Roger Bacon

The Mirror of Alchimy (eBook, PDF)

• Format: PDF

Produktbeschreibung

The Mirror of Alchimy is a short alchemical manual, known in Latin as Speculum Alchemiae. Translated in 1597, it was only the second alchemical text printed in the English language. Long ascribed to Roger Bacon (1214-1294), the work is more likely the product of an anonymous author who wrote between the thirteenth and the fifteenth centuries. The Mirror of Alchimy is a translation of earlier works found in Latin and French. The earliest known manuscript copy is in Latin and dates from the fifteenth century. It was published as Speculum Alchemiae in Johannes Petreius' De alchimia. This was the first alchemical compendium, and was printed in Nuremberg in 1541.The volume also included five works attributed to Geber, the works of Calid and Ortolanus, and three other texts. On the title page the publisher describes the book as The mirror of alchimy, composed by the thrice-famous and learned fryer, Roger Bachon. Also a most excellent and learned discourse of the admirable force and efficacie of Art and Nature, written by the same Author. With certain other worthie treatises of the like argument. In the first chapter pseudo-Bacon describes alchemy as a science teaching how to make and compound a certain medicine, which is called Elixir, the which when it is cast upon metals or imperfect bodies, does fully perfect them in the very projection. The author then goes on to describe the seven metals and the method for creating the elixir. It is a short treatise broken into seven chapters, some of which are only a paragraph long: Of The Definitions Of Alchemy Of The Natural Principles, And Procreation Of Minerals Out Of What Things The Matter Of Elixir Must Be More Nearly Extracted Of The Manner Of Working, And Of Moderating, And Continuing The Fire Of The Quality Of The Vessel And Furnace Of The Accidental And Essential Colours Appearing In The Work How To Make Projection Of The Medicine Upon Any Imperfect Body

Produktdetails

• Verlag: iOnlineShopping.com
• Erscheinungstermin: 3. Dezember 2018
• Englisch
• ISBN-13: 9788829599349
• Artikelnr.: 55001232

Autorenporträt

Roger Bacon was a medieval English philosopher and Franciscan friar who placed considerable emphasis on empiricism, and has been sometimes credited as one of the earliest European advocates of the modern scientific method inspired by the works of Plato and Aristotle. Born in Ilchester, Somerset, England, circa 1214 to 1220, Bacon was a prolific scholar who made significant contributions to mathematics, optics, and linguistics, as well. One of his notable works, 'The Mirror of Alchimy' (Speculum Alchemiae), attributed to him, although the authorship remains uncertain, demonstrated his engagement with alchemical thought, which during his time was intricately linked with the pursuit of knowledge. Bacon argued for the importance of experimentation and frequently wrote about how the manipulation of substances can lead to a greater understanding of the natural world. His style combined the meticulous observations characteristic of 13th-century science with the allegorical and spiritual interpretations of alchemical work. Bacon's writings were profoundly influential on later scientists and thinkers, cementing his legacy as an early forerunner in the development of the modern scientific traditions. His dedication to learning and empirical methods gained him the title 'Doctor Mirabilis' or 'Wonderful Teacher' in the later years. Despite facing imprisonment towards the end of his life due to some of his controversial ideas, Bacon's intellectual contributions have continued to be celebrated throughout the centuries.