1429. Rosarie, i. e. Rosarium Philosophorum, the name of a treatise on alchemy by Arnoldus de Villa Nova; Theat. Chem. iv. 514.
1431. The word mortification seems to have been loosely used to denote any change due to chemical action. Phillips explained Mortify by—'Among chymists, to change the outward form or shape of a mixt body; as when quicksilver, or any other metal, is dissolved in an acid menstruum.'
1432. 'Unless it be with the knowledge (i. e. aid) of his brother.' The 'brother' of Mercury was sulphur or brimstone (see l. 1439). The dictum itself is, I suppose, as worthless as it is obscure.
1434. Hermes, i. e. Hermes Trismegistus, fabled to have been the inventor of alchemy. Several books written by the New Platonists in the fourth century were ascribed to him. Tyrwhitt notes that a treatise under his name may be found in the Theatrum Chemicum, vol. iv. See Fabricius, Bibliotheca Graeca, lib. i. c. 10; and Smith's Classical Dictionary. The name is preserved in the phrase 'to seal hermetically.'
Mr. Furnivall printed, for the Early Eng. Text Society, a tract called The Book of Quinte Essence, 'a tretice in Englisch breuely drawe out of the book of quintis essenciis in latyn, that Hermys the prophete and kyng of Egipt, after the flood of Noe, fadir of philosophris, hadde by reuelacioun of an aungil of god to him sende.'
1438. dragoun, dragon. Here, of course, it means mercury, or some compound containing it. In certain processes, the solid residuum was also called draco or draco qui comedit caudam suam. This draco and the cauda draconis are frequently mentioned in the old treatises; see Theatrum Chemicum, iii. 29, 36, &c. The terms may have been derived from astrology, since 'dragon's head' and 'dragon's tail' were common terms in that science. Chaucer mentions the latter in his Astrolabe, ii. 4. 23. And see 'Draco' in Theat. Chem. ii. 456.
1440. sol and luna, gold and silver. The alchemists called sol (gold) the father, and luna (silver) the mother of the elixir or philosopher's stone. See Theat. Chem. iii. 9, 24, 25; iv. 528. Similarly, sulphur was said to be the father of minerals, and mercury the mother. Id. iii. 7.
1447. secree, secret of secrets. Tyrwhitt notes—'Chaucer refers to a treatise entitled Secreta Secretorum, which was supposed to contain the sum of Aristotle's instructions to Alexander. See Fabricius, Bibliotheca Graeca, vol. ii. p. 167. It was very popular in the middle ages. Ægidius de Columnâ, a famous divine and bishop, about the latter end of the 13th century, built upon it his book De Regimine Principum, of which our Occleve made a free translation in English verse, and addressed it to Henry V. while Prince of Wales. A part of Lydgate's translation of the Secreta Secretorum is printed in Ashmole's Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum, p. 397. He did not translate more than about half of it, being prevented by death. See MS. Harl. 2251, and Tanner, Bibl. Brit. s. v. Lydgate. The greatest part of the viith Book of Gower's Confessio Amantis [see note to l. 820] is taken from this supposed work of Aristotle.' In the Theatrum Chemicum, iii. 14, I find an allusion to the philosopher's stone ending with these words—'Et Aristoteles ad Alexandrum Regem dicit in libro de secretis secretorum, capitulo penultimo: O Alexander, accipe lapidem mineralem, vegetabilem, et animalem, et separa elementa.' See Warton, Hist. Eng. Poetry, sect. 19; iii. 19 (ed. 1871), or ii. 230 (ed. 1840).
1450. Tyrwhitt says—'The book alluded to is printed in the Theatrum Chemicum, vol. v. p. 219 [p. 191, ed. 1660], under this title, Senioris Zadith fil. Hamuelis Tabula Chemica. The story which follows of Plato and his disciples is there told, p. 249 [p. 224, ed. 1660], with some variations, of Solomon. "Dixit Salomon rex, Recipe lapidem qui dicitur Thitarios (sic).... Dixit sapiens, Assigna mihi illum.... Dixit, Est corpus magnesiae.... Dixit, Quid est magnesia?... Respondit, Magnesia est aqua, composita," &c.' The name of Plato