The Mirror of Alchemy: Alchemical Ideas and Images in Manuscripts and Books from Antiquity to the Seventeenth Century

Alchemical theories are a central component of much of the thought, literature and visual arts of the middle ages and Renaissance. Chaucer, Donne, Ben Jonson and Shakespeare are all known to have been heavily steeped in the subject, but the influence of alchemical writings and images permeated much further, and still exerts a fascination today. This illustrated study is a scholarly and accessible introduction to the history, technical aspects, and concepts of Western European alchemy, as well as to the iconography of alchemical works, from antiquity to the beginning of the rise of chemistry in the 17th century. The work includes an illustrated glossary of alchemical terms and biographies of the major alchemists. It is intended for students of medieval and Renaissance art, literature and history; art historians; and anyone with a general interest in the hiostory and principles of alchemy or medieval culture.