ll. t. Ch . 13 14 ( 2
Around 1950 I was part of the early years of the Society for posthumously in 1696 that Philalethes' Introitus was consid- Social Responsibility in Science. I was delighted to read ered "by the whole family of chemists" to belong among "their recently that both the head of DuPont and the editor of The classics" (2). Similar accolades had been uttered by Daniel Scientist, Eugene Garfield, one of our symposium speakers, George Morhof in his Epistola ad Langelottum of 1673(3) and, were calling on scientists and on the chemical industry to to judge by the translations of the Introitus into English, pledge themselves to an ethic of social responsibility and German, French, and Spanish, and its numerous printings environmental sensitivity. The way I put it is that, just as between 1667, when it first appeared in Amsterdam as the biologists are the guardians of the biosphere, so we of the printing of Johann Lange, and 1779, it would seem that chemical community must become the guardians of the litho- Philalethes' popularity was great indeed (4). Three further sphere, the guardians and protectors of the material world. works by Philalethes, collectively named the Tres tractatus, My interests in the concepts and history of science and the were printed by Martin Birrius of Amsterdam in 1668 (5). In role of science and scientists in society have remained intense the following year the Intro itus was translated into English and ever since. Hence the title of th p : "The Context published as Secrets Reveal' d by William Cooper of London of Chemistry: Conceptual, Historical, Social". (6). Cooper became one of Philalethes' greatest promoters, publishing other opuscula by the alchemist whom he referred f r n nd t to in his Philosophical Epitaph as the "English phoenix." Cooper even advertised in the hope of discovering lost Philale- . . rd v, Freedom and the Spirit, rd d., l , nd n, than manuscripts, promising to print whatever he could find 44, p. 2. (7). 2. 0. . nf , " n n l An l f Ch l nd Despite the almost frenzied interest in Philalethes during the h r ," J. Chem. Educ., , 34, 286 288. Scientific Revolution, historians of science have been happy to . 0. . nf , "An Appr h t th C n pt l An l f ignore this alchemist until quite recently. Before the mid- S nt f Cr ," General Systems, 64, 9, . 1970s, virtually all the scholarship devoted to Philalethes had 4. 0. . nf , " h C n pt f Ch tr M h n l, focused on the question of his identity, and most of this had Or n t, M l r Wh t?," J. Chem. Educ., 82, 59, 8. been written by scholars in fields other than the history of . G. W. Wh l nd, Advanced Organic Chemistry, W l , Y, science. Philalethes' alchemical writings have recently come 4 . to occupy an important place in the historiography of early modern science, however, thanks to the current interest in Isaac Newton's alchemy. CORPUSCULAR ALCHEMY It is well known, of course, that Newton transcribed and composed a massive amount of alchemical literature, accord- The Transmutational Theory of Eirenaeus Philalethes ing to Richard Westfall's estimate over a million words (8). Those hardy few who have tried to ascertain the sources of William Newman, Harvard University Newton's alchemy, such as Westfall, Betty Jo Teeter Dobbs, and Karin Figala, agree in assigning an important role therein Among the most influential works of 17th-century alchemy, to Eirenaeus Philalethes (9). As a result of this discovery, the treatises attributed to "Eirenaeus Philalethes Cosmopolita" virtually all serious analysis of the Philalethan corpus has been surely deserve a prominent place. As I have recently shown, done by Newton scholars. Anyone who presently wishes to several works attributed to this Philalethes were actually know what Philalethes thought will have to view his ideas written by an American alchemist educated at Harvard, George through a Newtonian prism, which exercises its own peculiar Starkey (1). Starkey was born in 1628 in Bermuda, then refraction on our image of the American alchemist. It is my considered part of "America." He entered Harvard College in intention here to reconstruct the theory that lies behind the 1643 and graduated with an A.B. in 1646. In 1650 Starkey alchemy of Philalethes. In the course of this I shall make immigrated to London, where he became a member of the occasional reference to the recent work on Newton's alchemy, scientific circle centered around Samuel Hartlib. In the early especially that of Figala. A judicious examination of t n 1650s he performed a series of experiments with Robert Boyle, debt to Philalethes will therefore serve both to illuminate some who was also a member of the Hartlib group. During this same trends in Philalethan alchemy and to determine whether or not period, Starkey wrote two r f j r p rt n nd r Newton's interpretation of it was in reality faithful. the pseudonym of Eirenaeus Philalethes the Introitus apertus ad occlusum re gis palatium and the Tractatus de metallorum t ll r t rph metamorphosi; both texts were published after Starkey 's death during the great London plague of 1665. Although the most famous of the Philalethan works is the The well-known Danish savant Olaus Borrichius reported Introitus, this work has more the character of an extended
20 ll. t. Ch . 13-14 ( 2
