The Secret Zodiac. The Hidden Art in Mediaeval Astrology. London, Arkana, Penguin Group 1989. Gr.-8°. With 36 illustrations in the text. XIX, [1], 194, [2] w. S. Illustrierte OKart.
Originally published 1987 in London by Routledge & Kegan Paul. - „The Florentine basilica of San Miniato al Monte contains a thirteenth-century marble zodiac which, the author argues, was designed according to an extraordinarily significant astrological schema, and embodies the mediaeval Church’s desire to refute an influential contemporary prophecy of the coming of the Antichrist. The Secret Zodiac shows how all the occult devices of the mediaeval artist are employed in San Miniato - from a ray of light which falls twice a year upon a particular symbol, to a message concealed in code in a Latin inscription set near to the zodiac itself. Fred Gettings uncovers and explains the importance of all these arcane symbols, and relates each to the general and occult philosophy of the time. He concludes that San Miniato is probably the last surviving church to have been designed by initiates with a profound and explicit knowledge of astrology and hermetic lore.“ (Cover-text). - Gutes Exemplar.
