The works of the highly experienced and famous chymist, John Rudolph Glauber: containing, great variety of choice secrets in medicine and alchymy in the working of metallick mines, and the separation of metals. Also, various cheap and easie ways of making salt-petre, and improving of barren-land, and the fruits of the earth / Translated into English, and pub. for publick good by Christopher Packe.
- Glauber, Johann Rudolf, 1604-1670.
- Date:
- 1689
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: The works of the highly experienced and famous chymist, John Rudolph Glauber: containing, great variety of choice secrets in medicine and alchymy in the working of metallick mines, and the separation of metals. Also, various cheap and easie ways of making salt-petre, and improving of barren-land, and the fruits of the earth / Translated into English, and pub. for publick good by Christopher Packe. Source: Wellcome Collection.
69/820 (page 43)
![may fee by Tartar and defprc^ble Antimony, and not only fo many coals, glaffes, materials,-and the like, but alfo the pretious time would not be waft¬ ed fo much in preparing of medicaments: for all is not gold that gliftereth, but oftentimes under a homely coat fome glorious thing is hid j which ought to be taken notice of. Some may objcd why do I t^ach to joyn the An¬ timony firft with the Tartar 'by the help of com¬ mon water before its fermentation with the wine : whether it would not be as good to put it in of it felf in powder, or to dilTolve it with fpirit of fait ‘fwhich would be ealier to do than with Tartar) and fo let ft work? To which I anfwer, that the working wine or drink, receiveth'no.metallical calx or folution, unlefs it be firft prepared with tartar or fpirit of wine. For although you .diflbive Antimony, or any other metal or mineral’in fpirit of fait, or of vitriol, or of fait nitre, or any other acid' fpi¬ rit, and then 'think to let it ,wprk with^wine or .any other drink, you will ^od'-:that itj^oth not iucceed ; for the acid fpirit'will 'hinder die fermen- ) tation, and let fall‘ the dilfolred metals, and fp-'. fpoyl the work; and befides^ Tartar may be ufed • among all drinks, and doth more agree with ones tafte and ftomach, than any corrolive fpirit. ' . In the fame mgnner as was tpght of Antimony , other min^^ls and metals alfo' may be fitly joyned : wi^ wine or other drinl5,‘anji the |Ufe qf fgch Ah' timonial wine is t)iis, wz,. that-it be drank at meals and betwixt meals Uke. other ordinary drink to ouench thirft, but for that, itmuft not be drank 'in a.greaten quantity, than .that Nature be iable;to bear it. For if you would drink ;of it immp^erjate- ■ ly, it would excite vomits, .whfch ought nptitqjje, , ior ip is but only to work iu infenlibje ,way, j which ifitbe.done, it preferimth npt ohly-fihe-.bo¬ dy from all direafes proceeding from cbrruptjed jpu pure blo^d. as .the Plague^,,,Leprqfy,. Pox^ %,uijvy, and the ’trke, but by reafon of jta hid,^enjbgat, whereby-it doth -cpnfume and expel all qvjif aRd l^lt humors ( as the Aun -dryeth ,UP a pool) by-A^eat and urine, apd fo doth unburth^n thp blopd fifom fuch ’lharp and hurtfpl hupprs, At.dpth pot only cure the aboy^faid^ dif^fes, but ,alfp. all open fores,, ulcers, fftulaes,'vV^hfh b.y, 9^jthe bHperfluity of fplt bpmors.can ^admit -of^no healing, ] and it doth djfpatch .th^m in a ftiort ,tnne ,in a| wonderful manner, and bo .firmly that,theye is no. rsjlapfe to be feared. V . j This drink .is:;nolyonl.y good for the iick, ibut' atfoifor tltenwhole fthough iin a Imaller quantity.