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Berillistica
Spirits celestial influences and signs · A Chymical Dictionary
At a Glance
The word. A practice of viewing visions in the glasses described under Berillus.
A place to read. The historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 11; facsimile PDF page 339.
Historical Definition
Berillistica is the art of observing visions in such glasses.
Meaning
The phrase “such glasses” depends on the nearby apparatus term. Read with Berillus, the entry concerns a crystalline looking-glass used in divination. It names the practice of observation, not simply the material from which the glass is made. Keeping object and activity separate helps a reader follow a sentence in which both appear.
Augurista names a practitioner using looking-glasses, crystals and other media. Together the entries provide a small practical vocabulary of instrument, act and person. Their historical judgement of the practice should remain attributed to the dictionary.
Places to Read
Berillus. A divinatory looking-glass described with a critical judgement.
Augurista. A diviner defined by media, bird signs and a hostile evaluation.
Visio. A visible apparition described as supernatural and spiritual.
Historical source: 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 11; facsimile PDF page 339 — Facsimile
Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary (1650), s.v. Berillistica ; compare Berillus, Augurista, Visio