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Alchemy Tried in the Fire

Author : William R. Newman
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 0226577058
Total Pages : 359 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (265 download)

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Book Synopsis Alchemy Tried in the Fire by : William R. Newman

Download or read book Alchemy Tried in the Fire written by William R. Newman and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2010-11-15 with total page 359 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Winner of the 2005 Pfizer Prize from the History of Science Society. What actually took place in the private laboratory of a mid-seventeenth century alchemist? How did he direct his quest after the secrets of Nature? What instruments and theoretical principles did he employ? Using, as their guide, the previously misunderstood interactions between Robert Boyle, widely known as "the father of chemistry," and George Starkey, an alchemist and the most prominent American scientific writer before Benjamin Franklin as their guide, Newman and Principe reveal the hitherto hidden laboratory operations of a famous alchemist and argue that many of the principles and practices characteristic of modern chemistry derive from alchemy. By analyzing Starkey's extraordinary laboratory notebooks, the authors show how this American "chymist" translated the wildly figurative writings of traditional alchemy into quantitative, carefully reasoned laboratory practice—and then encoded his own work in allegorical, secretive treatises under the name of Eirenaeus Philalethes. The intriguing "mystic" Joan Baptista Van Helmont—a favorite of Starkey, Boyle, and even of Lavoisier—emerges from this study as a surprisingly central figure in seventeenth-century "chymistry." A common emphasis on quantification, material production, and analysis/synthesis, the authors argue, illustrates a continuity of goals and practices from late medieval alchemy down to and beyond the Chemical Revolution. For anyone who wants to understand how alchemy was actually practiced during the Scientific Revolution and what it contributed to the development of modern chemistry, Alchemy Tried in the Fire will be a veritable philosopher's stone.

Alchemical Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence

Author : George Starkey
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 0226577104
Total Pages : 378 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (265 download)

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Book Synopsis Alchemical Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence by : George Starkey

Download or read book Alchemical Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence written by George Starkey and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2010-11-15 with total page 378 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: George Starkey—chymistry tutor to Robert Boyle, author of immensely popular alchemical treatises, and probably early America's most important scientist—reveals in these pages the daily laboratory experimentation of a seventeenth-century alchemist. The editors present in this volume transcriptions of Starkey's texts, their translations, and valuable commentary for the modern reader. Dispelling the myth that alchemy was an irrational enterprise, this remarkable collection of laboratory notebooks and correspondence reveals the otherwise hidden methodologies of one of the seventeenth century's most influential alchemists.

An Alchemical Quest for Universal Knowledge

Author : Georgiana D. Hedesan
Publisher : Routledge
ISBN 13 : 1317182146
Total Pages : 244 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (171 download)

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Book Synopsis An Alchemical Quest for Universal Knowledge by : Georgiana D. Hedesan

Download or read book An Alchemical Quest for Universal Knowledge written by Georgiana D. Hedesan and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2016-04-20 with total page 244 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: History of science credits the Flemish physician, alchemist and philosopher Jan Baptist Van Helmont (1579-1644) for his contributions to the development of chemistry and medicine. Yet, as this book makes clear, focussing on Van Helmont's impact on modern science does not do justice to the complexity of his thought or to his influence on successive generations of intellectuals like Robert Boyle or Gottfried Leibniz. Revealing Van Helmont as an original thinker who sought to produce a post-Scholastic synthesis of religion and natural philosophy, Georgiana Hedesan reconstructs his ambitious quest for universal knowledge as it emerges from the text of the Ortus medicinae (1648). Published after Van Helmont's death by his son, the work can best be understood as a compilation of finished and unfinished treatises, the historical product of a life unsettled by religious persecution and personal misfortune. The present book provides a coherent account of Van Helmont's philosophy by analysing its main tenets. Divided into two parts, the study opens with a background to Van Helmont's concept of an alchemical Christian philosophy, demonstrating that his outlook was deeply grounded in the tradition of medical alchemy as reformed by Theophrastus von Hohenheim, called Paracelsus (1493-1541). It then reconstitutes Van Helmont's biography, while giving a historical dimension to his intellectual output. The second part reconstructs Van Helmont's Christian philosophy, investigating his views on God, nature and man, as well as his applied philosophy. Hedesan also provides an account of the development of Van Helmont's thought throughout his life. The conclusion sums up Van Helmont's intellectual achievement and highlights avenues of future research.

