AlchemyandItsInfluence:

FromEarlyGreekPhilosophytoModernChemistry

RyanMarvel
ProfessorR.DouglasHurt
History333Fall2015
4December2015

Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

AlchemyandChemistryhavelongbeenintertwined.Ithasntbeenuntilrecenthistory
1
thattherehasbeenmuchdifferentiationbetweenthetwo.
Althoughtodaymanywouldscorn

thethoughtofthepracticalapplicationofalchemy,thiswasnottrueformostofitslife.
Throughthispaper,Iseektoestablishthatalchemy,whileattimesmisguided,hasprovided
manygreatachievementstowardsmodernscienceandshouldbeacknowledgedandcelebrated
assuch.
Inhiscompilationofhisstudyofthefoundationsofalchemy,JackLindsaystates,Inall,
some80piecesofapparatusareknown:furnaces,lamps,waterbaths,ashbaths,dungbeds,
reverberatoryfurnaces,scorifyingpans,crucibles,dishes,beakers,jars,flasks,phials,pestlesand
mortars,filters,strainers,ladles,stringrods,stills,sublimatories,allmaketheirfirstknown
appearanceaslaboratoryapparatusintheworkshopsofalchemistsandtheyhavepersisted,in
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variouslymodifiedforms,uptilltoday.
Alchemyhasbecomeromanticized,mostofthework

donewasnotdoneinknowledgeofwhattheyweredoingbutmanydiscoveriesweremade
3
throughignoranceorluck.

Untilthe17thcenturytherewasntalargedifferentiationbetweenalchemyand
chemistry,andthetwowereoftenusedinterchangeably.Alchemyhastheexplicitstatedgoalof
transmutinglesspurematerialsintothatofthepuregoldorsilver.Themeanstoachievethis
wereoftenthroughstudyingmetallurgy,pigmentmaking,andtheprocessofremoving
impuritiesfrommaterials.Theseprocesseswouldeventuallycometoformthefieldofchemistry
4
whenthegoalofTransmutationisleftbehind.

Alchemycanlargelybedividedintotwoareas:theexoteric(outward)andesoteric
(inward.)Exotericalchemyislargelyconcernedwithattemptstoprepareasubstance.Esoteric

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alchemycanbedescribedasmysticismsurroundingalchemy,andusingitssymbolism,toform
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theologicalorphilosophicalbeliefs.
Theesotericwasstartedbythepursuitoftransmutationof

lesserelementstogold.Aswillbeseenlater,thesepursuitsledtomanyotheradvancesinthe
medicalfields,andlaterfoundationsofchemistry.Therewasalso,startinginthethirteenth
centurythepursuitofanobjectcalledthePhilosophersStone,whichwassaidtogranteternal
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lifeaswellasbeabletotransmuteotherobjectsintogoldonitsown.

Theexotericlargelyfollowedtheprinciplesofalchemy,andcreatedalifestyleof
ssecrecyaroundthem.Muchofthisissaidtobeperpetuatedbycharlatansinordertopreyon
beleiversofAlchemy.ThesetraditionsandbeliefswouldalsoinfluencelatermindssuchasCarl
7
Jungwhowouldusethemtoformulatemanyofhistheoriesonpsychology.

EarlyAlchemicalStudies

EuropeanalchemyasastudyfindsitsearliestrootsinGreece.Aristotleheldthatall
thingswerecomprisedofaprimitivematter,whichdidnothaveformuntilitwasimpressed
uponbyform,whichwouldgivetheprimitivematteritsshapeandidentity.Thesimplest
manifestationsofthisareearth,air,fireandwater.Eachelementhadtwoproperties,andin
placingaformonepropertywouldbemanifestedwhichwoulddeterminethequalitiesofthe
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finalproduct.
MuchoftheearlybasisofGreekalchemywasanamalgamationoftraditions
9
foundthroughtheconquestofAlexander,andhadmuchofitsbasisinEgypt.

Thenamealchemylikelystemsfromtheword
chymia
,whoseearliestusagemeansto
pourorletflow.BythetimeoftheauthorZosimos,wehavetheterm
chymia
,whichisusedto

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

describetheartofalloyingandtransformationofmetals.
Chymia
wasalsoalabelusedto
describetheoccupationofthemetallurgist,oralloyer.Itisalsosuggestedthatthebasecould
stemfromtheword
chemeia
whichhadsymbolicsignificanceinEgypt.Itismostcertainthatthe
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prefixalisderivedfrom
il
whichwasadoptedfromtheArabswholatercametotheregion.

