Obercit, Jacques Hermann (1725-1798)
Obercit, Jacques Hermann (1725-1798)
Swiss mystic and alchemist. He was born December 2, 1725, in Arbon, Switzerland, the son of a scientist keenly interested in Hermetic philosophy. Early in his life he decided to search for the philosophers' stone, hoping to resuscitate the fortunes of his family, which were at a low ebb. The young man worked strenuously, maintaining that whoever would triumph in this endeavor must not depend on scientific skill alone but rather on constant communion with God.
Notwithstanding this theory, he soon found himself under the ban of the civic authorities, who came to his laboratory and forced him to forego further experiments, declaring that these constituted a danger to public health and safety. Obercit was incensed and appears to have left and gone to live for some time thereafter with a brother of the noted physiognomist Johann Lavater. At a later date, Obercit renounced the civilized world altogether and took up residence in the Alps.
However, he did not live the solitary life of a hermit, since according to his own account, he took as bride a shepherdess named Theantis. Obercit's writings include Disquisitio de Universali Methodo Medendi (1767) and Défense du Mysticisme et de la Vie Solitaire (1775). He died at Weimar, Germany, February 2, 1798.