Hermetic Herbalism

Author : Jean Mavéric
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1620559862
Total Pages : 257 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (25 download)

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Book Synopsis Hermetic Herbalism by : Jean Mavéric

Download or read book Hermetic Herbalism written by Jean Mavéric and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2020-05-05 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A never-before-translated occult classic that brings the science of herbal medicine back to its Hermetic roots • Includes a large collection of recipes for spagyric medicines and quintessences, with detailed step-by-step instructions, adapted from celebrated spagyrists such as Paracelsus, Pseudo-Lull, Philipp Ulstad, and Nicaise Le Fèvre • Provides botanical and medicinal classifications of over 600 plant species along with their astral natures, elemental qualities, and planetary and zodiacal signatures • Explores advanced methods and techniques and shares the author’s secret formula for a universal circulatum First published in French in 1911, this practical guide to the art of spagyrics begins by outlining the ancient yet often forgotten Hermetic foundations of herbalism. Author Jean Mavéric provides botanical and medicinal classifications of over 600 plant species along with an in-depth study of their astral natures, elemental qualities, and planetary and zodiacal signatures as well as practical advice on the appropriate times to harvest plants and administer herbal remedies and quintessences. Reviewing the general principles and procedures of premodern chemistry, Mavéric then explores the secret doctrines and operations of the spagyric art. He offers a large collection of recipes for spagyric herbal preparations adapted from celebrated spagyrists such as Paracelsus, Pseudo-Lull, Philipp Ulstad, Jan Baptist van Helmont, Oswald Croll, and Nicaise Le Fèvre, providing detailed step-by-step instructions for a veritable pharmacopeia of spagyric extracts, tinctures, elixirs, liquors, oils, unguents, salts, aquae vitae, and quintessences. Mavéric also shares his intricate theory of astral medicine and advocates a seasonal “Hermetic diet” designed to keep the humors of the body in equilibrium and prevent the onset of illness. In the final section of the book, Mavéric focuses on the more advanced methods and techniques of Paracelsus, Helmont, and George Starkey, unraveling the mysteries of manufacturing alkalis, alkahests, and menstrua and divulging his own secret formula for a universal circulatum. Available now for the first time in English, this occult classic unveils the art of extracting spagyric essences to a modern audience while also bringing the science of herbal medicine back to its Hermetic roots.

The Luyceumite and Talent

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 996 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis The Luyceumite and Talent by :

Download or read book The Luyceumite and Talent written by and published by . This book was released on 1907 with total page 996 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

The Lyceum Magazine

Author : Ralph Albert Parlette
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 504 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (91 download)

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Book Synopsis The Lyceum Magazine by : Ralph Albert Parlette

Download or read book The Lyceum Magazine written by Ralph Albert Parlette and published by . This book was released on 1919 with total page 504 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Theosophy

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 792 pages
Book Rating : 4.A/5 ( download)

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Book Synopsis Theosophy by :

Download or read book Theosophy written by and published by . This book was released on 1898 with total page 792 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

The Mirror of Magic

Author : Kurt Seligmann
Publisher : Simon and Schuster
ISBN 13 : 1620557916
Total Pages : 512 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (25 download)

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Book Synopsis The Mirror of Magic by : Kurt Seligmann

