What do alchemical symbols mean?
Alchemical symbols, originally devised as part of alchemy, were used to denote some elements and some compounds until the 18th century. Although notation like this was mostly standardized, style and symbol varied between alchemists, so this page mainly lists the most common ones.
What are the colors of alchemy?
They believed that to make the Philosopher’s Stone one had to transform the starting materials through a particular sequence of colour changes: black, white, yellow, and finally purple or red. The recipes therefore gravitated towards compounds of lead, arsenic and antimony, which can exhibit these colours.
What does an upside down triangle mean in alchemy?
Alchemy symbol for the element of Water. In alchemy, the opposite of fire is water. The inverted triangle symbol is easy to remember because it resembles a glass or cup. Naturally, the water symbol is associated with the color blue. The symbol stands for female or feminine nature.
How did alchemists communicate with each other?
Alchemists used a secret language and made an extended use of symbols to indicate substances and procedures. When—in the second half of the 18th century—alchemy became quantitative and evolved into the discipline of chemistry, symbols were abandoned and replaced by abbreviations and formulas.
What does the 3 triangles mean?
The Valknut Meaning The nine points of the triangle have been associated with the nine worlds of Norse mythology, and the three interconnected triangles have been said to reflect the connection between Earth, Heaven and Hell. The symbol has also been associated with ecstatic Seidr magic, of which Odin was a master.
What are the 7 metals of alchemy?
Alchemists were convinced that mercury transcended both the solid and liquid states, both earth and heaven, both life and death. Mercury is one of the seven metals of alchemy (gold, silver, mercury, copper, lead, iron & tin).
What is the final stage of alchemy?
Although these stages are chronological in traditional alchemy, in line with Jung’s psychological model, the course design accommodates entry at any of the first three stages: Nigredo, Albedo or Citrinitas. Admission to Rubedo, however, the final stage, requires the completion of all three earlier stages.
What are the four stages of alchemy?
The original process philosophy has four stages:
- nigredo, the blackening or melanosis.
- albedo, the whitening or leucosis.
- citrinitas, the yellowing or xanthosis.
- rubedo, the reddening, purpling, or iosis.
What does Salt mean in alchemy?
Salt represents the body, as well as physical matter in general, crystallization, and condensation. Salt is often impure when first collected, but through chemical processes it can be dissolved and purified, which some alchemists compared to purification processes the human body can undergo.
What does Platinum symbolize in alchemy?
The alchemy symbol for platinum combines the crescent symbol of the moon with the circular symbol of the sun. This is because alchemists thought platinum was an amalgam of silver (moon) and gold (sun).
What is alchemy magic?
(ăl′kə-mē) n. 1. A medieval chemical philosophy having as its asserted aims the transmutation of base metals into gold, the discovery of the panacea, and the preparation of the elixir of longevity.