Friday, February 25, 2011

Highlights from our 2010 Sales: Chymical Wedding of Christian Rosenkreutz





[Andreae, Johann Valentin] Chymische Hochzeit: Christiani Rosencreütz. Anno 1459.
Straßburg/ In Verlägerung/ Lazari Zetzners S. Erben. Anno m. dc. xvi.
Octavo. 143 pages; A-I8. Leaf I8 recto with colophon: Straßburg/ Bey Conrad Scher/ Im Jahr/ m. dc. xvi.

Whether read as an alchemical parable, a Rosicrucian myth, or simply as a significant example of early-modern German fiction, the Chymische Hochzeit is certainly one of the most infamous books of the seventeenth century. The Rosicrucian furor, as Frances A. Yates termed it, rocked Europe for half a century, involving the crisis in religious, political, and scientific/medical philosophy and policy.