riddle than that of an alchemical theorica. For the latter we are per minima. Y t f th n f n b t n t r h ndr d t much better off looking at the Tractatus de metallortun meta- ll r th n th t f n th r, th n (n t h v n b n d morphosi, first published as part of the Tres tractatus appear- l t n n th r nn t b n , n t n r t br n ing in 1668. De metallorum is in fact the most sustained t th r per minima h t h t n t per minima. treatment of alchemical theory that I have found in the Philalethan corpus and thus will form the primary focus of this Water mixed with wine, Philalethes says, can be separated paper. Philalethes begins his theoretical treatment of alchemy precisely because this mixtio per minima has not taken place. there by saying that the metals do not differ essentially but Nor can it take place, because the particles of water are too big accidentally. The base metals are really immature gold, and to conjoin with those of the subtle spirit in wine. The same is they contain its substance in potentia along with a supervenient true of mixtures involving phlegm and spirit in wine, as well as humidity which, due to their incomplete cooking in the bowels earth and water. Let us now return to Philalethes' words (17): of the earth, has not been expunged from them. It is this immature humidity that is responsible for the defects of the If n n h ld th t n rd r t br n b t [tr ] xt r , n base metals, defects such as friability, corrodibility, and low [ l nt] r th btl t f n th r, nd th th r n t d melting point. Evidence for this is found in mines, where lead, d t l , I r pl th t f th t ( h h th b btl t for example, usually coexists with silver: obviously the lead is th d r th t t n nt r th l d (b n t n th t , t n r merely a less mature form of the noble metal (10). th t t b br ht t th n t r , nd h t th n I th rth After giving further evidence that the metals are all com- b t t r ... nd th , h f t t th b n d r d, th t rth posed of a substantially identical material that differs only in t b nv rt d nt t r n rd r th t t (b x d th t r (t maturity and purity, Philalethes says that what is needed for br n f rth th n r t n f n r t b d ... transmutation is a "homogeneous agent excelling in digestive power" (11). This agent, furthermore, is simply gold "digested Philalethes' argument hinges on the fatuity of earth retain- to the highest possible degree" (12). Such digested gold can ing its earthiness after its minima have been reduced to the size penetrate metals radically, tinting them and fixing them so that of aqueous minima. Clearly he is assuming that the qualities they lose their volatility and low melting point. Even natural traditionally associated with the four elements depend primar- gold, if one ounce be used to gild six pounds of silver, will unite ily on particle size. Indeed, when he continues to discuss water with the smallest particles of the exterior silver to the degree and its relationship to air, this becomes quite clear (18): that it can be drawn out to a hair's breadth without any silver being exposed. But gold that has been alchemically digested ... f t r h ld h v th btl t r, t h ld t h v th will become much more subtle than natural gold, and so will be pr r l t r, nd th t b d f th rth able to penetrate the very depths of a base metal and color it th t d l n r r t t t r. from the inside out. In fact, Philalethes continues, such digested gold will be fiery, due to what he calls the "law of the In other words, particles of earth reduced to the size of water disproportion in subtlety between the four elements" (13). As particles will in fact be water particles, as they will share the we shall see, Philalethes is the exponent of a naive corpuscu- same primary qualities. But if this is so, no mixture will have larism. The import of this "law of disproportion" is that the so- taken place, since there will be no more earth present to mix called four elements merely represent different sizes of con- with the water. To drive the point home further, Philalethes stituent corpuscles - minimae partes or simply minima. What asks rhetorically (19): traditional philosophers call "fire" is made up of the smallest particles, so if gold is going to be digested, that is, broken down I h t n (th f ll n : f n primum t n th pr r to the smallest possible particles, it will therefore become fiery. ( l t f n th r primum, ll n t th f r t r ll b th t Only then, Philalethes says, will it be able to be mixed per primum h l t t d? r th r n t minima intrinsice with the base metals (14), ph l ph l. Does this mean that Philalethes believes all mixture among the four elements to result from agglomerated particles of Having thus proven to his satisfaction that natural things do different sizes? Perhaps surprisingly, it does not. Rather, he not come about from a mixture of four elements, Philalethes says, the great "disproportion" in size between particles of concludes in truncated fashion that all the so-called elements different elements prohibits "the mixture of things suitable to really derive from one origin, which, echoing Van Helmont, he generation, or even the possibility thereof" (15). Why? To use says to be water. In other words, there are not really four his words, because (16): elements in the sense of original constituent bodies, but one, water, and its particles really do undergo the subtiliations n t r l n r t n b t b n f n r l n n f described above, which result in material change. The reader n r d nt . Un n, r v r, th n r f th th n t b n t d might then ask how the minima pars of water, if it is a true ll. t. Ch . 4 ( 2 2
n , can be reduced in size to produce air, for example. highest degree, and that this was a homogeneous, spiritual But Philalethes has already pre-empted this. The particles of substance. This meant that the particles of gold had been water p r are not true minima. Water particles contain yet reduced to a smallness like that of fire particles, and because smaller particles or n : these act on grosser matter, oper- all impurity had been removed, all these minute particles were ating by means of a fermentative force, to produce products of of the same size, that is, homogeneous. It is because of this varying subtlety. The fermentative force is itself supplied by uniformly minute character of the elixir's particles that it can "a certain ineffable particle of light" found within the n penetrate into base metals p r n , that is, between the (20). This "particle of light" is therefore the true n p r , smallest particles of the base metals. Once the particles of and it appears that all grosser matter is capable of division elixir have entered into the internal structure of the base down to that terminus. metals, their affinity with the pure metallic substance within From this account we know that matter is corpuscular in the base metal allows them to mix with it. They are after all composition, and that the materially identical with root of all matter is water, this pure substance, and which is acted upon by they are particles of the n contained within same size. itself, thus producing other After the elixir's par- substances. Philalethes ticles have mixed with then proceeds to detail a those of the pure metallic theory of artificial trans- substance in the base metal mutation based on the they form a protective above. Returning to his barrier between the latter concept that metals vary and the destroying fire. only in their degree of The fire then burns up purity and digestion, he whatever impurities are remarks that the alchemist found in the base metal, must therefore find an and the substance that agent which both digests remains will be composed the metallic substance and of minute, homogeneous expunges its impurities. In particles: in Philalethes's his words (21): words, a "Chrysopoetic transmutation" will have O r Arcanum (b t taken place, and gold will p r t l, h n b have been produced (22). t n nt r nt p rf t It is possible, however, to t l f th rt per min- produce silver rather than ima, nd h t t f nd l gold, depending, Philale- t lf, t z nd d f nd thes says, "on the quality fr th v l n f th b rn of the medicine." But what n f r b n f t n determines the quality of p rf l f r , nd t pr the medicine? How rv t th t n r should the alchemist go th n p rf t f x t , h l about the production of l n d tr th b this elixir? t bl th t b rn n fl . As we now know, the And n th b t bl elixir is itself highly di- n d b th f r , th r gested gold. Gold con- r n p r ld r lv r. tains in each of its mini- mal parts the n re- To understand this the sponsible for transmuta- reader must recall that An d l z d p rtr t f G r St r t h f rn th r nt p t r d tion, but in natural gold as Philalethes earlier said that b v h . h Biblical pt n r d "Y t rn r br d b th t it is dug from the mines, the alchemical elixir was f r br ." r PyrotechniaofteVuur-stook-Kunde (A t rd , 68 , the rn n , are sealed up simply gold digested to the t h tr n l t n f v r l r b St r . and hidden "under very 22 ll. t. Ch . 4 ( 2
dense coverings" (23). Therefore Philalethes says the follow- the back of his mind when Philalethes says that an external ing (24): sulfur is "concoagulated" to the mercurial substance of the metals. But Philalethes has far more than this in mind. He t th n f rt n , th t n rd r t rr v t r arcanum t maintains that metals in general are composed of three differ- n r t n f t th t lt semen f ld h h n t ent types of sulfur in conjunction with mercury. Although the h pp n th t th f ll nd t t l v l t z t n f th f x d, nd three types of sulfur may be removed to some degree from their th r f r th rr pt n f t f r . mercury, it is impossible to isolate mercury from all its sulfur: indeed sulfur itself is merely an active, mature form of mercury In other words, the semina hidden deep within the substance (29). of the gold and thus "occult," must be revealed, made "mani- The base metals have first an "external' [sulfur], wch is not fest" by a breaking down of the metal's gross substance. In metalline, but distinguishable from the internal' kemell of the corpuscular terms this means that the grosser particles of the mercurie" (30). This external sulfur acts as the principle of metal must be made to disintegrate, thus freeing the smaller corrosion in imperfect metals, and must be removed if they are particles or semina contained therein. As Philalethes says, to be perfected. The second type of sulfur lies within the first, "properly and exactly speaking, the semen is the minima pars and is called the "metalline sulphur" (31). This metalline of the metal" (25). It is thus possible to convert the entire sulfur is found in all metals, and is responsible for the coagu- substance of gold into sperma by a simple breaking down of its lation of their mercurial substance into a solid form. In gold metallic corpuscles into still smaller corpuscles, that is, into and silver, however, the metalline sulfur is pure, while in other semina. As Philalethes also tells us, when the semina have metals it is less pure. But Philalethes tells us that even this been released, the metal will liquefy at room temperature. In metalline sulfur is "external' to, because separable from the other words, metals owe their solidity to what are, relatively Secret Nature of [mercury] ... in form of tine ted sweet oyle,.." speaking, gross particles. When the gross particles are eroded (32). Once the metalline sulfur has been removed, Philalethes to become more subtle, the internal rigidity of the metallic continues (33): substance is lost. Liquidity, therefore is a macroscopic prop- erty of extremely small particles making up the microscopic h r n n [ r r ] th n v d f ll [ lph r], S v th t h structure of a metal. As I have shown elsewhere, the origin of b ll d t ntr ll n l bl [ lph r], n h h n rr this theory lies in medieval alchemy (26). v n th n r
The Epistle to King Edward Unfolded As Figala has shown, the import of this theory is well represented by three concentric circles depicting the layers or The terminology that Philalethes uses in De metallorum sug- "shells" of sulfur. The outermost shell is the "external" or gests that he had a definite idea about the corpuscular structure mineral sulfur which, acting on the metallic mercury, only of metals on the micro-level. He repeatedly speaks of the causes corruption and corrosion in the base metals. Within this semina as existing within the larger corpuscles or partes of is the layer of "metallic sulfur" responsible for the mercury's gold, for example. The semina are found in profundit ate or in solidification in metals. Finally, at the center of the circles we occulto, or sub involucris densissimis. What exactly does he encounter the "centrall, incoagulable" sulfur which can never have in mind here? At this stage it will be useful to turn to be separated from its mercury (34). another Philalethan work, The Epistle to King Edward Un- Figala's use of the term "shell-theory" is indeed appropriate folded, which has already been analyzed by Karin Figala in her for Philalethes' concept of three sulfurs. By comparing The work on the alchemy of Newton (27). Here Philalethes lays out Epistle to the passages in De metallorum where Philalethes a theory that Figala calls the "shell-theory" of matter, em- describes the structure of gold, we can further see that when he ployed by Newton in his alchemical studies. In The Epistle speaks of external and internal sulfurs, Philalethes has in mind Philalethes adopts the well-worn sulfur/mercury theory of the the different layers of a complex corpuscle. The external sulfur metals, according to which metals are composed of these two of The Epistle is identical to the gross, superfluous impurities substances. To use his words (28): of De metallorum that had to be removed from base metals in order to effect their transmutation. This external shell is absent ... ll t ll , & v r ll n r l h v [ r r ] f r th r n xt in gold, thus accounting for its resistance to corrosion. tt r, t h f r th t p rt (n l n p rf t t ll The minima of gold per se, that is the smallest parts of th r dh r , & n l t d n xt ll [ lf r]. natural gold, correspond to the second type of sulfur - the "metalline sulfur" that in base metals is covered by the out- In what may be called the traditional form of the sulfur/ ward, unclean shell of the mineral sulfur. This metalline sulfur, mercury theory, mercury is in effect a passive material that is as Philalethes told us, is responsible for coagulating the mer- acted upon by sulfur to produce the different metals. This is in cury of gold, which exists within it. In other words, particles ll. t. Ch . 13-14 ( 2 2
of gold are composed of an outward metalline sulfur surround- ing a central core of incoagulable sulfur and mercury. But since the central, incoagulable sulfur cannot be separated from its mercury, the two can be conflated and referred to simply as "mercury." As Philalethes says in h Ep tl (35):
n [ lf r] th t p r r d S lph r f ld, h h S lph r n n f t nd M r r n t
Particles of this sort make up the homogeneous solid, gold, and thus may be called the n p n of the metal. But as Philalethes already told us, more properly speaking, the n p rt within the metal are the n contained within the corpuscles of gold, existing b nv l r d n tn . These n , I propose, correspond to the "incoagu- lable," "central," "fiery," sulfur that Philalethes tells us exists at the kernel of the metal. In t ll r Philalethes told us that the n are freed when the gold is disintegrated and made liquid in the course of its digestion. What he has in mind clearly is the removal of the metalline sulfur, the agent respon- sible for metallic coagulation: when this has been deleted, the remaining substance will thus be incoagulable. Its lack of solidity will be due to the extreme fineness of its particles: as I t n we stated before, Philalethes makes use here of a medieval theory relating solidity to particle size. Similarly it will be the layer of "external sulfur" which n easily be removed. "fiery," again because its corpuscles will be extremely small, Philalethes told us that this external sulfur was responsible for like those of fire. Finally it will be "central" in the sense that the corrodibility of base metals. If we now envision this shell it composed the central "nucleus" of the complex corpuscle of external sulfur as being composed of particles that are still whose outer shells have now been removed (36). larger than those of the metallic sulfur or incoagulable sulfur, In t ll r t rph Philalethes clearly de- the reason for its inability to withstand corrosion will be clear. scribes the concept of a complex corpuscle, where the n Just as the density of gold and mercury is due to the fact that p r of gold, for example, is composed of yet smaller particles, they are made up of small particles which can be closely down to the "ineffable particle of light" that forms the smallest packed, so the presence of large particles in a substance will of all corpuscles. As we have shown, the complex corpuscle