Sylvia Rose
Tanning Hides - Ancient Techniques
Tanning hides is practiced in the ancient world since c. 7000 BCE, in the Indus Valley site of Mehgarh. By 2500 BCE, Sumerians of...
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Sylvia Rose
Mar 236 min read
Yarrow (Achillea) Magic & Medicine
Yarrow is an herb of magic and medicine. A flowering plant native to the northern hemisphere yarrow (Achillea millefolium) is commonly...
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Sylvia Rose
Mar 14 min read
Woad, the People's Blue: Ancient Pigments
Woad ( Isatis tinctoria ) is a plant yielding a blue pigment used in dyes, paint and medicine. A member of the mustard family, it's also...
49 views
Sylvia Rose
Dec 20, 20234 min read
Giant Cinnamon Birds of Arabia
Cinnamon birds appear in folklore of Eurasia shortly after Arab merchants begin trading with ancient lands to the north. Cinnamon enjoys...
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Sylvia Rose
Dec 19, 20235 min read
Cinnamon - Spice Trade of Ancients
Cinnamon ( Cinnamomum ) is the oldest known spice in the world. The fragrant bark comes into popular use by c. 2000 BCE, when Egyptians...
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Sylvia Rose
Nov 17, 20235 min read
Lucifer, Venus & Anti-Gods of Mythology
Lucifer is Latin for bringer of light, or the morning star, symbolic of the return of light each day. In Greco-Roman myth Aurora, Goddess...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 27, 20234 min read
Spiritual Alchemy: Touching the Divine
Spiritual alchemy uses the power of nature, psychology and metaphysical processes of alchemy to transcend the limitations of the mortal...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 26, 20233 min read
Phosphorus: Element of Fatal Fascination
Phosphorus is the first element not known since ancient times. This glowing substance is discovered by German alchemist Hennig Brand in...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 25, 20232 min read
What is the Philosopher's Stone?
The Philosopher's Stone (latin: lapis philosophorum ) conjures elements of primal lore and eternal powers. In history and legend,...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 25, 20234 min read
Spiritual Alchemy - Attuning the Self
Spiritual alchemy is a set of methods using mental processes, colors, phases, archetypes, integration, practical application and...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 19, 20233 min read
Cleopatra the Alchemist of Alexandria
Cleopatra the Alchemist is an intriguing figure in the hazy history of science and magic. She works and writes in the 3rd or 4th...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 18, 202310 min read
Alchemy: Science, Philosophy, Magic
Alchemy rises from inquiring minds . Golden Ages of alchemy appear in Greco-Roman Alexandria , medieval Islam and the Renaissance ....
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 16, 20235 min read
Mercury: Miracle Metal of Madness
Mercury is the only metal to be liquid at room temperature, giving it magic and mystical properties, and the name quicksilver. This...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 14, 20235 min read
Ouroboros Glyph: Snake Eating its Tail
A mythical serpent or dragon, ouroboros appears in literature and illustration from ancient Greece. Tales of ouroboros spread east, and...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 13, 20236 min read
Seven Metals of Antiquity - Metallurgy
The Metals of Antiquity are the seven metals identified and used by humans in Europe and the Middle East in prehistoric times. They are...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 13, 20236 min read
House Spirits of Germanic Mythology
House spirits such as Kobolds , domestic elves , gnomes and the earth hen are popular figures in Germanic myth and folklore. They have...
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Sylvia Rose
Oct 8, 20232 min read
Wolpertinger - German Myths & Folklore
Wolpertinger (Wolperdinger, Woiperdinger) lives in the dark alpine forests and rolling hills of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in southern...
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Sylvia Rose
Sep 30, 20236 min read
Pagan Solstice Fests: Saturnalia
Saturnalia, an ancient Roman festival, is originally held on 17 Dec. Festivities are later extended to Dec 23 to align with other...
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Sylvia Rose
Sep 25, 20235 min read
Fairy Rings, Magic and Mushrooms
Fairy rings are circles or semi-circles of wild mushrooms. They can appear overnight like magic and are part of the mystical world of...
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Sylvia Rose
Sep 11, 20236 min read
Alchemist Dippel: the Frankenstein Files
Notorious alchemist Dippel appears in German history and science in the 17th century. Achieving moderate success with Dippel's Animal...
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