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Anonymous

Candida Phoenix Philosophica

The White Philosophical Phoenix

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Candida Phoenix PhilosophicaPart I — Theorem VI

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Facing Pages · Branch 36 of 411

Part I — Theorem VI

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German & Latin

21–22

Welches alle Farben &c. Alldieweilen und ob zwar das Regenwasser äusserlich gleichsamb weiß anzusehen / so hat es doch alle Farben in sich / wie mit diesem abermaligen schlechten Exempel zu beweisen / anerwogen / wann man ein Regenwasser viel und offt per Alembicum destillirt / und den Alembic nachmahls trucken werden läst / allerhand Farben / die man gleichsamb erdencken kan / in demselben erscheinen / massen es auch nicht weniger / und so gar an einem Glaß / das im Regen gelegen / und in der Sonnen wieder trucken worden / zu verspühren. Worbey ich mich erinnere / was Hollandus schreibet / daß die drey in der natürlichen Wärme ruhende Geister / nemblich der Geschmack / der Geruch / und die Farb / die Seele und das Leben / und die quinta essentia aller Dinge: Wie ich auch deßwegen oben gesagt / daß das Regenwasser künstlich ratione essentiæ; weiln es süß und lieblich sey.

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Candida Phoenix Philosophica: Part I — Theorem VI

21–22

Which contains all colours, and so forth. Although rainwater appears outwardly almost white, it nevertheless contains all colours. This can again be shown by a simple example: if rainwater is repeatedly distilled through an alembic and the alembic is afterward allowed to dry, colours of every imaginable kind appear within it. The same can even be observed on glass that has lain in the rain and afterward dried in the sun. This reminds me of Hollandus’s statement that the three spirits resting in natural warmth—taste, smell, and colour—are the soul, life, and quintessence of all things. For this reason I also said above that rainwater is artfully made in respect of its essence, because it is sweet and pleasant.

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About This Reading Edition

An anonymous Hermetic treatise of 1680, presented in its original German and Latin with a new English translation, 279 explanatory notes, the historical phoenix frontispiece, an introduction, reading guide, outline, glossary, bibliography, and original registers.

Historical Text and Translation

Anonymous, Candida Phoenix philosophica. Frankfurt am Main: Christian Hermsdorff, 1680. The chosen witness is the Wellcome Library copy digitized as b32993456; German and Latin, with French, Greek, and Hebrew passages retained.

About Diotimos Editions

This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.

Rights

The 1680 source is identified as public domain by the Wellcome/Internet Archive record. The supplied 2026 transcription, English translation, introduction, notes, reading guide, outline, glossary, bibliography, and editorial arrangement are published with the site owner’s authorization. The frontispiece is retained from the supplied edition and credited to its historical witness.