Abstract
Hermes is best known in the Renaissance as the supposed author of the Corpus Hermeticum, a collection of 17 Greek texts on spiritual education of which 14 were translated into Latin by Marsilio Ficino in 1463. One text of the ancient Corpus Hermeticum was translated into Latin in late Antiquity under the title “Asclepius” (the Greek text is lost), and was the main conduit through which the doctrine of Hermes Trismegistus was known in the Latin West. The theoretical Hermeticism in the Corpus Hermeticum was accompanied by numerous texts of technical Hermeticism (in alchemy and talismanic-making), most of which were transmitted via Arabic.
Bibliography
Primary Sources
(1994–/in progress) Hermes Latinus, ed. Lucentini P. Vittoria Perrone Compagni. Brepols, Turnhout
Copenhaver Brian P (1992) Hermetica: the Greek Corpus Hermeticum and the Latin Asclepius in a new English translation with notes and introduction. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Festugière André-Jean (1950–1954) La révélation d’Hermès Trismégiste, 4 vols. J. Gabalda, Paris
Secondary Sources
Burnett C (2001) The establishment of medieval Hermeticism. The medieval world, ed. Linehan P, Nelson JL. Routledge, London/New York, pp 111–130
Fowden G (1986) The Egyptian Hermes: a historical approach to the late pagan mind. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge
Lucentini P, Parri I, Perrone Compagni V (eds) (2003) Hermetism from late antiquity to humanism = La tradizione ermetica dal mondo tardo-antico all’umanesimo: atti del convegno internazionale di studi, Napoli, 20–24 novembre 2001. Brepols, Turnhout
Lucentini P, Perrone Compagni V (2001) I testi e i codici di Ermete nel Medioevo. Edizioni Polistampa, Florence
Porreca D (2001) The influence of Hermetic texts on western European philosophers and theologians (1160–1300). PhD, University of London
Ruska J (1926) Tabula Smaragdina. Carl Winter, Heidelberg
Ruska J (1928) Zwei Bücher De compositione alchemiae und ihre Vorreden. Archiv für Geschichte der Mathematik, der Naturwissenschaft und der Technik (Sudhoffs Archiv) 11:28–37
Van Bladel K (2009) The Arabic Hermes: from pagan sage to prophet of science. Oxford University Press, Oxford
Van den Broek R (2005) Hermetism. Dictionary of gnosis and western esoterism, 2 vols, ed. Hanegraaff WJ. Brill, Leiden/Boston, pp 558–570
Van den Broek R, Lucentini P, Faivre A (2005) Hermes Trismegistus. Dictionary of gnosis and western esoterism, 2 vols, ed. Hanegraaff WJ. Brill, Leiden/Boston, pp 474–486
Van den Broek R, Lucentini P, Lory P, Faivre A (2005) Hermetic literature. Dictionary of gnosis and western esoterism, 2 vols, ed. Hanegraaff WJ. Brill, Leiden/Boston, pp 487–544
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Springer Science+Business Media B.V.
About this entry
Cite this entry
Burnett, C. (2011). Hermes Trismegistus. In: Lagerlund, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Medieval Philosophy. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9729-4_209
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4020-9729-4_209
Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht
Print ISBN: 978-1-4020-9728-7
Online ISBN: 978-1-4020-9729-4
eBook Packages: Humanities, Social Sciences and Law