Found in the Hermetikon archive

Cypress

Cupressus sempervirens

Cypress appears in Hermetikon as an archive-backed plant entry, with references across historical medical, magical, symbolic, and ritual contexts where the source texts support them.

Risk: moderate
Books: 62
Contexts: 4
Mentions: 295

Overview Reading Contexts Citations Related Books

Archive Profile

Identity, safety, and search aliases used to connect this herb to the archive.

Herb identity

Common name: cypress
Latin name: Cupressus sempervirens(candidate)
Identity note: Often appears in funerary, classical, and ritual-tree contexts.

Safety

moderate

Essential oils and resinous preparations require caution; archive symbolism is not safety guidance.

Historical archive citations are not medical advice. Use modern clinical and poison-control sources for ingestion, dosage, pregnancy, and toxicity questions.

Kew POWO: Essential oils and resinous preparations require caution; archive symbolism is not safety guidance.

Aliases

cypressCupressus sempervirenscypress tree

Cypress in Historical Sources

Curated archive synthesis of recurring uses, recipes, rituals, and interpretive problems.

Hermetikon's curated reading of Cypress (Cupressus sempervirens) is built from 3 source-linked archive notes and 2 preparation or ritual-use entries. The strongest recurring contexts are preparations, ritual uses, and symbolism. Each note below links back to the archive source used for the claim.

Preparation

high

Culpeper includes cypress root in a large compound decoction with fennel, parsley, juniper berries, anise, cardamom, valerian, and other roots and seeds.

Culpeper's Complete Herbal | Nicholas Culpeper | 1653

Chapter 57

Symbolism

high

Agrippa frames cypress as a dark funerary tree dedicated to Pluto, emphasizing bitter smell, black shadow, pitch, and burial associations rather than ordinary medicine.

Three Books of Occult Philosophy | Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim | 1533

Page 109

Ritual

high

Spence places a cypress wreath in death-directed ceremonial magic, paired with black clothing, a lead belt, sulphur, and asafoetida incense.

Encyclopaedia of Occultism | Lewis Spence | 1920

Page 100

Preparations and ritual uses

Compound root decoction

high

Culpeper includes cypress in a steeped and boiled compound with fennel, parsley, juniper, anise, cardamom, valerian, and other roots and seeds.

Culpeper's Complete Herbal | Nicholas Culpeper | 1653

Chapter 57

Death-magic wreath

high

Spence's death operation uses a cypress wreath with black clothing, lead, sulphur, and asafoetida, so this is ritual evidence rather than medicinal instruction.

Encyclopaedia of Occultism | Lewis Spence | 1920

Page 100

Cypress Archive Contexts

Compact source patterns from the extracted citation set.

Astrology

5 passages across 5 books; strongest source: Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase & Fable.

Matched as cypress; high confidence.

Preparation

5 passages across 5 books; strongest source: Anatomy of Melancholy.

Matched as cypress; high confidence.

Symbolism

2 passages across 2 books; strongest source: The Golden Bough.

Matched as cypress; high confidence.

Safety

2 passages across 2 books; strongest source: Liber 777.

Matched as cypress; high confidence.

Cypress Cited Excerpts

Representative public passages with the herb mention highlighted and linked to archive source material.

5 shown

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

Nicholas Culpeper

1653

"... Bettony, Bugloss, of each a handful, the roots of Fennel, Smallage, Parsley, Sparagus, Bruscus, Saxifrage, Elecampane, Cypress, Madder, Orris, Peony, of each an ounce, Juniper Berries, the seeds of Lovage, Parsley, Smallage, Annis, Nigella, Carpobalsamum or Cubebs, Costus, Cassia Lignea, Cardamoms, Calamus Aromaticus, the roots of Asarabacca, Pellitory of Spain, Valerian, of each half an ounce, being cleansed, cut, and bruised, let them be infused twenty-four hours in fourteen pounds of clear water, and boiled till half be consumed, being taken off from the fi..."

Chapter 57Open in Reader

Preparationalias: cypresshigh confidence

Three Books of Occult Philosophy

Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim

1533

"...ar fruit, and those which bring forth berries of a dark color and black fruit, as the black fig-tree, the pinetree, the cypress-tree, and a certain tree used at burials, which never springs afresh with berries, rough, of a bitter taste, of a strong smell, of a black shadow, yielding a most sharp pitch, bearing a most unprofitable fruit, never dies with age, deadly, and dedicated to Pluto. As is the herb pas-flower,* with which they *Pas, from the latin word "passus," meaning step, pace, or "right of going foremost; precedence." Thus the pas-flower means a plant..."

Page 109Open in Reader

Safetyalias: cypresshigh confidence

The Family Herbal

John Hill

1755

"... in infusion, but as the virtues are much the same with the other, that is best, because it may be had fresher. ### The CYPRESS TREE. Cupressus. A TREE kept in our gardens, an evergreen, and singular in the manner of its growth. It rises to twenty or thirty foot high, and is all the way thick beset with branches. These are largest towards the bottom, and smaller all the way up; so that the tree appears naturally of a conic figure. The bark is of a reddish brown. The leaves are small and short, they cover all the twigs like scales, and are of a beautiful deep gr..."

Page 157Open in Reader

Preparationalias: cypresshigh confidence

Encyclopaedia of Occultism

Lewis Spence

1920

"...urs for amorous incantations ; whilst for the encompassing of death black must be worn, with belt of lead and wreath of cypress, amid lo athsome incense of sulphur and assafoetida. Precious stones and metals also added their influence to the spells. Geometrical figures, stars, pentagrams, columns, triangles, were, used ; also herbs, such as belladonna and assafoetida ; flowers, honeysuckle, being the witches' ladder, the arum, deadly nightshade and black poppies; distillations and philtres composed of the virus of loathsome diseases, venom of reptiles, secretio..."

Page 100Open in Reader

Preparationalias: cypresshigh confidence

Liber 777

Aleister Crowley

1909

Page 122Open in Reader

Safetyalias: cypresshigh confidence

Books Mentioning Cypress

Complete public source inventory, placed after the interpretive reading so the page opens with the most useful synthesis first.

62 books

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

Nicholas Culpeper | 1653

Archive Profile

Herb identity

Safety

Aliases

Cypress in Historical Sources

Preparation

Symbolism

Ritual

Preparations and ritual uses

Compound root decoction

Death-magic wreath

Cypress Archive Contexts

Astrology

Preparation

Symbolism

Safety

Cypress Cited Excerpts

Culpeper's Complete Herbal

Three Books of Occult Philosophy

The Family Herbal

Encyclopaedia of Occultism

Liber 777

Related Archive Material

Related herbs

Books Mentioning Cypress