result in loose packing. The external sulfur shell will be made was tied up in Philalethes' mind with the notion of different up of precisely such loosely packed large particles, separated shells of sulfur, which are described in h Ep tl . At the by large pores. The presence of such large pores in a metal center of the complex particle there is a "nucleus" composed allows the corpuscles of a corrosive agent to enter into its of extremely fine "sub-particles." The very subtlety of these structure and attack it, resulting in the breakdown of its corpuscles prevents their "coagulation" into a solid mass: metallic integrity (37). The absence of such pores in gold leads indeed, Philalethes speaks of them as being "spiritual." But to the opposite effect - hence it is far more difficult to corrode when tightly packed into the center of the complex b nv l gold than base metals. S imilarly, the presence of large particles r d n , their concentration yields tremendous weight. and pores will result in a loss of density, and so the base metals Philalethes' alchemical sources explicitly link the subtlety and will be of lighter specific weight than gold. close-packing of ordinary gold's particles to its ponderosity and great malleability. h l l th nd t n But Philalethes has altered their corpuscular ruminations by adding on his shell theory of matter. Surrounding the central In order to see where a corpuscular theory of this sort can lead, kernel of tiny, densely packed corpuscles, there is a shell let us now turn to the detailed exposition of Newton's transmu- composed of larger particles, which are responsible for com- tational theory given by Figala. In the Opt and in his pacting the tiny particles in the center into their concentrated opuscultun On th t r f A d , Newton develops a highly mass. This compaction results in the solidification of metals: un-Cartesian corpuscular theory. It was named the "nutshell hence Philalethes calls it the "metallic sulfur," as we earlier theory of matter" by Joseph Priestley, because it allowed that discussed. Finally, in impure metals, there is yet another shell, all the solid matter in th n v r ld b fit into a walnut 24 ll. t. Ch . 4 ( 2
shell. Now in his Opticks, Newton argues for the existence of "solid, massy, hard, impenetrable" particles or atoms, out of which all gross matter is made (38). These totally solid particles are, to use Arnold Thackray 's phrase, inertially homogeneous; they are composed of a uniformly dense matter separated by great expanses of void. In order to account for the differentiation of matter on the macro-level, Newton says these solid particles combine with an equal quantity of void, to form what Newton calls the "first stage of composition." Such particles of the first stage of composition in turn combine with an equal quantity of void to produce particles of the second stage of composition. Higher stages of composition are produced in the same way (39). As none of the metals known r fr t n l tt r t b rt l f 6 8 . h ph r rr nd d b ll r p rt l ll tr t t n n pt f l n to Newton belong to a composition stage lower than the first, p rt l " n p n th t ll n t r h ll d they therefore contain vast quantities of void. As the quantity rn ll ..." h t r n l pp r n th rp f E r n of their void diminishes, their specific gravity increases. Now h l l th , th h h t n nt t l nt d. r th Newton argues that the reactions of "vulgar chemistry" - what 44 d t n f l Works. we would call simply chemical reactions - take place between the particles of higher composition. If one wants to transmute apply also to metals. As a result, their internal structure must metals, which is not merely a process of "vulgar Chymistry" also in his eyes have resembled a dense kernel surrounded by but of "Hermetick" philosophy, he must break down the a lighter shell. particles of higher composition to arrive at the simpler, denser To anyone familiar with Philalethes, Newton's reference to ones, then recombine them with the proper amount of void a mercurial core surrounded by a layer or layers of sulfur will requisite to the specific gravity of the desired metal (40). bring to mind at once the alchemist's shell-theory of matter It is important to note that Newton's hierarchical schema, (44). Once we make this terminological substitution, it is easy while giving the proportion of void to matter in different types to see how Philalethes' sulfurous shells, progressing inward of particles, does not necessarily describe the physical struc- towards ever greater perfection, correspond to the complex ture of the particles themselves. In Query 31 of the Opticks, Newtonian particles, whose density - and hence perfection - Newton pictures the micro-structure of a salt particle in the increases as we approach the center. The transmutational following manner (41): import of this can be better appraised if we now consult the so- called Clavis previously thought by various scholars to be by A Gr v t th S fl r nd th d n r nd ht r rt Newton. In reality it is but part of a letter written by Starkey f th Gl b f th E rth, th Attr t n th tr A d to Boyle, probably in 1651 (45). fl r nd th d n r nd p . t r rt l f E rth f r p n The Clavis or Key teaches the production of an amalgam th rt l f S lt... , n th r t Gl b f th E rth nd S , composed of mercury, antimony, silver, and ultimately gold. th d n t d b th r Gr v t n d n n W t r, nd l Starting with the specifically light antimony sulfide, the alche- nd v r t t rd th C nt r f th Gl b n rt l f mist strips off its "external sulfur" to produce metallic anti- S lt, th d