Alchemy

by E.J. Holmyard

Book Overview

Alchemy is thought to have originated over 2000 years ago in Hellenic Egypt, the result of three converging streams: Greek philosophy, Egyptian technology and the mysticism of Middle Eastern religions. Its heyday was from about 800 A.D. to the middle of the seventeenth century, and its practitioners ranged from kings, popes, and emperors to minor clergy, parish clerks, smiths, dyers, and tinkers. Even such accomplished men as Roger Bacon, Thomas...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0486262987
• ISBN13: 9780486262987
• Release Date: April 1990
• Publisher: Dover Publications
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.4" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

An excellent resource for the basics on alchemy in history

This book, originally published in 1957, is at 275 pages a deceptively small book given the wealth of information it contains. If you're looking to gain an understanding of what alchemy was historically, what the people who believed in it were striving for, and what their experiences were, this is an excellent resource. The reading is dense at times, but that is due to the wealth of detail provided and the frequent insertion of excerpts from the writings of alchemists in the language of their times. Holmyard's writing style itself flows quite smoothly, and the chapters are well organized and speak for themselves: 1. Introductory 2. The Greek Alchemists 3. Chinese Alchemy 4. Alchemical Apparatus 5. Islamic Alchemy 6. Early Western Alchemy 7. Signs, Symbols and Secret Terms 8. Paracelsus 9. Some English Alchemists 10. Scottish Alchemists 11. Two French Alchemists 12. Helvetius, Price and Semler The book also contains a number of illustrations which in themselves are a wealth of detail, from copies of the illustrated writings of alchemists to contemporary artists' depictions of the alchemists and their laboratories, as well as - of particular interest for Harry Potter fans - a photograph of the tombstone of Nicholas Flamel. Among the things I learned from this book are: - The famed Philosopher's Stone was not a stone as we think of it; it was invariably a powder. To alchemists, "stone" was merely an alchemical term that meant a thing had been reduced to a state where it could not be reduced any further. - Perhaps the greatest contribution of alchemy was the idea that chemical preparations could have medicinal value. Prior to the researches of alchemists, physicians for the most part only used medicines obtained from plants. - The knowledge of alchemy came to medieval Europe indirectly through contact with the Islamic world which had found, preserved and then expanded upon knowledge that had originated with the Greeks and others but had been lost to Europeans after the collapse of the Roman Empire. And it came, along with much other valuable knowledge of medicine, science and mathematics, in a sudden burst of academic zeal in the 12th and 13th centuries when European scholars wanted everything they could get their hands on translated from Arabic into Latin or other local languages. - Alchemists were the early masters of the excuse and the extenuating circumstance. They always had a reason for their myriad failures to produce results (especially in the matter of turning base metals into gold), blaming their lack of success on apparatus that broke at critical moments, thieving servants, funds being depleted just prior to imminent success, and in one case, being called away for military service. A quote from a somewhat wiser-by-experience alchemist summed his fellow alchemists up nicely: "Some would say, 'If we had the means to start again, we should do something worth while', and others, 'If our vessels had held we should be there', and others, '

Ian Myles Slater on: The Real Alchemy

For just about half a century, E.J. Holmyard's concisely-titled "Alchemy" has served as a literate, well-informed, and charming introduction to the history and literature of Western alchemy. I first read it while in High School, and can say that, while it may take a little dedication to get through, it should be worth the trouble. I would commend it to any serious beginner in the subject, including those teenagers and adults who first encountered the Philosopher's Stone and the French alchemist Nicholas Flamel by way of Harry Potter (see especially Holmyard's Chapter Eleven), or who have wondered about the quest for the Stone, and discussions of its precursors, like "The Red Water," as portrayed in the manga or anime versions of Hiromu Arakawa's "Full-Metal Alchemist" ("Hagane No Renkinjutsushi"). (For the Stone, the Lapis Philosophorum, see throughout; but Fullmetal fans should take an especially close look at Holmyard's Plate 24, showing Flamel's "diagram" -- which is also found on-line -- for the source of Edward Elric's serpentine insignia; although the Flamel legend says this is copied from a Jewish manuscript, the iconography is based on a Christian interpretation of Numbers 21:8-9; and see also 2 Kings 18:4.) Unfortunately, such appearances in popular culture tend to reinforce the idea that alchemy was a form of magic, and neither series of stories, although entertaining, has much to do with real-world alchemy. Yes, some ceremonial magicians were interested in alchemy, and vice-versa; so were many other literate people. Supposed spell-books available to the public (originally on the sly, more openly in historically dubious products of nineteenth-century printers) often offered the gullible "short-cuts" to successful transmutation. The real basis of alchemy, however, was a mixture of practical, if misunderstood, experience and high philosophical ideas about Nature and Time, linked by enthusiastic notions about how matter could be manipulated to achieve human ends. A lot about Aristotle's Four Elements (Earth, Air, Fire, Water), the Four Qualities (Hot, Cold, Dry, Moist), the Ripening of Metals in the Womb of the Earth, and speculations about the wonderful properties of "True" Sulphur and Quicksilver (not the obviously-adulterated real-world stuff, which gave unsatisfactory results). But no use of spirits (except as a term for the products of distillation, like "spirits of wine"), no magic circles (sorry, Edward and Alphonse Elric), and no incantations -- although chanting to keep track of elapsed time, in the absence of clocks with minute hands, apparently is an attested practice. As Holmyard explains, Western Alchemy is a complex of ideas about the true nature of the physical world, and the possibility of manipulating its substance, which emerged in late classical antiquity, were adopted and refined in early Islam, and transferred to medieval Europe, where they underwent a series of transformations before splitting into occult specu

Best Introduction

This is perhaps the best ever introduction to the history of alchemy. Holmyard was a professional researcher in chemistry and few writers in English have had anything approaching his familiarity and depth of knowledge about the subject of experimental alchemy. His knowledge of the contributions of Muslim civilization to alchemy are the best to be found in any history of alchemy. This is one one of the book's main pluses, in contrast to the other reviewer who does not seem to appreciate the overwhelming importance of the Muslim contribution. Indeed, as an _experimental_ science, alchemy/chemistry proper was virtually invented by Muslim civilization. Today the scientific aspects of alchemy are frequently ignored/deemphasized in favor of speculative psychology and other trends, but it must not be forgotten that alchemy was/is fundamentally a scientific enterprise, although its notion of ``science'' presumes a very holistic cosmology and phenomenology of macrocosm and microcosm; and of matter, soul, and spirit. In any case, even an understanding of inner/esoteric alchemy cannot be divorced from its outer/exoteric aspects. For those more interested in the inner/esoteric side of alchemy, this text is still quite essential, for although Holmyard focuses on the exoteric side, he also also provides the appropriate links to the esoteric side of alchemy as well. One simply cannot properly appreciate authentic esoteric alchemy without a grounding in its exoteric foundations. Titus Burckhardt's ``Alchemy'' provides an good companion to Holmyard. Although Burckhardt is focused on inner alchemy, Holmyard provides much of the historical background needed to get the most out of Burckhardt's essay which is, unfortunately, quite vague and abstruse in too many places. Together, these two texts are indispensable for anyone serious about the meaning and history of alchemy.

An interesting book on alchemical history.

This book is on alchemical history and contains biografical material of the most renowned alchemists. The book contains several images. There are also some chemical procedures described. This is a book by a very cunning historian, but he doesn't know anything about the psychological implications of alchemy.Mats Winther