Celestial Expression or Worldly Magic The Invisibly Integrated Design

Garden History Society
CELESTIAL EXPRESSION OR WORLDLY MAGIC? THE INVISIBLY INTEGRATED DESIGN OF

URANIBORG: A LOOK AT SOME PHILOSOPHICAL ASPECTS OF THE GROUND PLAN OF TYCHO
BRAHE'S HOUSE AND GARDEN, 1576–97
Author(s): VIVIENNE PARROTT
Source: Garden History, Vol. 38, No. 1 (SUMMER 2010), pp. 66-80
Published by: Garden History Society
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27821617
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VIVIENNE PARROTT
CELESTIAL EXPRESSION OR WORLDLY MAGIC?

THE INVISIBLY INTEGRATED DESIGN OF URANIBORG:
A LOOK AT SOME PHILOSOPHICAL ASPECTS OF THE
GROUND PLAN OF TYCHO BRAHE'S HOUSE AND
GARDEN, 1576-97
This paper investigates some philosophical aspects embedded within the first stage of the
design of Uraniborg, a complex purposely built for Tycho Brahe on the island of Hven
in the Danish sound in the sixteenth century in order to observe the stars and advance
scientific study. His innovative scientific methods for measuring the positions of the stars
provided the detailed and accurate observational data which enabled Johannes Kepler to
formulate his theory of planetary motion. More than that, Brahe was a true Renaissance
man, andit is aspects of that neo-Flatonic, Pythagorean philosophy that informed his
cosmology and which were brought to bear on the design of his house and garden.
This paper reports on a study of two images of an iconic design that present an integrated
picture of Uraniborg, the house and garden created by the sixteenth-century astronomer
Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) on the island of Hven, Denmark, for the purpose of observing
the heavens.1 It isproposed that this integration goes beyond an architectural aesthetic and
is based on philosophies which link the house and garden together in a dimensional world
of functionality and belief. Brahe is known for his innovative astronomical observation
techniques for which the greater part of his work was undertaken in Uraniborg, his
'Castle of the Heavens' (Figure l).2 What would become internationally famous as the
Uraniborg estate extended over thewhole island, and besides the house and garden, the
complex consisted of an observatory with pioneering astronomical instruments, a paper
mill and a printing press, farms, woods and fishponds. The house and garden became
particularly distinguished for their symmetrical design.
Whilst ahead of his time in some respects, Brahe was also a man of his time and
- the house
throughout his career adhered as much to alchemy as he did to astronomy
contained an alchemical laboratory. If in today's science alchemy and astrology are wholly
discredited, forBrahe and intellectuals like him these subjects were linked, the one informing
the other.3 This helped to provide not only a diagnostic tool over a range of applications
including medicinal requirements, but also a practical way of trying to understand a unified
universe. It enabled investigation of a world of inter-relational dependencies where what
happened above in the heavens impacted on the natural world inwhich man through his
intelligence could read the signs and understand themystery ofmeaning.
Ownership of the island of Hven provided Brahe with an intellectual independence
in which he was able to pursue not only astronomy and meteorology, but also other
23 Brackley Road, Heaton Chapel, Stockport, Cheshire SK4 2QT, UK
ASPECTS OF TYCHO BRAHE'S HOUSE AND GARDEN, 1576-97 67
Figure 1. The Island of Hven off the western coast of Sweden; from Victor E. Thoren,
adapted
The Lord of Uraniborg: A Biography of Tycho Brahe (Cambridge, 1990), p. 9
hermetic philosophies that interested him. His own printing press enabled him to
disseminate his discoveries and thoughts. This independence would ultimately be one
of several determining factors that forced him to flee from his beloved creation in 1597,
which was demolished shortly after.4The outline of the garden, however, remained visible
as itwas surrounded by large earth embankments.5 In recent years, there has been an
increased momentum to commemorate Brahe and his work encouraged by a greater
awareness of his role in astronomical history6 and his
relationship with Johannes Kepler.7
This led to in-depth research with respect to themain building,8 while others investigated
his garden.9 His nearby underground observatory was reconstructed in the 1980s and a
new museum opened in 2005. Based on a project by the
landscape architect Sven-Ingvar
Anderson, work on the reconstruction of the gardens began in 1992.10
Previous interpretations of the design of the house and garden have often been centred
within a modern and selective viewpoint of neo-Platonic or Paracelsian philosophy
highlighting those aspects that favour modern understanding (such as harmony in nature)
rather than themagical references which both include. Certainly in recent years there has
appeared to be a drive towards regarding the house in Palladian terms, thereby ignoring
other possibilities.11 This paper attempts to bridge this philosophical/ideological gap by
taking advantage ofmodern scholarship in fields other than those traditionally exploited
and thus interpret the design of theUraniborg complex. To enable an analysis of the initial
68 GARDEN HISTORY 38:1
design phase of the house and garden, it focuses specifically on fundamental aspects of
Pythagorean mysticism which were common property during the sixteenth century. This
geometry exercised 'an almost magical power'12 over architecture and architects at that
-
time; Uraniborg will thus be presented from a different perspective advocating another
way of seeing.13 Perhaps in so doing itwill provide a more balanced insight into another
era, which in turn enables a back-to-basics and more empirical approach to unanswered
questions regarding the design of Renaissance places.
DAWN
At sunrise on 8 August 1576, a foundation stone was laid on the island of Hven. The
house that Brahe built, and the garden which surrounded it, are now known mainly from
two contemporary woodcut illustrations (Figures 2 and 3),14 and although numerous
archaeological investigations have taken place over the years, more questions remain than
answers.15 Such remains as have been located suggest discrepancies between the reality
of the construction and the ideal as depicted.16 Written in 1598 in exile, the illustrations
of Uraniborg which Brahe included in his Astronomiae Instauratele Mechanica (1598)17
with a dedication to Rudolph II, Holy Roman Emperor, were symbolic on several levels
and designed to be read and understood by his social and intellectual peers. Uraniborg
was an expression and an extension of Brahe's natural
philosophy, which included those
hermetic beliefs which were:
genuine attainments of a searching mind, operating not in a vacuum but within the
web of a culture, tied to a vast network of related beliefs and hypotheses, limited
by the store of his data and the scope of his view and fashioned by the beliefs of the
time.18
In an age that predated the development of modern mathematics, intellectual