Earlyalchemistsregardedcolorasthemostsignificantattributeindeterminingtheinner
propertiesofametal.Thus,changingthecolorofsomethinginherentlychangeditsinner
properties.Inmeltingdownlead,acommonbasemetal,yougetablackliquid.Inordertogetto
anoblermetalthisblackmustbetransformedintowhiteoryellow,whichindicatesithasgone
fromabaselevel(lead)tothatofahigherlevel(goldorsilver.)Thismethodissaidthentohave
threeacts.Thefirstinwhichthemetalismelteddowntoachieveanewstate.Secondthe
additionorunionwithanothersubstance.Andthirdthesettlingdownandbecominganew
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substance.

Whilethisisthephysicalnatureofalchemy,therewasamysticismthatsurrounded
alchemy.Metallurgicalsciencesexistedlongbeforetheadventofwhatisknownasalchemy.
Thequesttodivinegoldoutofothersubstancescausedthegovernmentsofearlyalchemyto
shunitsattempts.Hadsomeonebeenabletomakegold,thensurelyitwoulddestroythe
economiesofthetime.Thus,alchemywaspracticedlargelyinsecretandmuchisnotknownof
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itsearliestpractitioners.

Earlyalchemistsendeavortomakegoldusedfourprocesses:makingalloyscomprisedof
othermetalstoappeargold,debasinggold,superficiallycoloringmetals,andcomplicated
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distillationmethods.

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Democritusiswidelyknownforhavingthoughtofatomictheory.Hehadtheideathatall
thingswerecomprisedofatomswhichexistinemptyspaceandallactionisthroughthetouching
oftheseinfinitesimallysmallthings.Hisideaswerenotexactlywhatweknowtoday,ashewas
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unablefindpracticalapplicationofhistheory,norwasheabletodemonstrateitsabilities.

ScholarsmaintainthatDemocritusisalsothemanknownasBolos,assometimestheirnamesare
usedinterchangeably.BolosDemocritushaslengthybookswhichhedescribesplants,their
effectsandlooks.Heusestheknowledgeofthistoprovidewhatcanbecalledthefirstbookof
alchemy,
PhysikaandMystika
.Inthisbook,hedescribestheprocessinwhichtomakedyes,
recipesformakinggoldandsilvermaking.Itisinthecombinationofthingsandobservingtheir
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effectsthatBolosDemocrituscontributedtoalchemy.

AwomanknownasMariatheJewesssetforththeprocesseswhichalchemywould
followforcenturiestocome.Sheisattributedwithperfectingtheapparatususedtodistill
liquids.Throughexperimentationdevisedathreearmedstillwithwhichliquidswerecombined.
16
Describeshowtomakecoppertubesfromsheetmetal.
Mariaisalsocreditedwiththe

discoveryofthewaterbathandashebath.Heradvanceshavemodernanalogsthatareusedin
17
chemistrylabstothisday.

Zosimosisthemostwidelycitedandwellknownoftheearlyalchemists.Zosimoslived
aroundtheyear300.HeisknownforfollowingintheworksofMariaandcraftingbettertools
forthealchemiststouse.Heisalsoknownforattemptingtoremovethemysticismofreligions
fromalchemy.Hismethodsfocusedonexperimentalworkwhichhethoughtothermindings

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

deviatedtruelearningfrom.Heisknowntohavechidedotherpractitionersforblindlyapplying
formulaswithoutthoughtastohoworwhytheywereworking.Thetreatise
OnVirtue
isthe
basisonwhichmuchcultureofalchemylaterrevolvesaround.Thetransformativeprocessof
changingthenatureofmetalswasseentohaverelationstonaturaloccurringphenomena,such
asbirth.ItisthroughZosimosthatwegetthedramaofliferelatedtotheprocessofalchemy.
17
WhatZosimoswaslackingin,though,wasaquantitativewayinwhichtodescribehisstudies.

AlchemyintheArabWorld

TherearefewotheralchemistsofnotefromtheearliestyearsofGreekalchemy.Itwasnt
untiltheseventhcenturywhenMuhammadfoundedIslamwhichledtoaunitedArabworld,
18
undertheCaliphOmarI,thatalchemywouldseearesurgence.
OnePrinceoftheCaliphate
19
tookaparticularinterestinalchemyandsoughttogatherallofittogether.
AstheArabsspread,

theybroughtwiththemtheirknowledge,whichincludedthealchemicalknowledgetheyfound
throughEgyptandGreece.TheyestablishedlibrariesandcentersoflearningacrosstheMiddle
20
East,northernAfrica,andsouthernEurope.

Jabir,knownbymanyasGeben,contributedtoalargeradicalchangeinalchemy.Heis
thefirsttopostulatethatmanyofthealchemicalprocessesfortransmutinggoldarefound
throughworkingwithmercuryandsulphur.Thesebaseslastedthroughtheseventeenth
21
century.

