Copper Mercury Dime | Etched Mercury in Virgo Talismans

One of a kind hand made Mercury Talisman in presentation/display box.

I'm pleased and honored to offer a very limited selection of these Copper Mercury Dime Mercury Talismans. At the moment chosen under the auspices of Mercury, these hand-etched copper talismans were birthed as instruments of wisdom, communication, and discovery. Bearing the restored Fourth and Fifth Pentacles of Mercury from the Key of Solomon, each piece is crafted with painstaking intention to embody the quick, subtle, and ingenious power of Hermes-Mercury, the wily and beloved patron of poets, orators, travelers, scholars, magicians, merchants, and thieves.

Each one-of-a-kind piece is individually hand-finished to highlight an aspect of Mercury's traditional associations:
- Classic Finish maximizes the clean and radiant tone of the copper, with the talismanic figures in bold contrast, connecting with Mercury as the transmitter of information
- Irridescent Finish swirls in a prism of subtle color stains, from blood red to peacock blue, hearkening to Mercury as the Many Colored One, with dazzling fascination and alluring brilliance
- Verdigris Finish is richly textured in the timeless blue-green copper verdigris, connecting with Mercury as the Mottled One, carrying rich inner-complexities and moving perpetually along the full spectrum of states and ways of being
- Subdued Finish is delicately brushed to minimize the contrast of the talismanic figures until they receive the light at a particular angle, evoking Mercury as the Subtle and Shifting One, presiding over magical transformations and outrageous fortune.

About These Talismanic Figures
Each copper talisman features one of the Pentacles of Mercury from the Greater Key of Solomon - a widespread and highly influential classical grimoire (book of magic) attributed to the biblical King Solomon. 

Working from multiple classical source editions, I restored the Fourth and Fifth Pentacles of Mercury with their classical Kabbalistic Hebrew.

The Fourth Pentacle of Mercury is relied upon to enhance the powers of the mind and to grant hidden knowledge. Of this figure it is written, "it serves to acquire Knowledge and understanding of all things created, and to seek out and to penetrate into hidden things." The figure features a 12-pointed star, symbolizing the 12 divisions of the Zodiac, with the Hebrew Holy Name, "El", at its center. Surrounding the star, is arranged the phrase "YHVH, fix Thou the Volatile, and let there be unto the void restriction."  In the outer-most ring, is the versicle, "Wisdom and might are in their house, and knowledge of all things is with them forever and ever."

The Fifth Pentacle of Mercury is trusted for opening the road, revealing new possibilities, and removing obstacles from the path. It is said this Pentacle, "commandeth the Spirits of Mercury, and serveth to open doors in whatever way they may be closed, and nothing it may encounter can resist it." The figure depicts a quartered circle - the top right bears the Holy Name "El" (God), the top left holds the Holy Name "Av" (Father), while the bottom row bears the sacred Tetragrammaton. The versicle around the outside is taken from the 24th Psalm, where it is written, "Lift up your heads, oh ye gates, and be lifted up you everlasting doors, that the King of Glory may come in!"

Each talisman bears the sacred Planetary Seal of Mercury - an ancient symbol linked to the dynamic, cerebral, unbounded energy associated with the planet Mercury in Traditional Astrology.

About the Process
Each talisman begins as a 1 ounce copper larger scale reproduction of the classic Mercury dime. This image entered US circulation in 1916 and was immediately associated with Mercury/Hermes in popular opinion. The dimes bearing this face have been so ubiquitously employed in conjure/folk magic traditions across North America, that it's been said you "can't do no real magic without one".

The copper Mercury Dimes are first coated in a protective layer, from which the talismanic figure is precisely cut away to reveal the bare copper surface. 

At the appointed astrological time - on the Day and Hour of Mercury, while Mercury is in the first 5 degrees of Virgo - each prepared coin is placed into a bath of strong acids, according a Renaissance-era etching technique. 

After the etched coin is washed and neutralized, it receives an ancient-method sulfur patina finish, to blacken the engraved talisman for visibility.

Finally, the protective coating is carefully dissolved and each piece receives its final aesthetic finish. 

These are one-of-a-kind, ritually prepared magical keepsakes — made to carry for a lifetime and to pass through generations. They are suitable for personal carrying, displaying on an altar or in the home, or keeping in a vehicle or travel bag as a traveling companion under Mercury’s auspices. Each talisman is both a work of art and a consecrated tool, crafted to connect its bearer with the timeless intelligence and pathways of the Messenger.