exploration was an 'art' and ideas were expressed through painting, poetry and music,
and in the scientific 'arts' through alchemy and astrology, all developed within a
philosophy that was both relational and interconnected. In common with many of his
scholarly contemporaries, Brahe was aware of 'occult' or hidden forces, such as those
which heavenly bodies (for example, theMoon) exercised over the Earth (for example,
the tides). Itwas these hidden forces that bound the universe together in a macrocosmic
microcosmic relationship; to understand theworld, itwas necessary to try and interpret
such hidden forces and, if at all possible, to harness and utilize them.
This paper provides a context inwhich three aspects of the original Uraniborg design
are discussed: firstly, it explores one of the many levels of meaning
implicit within the
initial design phase; secondly, the possibility of utilizing a back-to-basics approach to
understanding the original first phase of the design, the ground plan of the house and
garden; and thirdly, it considers the integrated nature of the relationship between the
house and the garden.
TYCHO BRAHE: A NEW STAR

On 11 November 1572, Brahe observed a new, brilliant star in the constellation of
Cassiopeia. His measurements showed that it really was a distant star and not any local
phenomena. This was intriguing at that time, since the sphere of the starswas considered
to be divine and perfect, hence no changes ought to take place there. Brahe observed its
brightness regularly until it faded away the next year. He reported the event in his book
De Stella Nova, which was published the following year, and which made him famous
throughout Europe. This included in England, where Sir Thomas Smith, writing from
TOTIVS AMBITVS IT
CAPACITATAO ELINEATIO
Figure 2. Uraniborg, an
original illustration showing
the simpler garden form
without the addition of
exedras (semicircular
additions to the walls)
of the later illustration
(see Figure 3); from J. L.
E. Dreyer (ed.), Tychonis
Brahe Dani Opera Omnia
(Hauniae [Copenhagen]:
Libraria Gyldendaliana,
1913-29), VI, p. 349
Figure 3. Uraniborg, the

renovated garden design
(c.1591); from J. L. E. Dreyer
(ed.), Tychonis Brahe Dani
Opera Omnia (Hauniae
[Copenhagen]: Libraria
Gyldendaliana, 1913-29), VI,
p. 291
France, reported to Francis Walsingham on the brilliant star that had not been seen
before, acknowledging Brahe as the probable 'discoverer'.19
At this period the Danish Court, mainly for geographical and economic reasons,
was one of the wealthiest and most powerful in Europe. The Danish monarchy and
aristocracy benefited from a period of prosperity, which affected thewhole of Europe in
themid-sixteenth century.20Frederick II was keen to reflect the status of the kingdom by
establishing a new building programme and promoting art, architecture and learning. By
offering Brahe the island of Hven, he hoped to establish an institution of learning and
discovery that would be at the forefront of scientific research. In terms of location, the
island could provide separation from the world and the intrigues of the Danish Court
which would allow Brahe to focus on his studies.
EDUCATION AND ECLECTICISM

