John Dee's Crystal Stolen From Science Museum

[Mal_Adjusted]

Hi

Press Association
Fri 10 Dec 2004

3:24pm (UK)
Daylight Raid on Science Museum Gallery

By David Stringer, PA

A rare 16th Century clairvoyance crystal and valuable documents were snatched in a daylight raid on a gallery at the Science Museum, it was confirmed today.

The irreplaceable artefacts were taken at around 4.30pm yesterday, when thieves smashed a glass cabinet in an exhibition space on the fifth floor of the building in in South Kensington, London.

Museum staff have launched an internal inquiry, but do not yet know if the raiders were specifically targeting the items, estimated to be worth around £50,000.

The crystal, used as a tool by mediums and for curing disease, belonged to maverick philosopher, mathematician and astrologer John Dee, a consultant to Elizabeth I.

He lived between 1527 and the turn of the 17th Century, becoming a leading authority on “angel-magic” and beliefs that man had the potential for divine power.

Also taken was a statement about the crystal’s use by author and pharmacist Nicholas Culpeper, written on the reverse of ancient deed manuscripts in the mid-1600s.

A Science Museum spokeswoman said: “At approximately 4.30pm on Thursday, thieves broke into a cabinet at the Science Museum and stole two items from the museum’s collection belonging to the Wellcome Trust.

“The artefacts were transferred to the museum by as part of the permanent loan of the Wellcome Medical Collection in 1976.

“The items are unique and as such difficult to value but they could be worth as much as £50,000.”

It is thought there were two raiders, who waited until the gallery was empty before snatching the items.

“A member of staff was alerted by the sound of breaking glass and immediately informed our security workers, who reported the incident to the police,” said the spokeswoman.

Staff are reviewing security procedures and CCTV footage as part of an internal inquiry into the incident.

CID officers from Scotland Yard have also visited the scene and launched an investigation.

Jon Tucker, head of Science Museum, said: “This is a very distressing loss to the museum as these objects are of great historical significance and irreplaceable.”

“It is incredibly difficult striking the right balance between providing good public access to our unique collections for our millions of visitors, whilst providing enough protection against a tiny number of determined criminals

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[Mythopoeika]

Sounds like someone wants to do some serious magick...

 

[elffriend]

Erm...how can they say

Museum staff have launched an internal inquiry, but do not yet know if the raiders were specifically targeting the items, estimated to be worth around £50,000.

Seems obvious to me they were targeted :?

 

[Timble2]

Since they’re not things that are obviously valuable, I agree they were either stolen to order, or by the person who specifically wants them either for magic or as a collector of esoteric artefacts.

You realise that this is obviously the opening chapter of supernatural/horror story with someone wanting to summon powerful entities from other dimensions, or a conspiracy thriller on the lines of the ‘Da Vinci Code’.

 

[Timble2]

Since they’re not things that are obviously valuable, I agree they were either stolen to order, or by the person who specifically wants them either for magic or as a collector of esoteric artefacts.

You realise that this is obviously the opening chapter of supernatural/horror story with someone wanting to summon powerful entities from other dimensions, or a conspiracy thriller on the lines of the ‘Da Vinci Code’.

 

[elffriend]

You realise that this is obviously the opening chapter of supernatural/horror story with someone wanting to summon powerful entities from other dimensions, or a conspiracy thriller on the lines of the ‘Da Vinci Code’.

Now that's an idea. Pass me a pen

 

[Yithian]

You realise that this is obviously the opening chapter of supernatural/horror story with someone wanting to summon powerful entities from other dimensions...

I read that and immediatey though Dennis Wheatley-tastic! Watch out for notable fluctuations in general background magical-weirdness. Could be our first warning.

 

[OneWingedBird]

Erm, wasn't this more or less the plot of the Halloween sequal that had nothing to do with the other Halloween sequels and the irritating TV jingle - in that didn;t the bad guys steal a standing stone from a museum for arcane ends? (and the usual transdimensional portal type stuff).

 

[MrRING]

Has this been recovered?

 

[Timble2]

I've been keeping an eye open and not noticed anything in the papers about it being recovered, though a Wikipedia article reckons it has. As the story about it being found isn't on the 24 hour museum site either I suspect the Wiki item is wrong.

 

[JamesWhitehead]

At last, I have you, precious crystal! Mine alone shall be the secrets of eternity. Now what have you to say?

Voice from afar: NoboDee know Dee trouble I see, Lord! NoboDee know but Dee!

Right, well, you're back to the Museum tomorrow!

 

[TheOriginalCujo]

Also taken was a statement about the crystal’s use by author and pharmacist Nicholas Culpeper, written on the reverse of ancient deed manuscripts in the mid-1600s.

Cripes! They must be planning on using it. They nicked the manual too.

 

[Melf]

Also taken was a statement about the crystal’s use by author and pharmacist Nicholas Culpeper, written on the reverse of ancient deed manuscripts in the mid-1600s.