n t M tt r l nd v r t ppr h th C nt r mony (46). The antimony is then fused with the denser silver, f th rt l : S th t rt l f S lt b p r d t Ch which Starkey says will act as a mediator between the anti- b n d n , h rd, dr , nd rth n th C nt r nd r r , ft, t, mony and mercury. When the silver/antimony alloy is added nd tr n th C r f r n . to the still-denser mercury, blackness is given off, and a "great stink." This reveals that the second sulfurous shell has been So in the case of a salt particle, at least, the denser, simpler, removed from the previously solid silver/antimony alloy. The sub-particles migrate towards the center of the corpuscle, to product, a mercury/silver/antimony amalgam, called "actu- find themselves surrounded by their rarer counterparts. Newton ated mercury," is then added to gold. The idea is that the calls the denser particles "earth" and the rarer ones "acid." "actuated mercury" will then penetrate into the central kernel Hence the salt particle is composed of a kernel-like center of the gold, free it, and b a process of "fermentation," lead to surrounded by a shell-like circumference (42). It is fascinating the philosophers' stone (47). that Newton, in various draft additions to On the Nature of If one now views this shell theory in the light of Newton's Acids argues that "what is said by chemists, that everything is hierarchical arrangement of particles, especially as described made from sulphur and mercury, is true, because by sulphur in Query 31 of the Opticks, it is easy to see how Newton's they mean acid, and by mercury they mean earth" (43). Hence corpuscular theory may have been influenced by Philalethes. he meant his theory that salt is composed of earth and acid to The particle of salt described there did in fact consist of a dense ll. t. Ch . 4 ( 2 2 earthy kernel surrounded by a rarer acid shell, And we know saying that it is "dense, hard, dry, and earthy in the Center; and from Newton's additions to On the Nature of Acids that he rare, soft, moist, and watry in the Circumference," At first meant this earth and acid to be coextensive with mercury and sight, this analogy between a salt corpuscle and a "chaos" sulfur. There he maintained that "what is said by chemists, that seems inexplicable. In antiquity, "chaos" of course meant an everything is made from sulfur and mercury, is true, because indistinct mixture of elements, or a prime matter which existed by sulfur they mean acid, and by mercury they mean earth." before the elements per se. In the early 17th century, the term Thus Newton's alchemical practice, described in his manu- had taken on a new sense with Van Hehnont's creation of the scripts, consisted of penetrating to the "innermost core" of word "gas," which he claimed to derive from "chaos." But gold particle by employing a special mercury whose particles neither sense seems to apply here - Newton is thinking neither were small and dense enough to work their way through the of an indistinct mass nor of a vapor. What he has in mind is a interstices in the outer shell. Once this had been achieved, complex particle composed of two layers. The outer shell is in Newton seems to have believed that the Philalethan "actuated a sense the opposite of the inner core, being "rare, soft, moist, mercury" would produce the philosophers' stone. Newton and watry," while the center is "dense, hard, dry, and earthy." refers to this reduction of gold to its "first matter," not only in Where does Newton get this peculiar usage of the term his unpublished alchemical manuscripts, but also in his work "chaos," and what is he trying to impart to his reader? Let us On the Nature of Acids (48). consult the Index chernicus, an alchemical dictionary gathered The introduction of Newton into an analysis of Philalethes together by Newton in the 1680s (51). After giving the raises certain questions which must now be answered. Despite conventional definition of chaos as a "confusion of elements" the clear affinities between Newton's transmutational theory or "materia prima," Newton goes on to paraphrase the Introitus and that of Philalethes, there are obvious differences as well. apertus of Philalethes (52): First, there is no evidence that Philalethes associated mercury and sulfur with void and matter, as Figala argues that Newton h h rth n nt f t l t n, nd th th r f did. Indeed, there is little reason to think that Philalethes was n r l n nt f th n r l h dd n n t, nd t t v l t l committed to the existence of absolute void, a concept that in r, nd t nt n [ lf r ] h v n, n h h th t r r v lv n Newton's work had profound resonances with his theology t nt r, h h nt r tr l nd h h ll n t th rth p t and physics. The corpuscularism of Philalethes is not a t rf . Democritean or Epicurean atomism. There is no indication that he was attracted to the philosophical atomism of antiquity, Philalethes' description of "chaos," loosely quoted by with its insistence on the existence of void. The direct sources Newton, refers obliquely to antimony and to its role in the of Philalethes' corpuscular theory, as we shall show elsewhere, amalgamation process of the Key. Antimony is indeed a are alchemical, not philosophical, and their ultimate origins are metallic substance, and thus an earth "on account of its coagu- peripatetic and academic, not atomistic. Second, the abstractly lation," Yet it is also volatile upon heating, and so an "air." In quantitative aspect of Newton's work is totally absent in its center it contains a "heaven" - in other words, the volatility Philalethes. Newton committed himself to a