Zodiacale: Opera Religiosa
Rome: Ausonia, 1919. First edition of 100 copies. 25x18cm, [7], 115, [5]pp. 12 etchings and vignette Auras for each sign by Ferenzona. Bound in black paper wraps, yapped edges, printed label on front cover. Paper toned and somewhat brittle, marginal damp staining to lower corner of plates. Wrappers with a few small edge tears. Very good.
Very rare occult work from the prolific Italian painter and printmaker, Raoul Dal Molin Ferenzona (1879-1946). Ferenzona defined himself a Pre-Raphaelite, but his work was deeply influenced by Belgian and Czech Symbolism, as well as Theosophical, Rosicrucian, and other esoteric schools. His influences were also deeply rooted in the occult and macabre, and included Aubrey Beardsley, Félicien Rops, Jean Delville, and others. Ferenzona synthesized these ideas and influences into a unique and creative 20th-century style which was well ahead of its time.
Ferenzona was especially active in Rosicrucian and Theosophical circles in Rome during the period in which this book was produced, and reportedly became a devout follower of master alchemist, Giuliano Kremmerz. He named his few illustrated books published during this time "Rosicrucian Mysteries," or tools for self-initiation. From the excellent biography of Ferenzona on the World Religions and Spirituality Project website, by Michele Olzi:
"One of these 'Mysteries' was conceived and published in the period Ferenzona spent 'in-between Bern and Rome' at the end of World War I. In 1919, Ferenzona published Zodiacale – Opera Religiosa (Zodiacal: A Religious Book), a 'book dedicated to God' whose content was a collection of twelve prayers, twelve copper engravings, and twelve tales. The number twelve had two meanings: twelve are the signs of the Zodiac, and twelve is a multiple of four, the number of the conditions to access the truth in the most renowned treatise written by French esoteric master Éliphas Lévi (1810-1875) – 'to know, to dare, to will, to remain silent' (Lévi 1861:110). These 'four words of truth' serve as the conclusion of Zodiacale. The book includes twelve sections. Each section is introduced by a prayer (a brief poem), a copper engraving, and a tale. These narrative pieces are surreal tales populated by magicians, mad painters, enchanted puppets, alchemists, and psychics engaged in bizarre adventures. Zodiacale is both a magical and alchemical book. 'The art of the book' of Ghirlanda di stelle becomes here the activation of an alchemical process. Each character in the book is a facet of the author’s self, and every engraving [Image at right] is a further step in a process of transformation. Like Dürer, Ferenzona proposes an opus alchemicum through his engravings. Through the cycle of the twelve zodiac signs, and through the poems and tales, both the author and the audience are invited to transcend themselves. Both Caffarelli and Evola received copies of this magical book from Ferenzona."
Zodiacale is an exceedingly scarce, deeply symbolic and magical book from an artist whose influence was not fully realized until later in the 20th century. OCLC cites a single holding at the National Library of Israel.
. Item #9546
Price: $2,000.00