Collection ID: 0002 | Metadata type: TEI | TEI XML | Data

Title

Alchemical miscellany.

Authors

• Espagnet, Jean d', 1564-approximately 1637

Call number

Ms. Codex 1801
(3420 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104-6206, University of Pennsylvania, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts)

Alternate identifiers

• bibid: 9968182123503681
• http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/965448688
• https://colenda.library.upenn.edu/catalog/81431-p3ht2gf3r

Publisher

University of Pennsylvania

Language

English and Latin

Origin

Date

after 1695

Place

England?

Summary

Alchemical and chemical miscellany containing excerpts from many authors published from the late 15th century through the 17th century, including George Ripley, Johann Rudolf Glauber, Heinrich Khunrath, Thomas Vaughan, Otto Tachenius, David von der Becke, Jan Baptist von Helmont, John Webster, and Athanasius Kircher. The latest work cited is William Yworth's Chymicus rationalis: or, The fundamental grounds of the chymical art rationally stated, published in 1695 (f. 37v-38r). Other sources include Paracelsus, Nicolas Flamel, and published compendia such as Theatrum chemicum and Aurifontina chymica. An otherwise unknown poem including alchemical symbols in its text begins, "Philosophers in dark AEnigma's say ..." (f. 47v-48r). About half the volume (f. 49r-97r) consists of the printed text of Jean d'Espagnet's Arcanum hermeticae philosophiae opus, removed from a copy of the fourth edition of Enchiridion physicae restitutae (Paris, 1642-1647), heavily marked with marginal notes, manicules, and alchemical symbols (Gedge).

Notes

• Ms. codex.
   
• Title supplied by cataloger.
   

Extent

99 leaves : 103 x 55 mm bound to 113 x 65 mm +

Foliation

Paper, 99; 1-48, 49-97 (with printed pagination 9-105, upper outer corners), 98-99, modern foliation in pencil, usually lower right recto but occasionally upper right recto. Printed leaf 123-124 is laid in. All references in this record are to modern foliation.

Support

Paper

Binding

Contemporary (late 17th-century) calf ruled in gilt (Gedge); leather of front cover damaged at front joint and outer edge; threads used as bookmarks were possibly once attached to binding.

Decoration

Manicules on both manuscript (for example, f. 3r) and printed (for example, f. 56r) leaves; small ink diagram of an flaming egg in water (f. 98v).

Script

Written in secretary script.

Provenance

• Sold by Samuel Gedge Ltd. (Norwich, England), catalog 21 (2015), number 1.
   

Subjects topical

• Alchemy
• Alchemy--Early works to 1800
• Chemistry--Early works to 1800
• Chemistry

Genres

• Codices
• Excerpts
• Miscellanies
• Manuscripts, European
• Manuscripts, English
• Manuscripts, Latin
• Hybrid books

Keywords

• Hybrid book
• Miscellany
• 17th century
• English
• Manicules
• Paper
• England
• Alchemy
• Chemistry

Licenses

• Text

  These images and the content of Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts Ms. Codex 1801: Alchemical miscellany. are free of known copyright restrictions and in the public domain. See the Creative Commons Public Domain Mark page for usage details, http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/.

  URL

  http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

• Text

  Metadata is ©2018 University of Pennsylvania Libraries and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License version 4.0 (CC-BY-4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode. For a description of the terms of use see the Creative Commons Deed https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.

  URL

  https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

Table of contents

• fol. 47v — Alchemical poem, f. 47v
• fol. 49r — Arcanum hermeticae philosophiae opus, f. 49r

Decorations

• fol. 98v — Diagram, f. 98v