Heinrich Khunrath’s Magnesia Catholica Philosophorum

Name: Heinrich Khunrath’s Magnesia Catholica Philosophorum
Author: Heinrich Khunrath

The 1599 German text with a new English translation, introduction, glossary, and notes.

Explore the Lexicon

Heinrich Khunrath’s Magnesia Catholica PhilosophorumMagnesia Catholica Philosophorum · Printed Page 131

Swipe or use the arrow keys.

English Page · Branch 138 of 215

Book Mode

Early New High German

p. 131

lischen dingen / wie sichs gebüret / im Fewer Naturgemeß - künstlich durchsuchet / vnd vom anfang bis zum ende ausgearbeitet hette! vnd solcher gestalt / die allein EINE rechte vnd wahre MATERIAM, vnter also vielen vnzehligen vnrechten / erst finden hette sollen oder müssen. Vnmüglich were jhme gewesen / dieselbe also zu erfinden! Judicire hieruon ein jeder im Fewer wol erfahrner Artista selbst. Es muste BERNHARDVS der GRAF / das doch bey keinem Doctrinæ filio gleublich / grewlich (mit Reuerentz) gelogen haben / vnd nicht Veridicus Treuisanus sein / in deme er spricht: Er habe diese Kunst zwey Jahr zuuor gewust ehe er den STEIN der weisen gemacht vnd verfertiget habe. Spricht man / Ja / Ja / dieses schriebe er zu der zeit / wie er sein Werck schon

Heinrich Khunrath’s Magnesia Catholica Philosophorum: Magnesia Catholica Philosophorum

p. 131

things, as is fitting, in the Fire, in a Nature-conforming and artful way, and had worked them out from the beginning to the end! — and in such fashion should or must have first found the one only right and true MATERIA among so very many unnumbered wrong ones. Impossible it would have been for him to find it out thus! Let every Artist well practised in the Fire judge of this himself. Then must BERNHARDVS the COVNT — a thing credible with no son of Doctrine — have lied grievously (with Reverence be it said), and not have been the truth-speaking Trevisan, in that he says: that he knew this Art two years before he made and completed the STONE of the wise. If one says: Yes, yes, he wrote this at the time when he had his Work already

190.Marginal gloss: ‘God preserve us! What an exceedingly long time, Labour and Expense would have been needed for that alone?’ — ^†The 1599 sets ror for vor (was vor = was für); the same wrong sort stands at p. 103, in the same word. Left as set.

191.Marginal gloss: ‘O ye Deaf!’ — Tauben is heavily inked but the six sorts are legible. It is the plural either of der Taube, a deaf man, or of die Taube, a dove — the latter used of a gull or simpleton. The first is taken here, because the abuse answers an objector who has not heard what Bernard said; the second cannot be excluded and is recorded. — Bernhardus Trevisanus, Bernard of Treviso, is the most cited of the late-medieval adepts and is always der Graf, the Count. Veridicus, truth-speaking, is used of him here as a title rather than a description: Khunrath’s point is that to disbelieve Bernard on this is to unmake his name. — Judicire and Artista are both Fraktur, though Doctrinæ filio and Veridicus Treuisanus on the same page are Antiqua; and lischen in the first line, the second half of Materia-|lischen broken across the page-turn, is Fraktur with its first half.

About This Reading Edition

Heinrich Khunrath’s Magnesia Catholica Philosophorum argues that alchemy has one universal subject, that this subject cannot be extracted from the metals, and that nothing in the work can begin without recognizing it. This complete reader begins with the supplied seven-part introduction and orientation, then presents every printed page of the 1599 German treatise opposite its new English translation.

Historical Text and Translation

The German reading text is a fresh diplomatic transcription from 600 dpi images of the Magdeburg copy printed by Johann Bötcher in 1599. It preserves Khunrath’s capitalization, word division, authorial marginal keys, glosses, errata, and three unnumbered closing pages: the errata leaf, owl emblem, and colophon.

About Diotimos Editions

Diotimos Editions prepared the new English translation, introduction, notes, glossary, collation, and editorial apparatus. The translation follows Khunrath directly, retaining his technical vocabulary, changes of register, repetitions, rhetorical questions, and distinctions between German, Latin, and coined terms.

Rights

Heinrich Khunrath’s 1599 German work is in the public domain. The 2026 English translation, introduction, notes, glossary, editorial arrangement, and related matter are original to this edition and remain © 2026 Diotimos.

supplied-bilingual-editionSupplied complete German–English scholarly edition