Seven metals, ringed with four magical inscriptions: what other secrets does the 'Alchemical Hand Bell' hold?

By Richard Bean, Research Fellow, School of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering, The University of Queensland
Corinna Gannon, Research assistant, Goethe University Frankfurt am Main
Sarah Lang, PostDoc in Digital Humanities at Centre of Information Modelling (University of Graz), University of Graz

Scholars are baffled by a mysterious object from Emperor Rudolf II’s collection: a hand bell, made from an alloy of seven metals and said to have been used to summon spirits, contains an enigmatic cipher on the inside.

The Habsburg emperor Rudolf II (1552–1612) went down in history as one of the greatest patrons of the arts and sciences.

During his 36-year reign, he amassed unimaginable treasures and riches behind the walls of Prague Castle. Only a chosen few were granted access…

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