Basilisk and Weasel (Aurora Consurgens)

The image shows a mythical creature, the basilisk, rendered in shades of green with a rooster's head, wings, and a long, serpent-like tail marked with red spots. It stands on the left against a reddish-brown backdrop. Opposite it, on the right, stands a small, light-colored weasel with a bushy tail, facing a vibrant red-and-green striped ring that rests on the ground. Near the weasel, the body of a serpent or eel emerges from and re-enters the dark, undulating landscape, appearing severed or segmented with red, blood-like markings at the points of incision.

This illustration originates from the 'Aurora Consurgens', a 15th-century alchemical treatise attributed to Pseudo-Aquinas, and utilizes the bestiary motif of the basilisk (king of serpents) being overcome by the weasel, a common allegory for the alchemical process of conquering and transforming base, poisonous matter.