In Alchemy, no allegory is without an operative reason; in Philosophia Reformata, the angel inflating a trumpet makes no exception here, unveiling a long-lasting operative secret.
Perhaps some hermeticists would instead give to the angel inflating a trumpet allegory just a sort of out-of-context glorifying and celebrating relevance. But, trust me, in alchemical iconographies, nothing lacks an explanation, and all is a hint.
Johannes Daniel Mylius seems to have had a leading role in his Philosophia Reformata engravings developing, actually incised by Balthazar-Baltzer Schwab and the whole published by Lucas Jennis in Frankfurt 1622.
The angel with a trumpet, and a sword, we are examining is a detail fitted, in the very sense that it is in the right place, in Philosophia Reformata engraving number fourteen, first series. And it was very unlikely conceived by Mylius as a mere “ revelation angel with its resurrection trumpet,” as often found in many applications. Mylius rarely portrayed scenes other than laboratory alchemy.
Generally speaking, in alchemical pictures, every character and detail has to be intended not as a unique and contemporary set of circumstances but as different phases. We are here dealing with metallic gold sowing in Terra Alba Foliata. Whose sowing phase, or the farmer in his scattering action, has already been treated in my “Atalanta Fugiens & Terra Alba Foliata”. The revelation angel is consistent with a previous phase than calcinated powder gold, having been in contact with our Mercurius Philosophorum/Universal Dissolvent. If the soil is to be broken up in preparation for sowing, it is our Terra Alba Foliata/Mercurius Philosophorum. The angel is in charge of preparing Mercurius and, through a fixation/calcination/sublimation/drying performed by its trumpet. Or by its sword, in other ways than the classic wet way. But that’s exceeding our main topic, being a dry way alternative. Suppose you do not want to get at my previous post. In that case, you must know that angel is our Mercurius, too much volatile to be fixed and then becoming Mercurius Philosophorum or Terra Alba Foliata. Fixation of volatile is one of the main alchemical concerns. Real close secrets, or as in Latin, “Secretum Artis”.
We can notice that white inflating banner tied to the angel’s trumpet. As you suspect, the Latin for trumpet is tuba-ae and can be translated into English as a tube. A pipe, indeed. Also, a banner may be defined as a tubular one. So piping is underlined here. If you remember another post of mine on calcination, namely Atalanta Fugiens and Coral from Waters, there is Zephirus blowing wind to dry or calcine our Mercurius.
Mind that drying from waters merely means to fix or to make handling a too much volatile Mercurius. Although, through the rule of three (1), Zephirus doesn’t only mean calcination (2). If you remember, I suggest the ” venting ” verb in the post bottom. But let’s get back at our angel with a trumpet.
In Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, we can find an angel over the Mercurius Philosophorum temple. Engraving number 81 puts on display a “putto”, or child, or little Eros-Cupidus, blowing a trumpet over a strange laboratory vessel. Of course, we could apply to this image a more theurgic sense of Cupid who witnesses the conduct of human souls while they remain in their bodies.
After giving “pipes” and “venting” hints, it is fair to produce another alchemical-relevant picture of the topic. Cabala Mineralis, indeed, provides somewhat more than a hint: a real clue. Observe the sequence below if you notice something about the Mercurius Philosophorum picture in the center.
Christophle Glaser in his Traitè de la Chimie suggests an operation called “venting”, to the fix too much volatile substances. The process can be performed only, and simply, by a particular laboratory tool or vessel or piping introducing air movement inside (3). The whole operation seems to be able to be performed in a mere ancient chemistry field. So look up carefully for ancient laboratory tools for that calcination trick. Being a close alchemical secret might be quickly done or disastrously denied.
For a complete reading on Cabala Mineralis or the She Horse on Urine Work part 1.
See also Pompeii Mysteries Villa: a Gentle Flowing with Mystica Vannus.