for the completed Stone, the goal the rest of the manuscript’s images work toward. The lute-playing monkey carries an old joke: monkeys routinely stood for imitation, ars simia naturae, "art as the ape of nature." Placed first, this plate functions as a frontispiece, announcing the Work’s dignity before a single step of it is shown.
About this reproduction
- Faithful reproduction of a public-domain work, sourced from British Library (Harley MS 3469, f.2)’s open-access release.
- Printed to order on archival cotton-rag stock, pigment inks rated 100+ years.
- Color-managed to the source scan.
- Available as a Gold-Foil Premium Edition — a metallic accent print evoking the illuminator’s gold, for a piece from one of the tradition’s luminous, gilded manuscripts.
- Ships in 5–8 business days; satisfaction guaranteed.