determination of of antimony is a function of the subtle matter forming the the relative proportion of particles and pores in all sorts of nucleus of its particles. Being small, these sub-particles at the matter. He even derived a sort of formula for relating the center of an antimony particle are fluid and volatile, as in different "stages of composition" to the relative proportion of Philalethes' description of the incoagulable sulfur at the center void to matter in a given substance (49). This work was of a metal. The solidity of the antimony, on the other hand, is significant not only to Newton's alchemy, but had importance literally a property of its "surface" - it is due to the coagulative for his optical theory, where he attempted to relate color to power of the metallic sulfur surrounding the otherwise fluid particle size, and by extension to the relative proportion of core. matter to void (50). Again, this is an aspect that is totally We see in Philalethes' description of "chaos" a reference to lacking in Philalethan alchemy. the shell-theory of matter complete with its terminology of Despite these differences, the similarities between Philale- "center" and "surface" describing the respective extremes of thes' "shell-theory" and that of Newton are still striking. One the particle. In the passage quoted from the Opticks, however, of the most suggestive traces of Philalethes' influence lies in Newton seems at first to have reversed the order of the kernel the already quoted Newtonian description of a particle of salt, and shell. While Philalethes calls the kernel "volatile" and where the physicist compared the dense core of the particle to links the coagulation of antimony to its shell, Newton calls the the globe of the earth, saying that just as gravity makes the sea center "dense, hard, dry, and earthy," while the circumference flow round the globe, so chemical attraction causes the acid in is "rare, soft, moist, and watry." Why this reversal? The salt to encase the central core of earth. In each case, the denser answer is easy to locate if we remember that when Philalethes matter exists at the core, and is surrounded by a rarer counter- describes the central kernel of a particle as being "fiery," part. Newton goes on to compare the salt particle to a "chaos," "incoagulable," and "volatile," in De metaliorum metamor- 26 ll. t. Ch . 13 14 ( 2
phosi and The Epistle to King Edward Unfolded, he is not h l l th ," A b x, 1964, 2, 28 2 . thinking of the pent-up sub-particles as they naturally exist, for . Ib d. example in gold, imprisoned sub involucris densissimis. Rather 6. Ib d. Philalethes has in mind the constituent sub-particles of the . S. . nd n, W ll C p r A C t l f Ch ll kernel as they would exist in their free state, if unrestrained by : 6 88, G rl nd bl h n , Y r , Y, 8 , pp. 4 the exterior shells surrounding the core. Otherwise, he would 2. be committing himself to the absurd conclusion that natural, 8. . S. W tf ll, v r t t: A r ph f I t n, undigested gold is under normal conditions (what we would C br d Un v r t r , C br d , 80, p. 2 0. nowadays call room temperature and normal atmospheric . Ib d., pp. 28 2 . B. J. t r bb , h nd t n f pressure) volatile and liquid. Newton, on the other hand, is t n Al h r " h nt n f th Gr n n" , C br d thinking primarily of the central core and surrounding shell of Un v r t r , C br d , , pp. 82, t p r . K. the corpuscle as they exist in their natural state, before an l , " x t Al h v n I t n," rh ndl n n alchemist has tried to liberate them. Within the close-packing d r t rf r h nd n G ll h ft n l, 1984, 4, 228, nd of a salt-particle, the central corpuscles do indeed make up a " t n Al h t," t. S ., 1977, , 02 . "dense, hard, dry, and earthy" nucleus, being pressed into a 0. h l l th tr t t d t ll r t rph , n M n t, rigid structure. The external shell, on the other hand, is "rare, r f r n 2, l. II, p. 6 . soft, moist, and watry," since it is composed of loosely packed .Ib d., p. 6 8, "... A n n d t v v p ll n ..." particles, less tightly bonded to a rigid structure. Newton is 2.Ib d., "... A r n pr r d d tt n ..." surely thinking in terms of his different "stages of composi- .Ib d., "... x l d pr p rt n n bt l t t nt r El nt tion," according to which each ascending particle contains the t r ..." previous stage of particles plus additional void. This is 4.Ib d. precisely what he attempted to quantify by means of his .Ib d., p. 68 " pr p rt d nd r xt r formula linking different stages to their proportion of void and n r t n d n t ll t, j v p b l t t ." matter. This element is of course absent in the naive corpus- 6.Ib d., " h n r t f t p r n r t n [ M n t. cularism of Philalethes, since he eschews any overt reference l S t , l p r I , r l t n r l ] n r d n to a vacuum, Philalethes could hardly have determined its t n n . Urn° p rr t p r n r r n nd r n r proportion to the absolute matter in a particle. In his peculiar , n t n n n lt r d pl v l nt pl use of the term "chaos," then, we see Newton apparently bt l , n n p nt h n d t [ M n t. . S., . borrowing from Philalethes for his use of that term to mean a . I , r l . ( n d t ] r , d p r n complex corpuscular structure composed of kernel and shell. nv n r p rt t, p r n n r r ." And yet we also see Newton adding to Philalethes that most .Ib d., "S d x r t: d xt r h n f nd n Newtonian of characteristics - the urge to order his chaos by b t lt r bt l t t , t t d n p n nt r In t , d means of quantification. bt l f t [ p pr d f t] t l d p t [ n nd ] n r d , p rt t t d nd n t r pr r d d t r, t d References and Notes t rn t rr ... & , f t h n r , t rr n A nv rt nd , t n r t n r A n l d nt: h r r h f r th p p r d p bl t n pr v t ..." thr h th f nd n f th t n l S n nd t n (Gr nt I 8.Ib d., "... d t nd h b t r bt l 880868 nd th W rb r In t t t ( h rt t r r n Y t l t t , d ll l t t pr h b r t n t r, d & d l h p, 88 . t rr j d nd t, t d t r r r t t ." . W. n, " r ph nd Al h : th Or n f E r .Ib d., "... r p , tr , n pr lt r pr n h l l th ," A b x, 1990, , . pr nd t, n n f t r l t r ll d pr , j nd t pr . 