Rob’s dream-self in the first Gnosis dreamscape is so desperate for the love of Michiko Maeda’s dream-self oriental princess that he resorts to the rather dangerous assistance of a sorceress.

And I enjoyed writing that, because I have something of a weakness for sorceresses.  Goes along with being a thaumatophile, I guess.   Every time I have the chance to visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art, I try to stop by and gaze at this painting, which was probably my initial visual inspiration for the sorceress scene.

Domenico Guidobono (1668–1746), "Allegory"

That’s good.   Woman.  Book.  Assorted supernatural stuff that I can’t decode.  But perhaps a little better from my perspective is this image (possibly of Circe) by the English Pre-Raphaelite John William Waterhouse.

John William Waterhouse (1849 - 1917), "Sorceress"

Woman.  Book.  And still better for the mad science lover, some sort of flask or beaker right in front of her.  A good image if you think that the sexist organ a woman has is her brain.

But of course Rob’s dream is an oriental fantasy, so we need an image from orientalist art to really make the visual image work.  Fortunately, I have one.

Friedrich von Amerling (1803 - 1887), "The Oriental" (click through for larger image)

Woman.  Book.  Play of light in an oriental setting.  Works for me for the sorceress!