Sigil of Stolas
At a glance
- Entry
- 36 of 72
- Rank
- Prince
- Legions
- 26 in the text
- Also written
- Stolos
Description in the text
Stolas is credited with teaching astronomy and the properties of herbs and precious stones. The entry is short and centers on those fields of knowledge rather than a wider set of powers.
Read entry 36 on page 34 of the 1916 edition
Appearance
Initially a great raven, later a human figure.
Topics attributed to this entry
- Astronomy
- Herbs
- Gemstones
Reading this entry
Stolas, also Stolos in the edition, begins as a great raven and then becomes human. The prince is credited with teaching astronomy and the properties of herbs and precious stones. The passage does not describe an owl; that familiar modern image belongs to other visual traditions. Keeping “raven” visible helps separate the cited wording from the imagery that has grown around the name.
The entry is short and gives no dramatic entrance, moral warning, or additional divinatory office. Twenty-six legions and a seal follow directly after the teachings. The pairing of astronomy with plants and gems reflects a recurring Goetia grouping of celestial and natural knowledge. The two forms are stated, but no reason for the change is offered by the source.
Read entry 36 on page 34 of the 1916 edition or compare the 1904 transcription.
A closer reading of entry 36
What the numbered text says
Stolas has one of the catalogue’s more compact educational portfolios. A raven appears first and a human image follows; the stated teaching then stays with astronomy, herbs, and precious stones. There is no claim here about forecasting fate or changing the heavens, even though later summaries sometimes fold every astronomy entry into divination. The source’s 26 legions and princely title are formal rank information, not evidence that his brief office is incomplete.
About the printed seal
The numbered sign for Stolas is 36 on frontispiece 4. The two printed names refer to a single entry and seal. Neither the raven nor a planetary diagram is identified within the emblem by the accompanying text.
Compare another entry
Compare entry 52: Alloces. Alloces also teaches astronomy and liberal sciences, but arrives as an armed rider with a lion-like face and adds familiars. Stolas’s raven-to-human change and natural materials distinguish his narrower syllabus from that later duke’s broader teaching office.