alchemical herbals

[-JKP-]

Here's a good example of the mythical lunaria...

You can recognize it instantly by its plantlike shape, the 30 "leaves" which which look like 15 half-moons. The myth is confirmed by the "plant" on the right with the "leaves" dropping off as the moon goes through its monthly journey.

It is also magical/alchemical, with the sun (hot) and moon (cold) shown in the upper right.


You will also notice that the drawing on the left has some oddities near the bottom. Notice how the lower moon is a "full moon" that almost resembles a glass vessel with something bright red under the "root"? It's a reference to fire and alchemical distillation processes. The two seedlike "tassels" at the top are the tubes running from the distillation mechanisms. Sometimes they are drawn upturned to represent the symbol for the moon or for mercury (which both have "horns").


Once you become familiar with alchemical and magical iconography, these references jump out at you...