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Fulcanelli and the Alchemical Revival: The Man Behind the Mystery of the Cathedrals
Sheds new light on the identity of the alchemist Fulcanelli
• Provides new understanding of the relationships between the most important figures of the esoteric milieu of Paris in the first half of the 20th century
• Includes a wealth of rarely seen documents, photos, and letters
Fulcanelli, operative alchemist and author of The Mystery of the Cathedrals and The Dwellings of the Philosophers-- two of the most important esoteric works of the twentieth century--remains himself a mystery. The true identity of the man who allegedly succeeded in creating the philosopher’s stone has never been discovered, despite ardent searches by many--even the OSS (the wartime U.S. intelligence agency, later to become the CIA) claimed to have looked for him following the end of World War II. Geneviève Dubois looks at the esoteric milieu of Paris at the turn of the century, a time that witnessed a great revival of the alchemical tradition, and investigates some of its salient personalities. Could one of these have been this enigmatic man, reported to have last appeared in Seville, Spain, in 1952 when he would have been 113 years of age?
The trail followed by the author encounters such figures as Papus, René Guénon, Schwaller de Lubicz, Pierre Dujols, Eugene Canseliet, and Jean-Julien Champagne. Working from rare documents, letters, and photos, Dubois suggests that one of these men could have been hiding his activity behind the pseudonym of Fulcanelli or that Fulcanelli may even have been a composite fabricated by several of these individuals working together. Beyond its attempt to reveal the actual identity of Fulcanelli, Fulcanelli and the Alchemical Revival also presents an explanation of the alchemical doctrine and reveals the unsuspected relationships among the important twentieth-century truth seekers it highlights.
• Provides new understanding of the relationships between the most important figures of the esoteric milieu of Paris in the first half of the 20th century
• Includes a wealth of rarely seen documents, photos, and letters
Fulcanelli, operative alchemist and author of The Mystery of the Cathedrals and The Dwellings of the Philosophers-- two of the most important esoteric works of the twentieth century--remains himself a mystery. The true identity of the man who allegedly succeeded in creating the philosopher’s stone has never been discovered, despite ardent searches by many--even the OSS (the wartime U.S. intelligence agency, later to become the CIA) claimed to have looked for him following the end of World War II. Geneviève Dubois looks at the esoteric milieu of Paris at the turn of the century, a time that witnessed a great revival of the alchemical tradition, and investigates some of its salient personalities. Could one of these have been this enigmatic man, reported to have last appeared in Seville, Spain, in 1952 when he would have been 113 years of age?
The trail followed by the author encounters such figures as Papus, René Guénon, Schwaller de Lubicz, Pierre Dujols, Eugene Canseliet, and Jean-Julien Champagne. Working from rare documents, letters, and photos, Dubois suggests that one of these men could have been hiding his activity behind the pseudonym of Fulcanelli or that Fulcanelli may even have been a composite fabricated by several of these individuals working together. Beyond its attempt to reveal the actual identity of Fulcanelli, Fulcanelli and the Alchemical Revival also presents an explanation of the alchemical doctrine and reveals the unsuspected relationships among the important twentieth-century truth seekers it highlights.
182 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1990
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
June 7, 2008
What a dreadful book - poorly written, obscure, poorly translated, poorly edited, pompous, deeply incoherent and providing no context or analysis. It gets one star because it contains some interesting photographs and some less interesting but at least accurately photographed documentation. You are left with an impression of a set of more than a little nutty marginalised figures living from hand to mouth on their eccentricities - and this may not be entirely fair to them. What we want is a hypothesis on why 'Fulcanelli' appeared at that time and what he meant to the people who created him. Why am I spending so much time even reviewing it!
October 13, 2018
Appassionante studio bibliografico, attraverso le testimonianze e il mito del grande Fulcanelli. La Dubois va a fondo nelle sue ricerche e le prove annesse alla sua tesi finale sono difficilmente confutabili. Una lettura interessante.
April 8, 2021
A little difficult at the beginning with all the names and footnotes. Maybe not the best book to start with if you are just getting into this mystery but she does claim to know who he was.
June 30, 2021
The problem with this book is encapsulated in the use of a 1936 article that the author asserts prefigures Fulcanelli’s Cyclic Cross of Hendaye chapter. The implication is plagiarism and Dubois says that we find “virtually all” Fulcanelli’s theories in it. The reader therefore looks for Dubois to analyze, to draw comparisons. But all we get is that statement and a difficult to read photo. In effect, when it comes to establishing who Fulcanelli was, this book is a jumble of guesswork and amateur handwriting analysis.
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November 14, 2008Wicked, wicked Genevieve! Like some McLuhan machine (a mechanical bride), what are you obscuring? What do you reveal? Who are you working for? Why has nobody bothered to read you closely in relation to the Riviere book, cross their eyes and see the stereogram you two generate together?
November 28, 2014
Really just a jumble of names rather than a coherent narrative. It focuses on too many disparate individuals without really telling us anything about them, which just becomes disorientating. Dubois really adds nothing to the debate which is not covered in the superior 'Fulcanelli Phenomena'.
August 31, 2012
If your releally into secret societies and history of about hidden treasures and what the Myans are telling us it is real eye opener.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews