Related Texts • The Rosicrucians • Fama Fraternitatis • Confessio Fraternitatis • The Rosicrucians: Past and present Related Subjects • Alchemy • Rosicrucianism • Thelema • Ritual Magick • Tarot • Geomancy

Alternative Religion/ Library

An Addition

Take Sal Armoniack, dissolve a considerable quantity of it in the strongest Vinegar and add to it filings of Copper. Let it putrefy in heat till the filings are all grown friable so that they may be grinded into powder and you will have a yellow powder, which edulcorate well.

Having done so, dry the powder and pour on it the red Aqua Vitae Vitrioli, which hath been distilled over with its proper Salt, so that it cover it all over. Set it thus in heat and the powder of the Copper will be dissolved in the oil, but there must be some fair water be mixed with it. Then draw it off in sand to dryness and the phlegm comes over. The remainder force out of a retort in an open fire and you will find an Oleum Veneris, green and transparent like an Emerald. Put again into this Oleum some of the powder of Copper and it will be dissolved in it. Then coagulate to dryness and you have a powder, half an ounce whereof will transmute a whole pound of Iron, being in flux, into very good Copper.

Of the Sweet Essence of Vitriol

The sweet Essence of Vitriol, whereby many wonderful cures may be wrought, is only prepared out of its Sulphur, which burneth like other Brimstone. To obtain this proceed after this manner. Take of the best Vitriol you can get and dissolve it in fair fountain water; after this take Pot-ashes, such as dyers use for their dyeing and these dissolve likewise in fair fountain water; let it settle well and then pour off the clear from the dregs and add it to the solution of Vitriol and one will enflame the other and cause a separation. For the Sulphur of Vitriol doth separate itself by precipitation. Make a considerable quantity of it and edulcorate it from all impurity. Afterwards dry the same Sulphur, which will burn like other Sulphur, being cast upon glowing coals.

Take now this Sulphur and sublime it by itself without any addition and there will remain some feces, which separate and put away. Then take the Sulphur and grind together with it half its weight of common Salt of Tartar and distil them together through a retort and there will come over a reddish oil. Pour to this oil some distilled Vinegar and there will precipitate a brown powder and the Spirit of Tartar remaineth in the water. Edulcorate the same powder very well, for therein is the treasure to be looked after. This work being done, pour some Spirit of Wine on the said powder and let it circulate in heat for eight days. Thus the excellent sweet Essence of the Sulphur of Vitriol goeth into the Spirit of Wine and swimmeth upon the top, in forma olei, like an oil of cinnamon. Then separate the essence from the Spirit of Wine by means of a separating glass and keep it very carefully for use, it being a great treasure.

The use of this Medicine

This Essence of Sulphur, four grains of it being taken in Balm water, drieth up the bad humours of the blood, strengtheneth and incites men and women to copulation, cleanseth the womb, hindreth the rising of the mother and breedeth good sense for the procreation of children.

The same quantity being taken in parsley water and continued for a fortnight, doth consume all phlegmatic humours of the whole body cures the dropsy radically, drives out the putrefied blood and openeth imposthumes, yea you will find it do wonderful cures if you will be industrious and careful in the preparation thereof; but you must never whilst you live forget God your Creator, to call upon Him for a blessing and to render to Him thanks for all His fatherly benefits He hath bestowed upon you.

The Preparation of the Stone Ignis

Now I will teach you the chiefest preparation of Antimony and the use of it in Medicine. In this Antimony are hidden and found so many wonderful mysteries that there is none too old to learn and to search to find them out. I will instruct you to make some preparations which are also required to other things.

Take pure mineral Antimony, which is brought from Hungary, grind it very small and wash it very clean, that the earth may be separated from it. Take then a pound of it, mix with it as much of fluxing powder and melt it once again and then the Regulus will be clean and pure.

Add to this Regulus its weight of Nitre and melt it down. Pour it out together and beat off the Scoriae and put again to the Regulus its weight of Nitre and melt it.

Repeat this till all is gone into Scoriae, which you must carefully keep; they will burn upon the tongue like fire. This being done, take the matter so gathered, grind it small and edulcorate the Salt-peter from it and there remaineth a brown-yellow powder, which dry and keep; it looketh like grinded glass. Take now a common Regulus of Antimony made with Salt-peter and Tartar, grind it small and put it into a round glass, which must not be too high, and fasten a head to it. Sublime your Regulus in sand by itself without any addition, sweep the sublimate with a feather again into the glass and sublime it again. Repeat this so long till nothing do rise, but the matter remain red and fixed in the bottom. Then take this fixed Antimony and put it upon a stone in a cellar and in time it will be dissolved into water, which distil in Balneo Mariae until the sixth part only of the water do remain in the glass. Set this in a cold place and there will shoot reddish crystals, which dissolve in rain water. Filter it and draw off the phlegm to a thickness, set it to dry as before and the crystals will shoot white and very pure, like unti Salt peter. This is the Salt of Antimony.

Take these crystals and pour upon them pure distilled Vinegar and they will dissolve in the Vinegar. Then distil the Vinegar, the glass being very close luted, forcing at last the Spirits into the Vinegar and then the Vinegar is prepared. Take this Vinegar and pour it in the prepared brown-yellow powder and set it in some warm place and the Vinegar will draw out the tincture of Antimony, altogether red, within half or quarter of an hour. Pour off this extraction together and set it to digest twenty-eight days in Balneo Mariae.

Afterwards distil from it the Vinegar through an Alembick in sand, forcing in the end the oil into another glass, which comes over with many strange and wonderful veins. Rectify this oil in ashes and the rest of the Vinegar, if any be left, will come off and the oil remaineth very sweet and of a pleasant red colour like a Ruby. Thus have you joined the Sulphur with the Salt of Antimony and brought it over like an Aqua Vitae, which keep very carefully. Furthermore take again a common Regulus of Antimony made with Salt-peter and Tartar and beat it to a powder. Then take of strong distilled Vinegar four quarts and a half. Put into it of Sal Armoniack and of Salt of Tartar likewise eight ounces (I shall teach how to make it at the end of the directions). Digest this to the evaporation of the Vinegar and mingle with the Salts three parts of Venice Tripoli and distil the Spirit, which is of a singular nature and property.

Pour this Spirit on the pulverised Regulus of Antimony and having the glass well luted let it stand in digestion sixteen days; then distil the Spirit from the matter to a dryness and grind four times the weight of filings of steel with the same. Put it into a retort and putting thereto a large receiver full of water, distil it, forcing at last with a strong fire, and the Mercury comes over in fumes and is quickened in the water, which is the true Mercury of Antimony.

Take common Spirit of Vitriol, add a little common water to it and put your filings of steel into it. Let it stand till the filings are dissolved, then pour it off clean and put away the feces. Afterwards distil the Spirit in ashes to a thickness and set the glass in a cold place and there will shoot good Vitriol of Iron, which take, and having first vapoured away the phlegm mingle with it three parts of the powder made of burned potsherds of broken pots, put it into a retort, draw off the phlegm first, then force the Spirit with a strong fire into a proper glass, which rectify to the height and there will remain an oil in the bottom. Pour this oil upon the Mercury made before and draw off the phlegm in hot ashes and the tincture of the Aqua vitae remains behind and doth precipitate the Mercury into a fair, high-coloured powder of very great virtues in curing old running sores.

Next>

<Return to Start

Return to Texts Index