On Thursday, October 21 at 5PM Pacific, we are particularly excited to be featuring Dr. Dyane Sherwood giving a presentation on the alchemical illuminated manuscript, the Splendor Solis. The illuminated manuscript of the Splendor Solis is one of the Treasures of the British Library, and in recent years has become widely known for the beauty of its 22 illuminated paintings. In her presentation, Dyane Sherwood will place the Splendor Solis in context, give the audience an overview, and then focus on some of the images in depth. We will discover the sophisticated consciousness behind three series of images that portray a process of depth transformation that moves from (1) a personal process, (2) to an appreciation of a relationship between archetypal, environmental, and inner states, and (3) finally to a profound acceptance of the nature of being. Dr. Sherwood will address two interrelated themes of the Splendor Solis that are more relevant today than ever before: the fact that humans can use Nature to work against Nature and the need for, in Jungian terms, redemption of the Feminine Principle.
Dyane Sherwood collaborated with the late Joseph L. Henderson, MD on a book relating the images of the Splendor Solis to the process of transformation in analysis. Dr. Henderson had his personal analysis with C.G. Jung and was the only American contributor to Jung's remarkable book, Man and His Symbols. Dr. Sherwood is a Jungian psychoanalyst, sand-play therapist, and author. She founded the Analytical Psychology Press.