Brahe was twenty-nine years old when he arrived on Hven. Educated at the University
of Copenhagen, in his late teens he toured Europe,21 staying in university towns and
attending lectures there. As a nobleman, itwas his duty to return to Denmark and settle
down as a courtier, but he had other and quite contrary ideas. He developed a passion
for astronomy, which was matched by an interest in alchemy. Brahe was from a Lutheran
background and as he travelled he would have seen the results of Reformation and
Counter-Reformation politicking and knew the penalties for voicing opinions divergent
to those prevailing. Opinions though are formed from an accumulation of many things,
including education, observation and discussion with others and during Brahe's period,
reading. The printing press was revolutionizing the spread of ideas and availability of
information. Brahe himself was an avid collector of books, and his librarywas a source
of pride, as well as knowledge.22
In the period during which Brahe was a student, the medieval curriculum of the
trivium and quadrivium13 was becoming more flexible as interpretations of classic texts
and commentaries appeared in print in Latin. The discipline of rhetoric required intensive
training of thememory24 and that in turn demanded a broad intellectualism fromwhich an
argument could be constructed. The Phillipist interpretation of Lutheranism encouraged
acquisition of knowledge as a way to progress the intellect (soul) towards the light of
understanding.25
OCCULT/NATURAL PHILOSOPHY
The sixteenth-century meaning of the word 'philosophy' included the love of wisdom,
adeptness in occult science through alchemy, and an ability to predict theweather.26 The
work of Christian hermeticists, neo-Platonists and alchemical philosophers suggested that
the way to return to man's pre-lapserian state was through study, in particular through
study of the Bible and scrutiny ofNature. Entwined within alchemical studywas the use of
astrology. Although itwas Brahe's remit as Royal Astrologer to provide prognostication
for theDanish Court, he himself regarded astrology as a method of interpreting the signs
of a Creator. Brahe practised what is today termed iatro-chemistry or iatro-medicine27
and emphasis was laid on the Paracelsian nature of Brahe's alchemy.28Whether this added
to, or replaced, his Galenic knowledge is not known.29Whatever the case may have been,
astrology was a tool that facilitated his alchemy, the corresponding force which was
believed to exist between the planets, mineralogy and human organs existed within plants
as well. Based on past wisdom and observational rather than empirical study in a modern
sense, a philosophy developed that sought to unify man within the natural world and a
relationship which was perceived to exist between natural phenomena. The fundamental
principles of this philosophy were supported by the study of cause and effect of matter in
and on theworld inwhich man was the central figure.
Brahe's tour of Europe in the 1560s and early 1570s provided him with access to the
latest humanist theories and the opportunity not only to discuss these with other scholars
trained in the same educational disciplines as himself, but also with the chance to view
some of the new building programmes which were springing up.30 It also provided the
opportunity to meet craftsmen,31 and perhaps to discuss the theory that lay behind the
many architectural treatises that had been published and republished and those which
were appearing. Philosophical considerations aside, when it came to the design of what
would become Europe's first purpose-built, modern observatory, there were practical
elements to be considered as well as the aesthetic concerns to extol the virtues of Denmark,
Frederick II and himself.
URANIBORG
Fashion, too, played a mostly ornamental part in the design, both in the early version
and to a greater extent in its later incarnation.32 It is probable that Brahe used the cubit
as his basic form of measurement. Modern authors have translated the measurements
that he provided into imperial feet metres, and in so doing themystical Pythagorean
or
relationships that were behind the original calculations have been lost.33These original
'numberforms' relate not only to proportion, but also to dimensions and the distribution
of space.34 A precept of Pythagoreanism was that numbers were not abstract; they
possessed qualities as well as quantities and had symbolic as well as geometric attributes.
Reconstruction models have been made and articles written concerning the possible
proportionality of the symmetrical Uraniborg, usually with reference to the later
depiction.35 These viewpoints have often been expressed with hindsight. As J. L. E. Dreyer
noted, 'it is always difficult to avoid judging the ideas of former ages by our own, instead
of viewing them in connection with those which went before them, and fromwhich they
were developed'.36 Brahe's world was a musically modal, pre-diatonic, pre-Cartesian one.
Itwas also one thatwas discovering new harmonies using notes which were always there
but hidden.
THE PYTHAGOREAN TETRAD: ONE POSSIBLE LEVEL OF MEANING

This interpretation is based on the Pythagorean tetradwith its associated anthropomorphic
and magical overtones. It is one of several levels of possible meaning as interpreted from
written evidence that reflected an integral part of Brahe's cosmology and which found
expression within the design of his 'Castle of theHeavens'. In true classical poetical terms,
Brahe expressed his relationship to Urania his muse in the revelatory terms of a dream
inwhich he is chosen by Apollo to do her bidding.37 Neo-Platonism was based on the
rediscovery of the ancient Greek philosophies of Pythagoras, Plato and their followers.
The hermetic tradition of arcane knowledge reached back to Egypt and the Cabala of
mystical Judaism, which re-emerged in thirteenth-century Spain. In combination with
magic, alchemy and astrology formed the ars magica of the Renaissance. They all
advocated spiritual growth through the acquisition of greater insight: every human being,
itwas believed, had a divine spark and could find theirway back to God through gnosis
the illumination of knowledge. At a time when mysticism and science had not become
dissociated, the harmonious world view of Pythagoras was hugely satisfying.38
Geometrically speaking, the number four provides the first solid body. One makes
a plane surface but four
only a point, two makes only a straight line, three makes only
make a solid with volume and, therefore, is the proper number to represent the extended
universe. The cruciality of four was its relationship with ten; essentially because for
Pythagoreans this ideal number contained within itself the potentiality of perfection.39
The tetrad was the symbol of an all-embracing cosmology and the fundamental pattern
the universe. In consequence, there are four elements, four humours,
existing throughout
four seasons, four corners of the world, four cardinal winds, four rivers of Paradise,
four rivers of Hell, four archangels, four evangelists, four cardinal virtues, and so on.40
Based on the human form they express the relationship between the human figure and its
geometrical offspring (Figure 4).
Plato in the Timaeus explained that cosmic order and harmony are contained within
certain numbers.41 This harmony could be found in the squares and cubes of the double
and triple proportion starting from unity,which led him to two geometric progressions
one, two, four, eight (as in the Uraniborg ground plan) and one, three, nine, twenty
seven.42The harmony of theworld was expressed in these numbers embracing the secret
rhythm inmacrocosm and microcosm alike. The ratios between these numbers contain
not only all themusical consonances, but also the inaudible music of the heavens and the
structure of the human soul:43 'The cubit is formed from the square and the square in turn
is formed from theman of perfect proportions.'44 In essence: 1 palm = 4 inches; 4 palms
= 1 = 1 = 1 = 6 ft
foot; 6 palms cubit; 4 cubits pace; 24 palms (ideal man's height).
Although modern commentators have remarked on the small scale of Uraniborg,
accounts by those who visited Brahe on the island do not remark on the size of the
building. Brahe may have chosen the scale of his building because of economic factors
and/or he may have based his ground plan on the height of the 'ideal man' and multiplied
it by the ideal Pythagorean number ten to produce the dimensions of the central square
upon which the design is founded.
BACK TO BASICS
Brahe, in common with many learned men of the sixteenth century, used astrology
and alchemy as relational sciences to try to reveal the hidden forces which appeared to
exist between man and his environment.45 To create his design he could have followed
the advice of Cesar Cesariano or Sebastiano Serlio46 or any of the many architectural
treatises that had appeared before and since Daniele Barbaro's translation of Vitruvius
(De architectural), the Latin version of which appeared in 1567. Such treatises advocated
the use of a grid (tesserae)47 on which to construct the outline of the house and garden,
which was conceived as an integrated whole and by using the relational Pythagorean
measurements produce a design which generated its own ratio and thuswas in tunewith
itself.48Cesariano's commentaries on Vitruvius were republished in Antwerp in 1547,
the same year as Serlio published Books I and II of his Architecttura. Either will serve as
a basic model to draw up a ground plan. Starting with the point in the centre of a grid
(the unity) produce a square 60 feet by 60 feet49and working out symmetrically using the
basic doubling proportion the result is a facsimile of theUraniborg design (Figure 5).
In sixteenth-century architectural terms the square is a generic feature in the ground
plan of many buildings. For Serlio shapes were derived from the perfect square.50 In three
dimensions it produces a cube and that is derived from the temple shape described by
Vitruvius and featured inmost of thewell-known Italian architectural treatises thatwere
influencing those being produced in France51 and Flanders.52 Brahe was a scholar and the
likely author of the ground plan for the garden and building. The building was unique,
particularly in terms of its function, and there are several architects known to have been
involved,53 including Hans van der Paesschen54 and laterHans van Steenwinckel.55 These
were experienced architects who had worked on buildings on the Danish mainland and
in other parts of northern Europe.56
HOUSE AND GARDEN: AN INTEGRATED RELATIONSHIP

