Hermetic artificial productions of life : the example of the Lunatic Herb

The aim of this essay is to argue that the version in manuscript 1 –held in the Donald F. and Mildred Topp Othmer Library of Chemical History,Philadelphia, PA – of the short text The Essay on lunaria (Capitulum De borissa), attributed to Hermes Trismegistus, is not a fragment. The manuscript doesnot contain an incomplete version of the text, as some scholars assume, but ashorter one. Another short version with many variations is found in manuscriptBethlehem, Lehigh University, Codex 10.A collation of the two versions provides an opportunity to discuss the alchemical-magical content of this text about the artificial production of life. A comparative edition of the two versions is provided. [Publisher's text]