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The Secrets of Alchemy

Lawrence M. Principe

$24.95

Paperback

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English
Chicago University Press
18 November 2015
Series: Synthesis
In The Secrets of Alchemy, Lawrence

M. Principe, one of the world’s leading authorities on the subject,

brings alchemy out of the shadows and restores it to its important place

in human history and culture. By surveying what alchemy was and how it

began, developed, and overlapped with a range of ideas and pursuits,

Principe illuminates the practice. He vividly depicts the place of

alchemy during its heyday in early modern Europe, and then explores how

alchemy has fit into wider views of the cosmos and humanity, touching on

its enduring place in literature, fine art, theater, and religion as

well as its recent acceptance as a serious subject of study for

historians of science. In addition, he introduces the reader to some of

the most fascinating alchemists, such as Zosimos and Basil Valentine,

whose lives dot alchemy’s long reign from the third century and to

the present day. Through his exploration of alchemists and their times,

Principe pieces together closely guarded clues from obscure and

fragmented texts to reveal alchemy’s secrets, and—most exciting for

budding alchemists—uses them to recreate many of the most famous recipes

in his lab, including those for the “glass of antimony” and

“philosophers’ tree.” This unique approach brings the reader closer to

the actual work of alchemy than any other book.

By:  
Imprint:   Chicago University Press
Country of Publication:   United States
Dimensions:   Height: 23mm,  Width: 16mm,  Spine: 2mm
Weight:   454g
ISBN:   9780226103792
ISBN 10:   022610379X
Series:   Synthesis
Pages:   296
Publication Date:  
Audience:   General/trade ,  ELT Advanced
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active

Lawrence M. Principe is the Drew Professor of the Humanities in the Department of the History of Science and Technology and the Department of Chemistry at Johns Hopkins University. His books include Alchemy Tried in the Fire: Starkey, Boyle, and the Fate of Helmontian Chymistry, also published by the University of Chicago Press.

Reviews for The Secrets of Alchemy

The Secrets of Alchemy comes closer than any other single work to explaining the grounds-rational and empirical, as well as religious and wishful-for alchemy's longevity. Lawrence M. Principe's delightful writing style brings to life a depth of learning matched by few in the field. (Nature) An elegant, readable book, packed with information and revelation. (Anthony Grafton, Science) Lawrence M. Principe has long been at the vanguard of scholars who seek to show that alchemists were really early chemists, not blindly struggling to turn substances into gold but operating, like scientists today, within an intellectual framework that guided their practical work. In The Secrets of Alchemy, an elegantly written summary of two decades of his own research, Principe describes this framework. (Wall Street Journal)


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