In the ground plan the enclosed garden that surrounded 'Urania's hcmse' was integral
to the design. It was linked to the unity point emanating from the naval of the 'ideal
man', not only in terms of proportional relationships, but also by implicit connections:
the diagonal axis created by the two prominent axes intersecting at the unity serve to
focus the design on the house. However, certain factors, while being signature indicators
of Italian Renaissance gardens, are not depicted in the original Uraniborg design.57
There are no obvious parterres, for example. A contemporary Renaissance garden was
characterized as a geometric garden, the most fundamental ordering element within
that space being compartmentalization.58 These elements are clearly shown in the later
Figure 5. Uraniborg, relational

development: radius of circle, 60; inner
square, 120; and outer square (inner
wall), 240. Scale = 1:200.
^wfN Drawing: author
depiction of Uraniborg where there are compartments subdivided by what may be lattice
fencing or plant material.59 Most Italian gardens made a reference to antiquity through
statues, topiary, labyrinths and grottoes, but these were not included in Brahe's original
garden design. Antique references occur, but only as architectural ornamentation on the
building. Although Uraniborg would include aviaries and arbours to encourage quiet
contemplation, the original depiction does not display the ostentatious geometry of the
later garden design. Itwas the human presence that distinguished Paradise from a garden,
literally or through mythical references.
The myth of Apollo and theMuses was the most widespread mythical reference
represented, particularly in Italian Renaissance gardens.60 Uraniborg, however, was
topped by a weather vane shaped in the image of Pegasus, his hoof strikingMount
Helicon, bringing forth theHippocrene spring in the form of a bronze automaton figure
of Aquarius, which was located in the centre of the house and at the centre of the design
at the unity point. This may also be an astrological reference since, in zodiacal terms, the
fountain near the Pegasus constellation is thatwith which Aquarius feeds the fishes. The
precise symmetry, the angular beds bisected by the four paths are the most prominent
features of the garden design. The elements are mirrored on each side of the square. Viewed
from above together with the house it presents a harmonic and hermetic reflection, the
macrocosmic/microcosmic relationship of 'as above so below'.61 In practical terms this
follows Leon Battista Alberti's decree that the same geometric figures should be employed
in the garden as in the design of the building.62
At Uraniborg, the buildings at each corner of the site echo the central unit of the
house. The diagonal axes that intersected the garden served to direct the view and link
the individual units and seen from a higher position (thewall or the house, for example)
ordered and unified the parts. From within the garden, however, the impression would
have been of separate, enclosed spaces and the bi-axial nature of the garden encouraged
movement along both the length and breadth of the space. The function of the axes was
less about unifying the space and more to do with connecting the end points, physically
and visually. In the early Uraniborg depiction (Figure 2) each path leads to a pergola
within the central circle. In the area in front of the trees no detail is shown, but the
accompanying key makes reference to herbaries and flower gardens. The wooded area is
described, but whilst this is differentiated, the trees are not identifiable. In the absence of
statues, fountains and other visual goals, the primary experience of the garden on entry
through the gate was the house. Illustrations of the Pythagorean tetradwithin the squared
circle were abundant in hermetic writings.63 They brought together in diagrammatic form
those elements discussed above. The early Pythagorean tetrads featured a dragon at the
centre; the later theological versions were centralised on 'IHS', the symbol of Christ.64 At
Uraniborg it focused on the acquisition of knowledge.
GARDEN DESIGN
In landscape termswhat is shown in the earlier design of Uraniborg (Figure 2) has obvious
cloistral overtones, a place for contemplation and the simple geometry reflects this.65 It
is not known whether Brahe considered Alberti's suggestion that trees be planted with
intertwined limbs to form geometric patterns. Itmay be that he decided to juxtapose
regular and irregular forms with the tree planting left as 'natural' and the geometric
compartments provided the ordered form. Francesco di Giorgio suggested that a garden
be shaped in a circle, square or even a pentagon or a hexagon; the circle was considered
the perfect geometric form because of its simplicity, uniformity and capabilities. It
represented the perfection of the cosmos.66
It is likely, given Brahe's interest in iatro-chemistry, that there would have been a
serious purpose to the garden - the sowing of herbs and plants for theirmedicinal as well
as culinary qualities. Over the gateway to Uraniborg there was a
sculpture illustrating
alchemy akin to the impress characters used in Brahe's publications. Around the left
arm of the figure the Aesculapian serpent is entwined, a symbol not only of the learning
and analytical purpose of Uraniborg, but also its practical medicinal side.67 Above all,
the original design of the Uraniborg garden would seem to fitwith the Platonic garden
described byMarsilio Ficino in his transcription of Ion: Tn the gardens of the Academy
poets will hear Apollo singing beneath the laurels ... within the innermost sanctuary
philosophers will recognise their Saturn as he contemplates the secrets of the heavens.'68
According to Ficino, when Plato refers to 'God', he means Apollo who, led by Jupiter,
is the leader of theMuses illuminating the souls of the world and of the spheres and
Urania is the voice of the 'starry heaven'.69 In common with other Renaissance gardens
the aim was to recreate the gardens of the ancients and to surpass them. Antique texts
inspired the planting of trees in ordered rows, terracing and the use of mythological
representation. Whereas Italian gardens used these ideas and embellished them making
great use of hydraulics, statues, grottoes and the like, Brahe in his garden on Hven does
not appear to include any of these features in either garden design.
SYMBOL OR IDEA
The intellectual eclecticism (neo-Platonic/Hermetic/Parecelsian influences) within
the design of Uraniborg means that the symbolism may be read in several ways. The
Pythagorean mysticism and associated numberforms, whilst providing one possible
explanation of the design process and the shape of the house, do not provide a clue
as to the possible influences on the design footprint of the complex (the ground plan).
Brahe's educational experiences provide further insight. Grammar, logic and rhetoric
(trivium) formed the fundamental building blocks on which the higher-level subjects
of arithmetic geometry, music and astronomy would be taught. These in turn provided
the preparatory groundwork for higher-level study of theology or philosophy. A trained
memory was an essential tool of the trade.70 In a gross oversimplification itmay be stated
thatwith this hermetic memory through which he grasps theworld, man is reflecting the
macrocosm in themicrocosm of his mind: 'The magic of celestial proportion flows from
his world memory into themagical worlds of his oratory and poetry and into the perfect
proportions of his art and architecture.'71 These were talismanic images that could draw
down power from above.72
TALISMANIC ASSOCIATIONS WITHIN THE DESIGN

