The Angel of Violet Light appears in the tomes of alchemy from the European medieval period onward. For many centuries the Angel drifts through fogs of creation and shrouds of decay. Our Angel is prima materia, the lapis philosophorum and the culmination of the Great Work.
Alchemy is a medium of experimentation, drawing practitioners of all gender. The lapis philosophorum, the philosophers' stone, is first so named in the works of Albertus Magnus and Raymond Llull c. 1300 AD. Hints are given of it in the 12th century.
Back in c. 400 BCE, atomic theorist Democritus mentions a strange rock:
" ... The stone is not formed until it has gathered all the colors that exist in the universe, and until it has been colored with all the simple and complex colors."
The context is lost, but one can be sure this philosophical stone gathers the Violet Light at least in the theoretical constructs of Democritus. Although violet is not named as a color in English until the medieval period, its allure radiates through the mists of time.
It comes from Latin violaceum or viola. The term is adopted by the French and "violet" appears in English language by c. 1300. The Old French word "violete," initially refers to the flower. These are cheerful hues of spring.
Some Viola flower species are known for a fragrance trick. A key element of Viola's floral scent is ionone, a ketone compound. Ionone temporarily numbs receptors in the nose, making it impossible to detect any more fragrance from the flower until the nerve receptors recover.
The use of "violet" to describe the color emerges later in the 14th century. In the 17th century, the word gains popularity through work of Isaac Newton. He's first to identify the ROYGBIV colors (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet) composing the visible spectrum.
Greek philosopher Aristotle (384 - 322 BCE) develops the first known color theory. He proposes all colors originate from white and black (lightness and darkness) and associates them with the four elements - water, air, earth, and fire. Tsk. Back to art class, Aristotle.
Aristotle's black and white theories dominate for more than 2000 years until they're superseded by Newton's colorful ideas. From the middle ages, the classical elements are also identified with colors: red is fire, yellow earth, green water, and blue is associated with air.
In European elemental color theory people also ascribe the following: red, fire - earth green - water blue - air white. In the Chinese five element structure:
Wood - blue, green
Fire - red
Earth - yellow
Metal - white, beige, silver
Water - dark blue, black
So everyone is reasonably certain fire is red, but after that it, through time and context, distance and individual, different concepts are applied. But what of our Angel of Violet Light?
Generally speaking there is no purple in the colors of the elements, even though it's seen everywhere in flowers, berries, sunsets and distant mountains. But this is deceptive, because purple is sometimes considered a fire color, and from this purple flame comes our Angel.
Violet becomes the culmination of the red or rubedo stage for Renaissance alchemists. The term Angel of Violet Light is in use by the Late Renaissance to mean the prima materia, along with up to sixty other names. Alchemists love codes, cyphers and word games.
This frustrates many readers and/or practitioners of the modern mindset. Not only do alchemists use symbols, they use the same symbols for different meanings or a certain word or symbol whose meaning may change by location, day or alchemical teacher.
The prima materia is also given the name "stone of the philosophers", which is technically true as the prima materia composes the lapis. In some circles the emergence of the Angel is the ultimate goal of the Great Work.
Blue and violet flames are the hottest temperatures of fire, over twice as hot as red. These flames are transcendent, able to combust the incombustible, consume the unconsumable and catalyze creation from the ash of decay. As ever in nature, the end is just the beginning.
Non-Fiction Books:
Fiction Books:
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