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
Catalogue details

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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    ^__ ;. ir - ^ = - r j| OF THE ! ' K ^ c-:'ij' tf ers. t; By rvhich, They not only brought to Maturity their Vniverfal Me^ ’ dicine,' but alfo fixed particularly all the inferior Metals, into :; good (fold and Silver^ TPith great Brofit^ • | Written for the Sahps of aff the Lovers of Divine and Natural ‘ Wifdom. ! Faithfully Tranfiated out of the High-Dutch. i F.eader, SE E*! N G that in feveral of my Writings, 1 have made mention of the fecrct Fire of ^rte- phhis^ which fontams very well called Propri¬ um Agens^ for no better name can be given it. I thought it convenient to publifh this fmall Explication of it, that it may be known to thofe, who have not yet heard of it, not doubting, but by t^^s difcovery a great Light will be opened to all the Lovers of Me¬ tallic]^ improvements : For almoft all Philofbphcrs, in their Writings, are dark concerning this ^ and yet without this, no great Matter is to be effected in Chy- tnifiry : Which daily Experience fufficiently teftifies. Therefore lam refolved briefly to explain, yet fun¬ damentally and plainly, by Gods help, this thing which hath been fo long hid from the World. Of the Secret Fire of PhilofopberSj by vpbich they have maturated their TinUures. Firft you mult know, that no, Philofopher hath made any mention of if, but hath paffed it over in filence, only that ancient Philofopher Artephius hath taken fome notice of it, but fo obfcurely, that very few of his Readers, have been able to learn any thing from him. He faith, that himfelf, like others, had been covetous and envious, fo as to write nothing of it \ but after he was nine hundred years old, he firft began to Write of it. N. B. It is not credible, that he fhould have lived to that Age, but perhaps fome Body hath added a Cipher to it. *Tis like he was ninety years of Age, for the Ancients have often miftaken an hundred for ten. But be it as it will,he was the firft,that faid any thing of this Fire. Fontanus writes in his Epiftle,- that although .he knew the true Matter, yet he erred two hundred times, and fhould never have obtained k:, if he had not learned the fecret from his Writings. The reafon of hiding this Secret fo long, hath been only the wickednefs of Men, who feek not after thefe great things, that they might honour God, and fuc- cour the Poor, but rather, that by great Riches they might be able to enllave their Neighbours. But when fuch Men, who have forfaken the Vanities of the World, feek after them, God puts it into their hands, fo that ftyving noi running in this helps nothing, but only Gods blcffing; Obferve this well, and thou wilt not erf. ^If our eyes and hearts were not blinded b/ the Pride of the Devil, we fhould eafily fee and know, what Fire nature ufeth in the Earth, to bring Metals to Maturity: By which we might eafily learn, what Agent the Artift wants to maturate and bring to per¬ fection all imperfetS Metals into Gold and Silver, as good as if Nature had done it in the Earth. Now when we open our eyes and look about us, we find nothing elfe, but an Acidum or Univerfal Agent, that is, the Sulphurous Salt of Vitriol, by which all Metals in the Earth are generated, fo that fome, by a long’ time are fixed, and fome by a lefs time, partly remain unfixed, according as the Oars contain more or lefs ® of this Agent. And if by a ftrong Fire, one fhould melt this Metal out of the Oar, the greateft part of the Acidum, together with the Rocky part would come into a Cinder or Slate, but in the Metal, although it be melted and hammered, there yet remains fome of the Agent, which the Fire, in the firft melting, could not feparate from it, efpecially when the Me¬ tals are yet crude’, as if the Agent fhould fay, I will’ not be feparated from my Patient, for he cannot yet fubfift without me, and alfo faith the Patient, I cannot yet fufter my Husband, or Agent to be fepa¬ rated from me, for we have not been long enough together. But when the melting Fire comes to it again, then no excufe will ferve, but the ftronger overcomes the weaker, and the Agent and Patient muft part by force. Now what in this violent Se¬ paration, the one can carry away with it of the other, it leaves not behind, as we fee when the Oar of Iron is melted, that the violent Fire, forceth away the Agent from the Patient, and converts it into Cinders, but yet thefe are not purely Cinders, for they have attracted a great quantity of the Mercurial Patient, 1 viz. Iron, which is not turned into Cinders, for if they I be melted again, you will have a good quantity of Iron out of the Cinders, and this may be done for 1 feveral times. If the Agent and Patient had not a ( a great Agreement, they would certainly have been \ more nearly parted in the firft melting, and there i would be no need of a Second or Third Fire, and if i the Agent ftiould be feparated fiom its Patient, by the