℞ a most pure Silver Vessel, in which shut up Mercury, then fill a Pot with molten Lead, in the midst of which put in the Vessel with the Mercury; let it flow a whole day, and the hidden heat will be taken away from Mercury, and the external heat will communicate to it the internal cold of the Lead and ☽, being both of a cold nature, by which Mercury will grow stiff, rigid, and become hard.
Note, The Cold which Mercury hath need of for its hardening and death, is not outwardly perceptible, like Snow or Ice, but is rather hot. Nor is the heat by which Mercury flows, felt by the hands, but ’tis rather cold. Hence Sophisters (that is men speaking without knowledge) pronounce him cold and moist, and study how to coagulate him with hot things, and thereby rather liquifie than harden him. Which thing Experience it self testifieth. True Alchymy, which by one only Art teacheth to make ☉ and ☽ out of the Five Imperfect Metals, useth no other Receipts, than only from Metals, out of Metals, by Metals, and with Metals, are Perfect Metals made; for with other things it is Luna; for in Metals it is Sol.
Glaub.] Here Paracelsus demonstrates their Judgment to be false, who say that Mercury (in it self a meer Fire) is by nature Cold, and returns to speaking of Spiritual Metals, the which being stirred up by great heat of Fire, do operate upon one another, meliorate, change, and advance to perfection, as hath been taught in the foregoing Chapters. Then he adds a Fable or Story, how to coagulate or fix Mercury; but it must not be taken in the literal sence, but of the spiritual ☽, whereby Mercury is to be promoted to Coagulation, in a moist way, and not in a dry, as the other Metals are, which Process I never yet attempted. Then he finisheth with an universal Rule of Transmutation, saying, Perfect metals are made from metals, out of metals by metals, and with metals, and that out of some ☽, out of others ☉ is made. He adviseth to take no strange thing, and only metalline subjects are to be taken for this Work out of some Luna only; out of others Sol only, or ☉ and ☽, both are to be extracted, which I have often tried; as in ♄, which of it self gives only ☽, Tin, ♀, and ♂, by themselves give only Luna, and pure Sol; but commixt with other Metals in a due proportion, they give only ☉, and very little or no ☽: Which maturation is to be ascribed only to the labour and mixtion, which is deservedly to be admired.
What Matter and Instruments are needful in Alchymy.
There is no special need of any thing, excepting a Fire-place, Coals, Bellows, Tongs, Hammer, Crucibles, Test, (treib scherben) and Cupels made of good Beech-ashes. Then put in ♄, ♃, ♂, ☉, Copper, ☿, and Luna. Proceed to the end of ♄. ’Tis very difficult and uncertain to find out Metals and Minerals in the Earth and Stones; yet because all Metals are to be first sought after and digged out of the Earth, this Labour is not to be contemned, but is Praise-worthy. Nor will this lust and desire in digging in Mines sooner cease, than the love of young Men to Maids will fail; and as the Bees are greedy of extracting Honey and Wax out of the Rose, so prone and forward should a Man be, to find out the Minerals in the bowels of the Earth, but without Covetousness; he that is overmuch greedy, receives least, for God doth not fill all men with gold and silver, but with want, dung, dirt, misery, and scarcity. Some men also God bestows a peculiar Intellect upon, and a piercing knowledge of Minerals and Metals; so that they know a far more compendious way of making Sol and Luna without digging in the Mine-pits, and without the Examen or Trying, and Fusion of Minerals. So that ’tis not so altogether necessary to dig in the Earth for native Sol and Luna, but by a certain knowledge it might be made of five Species, (but of Minerals become Metals, which are Imperfect Metals, and are so called) viz. ☿, ♃, ♄, Mars, and Copper: Of some more easily, of othersome more difficultly is Sol and Luna to be had.
Note also, That out of Argent Vive, Lead, ♃, Gold and Silver is easily made; out of ♂ and ☿ difficultly. Nevertheless ’tis possible, but in the beginning and access of Sol and Luna.
Out of Magnesia and Lead comes Luna.
Out of ☿ and Cinnabar ariseth pure Sol.
Likewise an Ingenious man (as I well remember) is able by due attention and preparation so to handle a Metal, as to be able by his ingenuity to do more in the Transmutation of Metals to perfection, and to guide the same better than all the Signs and Planets of Heaven can do. ’Tis also needless to observe the Twelve Signs, and to calculate the motions and Regiment of the Planets, and to observe a time, a day, the hour of this or that luckey or unluckey Planet; such things neither promote nor hinder any thing; they neither hurt nor profit ought in the natural Art of Alchymy: But if thou rightly understandest the art and possibility thereof, then go to work and labour when thou seest it most convenient; but if thou want’st the knowledge and practice thereof, then all the Planets, Stars, and Signs will wholly fail thee. It also comes to pass, that metals lying long in the Earth, are not only changed into Rust, but by a longer staying in the Earth, they return into their Native Stone, of which sort are many found, albeit they are not observed, for there are found stony pieces of Money, of the Gentiles, which were Metal heretofore, and by Corruption were transformed into Stone.