Thanks for the very detailed response there Daniel - you are certainly covering a lot of varied ground with your questions!

I'll try and do them justice, some of them more than others:

1. I should really have related the paper back to the Rosicrucian documents more thoroughly, but basically these documents are heavily influenced by the Hermetic tradition - particularly the Chemical Wedding - so relating my general understanding of the Emerald Tablet back to them is not a large leap. Certainly not here, but maybe another time.

2. I'm not necessarily trying to provide a definitive interpretation, rather a subjective esoteric one of this particular event. In this case, it would be irrelevant whether or not Gabriel could be seen as such throughout all depictions and appearances in scripture both canon and apocryphal. However, it would be an interesting exercise regardless...which ties into the next question:

3. I hadn't thought of it that way to be honest, as I had put aside QBL for this paper. But a quick search (from a document by Bill Heidrick, of all people!) indicates that Gabriel would come out to 246 - which would also correspond with 'chosen of Yaweh' or 'a sight or vision'. Off the top of my head, it would generally fit with the QBL concept of angels less as entities in their own right and more as aspects of eternal spirit - and more particularly as Gabriel as the perfectly purified aspect of this spirit/channel. The general QBL hypothesis of co-creation with the Divine is obviously relevant - many would say that QBL and Hermeticism are inseparable.

4. Convenience, coupled with it being a generally solid English translation.

5. Mary herself *is* the albedo state personified - as she was born with Immaculate Conception, and therefore purified - so did not go through any other stages beforehand. The Annunciation is the culmination of the albedo stage, which follows the nigredo (although some systems also have a yellowing stage). The progressive cycles of Solve et Coagula would have been necessary during this albedo stage to reach the final culmination of the rising rubedo.

6. The image by Crivelli, if we think of it purely in terms of this interpretation (which we shouldn't...), would indicate that Mary exists just beyond the Peacock's tail. The tail hangs over the inner chamber in which Mary resides, at its entrance; indicating a veil that must be passed before that state can be achieved.

7. Not sure to be honest. Yates' certainly knew what's what when it came to Rosicrucianism, so I have no reason to doubt the interpretation, but the symbols far predate this possible usage obviously. My usage of it doesn't hook into that thesis at all, rather I am interested in their allegorical role in alchemical symbolism.

8. I.A.O.

9. There is a great translation by Abraham Terian: 'The Armenian Gospel of the Infancy' snippets of which can be viewed through Google Books (it is available from Amazon, but is quite expensive). I cribbed that reference from another article, after verifying through a few other sources that it did, in fact, say such a thing.

Interesting stuff...I'm glad you've made me think about particular aspects like that, I doubt I would have otherwise and now it's opened up many more areas that deserve closer attention than I have given them here. Thanks for your comments, and I look forward to seeing you again sometime soon to talk in more depth!

I concur, it's defiantly got me thinking (might need to go through it again though a bit more slowly). Cheers for sharing it with us all. Also, that's pretty apt timing if I'm not too much mistaken.