Download or read book The Mirror of Magic written by Kurt Seligmann and published by Simon and Schuster. This book was released on 2018-10-16 with total page 512 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A collector’s edition of the classic, illustrated, and comprehensive history of magic and the occult • Written by renowned Surrealist and magic scholar Kurt Seligmann (1900-1962) • Includes all 250 illustrations from the original 1948 edition • Explores magical practices and beliefs from their origins in the ancient world through the heyday of secret societies in the 18th century In the occult classic The Mirror of Magic, renowned Surrealist Kurt Seligmann (1900-1962) draws from his encyclopedic practitioner’s knowledge and extensive antiquarian collection to offer a comprehensive, illustrated history of magic and the occult from Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt through the 18th century. He explores the gods and divinatory arts of the legendary Sumerians and the star-wise Babylonians, including the birth of astrology. He examines the afterlife beliefs of the ancient Egyptians and the dream interpretation practices and oracles of ancient Greece, including the mysteries of Eleusis and the magical philosophy of Plato, Socrates, and other Greeks. He uncovers the origins of Gnosticism and the suppression and banishment of magic by the post-pagan, Christian emperors of Rome. Seligmann reviews the principles of alchemy, sharing famous transmutations and allegorical illustrations of the alchemical process and explores the Hermetica and its remarkable adepts. Investigating the Middle Ages, the author discusses the work of European magicians of the time, including Albertus Magnus, Roger Bacon, Agrippa, Nostradamus, and Pico Della Mirandola. He studies the medieval practices of devil worship, witchcraft, and black magic, as well as the “Cabala” in both its Hebrew and Christian forms. He also examines the art of the Tarot and many lesser known divination techniques. He explores the development of secret societies, including Freemasonry and Rosicrucianism, in the 17th century and the increase in occult publications and magical science in the 18th century. First published in 1948, this history of magic and the occult seeks to “mirror” the magical worldview throughout the ages. Beautifully illustrated with images from the author’s rare library, this collector’s edition features all of the artwork--more than 250 images--from the original 1948 edition.

The Salt of the Earth

Author : Anna Marie Eleanor Roos
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004161767
Total Pages : 313 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (41 download)

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Book Synopsis The Salt of the Earth by : Anna Marie Eleanor Roos

Download or read book The Salt of the Earth written by Anna Marie Eleanor Roos and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2007 with total page 313 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Consisting of a series of case studies, this book is devoted to the concept and uses of salt in early modern science, which have played a crucial role in the evolution of matter theory from Aristotelian concepts of the elements to Newtonian chymistry. No reliable study on this subject has been previously available. Its exploration of natural history's and medicine's intersection with chemical investigation in early modern England demonstrates the growing importance of the senses and experience as causes of intellectual change from 1650-1750. It demonstrates that an understanding of the changing definitions of "salt" is also crucial to a historical comprehension of the transition between alchemy and chemistry.

The Aspiring Adept

Author : Lawrence Principe
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691186286
Total Pages : 354 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (911 download)

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Book Synopsis The Aspiring Adept by : Lawrence Principe

Download or read book The Aspiring Adept written by Lawrence Principe and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2018-06-05 with total page 354 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Aspiring Adept presents a provocative new view of Robert Boyle (1627-1691), one of the leading figures of the Scientific Revolution, by revealing for the first time his avid and lifelong pursuit of alchemy. Boyle has traditionally been considered, along with Newton, a founder of modern science because of his mechanical philosophy and his experimentation with the air-pump and other early scientific apparatus. However, Lawrence Principe shows that his alchemical quest--hidden first by Boyle's own codes and secrecy, and later suppressed or ignored--positions him more accurately in the intellectual and cultural crossroads of the seventeenth century. Principe radically reinterprets Boyle's most famous work, The Sceptical Chymist, to show that it criticizes not alchemists, as has been thought, but "unphilosophical" pharmacists and textbook writers. He then shows Boyle's unambiguous enthusiasm for alchemy in his "lost" Dialogue on the Transmutation and Melioration of Metals, now reconstructed from scattered fragments and presented here in full for the first time. Intriguingly, Boyle believed that the goal of his quest, the Philosopher's Stone, could not only transmute base metals into gold, but could also attract angels. Alchemy could thus act both as a source of knowledge and as a defense against the growing tide of atheism that tormented him. In seeking to integrate the seemingly contradictory facets of Boyle's work, Principe also illuminates how alchemy and other "unscientific" pursuits had a far greater impact on early modern science than has previously been thought.

Elements, Principles and Corpuscles

Author : Antonio Clericuzio
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 9401594643
Total Pages : 239 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (15 download)

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Book Synopsis Elements, Principles and Corpuscles by : Antonio Clericuzio

Download or read book Elements, Principles and Corpuscles written by Antonio Clericuzio and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2013-04-17 with total page 239 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Elements, Principles and Particles, Antonio Clericuzio explores the relationships between chemistry and corpuscular philosophy in the age of the Scientific Revolution. Science historians have regarded chemistry and corpuscular philosophy as two distinct traditions. Clericuzio's view is that since the beginning of the 17th century atomism and chemistry were strictly connected. This is attested by Daniel Sennert and by many hitherto little-known French and English natural philosophers. They often combined a corpuscular theory of matter with Paracelsian chemical (and medical) doctrines. Boyle plays a central part in the present book: Clericuzio redefines Boyle's chemical views, by showing that Boyle did not subordinate chemistry to the principles of mechanical philosophy. When Boyle explained chemical phenomena, he had recourse to corpuscles endowed with chemical, not mechanical, properties. The combination of chemistry and corpuscular philosophy was adopted by a number of chemists active in the last decades of the 17th century, both in England and on the Continent. Using a large number of primary sources, the author challenges the standard view of the corpuscular theory of matter as identical with the mechanical philosophy. He points out that different versions of the corpuscular philosophy flourished in the 17th century. Most of them were not based on the mechanical theory, i.e. on the view that matter is inert and has only mechanical properties. Throughout the 17th century, active principles, as well as chemical properties, are attributed to corpuscles. Given its broad coverage, the book is a significant contribution to both history of science and history of philosophy.

The Body as Object and Instrument of Knowledge

Author : Charles T. Wolfe
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN 13 : 9048136865
Total Pages : 347 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (481 download)

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Book Synopsis The Body as Object and Instrument of Knowledge by : Charles T. Wolfe

Download or read book The Body as Object and Instrument of Knowledge written by Charles T. Wolfe and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2010-04-07 with total page 347 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: It was in 1660s England, according to the received view, in the Royal Society of London, that science acquired the form of empirical enquiry we recognize as our own: an open, collaborative experimental practice, mediated by specially-designed instruments, supported by civil discourse, stressing accuracy and replicability. Guided by the philosophy of Francis Bacon, by Protestant ideas of this worldly benevolence, by gentlemanly codes of decorum and by a dominant interest in mechanics and the mechanical structure of the universe, the members of the Royal Society created a novel experimental practice that superseded former modes of empirical inquiry, from Aristotelian observations to alchemical experimentation. This volume focuses on the development of empiricism as an interest in the body – as both the object of research and the subject of experience. Re-embodying empiricism shifts the focus of interest to the ‘life sciences’; medicine, physiology, natural history. In fact, many of the active members of the Royal Society were physicians, and a significant number of those, disciples of William Harvey and through him, inheritors of the empirical anatomy practices developed in Padua during the 16th century. Indeed, the primary research interests of the early Royal Society were concentrated on the body, human and animal, and its functions much more than on mechanics. Similarly, the Académie des Sciences directly contradicted its self-imposed mandate to investigate Nature in mechanistic fashion, devoting a significant portion of its Mémoires to questions concerning life, reproduction and monsters, consulting empirical botanists, apothecaries and chemists, and keeping closer to experience than to the Cartesian standards of well-founded knowledge. These highlighted empirical studies of the body, were central in a workshop in the beginning of 2009 organized by the unit for History and Philosophy of Science in Sydney. The papers that were presented by some of the leading figures in this area are presented in this volume.

John Locke and Natural Philosophy

Author : Peter R. Anstey
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0191506257
Total Pages : 272 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (915 download)

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Book Synopsis John Locke and Natural Philosophy by : Peter R. Anstey

Download or read book John Locke and Natural Philosophy written by Peter R. Anstey and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2013-04-04 with total page 272 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Peter Anstey presents a thorough and innovative study of John Locke's views on the method and content of natural philosophy. Focusing on Locke's Essay concerning Human Understanding, but also drawing extensively from his other writings and manuscript remains, Anstey argues that Locke was an advocate of the Experimental Philosophy: the new approach to natural philosophy championed by Robert Boyle and the early Royal Society who were opposed to speculative philosophy. On the question of method, Anstey shows how Locke's pessimism about the prospects for a demonstrative science of nature led him, in the Essay, to promote Francis Bacon's method of natural history, and to downplay the value of hypotheses and analogical reasoning in science. But, according to Anstey, Locke never abandoned the ideal of a demonstrative natural philosophy, for he believed that if we could discover the primary qualities of the tiny corpuscles that constitute material bodies, we could then establish a kind of corpuscular metric that would allow us a genuine science of nature. It was only after the publication of the Essay, however, that Locke came to realize that Newton's Principia provided a model for the role of demonstrative reasoning in science based on principles established upon observation, and this led him to make significant revisions to his views in the 1690s. On the content of Locke's natural philosophy, it is argued that even though Locke adhered to the Experimental Philosophy, he was not averse to speculation about the corpuscular nature of matter. Anstey takes us into new terrain and new interpretations of Locke's thought in his explorations of his mercurialist transmutational chymistry, his theory of generation by seminal principles, and his conventionalism about species.

The Secrets of Alchemy

Author : Lawrence Principe
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 0226682951
Total Pages : 296 pages
Book Rating : 4.2/5 (266 download)

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Book Synopsis The Secrets of Alchemy by : Lawrence Principe

Download or read book The Secrets of Alchemy written by Lawrence Principe and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2013 with total page 296 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Alchemy, the Noble Art, conjures up scenes of mysterious, dimly lit laboratories populated with bearded old men stirring cauldrons. Though the history of alchemy is intricately linked to the history of chemistry, alchemy has nonetheless often been dismissed as the realm of myth and magic, or fraud and pseudoscience. And while its themes and ideas persist in some expected and unexpected places, from the Philosopher's (or Sorcerer's) Stone of Harry Potter to the self-help mantra of transformation, there has not been a serious, accessible, and up-to-date look at the complete history and influence of alchemy until now.

Samuel Hartlib and Universal Reformation

Author : Mark Greengrass
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780521520119
Total Pages : 400 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (21 download)

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Book Synopsis Samuel Hartlib and Universal Reformation by : Mark Greengrass

Download or read book Samuel Hartlib and Universal Reformation written by Mark Greengrass and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2002-05-16 with total page 400 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Samuel Hartlib was a key figure in the intellectual revolution of the seventeenth century. Originally from Elbing, in Prussig, Hartlib settled permanently in England from the late 1620s until his death in 1662. His aspirations formed a distinctive and influential strand in English intellectual life during those revolutionary decades. This volume reflects the variety of the theoretical and practical interests of Hartlib's circle and presents them in their continental context. The editors of the volume are all attached to the Hartlib Papers Project at the University of Sheffield, a major collaborative research effort to exploit the largely untapped resources of the surviving Hartlib manuscripts. In an introduction to the volume they explore the background to the Hartlib circle and provide the context in which the essays should be read.

Alchemy & Herbalists

Author : Bastion Press
Publisher : Bastion Press, Inc.
ISBN 13 : 9780971439245
Total Pages : 100 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (392 download)

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Book Synopsis Alchemy & Herbalists by : Bastion Press

Download or read book Alchemy & Herbalists written by Bastion Press and published by Bastion Press, Inc.. This book was released on 2002-03 with total page 100 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Newton the Alchemist

Author : William R. Newman
Publisher : Princeton University Press
ISBN 13 : 0691185034
Total Pages : 537 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (911 download)

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Book Synopsis Newton the Alchemist by : William R. Newman

Download or read book Newton the Alchemist written by William R. Newman and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2018-12-11 with total page 537 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A book that finally demystifies Newton’s experiments in alchemy When Isaac Newton’s alchemical papers surfaced at a Sotheby’s auction in 1936, the quantity and seeming incoherence of the manuscripts were shocking. No longer the exemplar of Enlightenment rationality, the legendary physicist suddenly became “the last of the magicians.” Newton the Alchemist unlocks the secrets of Newton’s alchemical quest, providing a radically new understanding of the uncommon genius who probed nature at its deepest levels in pursuit of empirical knowledge. In this evocative and superbly written book, William Newman blends in-depth analysis of newly available texts with laboratory replications of Newton’s actual experiments in alchemy. He does not justify Newton’s alchemical research as part of a religious search for God in the physical world, nor does he argue that Newton studied alchemy to learn about gravitational attraction. Newman traces the evolution of Newton’s alchemical ideas and practices over a span of more than three decades, showing how they proved fruitful in diverse scientific fields. A precise experimenter in the realm of “chymistry,” Newton put the riddles of alchemy to the test in his lab. He also used ideas drawn from the alchemical texts to great effect in his optical experimentation. In his hands, alchemy was a tool for attaining the material benefits associated with the philosopher’s stone and an instrument for acquiring scientific knowledge of the most sophisticated kind. Newton the Alchemist provides rare insights into a man who was neither Enlightenment rationalist nor irrational magus, but rather an alchemist who sought through experiment and empiricism to alter nature at its very heart.