Portrait of Karl I von Hesse-Kassel with hand identical to Bessler's

[axel]

Both hands look the same.

[axel]

Maybe better quality.

[AB Hammer]

Could of been the same artist. It is funny how they are positioned in the married position making the letter M. Not a normal hand position. It takes an effort to hold your hand like that.

[axel]

The picture is very clear and detailed on this link:

http://orffyre.tripod.com/id24.html

[axel]

The portrait was done by "W.P. Killian"
You can see other engravings by him by Googling his name. None so far I've seen have hands like Bessler's and Karl.
And neither has the hand on their chests.
Killian lived at the same time as both of them.

So maybe he did the drawings of the wheels for Bessler too.

[Oystein]

A common hand position/gesture for (Free)Masons. From da Vinci, to English Kings and American politicians etc.

[david jenkins]

Also a common hand position for statues and portraits related to the Knights Templar.

[primemignonite]

". . . . Not a normal hand position. It takes an effort to hold your hand like that." - AB Hammer (N & N+++)

It may not be normal but, I've seen this pose done a lot on Selma Ave. There, they seemed to have no trouble.

Nonetheless, that is a great portrait of the regal patron of yore.

Axel (N & N) is to be commended for bringing it to our august attentions.

James (N & N)

[jim_mich]

Maybe the portrait was made to be as realistic as possible, including fingers that are bent because of arthritis?

Maybe no secret Masonic hand code? Maybe just the reality of old age 300 years ago?

Just a thought.

[daxwc]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sPI47Ghxw0

"Masonic Hand signs Solved M Symbol of Illuminati ¿"

http://www.thebabylonmatrix.com/index.p ... bolism_XVI

Kabbalah the letter shin means The Eternal Flame that is close to sacred and secret ideals.

[johannesbender]

I guess they all studied the same things , anatomy ,techniques etc ..

can you spot the difference ?

http://wikisend.com/download/807794/combo.png

[daxwc]

A card and it must have had its origin somewhere. Actually try it, one has to deliberately hold their hand like that it is not a natural position.

Are all people who show the “live long and prosper� sign trekies?

[johannesbender]

actually not fully true , it is natural for those two fingers to work together , it has something to do with sharing the same ligament muscles or something I cannot remember , any guitarist would tell you how hard it is to develop the dexterity just to be able to control those two fingers a little separately ...

but , have hand signals and other clever techniques been used to identify certain groups of people to one another , yes that's a fact and nobody can deny that possibility when it is seen in old paintings , as it has been the way to "say" things in a picture that cannot speak .

[daxwc]

So who does the hand symbol epitomize; Bessler or the artist?

[johannesbender]

that's an interesting question really , how do we know it was drawn like that instead of being held like that ?

well , just to clear up my blunder of my earlier reply , its actually not muscles but a nerve that splits in to your hands , and how your brain controls that nerve ,its called the ulnar nerve ,and can be seen here , the nerve is split in such a way that the ring and middle digits share it partially in use , then the pinky and ring finger share also , and the thumb index and middle share with a partial ring finger share too .

However the problem is more pronounced for the pinky and ring finger wich makes it "almost" impossible to use independent , the ring and middle is less prone to it but because there is a partial share between them they tend to naturally work together. .

http://hubguitar.com/technique/build-fi ... dependence


your question is really interesting , but since bessler had a man personally teach him the ways of alchemy (if I am not making a big blunder again) it would not be to far a reach to jump towards the possibility that he mingled with certain groups or became apart of such .