Occult References to the Ars Notoria in the Almadel Tradition

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“And immediately an angel will appear through the altitude . . . And he will appear in the kind of an armored soldier and dressed in the clearest gold, and his face emits rays, and in this way he speaks sweetly with skillfulness . . .”

The Almadel / Liber Intelligentiarum

The Saffron-colored Almadel made for Eloquence and Clarity of the Intellect, An Excerpt Translation From the Critical Edition of the Almadel / Liber Intelligentiarum (Book of Intelligences)

[24] And he makes his almadel from saffron-colored beeswax and even the candelabra and candle, and he makes the petition as he ought to and places [his petition] over the almadel and makes the suffumigation as [stated] above.  And unless the angel came, the sigils are to be made as [stated] above.  And then he calls the name of the altitude with the contrition of the heart and these names of the princes: “Fortitudo, Pacientia, Panthanay, Yhethamey, Mynuel, Erynhel, Pneumathon, Heloy, Anthychoy.”

[25] And immediately an angel will appear through the altitude of the two white ones (duarum canarum) over the almadel, and as quickly as he will sense the odors, he begins to speak.  And he will appear in the kind of an armored soldier and dressed in the clearest gold, and his face emits rays, and in this way he speaks sweetly with skillfulness because he must be compelled to love him (i.e., the almadel practitioner) over all creatures, and in such eloquence that he will always incline men to love his own sweetness of eloquence.

[26] And the intellect pours clarity down upon [the almadel practitioner] wonderfully.  And after recommending the same [message of love and eloquence] to you, as [the angel] asks God for you, and, indeed, the motion of his creatures impedes against his will.  And by withdrawing [from the almadel, the angel] sends out a ray of light in the manner of the Sun and an odor in the similar parts as a mixture out of incense and musk.  And this is a wonderful secret of the figures in the Ars Notoria of Solomon hidden from wise men and over every kind of incomparable treasure-house of the sciences.

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Caption: The Almadel, the beeswax table of magical and angelic operations, Halle, U.L.S.A., 14 B 36, f. 243, end of the 15^th century.

The saffron-colored almadel aligns perfectly well with the intellectual pursuit of scholastic knowledge according to the Ars Notoria.  There is a little ritual of the saffron and rosewater tea which is sipped in the mornings before the offering of the notory art prayers according to Version B.  For the symbolism of saffron, see my blog post: Ars Notoria: The Little Ritual of the Saffron and Rosewater Tea 

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The Gloss of Saint Jerome

The Gloss of Saint Jerome is a short pseudepigraphal book belonging to the Almadel tradition.  References to Solomon as told in the Ars Notoria and Borrowed Notory Art Prayers, Excerpt translations from the Edition of the Gloss of Saint Jerome.

[1] The gloss of the blessed Jerome begins over the holy almadel of Solomon, because he himself translated [it] from Greek into Latin.

In the holy name and undivided Trinity begins the gloss over the holy almadel of Solomon, because tradition attributes to him divinely through an angel over the golden altar. 

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(See Ars Notoria, section 114a belonging to the Ars Nova; Solomon’s prayer attributed to the first figure of philosophy found in the Notae Supplement of Version A; the Prologue of Version B.)

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[4] The words of Jerome follow.

But now I, Jerome, the least of doctors, which I am not worthy even to be called a doctor nor do I call [myself] a doctor, having been commissioned into the proclamation of the Gospel for the purpose of [translating] the Greek parts, I discover in this very place the most wise teachers and the most expert doctors, from whom I was wondering at so many.  When I was at leisure at a certain hour with prayers it was said to me: “Do not wonder over the wisdom of the teachers and doctors of this region.  For they have the holy almadel of Solomon, with that it is to be reached in the thought of every metaphysical and scientific art, even the exceptives.”

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See Ars Notoria, section 3; the exceptives are the divinatory arts of necromancy, astrology, and their sub-branches, such as onomancy, which I have written about in my blog posts: Necromancy: A Forbidden Art of the Ars Notoria, Part I, Onomancy: A Forbidden Art of the Ars Notoria, Part I)

The Gloss of Saint Jerome borrows the following notory art prayers – Alpha et Omega (section 37), Elyzemath (section 38), Lux mundi (section 39), Theos Megale (section 42), Asaylemath (section 43), Lemach (section 46), Conditor omnium (section 47), and Summe Deus piissime (section 49).  Of particular note is the Conditor omnium prayer which is found in seventeenth-century composite texts which I have written about in my two-part blog series which begins here: The Last Derivative Texts of the Ars Notoria: The Early Modern Composites, Part I.  Also, the Summe Deus piissime prayer which is central to Opus Operum (Work of Works) and the Ars Brevis (The Short Art).  Theos Megale (also, Phos Megale) is found in the Ars Brevis.  For those unfamiliar with these derivative works, see my introductory guide to the Ars Notoria here: About the Ars Notoria | Matthias Castle 

These are my Latin-to-English translations based on Julien Veronese’s L’Almandal et l’Almadel latins au Moyen Age: Introduction et editions critiques (Firenze: Sismel-Ed. del Galluzzo, 2012). I thank Joseph H Peterson for directing me to this work.