To train and aid memory there were systems that involved imagery association (once
again, this is an oversimplification). One with which the astronomically and astrologically
aware Brahe would have been familiar was the geometric shape used to describe Heaven
(Figure 6).73 It enabled the order and the series of the images of Heaven to be engraved
upon it in the mind's eye. The diagram is based on the twelve Houses of Heaven, the
revolution of the sky taking place around the north and south poles. The diagrammatic
shape forHeaven is a striking one and interesting enough, perhaps, to inspire a design
thatwould reflect themacrocosmic world surrounding Uraniborg.
Paralleling the Platonic and neo-Platonic attribution of ontological significance
in the relationship between an ideal 'original' and its copy in nature, Ficino attributed
ontological significance to the relation between a symbol and its original. From this link
flows some measure of the potency of the original matter. In the neo-Platonic-cum-neo
Figure 7. left and below Theoretical diagram

indicating how zodiacal and alchemical symbolism
could relate to the Uraniborg design and symbols
universally used in Hermetic texts. Drawing: author
Zodiacal symbolism Core alchemical processes

Y Aries Decomposition through Calcination
X Taurus Modification through Congelation/Coagulation
% Gemini Modification through Fixation
O Cancer Union through Solution
n Leo Decomposition through Digestion
Scorpio Separation through Filtration

?i: Libra Separation through Sublimation
Tfb Virgo Separation through Distillation
Sagittarius Modification through Ceration
^ Capricorn Decomposition through Fermetation/Putrefaction
Aquarius Union through

Multiplication
M Pisces Union through
Projection
Pythagorean (Hermetic) thought of Ficino, Agrippa von Nettesheim, Paracelsus, John

