VMs: Edward Dyer in Prague

["J HALEY" <j.haley@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Here is an extract from levity.com

http://www.levity.com/alchemy/golden_m.html
2. Kelley, 1586, Trebona in Bohemia
In the mid-19th century a private diary of Doctor John Dee came to light,
'written in a very small illegible script on the margins of old almanacks.'
The diary recounts that learned doctor's journey to Bohemia, in the company
of Edward Kelley. In the year 1588, the Elizabethan courtier Dyer received
from Dee the news that his colleague 'had at last achieved the secret of the
ages, that Kelley could indeed transmute base metals into gold.' This news
brought Dyer to Prague later in the year to see for himself how matters
stood.
Dee's diary for 1586 tersely records some stages of the Work: 'March 24th,
Mr K. put the glass in dung.... Dec 13th, Mr E.K. gave me the water, erth
and all.' Then, on 19th December 'novi kalendarii', meaning the Gregorian
calendar, at Trebona, in the castle of Count Rosenburg, 'E.K. made
projection with his powder in the proportion of one minim upon an ounce and
a quarter of mercury and produced nearly an ounce and a quarter of best
gold; which gold we afterwards distributed from the crucible' (5).

Looking at the Dee diaries this is significant. What can this 'gold' be
that catches the interest of one of the most important intelligence
operatives of Leicester's network. Remember the Spanish Armada
is underway and no amount of Gold will save the situation in the near
future, especially not a simple promise. At a crucial time for the English
spy network one of its vital controllers travels abroad! This must have
been an intelligence gathering trip. Something Dee could not trust to a
courier. This was the very month before the defeat of the Armada. No
time for a jaunt.

I believe the whole of Dee's magical works need critical review. They
are not what they seem. If this had been a bluff or a simple con on the
part of Dee at such a critical time for England he would have been
placed in the tower and executed. Dee would have been well aware
of this fact. You can call him anything else but he was no fool.

Jeff


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