VMs: the sword of Gustavus Adolphus

["Rafal T. Prinke" <rafalp@xxxxxxxxxx>]

I have asked Dr Susanna Akerman, the Swedish scholar researching
(among other things) Kircher's links with Queen Christina, 
about the sword of Gustavus Adolphus which was mentioned
in the footnote to Fletcher's article. She has kindly provided
the following information:

> I describe in my Rose Cross Over the Baltic (Leiden, Brill 1998) 
> Kircher and Christina's encounter with the sword in Paris in 1656. 
> The astrologer J. B. Morin knew it. The inscription was "audaces
> fortuna iuvat, timidosque repellit" and with signs that look 
> astrological but shifted and torn. Kircher said it had signs
> of the angels Seraphiel, Harbiel, Maladriel, Kiriel and Uziel 
> angels of protection of flames, of resolve, of diversion and
> of force. I write about it on p. 166 in the Rose Cross book. 
> The source is Francois Secret who writes "Un episode oublie de
> la vie de Pereisc: La sabre magique de Gustave Adolphe." 
> Dix-Septieme Siecle 1979. The owner was Boniface Borilly in Aix en
> Provence who had received from Louis XIV. The legend was that it 
> was taken from the body of Gustavus Adolphus at Lutzen
> where he was shot dead riding astray in the mist. Thankyou for 
> your quote. What is Barachias' alphabeth? Christina's
> biographer 1748-1751 Arckenholtz, Memoires concernant Christine 
> reine de Suede... Vol. II p. 211 republishes the image of
> the sword and perhaps I can make a scan. 

I have put the scanned image here:

    http://main.amu.edu.pl/~rafalp/HERM/VMS/sword.jpg

As can be seen, there is nothing Voynich-like in the inscription,
so this is probably (along with Barachis) another wrong lead.

Best regards,

Rafal