Dee and Giordano Bruno, to mention a few, this was the common basis of talismanic
magic. Uraniborg is depicted in perfect symmetry not only in its physical design, but also
within a cosmological web. Itwas a design devised from a world view thatwas contained
within a geostatic and finite universe and fitted perfectly within an ideological framework
(Figure 7). Plants chosen for their iatro-chemical attributes could have been located in the
garden according to their inherent zodiacal properties. This combined with astrological
influences, such as the phases of theMoon or the likely influence of planetary movement
on weather conditions, may have determined when and where a plant was placed in the
ground.74 This of course is a purely speculative suggestion since evidential material is not
extant.
Uraniborg revolved around one man and itwas designed to reflect his status and
beliefs. The original garden design belonged to the philosophical house - a place for
someone who was seeking answers. As his fame spread, important people visited Brahe
and the ornate renovated garden design was that of someone who had found solutions to
these questions. Just as changes were made to the interior of the house and additions made
to the complex, so too the garden was developed over the period of Brahe's occupancy.
Around 1591, the earthen walls were remodelled to include the exedra, the orchards
were perhaps replanted and the garden redesigned. The design was then one that was
less of a philosophic house and more the home of Apollo, the sun at the centre of a
geostatic Tychonic universe (Figure 3). The synthesis of ideals that formed Brahe's cosmic
view was complex and included factors considered strange today. Hermetic philosophy
viewed God, the cosmos and humanity as forming an organic whole.75 By studying man
itwas possible to understand the universe, and by studying the universe itwas possible to
understand man. The heavens mirror the earth; as above so below; the interconnectedness
and corresponding nature of phenomena. Celestial expression or worldly magic, the
Uraniborg design was an intriguingly ambiguous statement of both.
REFERENCES
1
Fora fuller account, see Vivienne R. From Hermes to Isaac Newton
Trismegistus
Parrott, 'Moon, magic and Elysium: a study
(Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,
of the design of Uraniborg, the observatory 2003).
4
and home of Tycho Brahe on the island of With the accession to the Danish throne
Hven, Denmark (1576-1597)', MPhil thesis, of the young Christian IV, the focus of Danish
University of Sheffield, 2008. politics changed, economies were made, and
2
It was this work that ultimately created a Brahe lost some of the sources of his wealth.
foundation upon which Johannes Kepler was Enemies he had made sensed that he no longer
able to formulate his laws of planetary motion had the royal sympathies and he eventually
and produce his picture of a heliocentric decided to leave the island together with his
solar system. Kepler's last astronomical work scientific instruments before he was inevitably
published shortly before his death carries an pushed out.
to Brahe on the title page 5
acknowledgement The exact appearance of the wall
and is dedicated to Rudolph II, Holy Roman that surrounded is uncertain;
Uraniborg
Emperor. For a general introduction to the Anders ?dman, iTycho Brahe
'Arkeologi
of astronomy, see Patrick Moore, A -
history Iamningarna', in Tycho Brahe Stjarnornas
History of Astronomy, revd edn (London: Herre. Report (1996), pp. 171-9. My thanks
Macdonald, 1983). to Kjell Lundquist for this extract and to Dr
3
'Alchemy' and 'astrology' were not Mehdi Mobli for the translation.
6
simple terms in the way they are perhaps Moore, History of Astronomy, pp. 35-9.
understood today. For an informed view, see Also, for a general biography, see Victor E.
Frances A. Yates, The Occult Philosophy in the Thoren, The Lord of Uraniborg: A Biography
Elizabethan Age (London: Routledge Classics, of Tycho Brahe (Cambridge: Cambridge
2001), in particular Part I: 'The Occult University Press, 1990), pp. 220-64; and
Philosophy in Renaissance and Reformation'. William J. Boerst, Tycho Brahe: Mapping the
Also, for a general discussion on sources, see Heavens (Greensboro: Morgan Reynolds,
Stanton J. Linden (ed.), The Alchemy Reader: 2003).
7 18
David Brewster, The Martyrs of Science, Mark Graubard, Astrology and Alchemy,
or the Lives of Galileo, and Two Fossil Sciences (New York:
Tycho Brahe, Philosophical
Kepler (London: John Murray, 1841). For Library, 1953), p. ix.
19
a not entirely unbiased account, see Joshua G. P. V. Akrigg, Letters of King James VI
Gilder and Anne-Lee Gilder, Heavenly & I (Berkeley: University of California Press,
Intrigue: Johannes Kepler, Tycho Brahe, and 1984), letter CCCCIV, MS Harl. 260, f.380.
20
the Murder Behind One of History's Greatest Skovgaard, King's Architecture, p. 3.
Scientific Discoveries (New York: First Denmark profited in particular from the dues
Anchor, 2005); and for a less-than-rigorously taken from shipping as it passed through the
analytical approach, see Kitty Ferguson, The 0resund and from the export of cattle.
21
Nobleman and His Housedog; Tycho Brahe Thoren, Lord of Uraniborg, pp. 13-39.
22
and Johannes Kepler: The Strange Partnership Ibid., p. 96; also, for information on
that Revolutionised Science (London: Headline, Brahe's library, see W. Prandtl, Die Bibliothek
2002). des Tycho Brahe (Vienna: Herbert Reichner,
8
For example, see Joakim A. Skovgaard, 1933).
23
A King's Architecture: Christian IV and His Trivium consisted of grammar, logic and
Buildings (London: Hugh Evelyn, 1973). Also, rhetoric; quadrivium consisted of arithmetic,
Thoren, Lord of Uraniborg, pp. 144-91; and geometry, music and astronomy.
24
John Fitzhugh Millar, Classical Architecture in Frances A. Yates, The Art of Memory
Renaissance Europe 1419-1585 (Williamsburg: (Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1966); repr.
Thirteen Colonies, 1987), pp. 110-12. (London: Pimlico, 1994), pp. 114-34.
9 25
Asger 0rum Larsen, 'Uraniborg the most According to Philipp Melancthon (1497
extraordinary castle and garden design in 1560), theologian and Protestant reformer
Scandinavia', Journal of Garden History, 10/2 and ally of Martin Luther. Philip Ball, The
(1990), pp. 97-106. Also, Kjell Lundquist Devil's Doctor: Paracelsus and the World
'Reconstruction of the planting in Uraniborg, of Renaissance Magic and Science (London:
Tycho Brahe's (1546-1601) Renaissance garden William Heinemann, 2006), pp. 119-20; John
on the island of Ven', Garden History, 32/2 R. Christianson, On Tycho's Island: Tycho
(2004), pp. 152-66. Brahe, Science and Culture in the Sixteenth
10
Lundquist 'Reconstruction of the planting Century (Cambridge: Cambridge University
in Uraniborg'. Press), pp. 15-16.
11 26
In particular, see Honnens de C. T. Onions (ed.), The Shorter Oxford
Hanne, van der English Dictionary on Historical Principles,
Lichtenberg, Johan Gregor
Schardt: Bildhauer bei Kaiser Maximilian prepared by William Little, H. W. Fowler and
II.k, am d?nischen Hof und bei Tycho Brahe Jessie Coulson (Oxford: Clarendon, 1973), I,
(Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, p. 102.
27
University of Copenhagen, 1991). Both branches of study fell out of favour
12
Rudolph Wittkower, Architectural with the development of modern techniques
Principles in the Age of Humanism (London: in the seventeenth century. It was an effort to
1973), p. 19. find chemical solutions to diseases and medical
Academy,
13
In terms of the hermetic content of this ailments, the most notable exponent being
essay, I have leant heavily on the works of Paracelsus.
28
Yates, Occult Philosophy in the Elizabethan por example? Christianson, On Tycho's
Age; Lynn Thorndyke,History ofMagic and Island,

