Alchemical Didactic Poem from 1556

Alchemical Didactic Poem from 1556

The artful manuscript opens with an information-packed double page: on the left is a posthumous dedication to a cleric named “Hermannus Marsovi,” who was probably the Lutheran theologian and reformer Hermann Marsow (died 1555). Below the dedication, which is dated to 1556, a coat of arms with a white lamb shines in bright yellow and shaded blue – a symbolic fantasy crest for the author of the text, who refers to himself or herself as “Lamspringkh” in the prologue beginning on the opposite page. With the work being disseminated dozens of times, especially through early modern print editions, the spelling “Lambspring” became established over time. Since the Book of Lambspring is the only surviving work by the author and the prologue contains little information about the enigmatic person, their true identity remains unknown to this day.

Mystical Poems and Allegorical Images

However, Lambspring's work testifies to a profound knowledge of alchemical literature, which is revealed here in 15 allegorical poems in a highly obscured form. They are not to be understood as concrete instructions for laboratory practice, but rather describe the elaborate production and effects of the philosopher's stone in the form of artistic poetry. Each of these poems is preceded by a circular emblem with an allegorical representation, which is accompanied and explained by a German-Latin caption. However, the matching emblems and poems are not arranged facing each other. Instead, the image is always shown first on the recto page, and only after turning the page can the corresponding poem be read on the respective verso page. The round miniatures with their charming foliate frames seem to have been decisive for the design of the manuscript.