City of Revelation: On the Proportions and Symbolic Numbers of the Cosmic Temple [Hardcover]

John Michell (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Garnstone Press (March 27, 1972)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0855110406
• ISBN-13: 978-0855110406
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,331,257 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An excellent foundation book for the Pythagorean sciences, July 3, 2001

By 

Ryan Morrison (SF, CA, US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: City of Revelation: On the Proportions and Symbolic Numbers of the Cosmic Temple (Hardcover)

This book is excellent for those interested in Gematria, natural/pythagorean mathematics and/or Sacred Geometry.

Whereas one of author's newest books 'The Temple of Jerusalem: A Revelation' is clear and contains concise explanations in an orderly fashion, this book tends to be a little more fragmented and jumps around quite a bit. The theme of the book is very similar to the previously mentioned title but a more in-depth study on the proportions used to construct architecture/monuments and their related number symbolism in the ancient world. The one thing I could recommend to the reader is to read chapter 10 first. It really is the cornerstone chapter that explains the measurements used throughout the book. In the first nine chapters it was a bit disconcerting to see the author jump from metric system to metric system as it proved useful for linking up numerical measurements to gematria values. After reading chapter 10 the reader will understand the justification.

One other thing that can be noted is that Michell does not pay as careful attention to historical relevance as say, David Fiedeler does in 'Jesus Christ, Sun of God'. Having read this latter title before 'City of Revelation' Michell's book seemed less scholarly (having read the introduction I would guess he wasn't really intending it to be but was opting for a more mystical approach to the materials).

Despite the above factors and the fact that Michell is attempting to fit all measurements into Christian mysticism, the book is none-the-less important as it demonstrates the methods that one could use to apply to any number-to-letter system from the ancient world. It also, inadvertently, demonstrates the common thinking present to the ancient architects, priests and builders regardless of their culture. I would add that in relation to the importance of this book that it was list in bibliography to Fiedeler's book mentioned above and that Fideler had even reproduced Chapter 9 from 'City of Revelations' in his own work.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating study., January 28, 2005

By 

Hakuyu "Ikeda" (Kyoto, Japan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: City of Revelation: On the Proportions and Symbolic Numbers of the Cosmic Temple (Hardcover)

Contrary to what has been stated otherwise, John Michell's 'City of Revelation' does not endeavour to squeeze everything into 'Christian Mysticism.' It acknowledges that there is a universal pattern to these things - a correspondence between cultures - when it comes to sacred measure,a canon of divine proportions, the link between alphabets - and number (symbolism, gematria). John Michell's first book - 'The View of Atlantis' - made this clear, happy to note the@correspondence between ancient British ley-lines, Chinese 'lung-mei' etc.

'City of Revalation' does focus on the 'Book of Revelation' as an archetypal example, but Michell's references to a broader canvas can hardly be missed. He gladly acknowledged that the@'canon of proportions' and symbolic numbers of the cosmic temple found in Christian sources - are a legacy of pre-Christian culture. It would be missing the point entirely, to see 'City of Revelation' as an exclusive reference to Christian mysticism. Michell's main point - is to reinforce the shared agenda. The Church of England, for example, once denied the canon of proportions referred to in this book. The official measurements given for the ground-plans/proportions of cathedrals etc., are usually innacurate, for they are invariably stated in terms of the conventional yard, whereas the original ground plans etc. were laid out in megalithic yards. Give John Michell some credit! He hasn't the least interest in narrow definitions of creed. The great beauty in what he has observed - and what he has to say, lies in the shared agenda. The trans-cultural references in this book make that abundantly clear.