BASILIUS VALENTINUS

Most Experienced Philosopher & Chemist

Tr?actatus Chymico-Philosophicus

R?EALITIES NATURAL

& SUPERNATURAL.

OF METALS & MINERALS;

A woodcut depicts a symbolic monument, or fountain. At the very top, a personified sun with a face radiates light. Below it, a decorative banner is draped across the structure, bearing the inscription "The Blessed Fountain of Living Water" original: "FONS BENEDICTVS AQVÆ VIVÆ". The central part of the monument features a large circular diagram composed of concentric rings and intersections. Four small medallions are placed at cardinal points around the main circle, labeled "Animal", "Vegetable", "Man", and "Mineral". Inside the rings, several Latin phrases are inscribed in a circular fashion, including "Solution of the body" original: "Solutio corporis", "The miracle of nature is perfected in substance" original: "Miraculum naturæ in substā perficitur", "He who finds the medium perfects the whole" original: "Medium qui invenit totum perficit", and "The work is accomplished through the medium alone" original: "Solo dia fit medio". The center of the diagram contains a triangle subdivided into four smaller triangles, each containing a symbol for the four classical elements (Fire, Air, Water, and Earth). Flanking the central triangle are the words "Spirit", "Soul", "Body", and "Seed". The entire diagram sits upon a classical pedestal base.