From the book
A Chymical Dictionary
Gerhard Dorn and John French · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordA practice of viewing visions in the glasses described under Berillus.
- A place to readThe 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
- BerillisticaRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- BerillusA divinatory looking-glass described with a critical judgement.
- AuguristaA diviner defined by media, bird signs and a hostile evaluation.
- VisioA visible apparition described as supernatural and spiritual.
Source note
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