29
p. 91.
Experimental Science (New York: Columbia John M. Forrester (trans./annotator), The
University Press, 1941); S. K. Heninger, Jr, The Physiologia of Jean Fernel (1567) (Philadelphia:
Glass: Renaissance Diagrams American Philosophical Society, 2003). Fernel
Cosmographical
or Fernetius was one of several medicinal texts
of the Universe (San Marino: Huntington
Library Press, 2004); and, in particular, G. included in Brahe's library.
30
L. Hersey, Palaces: Magic and Millar, Classical Architecture in
Pythagorean
Architecture in the Italian Renaissance (New Renaissance Europe.
31
York: Cornell University Press, 1976). For example, Christianson, On Tycho's
14
J. L. E. Dreyer (ed.), Tychonis Brahe Dani Island, pp. 61-6.
32
Opera Omnia (Hauniae [Copenhagen]: Libraria Raider et al., Tycho Brahe's Description,
Gyldendaliana, 1913-29), VI, p. 349; and V, p. 124.
33
p. 138. Ibid., p. 125.
15 34
?dman, 'Arkeologi i Tycho Brahe'. Hersey, Pythagorean Palaces, p. 38.
16 35
Ibid., p. 174. For example, the angle of Rseder et al., Tycho Brahe's Description,
the wall and the type of wall which enclosed p. 124.
36
the garden. J. L. E. Dreyer, Tycho Brahe: A Picture
17
Hans Raider, Elis Str?mgren and of ScientificLife and Work in the Sixteenth
Bengt Str?mgren (eds/trans.), Tycho Brahe's Century (Edinburgh: Charles & Black, 1890),
Description of His Instruments and Scientific p. 175 [a Kessinger rare reprint].
37
Work as Given in Astronomia? Instaurata? The Muses symbolized the poetry
Mechanica (Wandesburgi 1598) (Copenhagen: and other intellectual activities that the
I Kommission Hos Ejnar Munksgaard, 1946). contemplative and tranquil study of nature
required. more superficial knowledge would be sufficient.

38
S. K. Heninger, Jr, 'Some Renaissance He also recommended that the garden be seen
versions of the Pythagorean tetrad', Studies in as an extension of the house; Roy Strong, The
the Renaissance, 8 (1961), pp. 7-35. Renaissance Garden in England (London:
39 1 + 2 + 3
Ibid., p. 17. Essentially because Thames 6c Hudson, 1979), p. 15.
+ 4 = 10. 57
For a comparison between Uraniborg and
40 see Parrott,
Henry Cornelius Agrippa, Three Books the Botanical Gardens of Padua,
or of Magick, Book and Elysium', pp. 90-4.
of Occult Philosophy, II, 'Moon, magic
58
Celestiali Magick (1533, published inEnglish David Jacques, 'The compartiment system
in 1651); repr. (London: Chthonios, 1986); it in Tudor England', Garden History, 27/1
contains thirty-two tetrads. [special issue: 'Tudor Gardens'] (1999),
41 Timaeus
Benjamin Jowett (trans.), Plato's pp. 32-5.
at: http:// 59 seem to be more
(Internet Classics Archive; available This division would
classics.mit.edu/Plato/timaeus.html) (accessed illustrative of Renaissance gardens in the north,
on 24 January 2010). such as those in the German states. Italian
42
Wittkower, Architectural Principles, usually favoured hedges and pergolas.
gardens
60
p. 104. Claudia Lazzaro, The Italian Renaissance
43
Ibid., p. 104, n. 2. Garden: From the Conventions of Planting,
44
Hersey, Pythagorean Palaces, pp. 97-107. Design and Ornament to the Grand Gardens
45
Yates, Art of Memory, pp. 210-12. of Sixteenth-Century Central Italy (New Haven
46 of and
Cesar Cesariano, translation and London: Yale University Press, 1990),
commentary on Vitruvius, published in Como p. 132.
61 see Lyndy
in 1521 and Antwerp in 1547. Sebastiano For a succinct explanation,
et prospetiva A Dictionary of Alchemical
Serlio, Tutte l'opere d'architettura Abraham,
(Venice, 1537-75), bks I and II on Geometry Imagery (Cambridge: Cambridge University
and Perspective published in Paris in 1547. Press, 1998), p. 129; and for a more in-depth
47 et see Yates, Occult in the
Serlio, Tutte l'opere d'architettura summary, Philosophy
eh. 1, f.7; English trans, by Robert Elizabethan Age, pt I.
prospetiva, 62 re aedificatoria
Peake as The Five Books of Architecture Leon Battista Alberti, De
(London, 1611); unabridged repr. (Ontario: (written 1452, fully published Florence,
Leoni as The
Dover, 1982). 1485); repr./trans. by Giacomo
48 In Ten
Brahe does not provide detailed Architecture Of Leon Battista Alberti
measurements for Uraniborg, because Books, 3 vols (London, 1726-27); 3rd edn
perhaps
it was unnecessary to do this; Raider et al, (1753-55) repr. (London: Dover, 1986), bk IX,
Tycho Brahe's Description, p. 126. pp. iv, 192.

