Alchemy: Ancient and Modern

About this eBook

Author

Redgrove, H. Stanley (Herbert Stanley), 1887-1943

Title

Alchemy: Ancient and Modern Being a Brief Account of the Alchemistic Doctrines, and Their Relations, to Mysticism on the One Hand, and to Recent Discoveries in Physical Science on the Other Hand; Together with Some Particulars Regarding the Lives and Teachings of the Most Noted Alchemists

Credits

Produced by Chris Curnow, Harry Lamé and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

Language

English

LoC Class

QD: Science: Chemistry

Subject

Alchemy -- History

Category

Text

eBook-No.

43240

Project Gutenberg

https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/43240

Release Date

July 17, 2013

Copyright

Public domain in the USA.

Contents

1. 1.ALCHEMY: ANCIENT AND MODERN
2. 2.PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
3. 3.PREFACE
4. 4.CONTENTS
5. 5.LIST OF PLATES
6. 6.CHAPTER I THE MEANING OF ALCHEMY — The Aim of Alchemy. — The Transcendental Theory of Alchemy. — Failure of the Transcendental Theory. — The Qualifications of the Adept. — Alchemistic Language. — Alchemists of a Mystical Type. — The Meaning of Alchemy. — Opinions of other Writers. — The Basic Idea of Alchemy. — The Law of Analogy. — The Dual Nature of Alchemy. — “Body, Soul and Spirit.” — Alchemy, Mysticism and Modern Science.
7. 7.CHAPTER II THE THEORY OF PHYSICAL ALCHEMY — Supposed Proofs of Transmutation. — The Alchemistic Elements. — Aristotle’s Views regarding the Elements. — The Sulphur-Mercury Theory. — The Sulphur-Mercury-Salt Theory. — Alchemistic Elements and Principles. — The Growth of the Metals. — Alchemy and Astrology. — Alchemistic View of the Nature of Gold. — The Philosopher’s Stone. — The Nature of the Philosopher’s Stone. — The Theory of Development. — The Powers of the Philosopher’s Stone. — The Elixir of Life. — The Practical Methods of the Alchemists.
8. 8.CHAPTER III THE ALCHEMISTS [41] (A. BEFORE PARACELSUS) — Hermes Trismegistos. — The Smaragdine Table. — Zosimus of Panopolis. — Geber. — Other Arabian Alchemists. — Albertus Magnus (1193-1280). — Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274). — Roger Bacon (1214-1294). — Arnold de Villanova ( 12—? -1310?). — Raymond Lully (1235?-1315). — Peter Bonus (14th Century). — Nicolas Flamel (1330-1418). — “Basil Valentine” and “The Triumphal Chariot of Antimony.” — Isaac of Holland (15th Century). — Bernard Trévisan (1406-1490). — Sir George Ripley ( 14—?- 1490?). — Thomas Norton (15th Century).
9. 9.CHAPTER IV THE ALCHEMISTS ( continued ) (B. PARACELSUS AND AFTER) — Paracelsus (1493-1541.) — Views of Paracelsus. — Iatro-Chemistry. — The Rosicrucian Society. — Thomas Charnock (1524-1581). — Andreas Libavius (1540-1616.) — Edward Kelley (1555-1595) and John Dee (1527-1608.) — Henry Khunrath (1560-1605). — Alexander Sethon (?-1604) and Michael Sendivogius (1566?-1646). — Michael Maier (1568-1622). — Jacob Boehme (1575-1624.) — J. B. van Helmont (1577-1644) and F. M. van Helmont (1618-1699.) — Johann Rudolf Glauber (1604-1668). — Thomas Vaughan (“Eugenius Philalethes”) (1622-1666.) — “Eirenæus Philalethes” (1623?-?) and George Starkey (?-1665).
10. 10.CHAPTER V THE OUTCOME OF ALCHEMY — Did the Alchemists achieve the “Magnum Opus”? — The Testimony of van Helmont. — The Testimony of Helvetius. — Helvetius obtains the Philosopher’s Stone. — Helvetius performs a Transmutation. — Helvetius’s Gold Assayed. — Helvetius’s Gold Further Tested. — The Genesis of Chemistry. — The Degeneracy of Alchemy. — “Count Cagliostro” (—?-1795).
11. 11.CHAPTER VI THE AGE OF MODERN CHEMISTRY — The Birth of Modern Chemistry. — The Phlogiston Theory. — Boyle and the Definition of an Element. — The Stoichiometric Laws. — Dalton’s Atomic Theory. — The Determination of the Atomic Weights of the Elements. — Prout’s Hypothesis. — The “Periodic Law.” — The Corpuscular Theory of Matter. — Proof that the Electrons are not Matter. — The Electronic Theory of Matter. — The Etheric Theory of Matter. — Further Evidence of the Complexity of the Atoms. — Views of Wald and Ostwald.
12. 12.CHAPTER VII MODERN ALCHEMY — “Modern Alchemy.” — X-rays and Becquerel rays. — The Discovery of Radium. — Chemical Properties of Radium. — The Radioactivity of Radium. — The Disintegration of the Radium Atom. — “Induced Radioactivity.” — Properties of Uranium and Thorium. — The Radium Emanation. — The Production of Helium from Radium. — Nature of this Change. — Is this Change a true Transmutation? — The Production of Neon from Emanation. — Ramsay’s Experiments on Copper. — Further Experiments on Radium and Copper. — Ramsay’s Experiments on Thorium and allied Metals. — The Possibility of Making Gold. — The Significance of “Allotropy.” — Conclusion.
13. 13.Transcriber’s Notes

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