The Courtly Charlatan

I just got a new book in the mail yesterday called The Courtly Charlatan.  It's listed in the Bibliography now.

Description of the Count from 1757:

M. de St. Germain appeared to be a man of about fifty years of age, with aquiline features, large dark eyes with a keen glance, a powdered peruke that concealed the scarcity or quantity of his hair, and a rich, distinguished costume that was yet well in the fashion.  His figure was subtle and well trained to execute all the gestures of courtesy, his manners were unexceptional; he was able to converse both with the King and with Madame de Pompadour without either confusion or awkwardness.

An aquiline nose is also called a Roman nose.

A peruke is a typical men's wig from the 18th century.

 Page 24 refers to the Count's features as being "narrow".

Page 28: St. Germain's personal secretary, "a man of the most perfect discretion", was named Zeffiro.  Equally as mysterious as the Count.  Is Zeffiro the man named Roger that we have previously heard of? Zeffiro took notes of society around him, including the King's court (page 30).  Page 54, Zeffiro publicly responds to the Count that he's only been in his service for the last 200 years.  Page 112, Zeffiro has flat features and brown eyes.

According to Ancestry.com, Zeffiro is a name of Italian origin.

Madame de Pompadour had several secret agents report back to her on the Count.

"...she learned that this stranger under various names appeared and disappeared capriciously in the capitals of Europe, Asia, and India; it might be that he was a clever adventurer, it might be that he was indeed of supernatural origin..."  What were those names?

Known aliases listed throughout the book:

• Marquis de Montferrat
• Marquis Daymar
• Marquis Belmar
• Simon Wolff (according to spies and jobbers)

 It mentions that he spent a long period of time in Bayonne, but there are no specific dates.  Some claim he had traveled to the East Indies and had lived with savages in the New World.  He traveled to the Amazon and Peru.  He hunted in the forest of Fontainebleau.

It mentions that he spent time with Prince Lobkowitz, Count Zobor, Count Lambert, Emperor Francis I (who he studied speculative chemistry with), Regent M. Phillip de Bourbon - Duke of Orleans, Madame de Maine (Duchesse) (Louise Francoise de Bourbon), Mademoisselle Julie de Lespinasse (shared lodgings with), La Tour, Marechale de Boufflers, Madame de Luxembourg, Montgolfier brothers, Lavoisier (chemist), Vaucasson (applied sciences), M. de Lacondamine, and King Edward II

 The entirety of Chapter 2 is a novelette in which the author sways the reader that St.Germain might be of Spanish origin.

A Ring

I found this ring on ebay.   It's said to be a ring that once belonged to the Count.  It's being sold through a Bulgarian antique shop.

Here is what the description on ebay says:

I am pleased to offer from my private collection the most important historic Memento Mori Skulls silver&Carneol seal ring c 1744 belonged to the famous French Occultist Count St.Germain's.
(Comte de Saint Germain (Birth unknown; died 27 February 1784) was a European adventurer, with an interest in science and the arts. He achieved prominence in European high society of the mid-1700s. Prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel considered him to be "one of the greatest philosophers who ever lived". St. Germain used a variety of names and titles, an accepted practice amongst royals and nobles at the time. These include the Marquis de Montferrat, Comte Bellamarre, Chevalier Schoening, Count Weldon, Comte Soltikoff, Graf Tzarogy and Prinz Ragoczy. In order to deflect inquiries as to his origins, he would invent fantasies, such as that he was 500 years old, leading Voltaire to sarcastically dub him "The Wonderman".) His birth and background are obscure, but towards the end of his life he claimed that he was a son of Prince Francis II Rákóczi of Transylvania.
A must for every serious collector.
The ring is size- US-8.5/EU-59/ UK-R
This unique ring is 272 years old! On the Carneol precious stone you can see the carved year 1744 (see the photo with the mirror image of the seal below).
Above the seal you can see the Sacred Occultic Hermetic symbols:cross,moon and star.
The text is a puzzle -it contain some magic words.
The skulls on the sides of the ring are decorated with old rose cut garnet precious stones in the eyes.
This is a link to the tradition of the memento mori - an object designed to remind us that life is brief and that we should seize the moment while we are here.
Since the beginning of time,the skull is been used as a symbol of mortality, victory, the ultimate Memento Mori.

The skull represented the contemplation of eternity.

In Elizabethan England, it was an emblem of bawds, rakes and sexual adventure. Its a symbol men, in particular, have always loved to paint, carve, cast, and wear.

Provenance:This unique piece comes directly from the famous Skulls collection of Dr.Atanas Karamanov,who was the personal physician to King Ferdinand I of Bulgaria. Dr.Karamanov was also a member of the first Bulgarian Regular Masonic Lodge named “Balkanska Zvezda” c1890's . His collection contain over 1200 skull watches,skull goblets,skull victorican jewelry etc... If you are not satisfied in 100%,your money back guarantee.
Free shipping to worldwide,fully insured(possible byDHL overnight courier)
NOTE:PLEASE OBSERVE CAREFULLY THE PHOTOS! IT IS A SIGNIFICANT PART OF THE DESCRIPTION.
Every potencial defect which is shown in the photos,but not mention in the description,will be considered for described.All the photos shoot by professional Nikon 105 Macro lens under 40x diopter magnification,so you can explore even the smallest detail like under microscope!