Salvador Dali - Alchimie des Philosophes


Salvador Dali
Spanish (1904 – 1989)

Salvador Dali Alchimie des Philosophes, Alchemy of the Philosophers – 1975

The book Salvador Dali Alchimie des Philosophes contains text in two sections and consists of replicas of old documents with translations. The text is illustrated on selected chapter heading with serigraphs of Dali drawings. For the book Salvador Dali Alchimie des Philosophes, he illustrated 10 full sheet drypoint etchings with lithography and serigraphy, which are very colorful, size 30 x 22″ with no margins. Each work is signed by Dali.

The cover of the book includes a wheel containing mercury and is completely intact. Currently we have Salvador Dali Alchimie des Philosophes book #94/225 available, complete in fine condition. It contains all of the semi-precious stone that are fixed to the engravings. The information that is on the justification page is given in its entirety below. Available!!!

We also have for sale the individual etchings shown below which are from Yves Gauguet, president of Art et Valeur, the publisher. They are noted as epreuve d’essai and signed by Dali either in pencil or marker. These are available individually. They come with a Certificate of Authenticity from Yves Gauguet and reference to authentication by Decharnes.

This is background information.

Salvador Dalí is perhaps the most broadly known member of the Surrealist movement of the early twentieth century. Heavily influenced by Sigmund Freud, the avant-garde style explored consciousness and dream-like states. He did this through exaggerated landscapes and bizarre or grotesque imagery. Using the means of painting, Dalí explored these ideas with a meticulous hand and inventive wit. He also used sculpture, printmaking, film and literature. Click on this link for additional background information on Salvador Dali.

This is the tirage for Alchimie des Philosophes.

The entire world printing of Salvador Dali ALCHEMY OF THE PHILOSOPHERS, including ten original illustrations on parchment by SALVADOR DALI, is limited, whatever the language edition and whatever materials are used, to 275 copies, numbered and distributed as follows:
225 copies with text in French and English have been numbered 1 to 225: each bears the Artist’s signature on the plates and the authentication certificate.
50 copies with text in French and Italian have been numbered 1/IT to 50/IT; each bears the signature of he Artist on the plates and the authentication certificate. There are a few epreuve d’essai retained by the publisher.

Available for sale are:

1) The complete book of ten lithographs, w/case, text and title page. Available

2) Individual works as described above. Those that are available individually are marked as such.

Finally, go to the main Dali Page for complete etching information.

Click on the thumbnail for a larger image.

E-mail us for Price and condition report. Subsequently, call us for more information.

Alchimie des Philosophes


The text is printed on a 250-gram pure rag paper, specially made by hand and open-air dried at the Richard de Bas papermill at Ambert in Auvergne. The paper carries the publisher’s watermark ART ET VALEUR-PARIS.

The French, English and Italian translations of selected texts are printed in two columns, set by hand in 20-point Garamount type by the art printer, dominique VIGLINO of Bourg-la-Rein. Headings and ornamental capitals are from woodcuts by Henri RENAUD. Facsimiles of the original documents and manuscripts, which appear opposite the printed texts, were reproduced by the JACOMET studio in Motrouge
The documents were taken from works found in the bibliotics Marciana in Venice, at the Bodleian Library, Oxford, at the King’s College Library in Cambridge, in the Indian Office Library in London, at the Library of the University of Wisconsin in Madison, in the bibliotheque Nationale and the Arsenal in Paris and in the bibliotheque du Museum d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris.
The six SALVADOR DALI drawings that illustrate the title pages of the chapters on the six realm of alchemy were printed by serigraphy at the Franconville Atelier of Michel CAZA.

The Salvador Dali Alchimie des Philosophes was bound in two sections, containing plates and text, in leather and parchment by ADINE of Paris.
Adorning the center of the front cover in parchment is a movable wheel containing mercury. This ornamentation was originally conceived by SALVADOR DALI after the theme of Raymond LULIE’S “Roues Combiatoires (Combinative Wheels).
The inscriptions on the spines and the wreathed monogram of SALVADOR DALI have been diestamped in gold.
The interior divisions of certain of the works are set off by a special embossed paper of wood pulp impregnated with mineral elements created by Marius PERAUDEAU of the richard de Bas mills.
SALVADOR DALI has created ten original plates on parchment, combining lithography, serigraphy and copperplate engraving, based on the great themes of alchemy.
The imperial format (20″/30”) lamb skin parchment was specially hand finished and strengthened by the parchment makers of BODIN-JOYEUX in Chateauroux..
The 12 – to – 18 color lithography was done in Pars at the ARTS-LITHO Studio. Michel CAZA used special 5 – to – 10 cool serigraphic printing to produce the reliefs. Prints from the copperplate engravings are the work of Pierre CHAMBILI, copperplate engraver at the Dominique VIGLINO Atelier.
The original SALVADOR DALI plates in certain of these works are adorned with semi-precious and precious stones.
As usual, additional artist copies and copies not intended for sale, reserved for the artist, the authors and the copyright deposit, have been numbered and signed by SALVADOR DALI.