The First Alchemists | Free Book

The First Alchemists | Free Book

Steven Lv12
The Spiritual and Practical Origins of the Noble and Holy Art
Publisher:Inner Traditions/Bear & Company
Published:November 2023
ISBN:9781644116845
Title:The First Alchemists
Author:Tobias Churton
Imprint:Inner Traditions
Language:English
Number of Pages:320
Explores the origins and practices of early alchemy

• Examines the oldest surviving alchemical texts, the original purpose of the “Royal Art,” and the first alchemists, showing how women dominated early alchemy

• Looks at the historical setting for the first alchemists, with detailed accounts of their apparatus, recipes, chemical processes, and the ingredients they used

• Reveals how changing the color of materials was more important in early alchemy than transmuting base metals into gold

Investigating the origins of alchemy and the legend of the Philosopher’s Stone, Tobias Churton explores the oldest surviving alchemical texts, the original purpose of the “Royal Art,” and the first alchemists themselves.

Showing how women dominated early alchemy, Churton looks at the first known alchemist, the Jewess Maria the Prophetess, the early alchemist Cleopatra (not the well-known Egyptian queen), and 3rd–4th century Egyptian female artisan Theosebeia, who had a guild of adepts working under her. He examines in depth the work of Zosimos of Panopolis, whose work inspired the medieval view of alchemy as an initiatory path for the transmutation of base metals into gold.

The author also discusses the political and industrial realities facing the first alchemists. He examines the late antique “Stockholm” and “Leiden” papyri, which offer detailed knowledge of the first known Graeco-Egyptian chemical recipes for gold and silver dyes for metal and stone and purple dyes for wool. He reveals how the alchemical secrets for working with the “living statues” of the Egyptian temples was jealously guarded by the priesthood and how secrecy helped to reinforce beliefs that alchemical knowledge came from forbidden, celestial sources. He also investigates the mysterious relation between alchemy, spiritual gnosis, Hermeticism, and the Book of Enoch.

In The Press

“In this remarkable and necessary work on early alchemy, Churton outlines a program of research and experimentation into this rich but mostly unexplored area of Greco-Egyptian alchemical philosophies and practices. The depth and range of the material are breathtaking, and it is very satisfying to see the topic of glass addressed so thoroughly. I strongly recommend studying and working with The First Alchemists and going deeper, letting Tobias Churton light the way.”


About the Author

Tobias Churton is an authority on Gnosticism, Hermeticism, Freemasonry, and Rosicrucianism. Appointed Honorary Fellow of Exeter University in 2005 to specialize in Western Esotericism, he is the author of many books, including Aleister Crowley in Paris and Gnostic Philosophy. He lives in the heart of England.

  • Title: The First Alchemists | Free Book
  • Author: Steven
  • Created at : 2024-10-22 04:29:32
  • Updated at : 2024-10-26 17:02:55
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  • License: This work is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.
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The First Alchemists | Free Book