Rhazeswasafamousphysicianandacrusaderfortruthandheldthatnohadpersonhad
22
specialprivilegetoknowledge.HetranslatedmanyGreektextstoArabic.
Hewaswidely

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knownthroughouttheworldforhismedicalcontributionswhichincludedbeingthefirstto
differentiatesmallpoxandmeasles.Hismedicalencyclopediaswereknowntohaveseenuseup
totheseventeenthcentury.Healsopartookinthestudyofalchemy.Hekeptlargestoresof
alchemicalproductsandiscreditedforcreatingafurtherdivisionofsubstances:animal,
vegetable,andmineral.Hisapplicationofalchemytohismedicalstudiesledtogreaterfindings
23
includingplasterofPariswhichwasusedtohelpmendfracturedbones.

Intheearlyeleventhcentury,Avicennahadfromanearlyageestablishedhimselfasan
accomplisheddoctor.Hisworks,ofwhichthereareover100,madehimoneofthegreatest
authoritiesonmedicineandinfluencedthewholeworld.Whilehedidholdthesameviewson
thecompositionofmatterasJabir,thatsulphurandmercuryarethebasisoftheothermaterials,
heisamongthefirsttobeskepticalofalchemicalpursuitoftransformationoflesserelements
intogold,goingsofarastocallitawasteoftime.Hedescribedanyattempttochangeone
24
substanceintochangeanotherasproducingonlyacheapimitation.
Thishowever,didnot

precludehimforsearchingforaPhilosophersStone.Legendssurroundinghisdeathtellofhis
25
findinganelixirthatgrantedhimeverlastinglife.

AlchemyinEurope

Itwasntuntilthetwelfthcentury,afterthefirstcrusades,didtheknowledgeofalchemy
passintothewesternworld.AscholarlivinginSpain,RobertofChester,wastaskedwith
translatingtheKoranintolatin.Fascinatedwithsomeofhisfindingsthere,Robertthenwenton
totranslateBookoftheCompositionofAlchemy.ThisisthefirstknownalchemytextinLatin

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

anditsimportancecannotbeunderstated.Withinthetextwasalegendofamanwhoperformed
asuccessfultransmutationbeforeaprinceandlatertaughtthesecretsofalchemytothem.When
othertextsintroducedalgebratothewest,othermindssoughttheknowledgeheldbytheArabs,
whichledtomanyotheralchemicaltextsbeingtranslated.Asinformationwastranslatedand
26
disseminated,alchemyeventuallyfounditsplaceamongstEuropeanscholars.
Atfirst,alchemy

wastreatedasanaturalscience,onethatwouldnotbeincompatiblewiththeChristianchurch,
27
buteventuallyspeculationsofinherentheresybegantopushitundergroundagain.

Knownprimarilyforhisphilosophicalwork,AlbertusMagnuswasconsideredoneofthe
mostknowledgeablemenofhistime.Magnusheldastrongdesireforpreciseanddetailed
informationonnature.Likemanyofhiscontemporaries,hewasbeheldwithmagicand
astrology.Heputforththatthealchemicalinformationlearnedwasfaultyandproceededtoput
forthhisownalchemicalrecipeforgoldastransmittedtohimbyGod.HisstudentThomas
Aquinas,alsobelievedthattransmutationofgoldwaspossible.Theendorsementofthe
28
possibilityofgoldtransmutationfromthesetwogreatscholarsledtofurtherstudyofalchemy.

Inthemidthirteenthcentury,RogerBaconwroteseveraltreatisesonalchemy.Hesought
tounifyallofthesciencesthroughwhichhecouldachieveacompleteunderstandingofthe
Bible.Hehimselfmadenooriginaldiscoveriesinalchemy,butfurtherperpetuateditsmyth,
29
alongwhichhealsopredictedcorrectiveeyeglasses,submarines,andflyingmachines.

Throughoutthefourteenthandfifteenthcentury,alchemylargelyfelloffintermsof
advancement.Afterthetranslationofmanytextsintomodernlanguages,theartofalchemywas
sweptupinmysticismandsecrecy.Throughthesixteenthcenturyitbecamemorealignedwith

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

magic.Itlostmuchofitscredibilityandusefulness.ThescienceandfindingsofRobertBoyle
30
wouldringthedeathknellforalchemy.

