De Alchemia

De Alchemia is an early collection of alchemical writings, first published in Nuremberg in 1541 and edited by Johannes Petreius . A second, expanded edition appeared in Frankfurt in 1550 (printer Cyriacus Jacobus).

Bulk

The full title is: De Alchemia. Opuscula complura veterum philosophorum . Among the texts is the important alchemical work of an unknown author Rosarium Philosophorum with its illustrations (in the second edition 1550), the Summa Perfectionis by Pseudo-Geber and the Tabula Smaragdina by Hermes Trismegistos .

The Rosarium Philosophorum, which has been preserved in many manuscripts and was written at the end of the 14th or beginning of the 15th century, treats leading alchemical authorities (such as Zosimos of Panopolis , Ibn Umail , Chalid ibn Yazid , as a collection of quotations ( Florilegium )) Hali , Pseudo- Arnaldus von Villanova , Alphidius , Pseudo-Lull , Pseudo-Geber , Albertus Magnus ) and with explanatory verses the preparation of the Philosopher's Stone , with allegorical illustrations (pictorial poem Sol and Luna ), the z. B. show the union of the male and female principle. It resembles Donum Dei, first printed in German in 1582, and was used by Carl Gustav Jung for his psychological interpretations of alchemy. It was valued as a compendium of alchemy, was a major source for Atalanta fugiens (1617) by Michael Maier, and the author was ranked among the best alchemical authors by Isaac Newton . The print in De Alchemie is the Editio Princeps. Manuscripts are in Leiden, Dresden (from 1529), Darmstadt, Gotha, Marburg, Kassel, St. Gallen (Vadiana), in the Vatican Library and the Paris National Library.

In its edition of 1541, Petraeus called for further texts to be sent in, which was the beginning of a collecting activity that led to a number of collections of alchemical texts, including Artis Auriferae and culminating in the Theatrum Chemicum .

Contents of issue 1541

Encoder ( pseudo encoder ). De investigatione perfectionis metallorum, Liber I.
Giver. Summæ perfectionis metallorum, sive perfecti magisterij, Libri II.
Giver. De inventione veritatis seu perfectionis metallorum. Liber I.
Giver. De fornacibus construendis. Liber I.
( Roger Bacon ): Speculum alchemi, Rogerij Bachonis.
( Ricardus Anglicus ): Correctorium alchemiae Richardi Anglici.
Rosarius minor, de alchemia, incerti authoris
( Chalid ibn Yazid ) Liber secretorum alchemiæ Calidis filij Iazichi Iudæi.
Tabula smaragdina de alchemia, Hermetis Trismeg.
( Hortulanus ) Hortulani philosophi, super Tabulam smaragdinam Hermetis commentarius.

Contents of issue 1550

Part 1:

Correctio Fatuorum (from Ricardus Anglicus ).
Clangor Buccinæ.
Semita Semitæ.
(Pseudo- Avicenna ) Avicenna, De tinctura metallorum.
( Pseudo-Lull ) Lullius, Compendium animæ transmutationis.
Scala Philosophorum.
Opus mulierum, Tractatulus, sive ludus puerorum.
(Pseudo-Lull) Lullius, De Tincturis compendium, seu Vade Mecum.
(Pseudo- Aristotle ) Aristotle, Tractatulus de Practica lapidis Philosophici.

Part 2:

Rosarium Philosophorum

literature

John Ferguson, Bibliotheca Chemica, Volume 1, Glasgow 1906, pp. 19f
Joachim Telle (editor): Rosarium philosophorum. An alchemistic Florilegium of the late Middle Ages, Weinheim: VCH 1990 (translator Lutz Claren, Joachim Huber, with facsimile of the Editio princeps in De Alchemia)
Rudolf Gamper, Thomas Hofmeier, Das "Rosarium Philosophorum" and its owner Bartlome Schobinger ; with a contribution by Doris Oltrogge, Robert Fuchs. Zurich, 2014.

Individual evidence

^ Joachim Telle : Rosarium philosophorum, author's lexicon , 2nd edition. Volume 8, 1992, Col. 172-176.
↑ According to Telle, author's lexicon, we only know about the author that he worked in the 14th century and possibly (because of the German-language poem Sol and Luna) worked in German-speaking countries, but this depends on whether you are the author of the poem and the compiler identified with each other or not.
^ Alchemy website, woodcuts from the rosarium
↑ Glasgow University Library, illustrations from a manuscript in the Ferguson library
↑ Joachim Telle (editor and commentary): Rosarium philosophorum: an alchemical Florilegium of the late Middle Ages (translator Lutz Claren and Joachim Huber), Weinheim: VCH, 1992, 2 volumes, facsimile print of the edition from 1550
↑ Not identical with the Rosarium Philosophorum. As referred to by an unknown author.
↑ Sometimes attributed to Arnaldus von Villanova
↑ They date the St. Gallen manuscript (Vadiana, Codex 394b) to around 1530 (in the case of Telle around 1600) from the possession of the St. Gallen merchant Bartlome Schobinger, who also made some of it. Strange ingredients, strange mixture, review by Michael Duszat, Literaturkritik.de

[1] Joachim Telle : Rosarium philosophorum, author's lexicon , 2nd edition. Volume 8, 1992, Col. 172-176.

[2] According to Telle, author's lexicon, we only know about the author that he worked in the 14th century and possibly (because of the German-language poem Sol and Luna) worked in German-speaking countries, but this depends on whether you are the author of the poem and the compiler identified with each other or not.

[3] Alchemy website, woodcuts from the rosarium

[4] Glasgow University Library, illustrations from a manuscript in the Ferguson library

[5] Joachim Telle (editor and commentary): Rosarium philosophorum: an alchemical Florilegium of the late Middle Ages (translator Lutz Claren and Joachim Huber), Weinheim: VCH, 1992, 2 volumes, facsimile print of the edition from 1550

[6] Not identical with the Rosarium Philosophorum. As referred to by an unknown author.

[7] Sometimes attributed to Arnaldus von Villanova

[8] They date the St. Gallen manuscript (Vadiana, Codex 394b) to around 1530 (in the case of Telle around 1600) from the possession of the St. Gallen merchant Bartlome Schobinger, who also made some of it. Strange ingredients, strange mixture, review by Michael Duszat, Literaturkritik.de