Alchemy In Medieval Europe

Though alchemy is typically associated, especially in the West, with transmutation of elements or a search for eternal life, it has rich historical roots in religion and has tussled with it, especially in the form of the ideals of Catholic scholars during the Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated in Hellenistic Egypt, and closely tied to Hermes Trismegistus, likely a combination of the Egyptian god Thoth, and Greek god Hermes (Budge 414-415). The transmission of alchemy to Medieval Europe is believed to have occurred in the early twelfth century, with Robert of Chester serving as one of the earliest translators of Arabic texts and knowledge that Spain, under Moorish control at the time, and Italy were exposed to (Holmyard, “Early
One such individual was Roger Bacon, who was a Master of Arts and one who taught Aristotle, born c. 1214/20. In 1248, he became “an independent scholar with an interest in languages and experimental-scientific concerns,” and investigated Arabic and Greek texts, likely coming into contact with the same references and ideas of alchemy as those such as Robert of Chester (Hackett). According to Hackett, an early reader of Bacon’s works on alchemy, Bonaventure, shared his goal of “seeking a ‘reduction’ of the sciences to theology, demonstrating that this cultural spread of how to reconcile theology and science had swept up the appealing idea of alchemy. Bacon recognized something similar to his eso and exoteric forms of alchemy, though he called them ‘speculative’ and ‘practical’ (Halmyard). Bacon believed that speculative alchemy was unknown to the natural philosophers of Latin, and served a purpose more akin to the “hidden” or esoteric kind of alchemy, but, interestingly, spends more time on ‘practical' alchemy, even putting forth the idea of applying it to medicine. This shows how the transition between spiritual and experimental Europe, with no clear in-between time of harmony with theology and rationality, but instead a constant flux with a general trend away from the
Nejeschleba, et. al. use Žemla’s article “Valentin Weigel and alchemy” to demonstrate that despite being known for alchemy, he was likely only minorly interested in alchemy and a victim of pseudepigraphy. Importantly, the ideals of his time shine through the midattribution of the authorship of “his” works. As Žemla points out, “as late as 1869 the Histoire de la Chimie classi es his work as the symbolic and spiritual alchemy … and [t]he image of Weigel as an alchemist was strengthened when his works appeared together with works of Paracelsus and other authors that used alchemical symbolism and natural-philosophical concepts”. What Žemla has shown is that alchemy, even up to the 16th century, during which Weigel lived, alchemy still had its ties to the roots of the Hellenistic belief. Indeed, it seems to have gone back to those roots, discussing symbolic and spiritual alchemy, something that was not very commonly discussed in absence of some Christian concepts in Middle Ages