TheDeathofAlchemy

RobertBoyleislargelycreditedwiththedeathofalchemy,andbeingthefounderof
modernscientificinquiry.BoylebasedhisworkonthatofGalileo.WhenGalileosetoutto
observethenatureofmovingobjects,itwashisobservationofresistancethatallowedhimto
inferthatwindresistancewascausinglighterobjectstofallslowerthanheavierobjects,as
opposedtothepreviouslyheldthoughtthatitwasjustinherentpropertiesthatdeterminedthe
motion.WhatBoyletookfromGalileosworkwastherepetitiveexperimentalnatureofit.Itwas
onlythroughrepeatedobservationandstudythatGalileowasabletoputforthhisclaimsto
31
challengetheoldorderofthought.

BoyleslargestbreakthroughcameintheformofchallengingBlaisePascalover
experimentswhoseresultswerebasedsolelyinmathematics.BoylearguedthatPascalsresults
werenotreproduciblethroughphysicalexperiments.Boyleperformedanexperimentinwhicha
waxballwasplacedinwaterandshowntofloat.Whenthewaxballwasthenplacedinwarmer
water,itwasfoundtosink.Butafteraperiodoftime,theballthenroseagaintothesurface.
Noneofthemathematicalmodelswerefoundtosufficientlyexplainthisphenomena.Through
hisexperimentation,Boyleprovedthatthoughtexperimentationalonewouldnotallowforthe
32
properdescriptionsofnaturalphenomena.

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

FollowingBoyle,alchemywasputtothetestseveraltimes.Inthelate1700sJames
Pricewassaidtohaveproducedgoldthroughalchemicalmeans.Whenputtothetest,he
committedsuicidebydrinkingacid.JohannSemlermaintainedthathewasproducinggoldin
flasks.Itwaslaterfoundthathisservantwasplacinggoldleafintheflasks,soastonotseehis
33
masterletdown.

Conclusion

Throughitsearliestmanifestations,alchemyhasbroughttotheworldmanygoodthings.
Fromearlychemicalequipment,toprovidingitsapplicationandinfluencetomedicine,andlater
providingthegroundsonwhichmodernchemistryisfounded,alchemyhaslargelybeenaforce
forgood.Whileitmayhaveneverachieveditsintendedpurpose,alchemyshouldbereveredas
opposedtobeingcastoffasajokeinhistorysannals.

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

EndNotes
1.

Newman,WilliamR.andLawrenceM.Principe.Alchemyvs.Chemistry:The

EtymologicalOriginsofaHistoriographicMistake.
EarlyScienceandMedicine
.(1988),44.
2.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),246.
3.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),8589.

4.

Newman,WilliamR.
PrometheanAmbitions:AlchemyandtheQuesttoPerfectNature
.

(Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,2004),117118.
5.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),1415.

6.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),7071.

7.

Jung,C.G.
PsychologyandAlchemy
.(NewYork:PantheonBooks,1953),412452.

8.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),1617.
9.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),115116.

10.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),6871.
11.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),116117.

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

12.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),102107.

13.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),217.
14.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),92.
15.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),100.
16.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),243.
17.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),48.

18.

Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.(NewYork:Barnes&

Noble,1970),323345.
19.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),118121.

20.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),63.

21.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),74.

22.

Goodman,LennE.
Avicenna
.(London:Routledge,1997),vii.

23.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),8489.

24.

Goodman,LennE.
Avicenna
.(London:Routledge,1997),123147.

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

25.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),120.

26.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),104106.

27.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),124.

28.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),113115.

29.

Brehm,Edmund.RogerBaconsPlaceintheHistoryofAlchemy.(
AMBIX
Vol.23

1976)5358
30.

CaronM.andS.Sutin.
TheAlchemists
.(NewYork:GrovePress,1961),124.

31.

Sargent,RoseMary.
DiffidentNaturalist:RobertBoyleandthePhilosophyof

Experiment
.(Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1995),6566.
32.

Sargent,RoseMary.
DiffidentNaturalist:RobertBoyleandthePhilosophyof

Experiment
.(Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1995),6768.
33.

Holmyard,E.J.
Alchemy
.(NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957),298303

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Marvel:AlchemyanditsInfluence

Bibliography
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Avicenna
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Alchemy
.NewYork:DoverPublications,Inc.,1957.
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PsychologyandAlchemy
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Lindsay,Jack.
TheOriginsofAlchemyinGraecoRomanEgypt
.NewYork:Barnes&Noble,
1970.
Newman,WilliamR.
PrometheanAmbitions:AlchemyandtheQuesttoPerfectNature
.
Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,2004.
Newman,WilliamR.andLawrenceM.Principe.Alchemyvs.Chemistry:TheEtymological
OriginsofaHistoriographicMistake.
EarlyScienceandMedicine
.(1988):3265.
Sargent,RoseMary.
DiffidentNaturalist:RobertBoyleandthePhilosophyofExperiment
.
Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1995.

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