Alchemy & Alchemists
eBook - PDF

Alchemy & Alchemists

  1. 162 pages
  2. English
  3. PDF
  4. Available on iOS & Android
eBook - PDF

Alchemy & Alchemists

About this book

Alchemy has traditionally been viewed as 'the history of an error', an example of medieval gullibility and greed, in which alchemists tried to turn lead into gold, create fabulous wealth and find the elixir of life. But alchemy has also been described as 'the mightiest secret that a man can possess', and it obsessed the likes of Isaac Newton, Robert Boyle, and many of the founders of modern science. This book explores the history of the so-called Royal Art, from its mysterious beginnings in Egypt and China, through the Hellenistic world and the early years of Islam and into mediaeval Europe. Some of the greatest minds of the Middle Ages, figures such as Albertus Magnus, Roger Bacon, and Thomas Aquinas were drawn to alchemy, and legendary alchemists such as Nicholas Flamel were thought to have actually succeeded in finding The Philosopher's Stone. During the Renaissance, Paracelsus and his followers helped revolutionize medicine, and during the seventeenth century, alchemy played a major role in paving the way for modern science. During the twentieth century, it became a focus of interest for the psychologist Carl Jung and his followers, who believed that the alchemists had discovered the unconscious. In this fully revised edition, Sean Martin has expanded the sections on Chinese and Indian alchemy and has added new material on the relationship between alchemy and early modern science, while also making a fresh assessment of this most enduringly mysterious and fascinating of subjects, to which all others have been described as 'child's play'.

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Yes, you can access Alchemy & Alchemists by Sean Martin in PDF and/or ePUB format, as well as other popular books in History & Ancient History. We have over one million books available in our catalogue for you to explore.

Information

Year
2006
eBook ISBN
9781842435373
Edition
2

Table of contents

  1. Front Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Acknowledgements
  6. Contents
  7. Introduction
  8. 1: Basic Ideas and Themes
  9. 2: Alchemy in the West
  10. 3: Alchemy in the East
  11. 4: Modern Alchemy
  12. 5: The Golden Chain
  13. Suggestions for Further Reading
  14. Index
  15. Back Cover