Hey dear community, at the beginning I would like to welcome you all to my new post and hope you had a day that was full of positive experiences! In this post, I would like to talk a little about alchemy and am happy if you can learn new things.
In alchemy, some animals often had a high priority from a symbolic point of view and I would like to specifically mention the importance of dragons in alchemy, which was associated with the elements fire and earth because of the ability to spit fire and the power to fly. In alchemy, the dragon appears in numerous legends and a well-known example is the well-known Ouroboros, which is supposed to represent a snake or dragon-like creature that bites itself into the tail and was also considered a sign of immortality as well as the prima materia, which was one of the most important starting materials for the creation of the Philosophers Stone. Perhaps one or the other has already heard of the well-known green lion from alchemy and there is also a green dragon and it is a diverse symbol that was also often associated with prima materia and it was also associated with an acid that was used in the late Middle Ages and was also called King's water or aqua fortis and it had the task of testing the purity of metals and it is a mixture of hydrochloric and nitric acid. Also interesting is the red dragon, which is also an important symbol in alchemy and was associated with the rubedo, which also stands for redness and was one of the most important steps for the preparation of the philosopher's stone and the red dragon was also often linked to the occult side of alchemy and was sometimes linked to apocalyptic scenarios as well the light bringer Lucifer.
Even if it revolves around the rebis, the dragon appears and the rebis also describes the union of two principles and there are numerous other alchemical works of art in which the dragon can be found and often it is also closely linked to mythology and you can also find the dragon Ladon which had the ability to protect the apples of the hesperides from Greek mythology. Sometimes in alchemy there is also talk of a moon dragon which is of divine nature and skins from time to time and thus symbolises the process of rejuvenation and this being was mentioned in the work of Agrippa von Nettesheim (1486 - 1535) who had mentioned it in his work De occulta philosohia and also the English poet William Blake (1757 - 1827) was probably inspired by this being and for him the moon had a very great significance in general. William Blake also goes into more detail about the red dragon and was a great friend of alchemy and there are numerous works in which his passion for this occult science is expressed and anyone who deals more closely with alchemy will not get past Blake. The well-known phoenix from Greek mythology is also often associated with the dragon and according to legends it symbolises the last stage of alchemy and burns to resurrect from the flames and this legend also symbolises the conversion of metals into gold. In Chinese alchemy, the dragon often appears as a symbol and was also associated with the element fire there and had an important meaning in the literature of alchemy and has generally also shaped Chinese culture.
Thanks for stopping by and I hope you could learn something new about alchemy! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens and the others with iPhone 12.