49 63
Ibid. Heninger, Jr, Cosmographical Glass,
50 eh. 1,
Peake, Five Books of Architecture, pp. 144-58.
64 a diagram
f.3, ?Of Geometrie'. Ibid., p. 106. This also includes
51 Fine's Protomathesis, which was
For example, the work of Jacques from Orince
Androuet de Cerceau (c.1520-?:.1584). his own personal cosmological statement; the
52 Floris his standing and
por example, the work of Cornelis central symbol represented
de Vriendt (1514-75). birthplace.
53 65 it is
As far as Hanne Honnens de Lichtenberg's This is not surprising perhaps when
candidature of Johan Gregor van der Schardt known that for several years before moving
- in van der to Hven, Brahe had lived with his uncle at
is concerned Johan Gregor
Schardt: Bildhauer bei Kaiser Maximilian Herrevad, a former Cistercian monastery;
would be a secular rather
IL, am d?nischen Hof und bei Tycho Brahe although Uraniborg
(Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press, than a religious space in the literal sense; John
of Copenhagen, 1991)- at this R. Christianson, 'Cloister and observatory:
University
stage in my research I share the points made Herrevad Abbey and Tycho Brahe's Uraniborg',
in doctoral
by Norbert Jopek in his review of the book unpublished thesis, University
Burlington Magazine, 135/1089 (1993), of Minnesota, 1964, p. 157. Christianson
pp. 833-4. My thanks to Isabel Swithenbank terms the Uraniborg design an 'astronomical
for her translation of Honnens de Lichtenberg. monastery'.
54 66
Millar, Classical Architecture in Lazarro, Italian Renaissance Garden,
Renaissance Europe, pp. 100-12. p. 75.
55 67
Christianson, On Tycho's Island, There was also symbolism in the types of
in Renaissance for
pp. 299-300. plants used gardens. Laurel,
56 all architects was sacred to Apollo. It was also a
Vitruvius had exhorted example,
to gain a base of knowledge, which included symbol for poetry.
68
astronomy, so that they were equipped to Arthur Farndell (trans.), Gardens
Ficino on Plato
discuss their patron's needs; Frank Granger of Philosophy: (London:
(ed./trans.), Vitruvius on Architecture, Books I Shepheard-Walwyn, 2006), p. 7.
69
V (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, Ibid., p. 57.
70 with
bk I.c.l, pp. 7-25. Alberti a Through Renaissance neo-Platonism
2002), adopted
more pragmatic that a its hermetic core, the medieval art of memory
approach suggesting
was transformed into an occult art; Yates, Art F. Healy (London: Penguin, 1991), bk XVIII.
of Memory, p. 134. Also, William Ellis-Rees, 'Gardening in the
71
Ibid., p. 174. Age of Humanism: Petrarch's Journal', Garden
72
Ibid., pp. 159-60. History, 23/1 (1995), p. 18.
73 75
Tycho Brahe, 'By and by I got accustomed Since completing the research for this
to distinguishing all the constellations of the paper, the work of H?kan H?kansson (ed.), Att
sky'; quoted in Thoren, Lord of Uraniborg, lata sj?len flyga mellan himlens tinnar. Tycbo
p. 16. Brake och Ren?ssansen (Stockholm, 2006) has
74
The influence of celestial bodies on plants been brought to my attention. I understand that
in particular was an occurrence that had its it also looks at Hermetic elements within the
roots in ancient times; Pliny the Elder, Natural Uraniborg design. I therefore look forward to
History, trans./Introduction and Notes by John an English translation.

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CELESTIAL EXPRESSION OR WORLDLY MAGIC? THE INVISIBLY INTEGRATED DESIGN OF

CELESTIAL EXPRESSION OR WORLDLY MAGIC?

GROUND PLAN OF TYCHO BRAHE'S HOUSE AND

In an age that predated the development of modern mathematics, intellectual

TYCHO BRAHE: A NEW STAR

Figure 3. Uraniborg, the

EDUCATION AND ECLECTICISM

THE PYTHAGOREAN TETRAD: ONE POSSIBLE LEVEL OF MEANING

HOUSE AND GARDEN: AN INTEGRATED RELATIONSHIP

Figure 5. Uraniborg, relational

TALISMANIC ASSOCIATIONS WITHIN THE DESIGN

Figure 7. left and below Theoretical diagram

Zodiacal symbolism Core alchemical processes

% Gemini Modification through Fixation

O Cancer Union through Solution

n Leo Decomposition through Digestion

Scorpio Separation through Filtration

Sagittarius Modification through Ceration

^ Capricorn Decomposition through Fermetation/Putrefaction

Aquarius Union through

Pythagorean (Hermetic) thought of Ficino, Agrippa von Nettesheim, Paracelsus, John

Age; Lynn Thorndyke,History ofMagic and Island,

required. more superficial knowledge would be sufficient.

Tycho Brahe's Description, p. 126. pp. iv, 192.

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