2. J. . M n t, d., C n p t r pt r h r l br C ntr r v r r n n t h l ph ." r . Ol rr h t r , n bl th h r , l. 20.Ib d., p. 68 , "... l d n ff b l p rt l ..." . G n v , 02, p. 0, nd . . S h p l , d., Ol rr h h n r 2 .Ib d., p. 682, "Ar n pr f t n tr ( Sp r t l S b r 660 66 , l. , C p nh n, , p. v . t nt h n t d t ll rnp rf t p r n ntr t, . rn t ll r tr n t t n d v r n b l t nt & d l nv n r t, ppr h nd t, & pr p ll nt v n pl I l n l tt ...Ep t l n l G r . M rh f fl r nt v l nt d f nd t, & f x t t pl p rf t r t n t, pr f r K l n n , n M n t, r f r n 2. p. 88. nn h d nt r l n rd n b t b l fl d p t r, v th r n l pr nt n 6 : . h d l , t r f M p r n n pt , p r r n t A r , Ar nt v ." nd Exp r nt l S n . l. 8, C l b Un v r t r , 22.Ib d. Y r , Y, 8, p. 0, n. . 2 .Ib d., p. 684, "... b nv l r d n ..." 4. . S. W l n n, " h r bl f th Id nt t f E z n 24.Ib d., "S nt t n Art f l , d d r n n ll. t. Ch . 13 14 ( 2 2 tr n nd p t A r n lt n f t r , v d lf r, th tr d t n l pr n pl f l t n r l d f d n n f t n p r pl n r n d f x v l t t n , t n, r pr nt n " tt r." S " x t Al h ", r f r n pr nd f r t pt n ." , pp. 6 6 , 8 86. 25. Ibid., p. 68 : "... pr pr & x t l nd n p r 4 . W. n, " t n Clavis St r Key," Isis,1987, rn t ll t n ..." 78, 64 4. 26. W. n, The "Summa perfectionis" of pseudo-Geber, 46. h l l th , Introitus apertus, BCC, II, 66 ,"... lph r xt r d n, , pp. 4 2. n ..." 2 . l , " t n Al h t," r f r n , pp. 2 24. 4 . f r n 4 , pp. 2 4. 28. [E r n h l l th d Sir George Ripley's Epistle to King 48. bb , Foundations, r f r n , p. 2 8. Edward Unfolded, MS. Gl Un v r t , r n 8 , pp. 80, 4 . l , " x l t Al h ", r f r n , p. 64. p. . 0. bb , Foundations, r f r n , pp. 222 22 . 2 . MS. r n 8 , p. . Cf. l Philalethes,Introitusapertus, . W tf ll, Never at Rest, r f r n 8, p. 8. in Bibliotheca chemica curiosa, n M n t, r f r n 2, l. II, p. 2. r t ll b f l t v b th t n p r phr 664. (C br d Un v r t br r , K n MS. 0, f. 22r nd th 30. Ibid., MS. r n 8 , pp. 2. r n l ( h l l th , Introitus apertus, in Bibliotheca chemica curi- 31. Ibid. osa, l. II, p. 66 : 32. Ibid., pp. 6. Newton: h t t rr pr pt r l t n , t 33. Ibid. n r l tr x pr pt r n r l n p lt nt r, t 4. l , " t n Al h t," r f r n , p. 20. t n r v l t l , t l [ lph r ] n tr r v lv nt r . [E r n h l l th 0 Sir George Riplye' s Epistle to King nt n t n ntr , d nh t t t & t rr rn d Edward Unfolded, n Chymical, Medicinal, and Chyrurgical AD- p rf ll n t. Intr t. p rt p. 0. DRESSES: Made to Samuel Hartlib, Esquire ( nd n, 6 , p. 22. Philalethes: Ch t n tr t M n r l rr , 6. h rd "n l " th t n t r f r " rn l" r "n t." l t n r p t , & t rn n r v l t l , ntr d t h l l th t n h nf n h d n r pt f th Vade mecum C l h l ph r n C ntr , d C ntr t r v r Philosophicum ( r t h br r , MS. Sl n 6 , 0 v . A tr l , rr d n rr d p rf j b r . . h xpl n t n f rr d b l t pr d t f p r t n th b t l npl n th l h l tr d t n t l z d b h l l th . Cf. n, r f r n 26, p. 8, n t n th William R. Newman teaches in the History of Science Depart- Summa: " r pt r n r [ . . pp r nd r n] lt t rr t t ment at Harvard University, Science Center 235, Cambridge, nt t t t lph r t t dj t v t f nt n r , d f l MA 02138. His publications include the monograph "The h d dd nt r n l . Et M d d , n x lt 'Summa perfectionis' of pseudo-Geber" and the forthcoming t rr t t r nt v v b t nt nt r xt t rb t r r nt v v nt n volume "Gehennical Fire: The Lives of George Starkey, an t , t d p r t n r t r, p r t lph r t tr n n Alchemist of Harvard in the Scientific Revolution." v l r p t t. Et n x ll d rn d n b r r t l v r p t t ll . r h t r d r l n t r tp rt r r r f r t n n r p r d nt n t t r r t t nv rt ." 8. I. t n, °plias, v r, Y r , Y, 2, p. 400. ROBERT MAYER AND THE . A. h r , Atoms and Powers, rv rd Un v r t r , CONSERVATION OF MATTER C br d , MA, 0, pp. 2 nd 64. 40. r t n d t n t n b t n "v l r Ch tr " nd Kenneth L. Caneva, University of North Carolina at " r t " ph l ph , . M. tt n , " t n Al h l Greensboro St d ," n A. G. b , d.. Science, Medicine, and Society in the Renaissance, l W t n bl t n , Y r , Y, 2, pp. Robert Mayer (1814-1878) is well known as one of the discov- 6 , nd 0. erers of the principle of the conservation of energy. A physi- 4 . f r n 8, p. 86. cian from the kingdom of Wiirttemberg in southwestern Ger- 42. I. . C h n, Isaac Newton's Papers & Letters on Natural many, Mayer sailed to the Dutch East Indies in 1840, where he Philosophy, rv rd Un v r t r , C br d , MA, 8, p.2 2. was startled by the brighter-than-expected color of the blood he Al bb , Foundations, r f r n , p. 2 . let from European sailors recently arrived in the tropics. 4 . bb , Foundations, r f r n , p. 220. Reflecting on the implications of Lavoisier's combustion 44. l r , f rth r r , th t t n t d th l h theory of animal heat, and of his own failed childhood attempt t r r th th pr n f "p r " ( nd h n v d n to construct a perpetual motion machine, Mayer employed a tt r, h n th r l n v th t r r th pr n pl widely invoked analogy between organisms and machines to f v l t l t nd h n tt n t n. S l rl h th n th t t n conclude that there must be a constant numerical relationship