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.
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![prietstis.^ ten times better t!ian that deferihed by Pa- raceljhs., or Plelmnut : For our Alcohol Vint brings over only their pured Effence, which is afterwards yet fur¬ ther exalted through the Flames of the Spirit of Wine, x^ccording to this, method, a Man may pre¬ pare from Vegetables excellent Cordials, Cephul/ckj^ Erengtheners of the Stnm2ic\\.Nephnticks.&c. which in their effetis will far exceed the Common. Only we are to obfcfve •, that when we have a mind to pre¬ pare an univerfal Medicine, we need not to meddle with Vegetables or Animals, which are Grandfather Vemogorjrons green Cloak, forafmuch as a little piece of his Heart, is far more valuable than his whole Cloak •, wherefore he that would prepare an univerfal Medicine, of greater Virtues than all Vegetables and Animals contain, let him take to Task a part of this Vemognrgons Heart. Concerning which, if the Rea¬ der deOre further to be fatified, let him perufe a Trea- tife of the incomparable Philofopher Bracefetts-, pf the Iree of Life ^ where he may be informed, who this Vetmgorgon is, what his clothes, aad what the inmoft Blood of his Heart are. Now by the wa^'’, to fpeak a little of this Demo- gorgon., we are to underhand, that the Ancients always deferibed their univerfal W^ork, not plainly fo, as to be apprehended by every one, buf wrapt up in Rid¬ dles and Allegories \ all of them pointing to this De- rHogorgon., who has his Seat in the Center of the Earth, having a rufty Colour’d, and green Cloak call about him i which in plain terms, is nothing elfe but the Cen¬ tral Fire, which God, when he created the World, placed there as an everlafting vivifyng Fire j by means of which quickening Fire, not only Metals and Mine¬ rals are produced, butalfoall Herbs, Plants and Trees; Upon which Account, the ancient Philofophers have deferibed this Demogorgott., to be the Grandfather of all the Heathen Gods, that is Metallkk^ Subjects, and an Upholder of, and Provider for all things that are within, as well as wdthout the Earth *, for all things proceed from one Original, viz., this Vemogorgon. Concerning which, See the Lxveljth Treatife of Sendi- vogius. Metals and Minerals, are as it were the Shirt, or inmoft covering pf Vemogorgon.^ whereas Vegetables and Animals, are but his Cloak, or upper Garment. The Ancients haye writ much concerning this Demo- gnrgofi, attributing to him, not only the Generation and growth of Stones and Metals, but declaring him to be the Father of thofe living Spirits, which are of¬ ten found in the Mountains, where Mines are, efpeci- ally of O or p, about which, if the Reader dehre to be further fatisfied , let him read George Agricola his Ireatife concerning Subterraneous living Creatures. To return then to out Demogorgon, I fay, there are found feme contemptible Minerals, in which all the Virtues of Vegetables and Animals lye concentred which Minerals take theif Original from the purefi Heart-blood of Demogorgon : Such Minerals as thefe we are to take in hand, if w*e would prepare an uni¬ verfal Medicine againftall Difeafes, as well as a Tin¬ cture, to meliorate all white Metals with great Gain and Prohf. We are alfo to obferve, that fuch an uni¬ verfal Medicine, may cafily, with little Charges, and in few days,be prepared : For the Minerals themifelves coft little or nothing, the Diffjlvent is very cheap, and fhe burning Spirit is not Chargeable, fo that an Uni¬ verfal Medicine, to meliorate Vegetables, Animals and Minerals, may be made with the Charge of an An¬ gel ^ vvhich, certainly, is a ftrange and wonderful Compendi^Mn. All this may be done with the help of pur Spirit of Wine Alcolifjtus, witheuf which, the Effence of thefe Minerals cannot be brought over nor be made perfedly fweet and fine, without enduring the Purgatory of its refining Flames ; Wherefore, al¬ io our Elias Art/jta., or Salt of Art, wherewith we acLiareour burning Spirit, and make fuch a wonderful Menjiruum of it, may well be called the Monarch of Stilts. And todemon/frate, that fuch a Medicine pre¬ pared of xMetals or Animals, with the help of our Salt of Art joyned with Spirit of Wine, is not only able to cure all the the Difeafes of Men and Metals, but alfo of Vegetables, appears firft from hence, that an univerfal Medicine can fcarccly, oi: at all be pre¬ pared without the Concurrence of Vegetables and Animals : For which reafori the Philofophers fay, that their Stone is Vegetable, Animal and Minerali ffthen the univerfal Medicine be made up of thefe three, we muft conclude affo, that it is Mafter and Commander over them. The ufe of this Medicine in the fevera! three Kingdoms, is as follows. ’When by means of our fartariz.ed Spirit of Wine, thou haft brought over the pure Effence of a Metal or Mineral, and fepara- ted the Spirit of Wine from the ALetaHick^ Effence by burning it away, then the faid Effence flays be¬ hind in the Cup or Difli, wherein the Spirit of Wine was burnt away, and may without any other Prepa¬ ration be made ufe of, for the Cure of all curaMe Difeafes. But when we have a mind to tuake ufe of this Effence, for the meliorating of Metals, we muft firft ferment it with common © or )), for without this, the Soul or Qiiintcffence of Metals can have no in- grefs into Metals, fo-as to unite with them in a Fire of Fufion. We are alfo to note, that when this Me- tallick^ Effence is fermented with Sol, it becomes a Solar Tintfture, but when with D, it only affords a white Tin(fture. It is alfo to be obferved, that when we take two parts of o, and one of D for our ferment, we ftiall have a Red TindFure, and (b on the contrary, if we tnake ufe of two or three parts of ]), jo one of ©, it will only be a white Tind'ure, becaufe the pre¬ dominant Metal determines the Tindfure. But he who hath once obtained a well prepared Quinteflence of Metals, will eafily know the ferment and way of applying it, for a due application is of great moment in this matter. I have known fome, who had ex¬ tracted good Tinctures from $ and J, but under- ftood not the way of fermenting them, that is of joyn- ing their ferment without their Tinctures j neither did they underftand the Inceration, that is, the way to give to your Tinctures[eafie Fluxibility and Ingrefs, fo could not arrive at their defired End. Were the World worthy of it, I could fet down an eafie, cheap and flfiort way, to extract much © out of S, by which means every one that is fomewhat skilled in Diftilling, Melting and Cupelling, might have a Rich and inex- haufted Mine in his own Houfc, but it is much better to be filent, than to ftrengthen Men in their Pride and wickednefs. But to return to the Medicinal ufe of our Tinftuies, we are to take Notice, that the Red Oyl, which re¬ mains after the burning away of the Spirit of Wine in the Cup, is fitteft to make a Mefallkk^ Tinefture of: But the 0 or Celeftial V'itrklw'hich mounts vvith the Flame of fhe Spirit of Wine, is the moft proper Medicine for human Bodies: For this pure Mercurial v is the true and beft v of Life, wherewith, not alone Men, but alfo other Animals, yea and Vegetables too, may be cured of all Difeafes, and Evils incident to them. And forafmuch, as the higheft Medicine of Vegetables is the Nourifliment they draw from the Earth,](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b30322522_0768.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)