The Garden of Cyrus
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The Garden of Cyrus, or The Quincuncial Lozenge, or Network Plantations of the Ancients, naturally, artificially, mystically considered, is a discourse by Sir Thomas Browne. First published in 1658, along with its diptych companion, Urn-Burial, in modern times it has been recognised as Browne's major literary contribution to Hermetic wisdom.[1] [2]
Written during a time when restrictions on publishing became more relaxed during Oliver Cromwell's Protectorate, The Garden of Cyrus (1658) is Browne's contribution to a 'boom period' decade of interest in esoterica in England.[3] Browne's discourse is a Neoplatonic and Neopythagorean vision of the interconnection of art and nature via the inter-related symbols of the number five and the quincunx pattern, along with the figure X and the lattice design.[4] Its fundamental quest was of primary concern to Hermetic philosophy: proof of the wisdom of God, and demonstrable evidence of intelligent design. The Discourse includes early recorded usage of the words "prototype" and "archetype" in English.
References
- ^ http://aquariumofvulcan.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/what-is-more-beautiful-than-quincunx.html
- ^ Faulkner, Kevin (2002). "Scintillae marginila: Sparkling margins - Alchemical and Hermetic thought in the literary works of Sir Thomas Browne". Retrieved 16 February 2017.
- ^ http://www.alchemywebsite.com/eng_bks.html.
- ^ Frank Huntley Sir Thomas Browne: a Biographical and Critical Study Ann Arbor, University of Michigan Press, 1962
External links
- Complete text of The Garden of Cyrus
- Essay on Browne and Hermeticism