W - SIGILS

Dictionary of Occult - Hermetic and Alchemical Sigils

WARM

FRANKLYN 1627

SHELTON 17C

GESSMANN 1906

WASBOGA

Sigil and name for spirit given by HEYDON 1664 to represent the letter W in the secret writing called 'Alphabet of Angels and Genii'

WASH IN LYE

GESSMANN 1906

WATER

The majority of the following sigils were undoubtedly originally intended to denote the element of water, the principle of liquidity, rather than the specific liquid now expressed by the word.

BERTHELOT 1885 records a sigil from the Greek alchemical tradition :

and one which, whilst appearing in the Greek forms, is probably from the Egyptian :

ALCHEMY 1650

CROLLIUS 1670

FRESNE 1650

ALCHEMICAL 17C

SIGNA 17C

SOMMERHOFF 1701

DIDEROT 1763

GEHEIME 1785

GESSMANN 1906

CARBONELLI 1925

LUEDY 1928

WELLING 1735 records three speciallised sigils, the first of which is intended to show a 'reflection' of the higher spiritual force (but in the same text, the sigil is used also to denote common destructive sulphur) :

The second sigil is said by WELLING 1735 to represent the 'invisible spiritual Water', that occult water which was supposed to have existed before the descent of Lucifer :

The third sigil given by WELLING 1735 may by confused with other sigils, for example with one of the forms for ORPIMENT :

Among other rarities, OLIVIER 1826 gives the sigil

as an 'Ancient Egyptian symbol' for elemental water.

For common water, DIDEROT 1763 gives two variants

GESSMANN 1906 gives three

as well as recording a sigil for hot water :

For unsavoury water, GESSMAN 1906 gives the form :

KOCH 1930 gives the sigil

which may be wrongly copied from those given for the THREE WATERS.

SHEPHERD 1971 gives one sigil if circa 1400 :

and one sigil claimed to be cabalistic ;

Besides the sigils listed for the special types of Water set out below, see also RAIN WATER and THREE WATERS.

WATER BAPTISM

See THREE BAPTISMS.

WATER BATH

GESSMANN 1906 gives the following sigils for the Balneum Mariar :

But see also GRADES OF FIRE.

WATER HAND

In modern chirognomy, the sigil is used to denote the male Water hand type, sometimes called the Sensitive hand, given in GETTINGS 1965 :

The female Water hand is accorded the sigil :

WATER OF LIFE

VALENTINE 1671

ALCHEMICAL 17C

DIDEROT 1763

LUEDY 1928

SCHNEIDER 1962

SOMMERHOFF 1701 gives various recipes, and the following sigils :

WATER OF MERCURY

ALCHEMICAL 17C

WATER TRIPLICITY

Sigil recorded by (perhaps indeed divised by) AGRIPPA 1510 to symbolise the three water signs of the zodiac (Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces) of which the sigil is merely a rather obvious amalgam :

WAX

WORLIDGE 1651

VALENTINE 1671

SIGNA 17C

SHELTON 17C

DIDEROT 1763

KOCH 1930

WAXING AND WANING MOON

Sigil given (perhaps originated) by KOCH 1930 in his somewhat personal collection of sigils :

WEEK

SOMMERHOFF 1701 records a mediaeval graphic system in which ONE WEEK is

TWO WEEKS

THREE WEEKS

and FOUR WEEKS

WHEEL OF FORTUNE

WIRTH 1927 relates this 10th card of the Tarot pack to the Hebraic JOD, and accords it the sigils

the first of witch is the SWATIKA, the last two of which are claimed to represent the number 10, and are thus related to the symbolism of the DECADE.

WHITE

BERTHELOT 1885 records the sigil

from the Greek

WHITE AMBER

SHELTON 17C

GESSMANN 1906

WHITE ARSENIC

SHELTON 17C

SIGNA 17C

SOMMERHOFF 1701

GESSMANN 1906

SCHNEIDER 1962

KOCH 1930

WHITE BOLE

GESSMANN 1906

WHITE COAGULATE

BERTHELOT 1885 records the sigil

from the Greek alchemical tradition.

WHITE CORAL

SHELTON 17C

WHITE LEAD

ALCHEMICAL 17C

SIGNA 17C

DIDEROT 1763

POISSON 1891

GESSMANN 1906

LUEDY 1928

KOCH 1930

SCHNEIDER 1962

SOMMERHOFF 1707 records the sigil

and records further for cerussa :

WHITE OF EGG See ALBUMEN

WHITE OXIDE OF ARSENIC See WHITE ARSENIC

WHITE PRECIPITATE OF MERCURY

GESSMANN 1906

WHITE VINEGAR

DIDEROT 1703

WHITE VITRIOL

ALCHEMY 1650

SOMMERHOFF 1701

DIDEROT 1763

GESSMANN 1906

LUEDY 1928

SCHNEIDER 1962

WHITE WINE

SOMMERHOFF 1701

DIDEROT 1763

GESSMANN 1906

LUEDY 1928

SCHNEIDER 1962

But see also WINE

WICK

DIDEROT 1763

GESSMANN 1906

WILL

LEO 1914 gives the modern sigil for the SUN to symbolise the power of the human will :

WIND FURNACE

GESSMANN 1906 gives three sigils for the fornax portabilis :

WINE

ALCHEMICAL 17C

DIDEROT 1763

GESSMANN 1906

BERTHELOT 1885 records a sigil from the Greek tradition :

CROSLAND 1962 records the Greek sigil for sweet wine :

SOMMERHOFF 1701 gives a number of variants, as follows :

VINUM

VINUM ADUSTUM

VINUM ALBUM

VINUM CIRCULATUM

VINUM COCTUM

VINUM CORRECTUM

VINUM EMETICUM

VINUM HIPPOCRATICUM

VINUM LAXATIVIM

VINUM MEDICATUM

VINUM MORTUUM

VINUM RUBRUM

VINUM SUBLIMATUM

WINTER

ALCHEMY 1650

SHELTON 17C

SOMMERHOFF 1701

GESSMANN 1906

WISDOM

LEO 1914 gives the standard sigil for the MOON to symbolise human wisdom :

KOCH 1930 gives the sigil which is perhaps wrongly derived from the sigil hermeticum :

WITHOUT WINE

A sigil recorded by GESSMANN 1906 is no doubt a short-form for sine vino :

WOOD

SOMMERHOFF 1701

GESSMANN 1906

SCHNEIDER 1962

KOCH 1930

WOOD ASHES

GESSMANN 1906

WOOL

SOMMERHOFF 1701

WORLD ARCANUM

WIRTH 1927 relates this 21st card of the Tarot pack to the Hebrew letter SCHIN, and accords it the sigil of the CROSS, or the 'primitive tau'

as well as the SWASTIKA :

Since the Word card has within its design the four fixed signs of the zodiac, symbolised in the FOUR EVANGELISTS, a basic cross formation may indeed be said to underlie the design : however, this card is graphically the recerse of the HANGING MAN, and should perhaps be given the sigil :