^ becaufe that ■ it wonderfully - cleanfeth the. wholbj bo- tly, and you meed not fear theileaft hurt.leitheniii young or old-, bck or heakhyn uAnd letino^ man ^mble at it, that many ignorant men do.defarte Antimony and bold it toibe poyfon,,'and .forbid; it to be ufedfor if they knew it iwell, they would not do fo^ but becaufe fuch men .know no. more, than what they-get by reading, * or by hear-fay., ^ they pronounce a falfe fenfence - and |t might .be jepiyed unto them, asxlid to the Shooeiina- ker j futor ultra. cre^idatn/'.JsoX, what what lhali we fay ? Nun bmms fert omnia^itlfus. WhemaniAfs ^fter his death doth rot,-out'Of the carcafk .grow- etli Beetles, which can fly a higher than the Afs •from whence they camey In the «.like manner we wifh it may fare with the|haters of royal Antimo¬ ny, viz.. that their poftericy .may. get feeing icyes, 43 and what they knowi not,,they may forbear to de- fpife and feoff at. 1 muftconfefs, that if Antimony be'not well pre¬ pared, and befides, be indifcreetly ufed by the un¬ skilful, that it may prejudice a man. in bis health, which even the vegetables alfo may do. Buttore- jeft it by reafon of the abufe, would be a very uu- wife aft : If perchance a child fliould get into bis hand a'’fliarp-edged knife, and hurt himfelf or .o- thers,.ibecaufe it doth not nnderftand ihow to ufea knife, fhouid therefore riie ufe of a knife be rejeft- ed and forbidden to thofe that are grown up and knowhow to ufe it? Good fliarp tools make a good workman , fogood quick working and powerful me¬ dicines maike a goodphylitian ; and'the fharper the tool is,'the fooner a ftone-carver or other crafts- raammay fpoyl his work by one cut which he doth amifs: which alfo muft be underftood of powerful rnedicines, for if they 'be ufed pertinently, in a Ihorc time .more good may^be done with them/'than w'itli weak medicaments in a long time- Nowas afliarp tool is not to be handled but by a good workman. To likewife a powerful medicine Ought to-be mah- ' aged :by an underftanding.nnd confeientious phyfiti- an,. whoiaccording Che condition of tbe -perfoii, and die. difeafe, knows « 'to increafe. or^aliate thfe ■ftrengch of the medicine, and not'’by fufti a pn^, as doth miniftcr dt dgnoraritly without making any difference at alll. v .■ . uft. •Let! no man marvarl, Chat I aferjbe Tuch great vertnes unto AntimAny, i.t'beingiabundaitlyonrrc'lf- ed with th&fr^mumens.olgoldlri'^fi I {honld fay teh -times as much .more of litj .1 Ihould nbr praife is not to be expreffed by any mans ffongue'; for purifying ofthe)blood, there isi no mineral-like ,unto it.*, for it cleanfeth and purifietb the whole man in the higheft degree, if it be well prepared -.andithen difcreetly-ufed- It is the -belt and next friend to gold, which by the farae'^ allbds freed tandppuEified from all addition and filth, as we faid .e.ven jiow,oof man. Every Antimony for the moft part agreeth -with gold and its medicine; forlout of Antimony, by the cleanfing Art may -be made 'firm,geld, as in thoTburtbpart Ihsfll-be taught, and which .is more, by a dong digeftibn? a'lgood part of ‘theTameds changed into gold. Whereby it is evi¬ dent, that, it hath the iriature and property of gold, and iit is-better to.be ufed fora median»'than gold it felf, becaufe the golden vertue is as jet volatile iin/this,' but ih the btbenis g'rown 'fixed and compac- ited,,andomay be-compared to a young child in re- ifpeft ofan old riian.' Therefore it-is ftiy advice, that :in Antimony medicine fliould be fought, and not to .trifle atyay .time and: acoft in vain and ufelefs things. . Further , note,. That if you defire tb contraft near¬ er together the vertue of Antimony or any other mineralor^metal, as/^ove was taught toTe done with ,the Tartar.; lyou mulli'by.ijekhalation of Vhe-'fuper- ffluous moi'fture.iniBalneov reduce the folution to a •honey-ithick.liqoor-, .and pour fpirifjof wine upon it -for tbiextraft, and'within -few^days it wilTbe very red;, then I pour it off andu pour on other, • and let this’Ijk’ewife extraft : continue this proceeding with fhifting-the fpirit of wine,tstill the- fpirit of wine can. get .nb-more Tinfturej then putall tfie coloured fpirit of witie together into aglafs iwitH a long neck, and digeft it To long.'in’a.warm Balneum, till the coloubior bbft ellence of Antimony be fepa'rated from the Tpirit-of wine, and fettled to the tottom like a M 2 blood](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b30322522_0069.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
