Steven G. Gilbert, PhD, DABT
Institute of Neurotoxicolog y & Neurological Disorders
 The ancient of alchemy is concerned with making the
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Sorcerer’s Stone, a legendary substance with astonishing
powers. The Stone will transform any metal into pure
gold. It also produces the Elixir of Life, which will make
the drinker immortal.
There have been many reports of the Sorcerer’s Stone over
the centuries, but the only Stone currently in existence
belongs to Mr. Nicolas Flamel, the noted alchemist and
opera lover. Mr. Flamel, who celebrated his 665 birthday
last year, enjoys a quiet life on Devon with his wife,
Perenelle (658).
(From: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone – J.K.
Rowling)
word alchemy itself was derived from the Arabic word
‫الكيمياء‬al-kimia
Alchemy is the art of liberating parts of the Cosmos from
temporal existence and achieving perfection
“As above, so below.”
The body, souls and spirit correspond to salt, sulphur, and
mercury
• creation of the philosopher's stone possessing powers
• turning base metals into the noble metals gold or silver
• an elixir of life conferring youth and longevity (creation of
a panacea)
• a universal cure for disease
• a universal solvent alkahest
• Hermes Trismegistus - Egyptian alchemist - author of the
Hermetic Corpus, a series of sacred texts that are the basis
of Hermeticism
• The four classical elements of earth, water, air, and fire are
used often in alchemy
• “As above, so below” - levels of reality: physical,
emotional, and mental, this relates that what happens on
any level happens on every other
• Still exists as cult believe
 1330 – Paris, March 22, 1418
 succeeded at the two goals of alchemy: that he made
the Philosopher's Stone, which turns base metals
into gold, and that he and his wife Perenelle
achieved immortality through the "Elixir of Life".
 Flamel had achieved legendary status within the
circles of alchemy by the mid 17th Century
 Others think untrue – all made up
 creation of the philosopher's stone possessing powers
 turning base metals into the noble metals gold or silver
 an elixir of life conferring youth and longevity (creation of a
panacea)
 a universal cure for disease,
 a universal solvent alkahest
 Also called The Secret of Hermes – by Hermes
Trismegistus ("Hermes the Thrice-Greatest") 172 BCE
A text purporting to reveal the secret of the primordial
substance and its transmutations
Translations - Arabic, the Latin, and Isaac Newton
Short – 13-14 lines
Also attributed to Jabir ibn Hayyan
Tablet became a mainstay of medieval and Renaissance
alchemy - greatest primary document of alchemy
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• Known as Geber - Born 721 in Tus, Persia; died 815 in Kufa, Iraq
• a chemist and alchemist, astronomer and astrologer, engineer,
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geographer, philosopher, physicist, and pharmacist and physician.
first practical alchemist – to science based
Less mystical - More lab based
Expands mystical elements into fire, earth, water , and air
credited with the use of over twenty types of now-basic chemical
laboratory equipment
ultimate goal of takwin — the artificial creation of life
Arabic version of the Emerald Tablet, an ancient work that proved
a recurring foundation of and source for alchemical operations
The first chemist ??
clear recognition of the importance of experimentation, "The first
essential in chemistry is that thou shouldest perform practical
work and conduct experiments, for he who performs not practical
work nor makes experiments will never attain to the least degree
of mastery.”
• Franciscan monk from what is present-day Spain (1232 -
June 29, 1315)
• active botanist and alchemist
• first to discover the chemical group later called ether
• German-Swiss Dec. 17, 1493 – Sept. 24, 1541
• Renaissance physician, botanist, alchemist, astrologer, and
general occultist
• “All things are poison and nothing (is) without poison; only
the dose makes that a thing is no poison. “
• “The dose makes the poison” See Hermetic and Alchemical
Writings of Paracelsus pt. 1 - Primary source; translation of
Paracelsus' alchemical writings
• “Many have said of Alchemy, that it is for the making of gold
and silver. For me such is not the aim, but to consider only
what virtue and power may lie in medicines.”
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• January 25, 1627 – December 31, 1691 – born in Ireland -
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Alchemy – Toxipedia general information on alchemy
Alchemy - Wikipedia article on alchemy
History of Alchemy (overview, written by devotee of alchemy)
Hermetic and Alchemical Writings of Paracelsus pt. 1 (Primary source; translation of
Paracelsus' alchemical writings)
Arabic alchemy & toxicology (history on the more science-focused works of 9th/10th century
Arab alchemists)
The Twisted History of Alchemy (Economist article on split of chemistry from alchemy)
History of alchemy in America by Mark Stavish (history of alchemy in America, focus on the
modern state of alchemists)
Ancient and Mystical Order Rosae Crucis – AMORC web site
The Alchemical Quest - Chemical Heritage Foundation – great interactive site
Persian (August 26, 865 – 925)
physician, alchemist and chemist, philosopher, and scholar
As an alchemist, Razi was known for his study of sulfuric acid
First physician to distinguish smallpox and measles
pioneered use of Humorism (The Four Humors, or Temperaments) as
diagnostic method, the categorization of health via the ratios of the four
bodily fluids
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natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, alchemist,
inventor, theologist.
Considered the first modern chemist but with roots in the
alchemical tradition
pioneer of modern experimental scientific method
Boyle's law - describes the inversely proportional
relationship between the absolute pressure and volume of a
gas
The Sceptical Chymist (1661) is seen as a cornerstone
book in chemistry rejecting alchemical perception of the
universe.
Prepared by Steven G. Gilbert, PhD, DABT
Institute of Neurotoxicology & Neurological Disorders
E-mail – sgilbert@innd.org
January 15, 2013 http://www.toxipedia.org/display/toxipedia/Alchemy
 Research assistance from Jeff Williams