Cripes! They must be planning on using it. They nicked the manual too.

its ok cujo it uses a pre-windoze os, and you cant get the up-grades these days

 

[EnolaGaia]

Dee's crystal must have been recovered sometime since the apparent theft.

This April 2016(?) Royal College of Physicians webpage:

https://www.rcplondon.ac.uk/news/mystical-objects-john-dee

... lists and illustrates the crystal as one of the objects loaned for an exhibition that year.

The Science Museum still lists Dee's crystal as being part of their collection, with no mention of its having been stolen.

https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co104490/john-dees-crystal-europe-1582-amulet

 

[EnolaGaia]

This July 2016 Wellcome Library blog page:

http://blog.wellcomelibrary.org/2016/07/john-dees-crystal/

... provides a description and history of the crystal - again, without any mention of a theft.

For the record, here's a photo of the crystal from the Wellcome blog page.

 

[EnolaGaia]

The crystal seems to have been recovered pretty quickly.

In December 2004, both a shew stone (used for divining) formerly belonging to Dee and a mid-17th century explanation of its use written by Nicholas Culpeper were stolen from the Science Museum in London, but recovered shortly after.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Dee - citing as its source:

Adam Fresco (11 December 2004). "Museum thief spirits away old crystal ball". The Times. London. (Retrieved in 2006, and possibly updated in the mean time)

 

[Ermintruder]

What a fascinating person John Dee was, many thanks @EnolaGaia for having resurrected this thread.

I strongly-recommend all of the links cited above, to everyone reading this thread. Dee appears to have been a true Fortean nexus in so many ways. His involvement with magick and scrying, Enochean texts (including perhaps the Voynich), angels (including Gabriel, who reportedly gave him The Crystal)....Dee, the man who many consider to be the first to name the British Empire, and one of those first Europeans to write-down claimed ownership of the Americas for the Crown.

Just utterly astounding.

(Also....that lost-yet-found crystal 'shewstone'....it's not especially-faceted, is it? What I mean is, it's more like a smoothed miniature crystal ball than a sharp mineral spar, a captured convexity than a fluted spike....and...is it a pebble or a fist, for size? I can't estimate its scale)

 

[dr wu]

Speaking of Dr Dee....I read Ackroyd's novel called The House of Dr Dee....I enjoyed it being a fan of Peter Ackroyd but some have found it to be a confusing read. It's not biographical fiction but a story of a man who inherits Dee's old house and his reactions to the feelings there as well as some of Dee's tale told in the past.

 

[Krepostnoi]

Speaking of Dr Dee....I read Ackroyd's novel called The House of Dr Dee....I enjoyed it being a fan of Peter Ackroyd but some have found it to be a confusing read. It's not biographical fiction but a story of a man who inherits Dee's old house and his reactions to the feelings there as well as some of Dee's tale told in the past.

Weird coincidence - I mentioned this book only the other day. I found it immensely engrossing, but was extremely frustrated to find that my copy was incomplete. Don't tell me how it ends (although I think I know), but do send me the ebook via PM

 

[EnolaGaia]

... (Also....that lost-yet-found crystal 'shewstone'....it's not especially-faceted, is it? What I mean is, it's more like a smoothed miniature crystal ball than a sharp mineral spar, a captured convexity than a fluted spike....and...is it a pebble or a fist, for size? I can't estimate its scale)

I wouldn't expect a scrying crystal to be faceted (save perhaps for natural cleavages within the stone). Both the classic crystal ball and the scrying mirror are smooth.

I've not found any reference on the crystal (sometimes called "the Purple Crystal") that describes its form or size in any detail.

One can find photos of Dee's "apparatus" that include a small crystal sphere, but it's apparently not the Purple Crystal. The one in the photos is not mounted in a setting nor attached to a chain. More tellingly, that one has a rod or shaft extending outward that is not represented in photos of the Purple Crystal.

Similarly, I cannot find any detailed description of Dee's obsidian "spirit mirror." The only reference to its size I've found merely states it's the size of "a small plate." I'd hoped to find a photo of the mirror and crystal together.

My guess is that the crystal isn't all that large.

I can't find any source verifying the crystal is round (rather than having a flat or concave back side). My default guess is that it's spherical..

 

[EnolaGaia]

Wait a minute ... Maybe the Purple Crystal isn't spherical ...

I found this photo at the Science Museum site (obscurely located within a slideshow).

SOURCE: https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co104490/john-dees-crystal-europe-1582-amulet
​

It appears to show the Purple Crystal mounting and chain with some sort of reflective object (the crystal?) in place.

To judge by the shadows, the mount is resting flat on a flat surface. This implies in the crystal does have a flat or concave back side.

 

[Xanatic*]

Perhaps it's simply a loupe.

 

[Rerenny]

It's quite small, and likely has a flat back. See picture below, with hand for scale.

image from the Wellcome Collection

 

[AlchoPwn]

I wonder what little angel stole it?