Philosopher's stone

The philosopher's stone was a substance with purported amazing—even magical—abilities. Although those who sought it called it a "stone," the philosopher's stone was actually described as something other than a rock, possibly a powder or form of dirt. From the Middle Ages through the early 1700s, alchemists searched for the philosopher's stone because they believed it held the power to change base metals into precious metals such as gold and silver. They also believed that the philosopher's stone held the secret to immortality. While alchemy as a discipline was eventually discredited, those who practiced it and searched for the philosopher's stone are responsible for a number of discoveries that are now considered key to the science of chemistry.

Background

Although legend attributes the establishment of alchemy to Hermes Trismegistus, the Greek god of wisdom (known to the Romans as Mercury, the messenger god), historians do not agree on exactly when or where the practice of alchemy began. The most common image of an alchemist is that of a medieval European, but alchemy was practiced in China, India, the portions of Egypt influenced by Greeks and Romans, and the Islamic world before Europeans took up the practice. The term alchemy came from the ancient Arabic word al-kīmiyā by way of its Latinization, alchymia; the word literally means "philosopher's stone." This name for the practice was first used in the third century by Zosimos of Panopolis.

Zosimos was a Greek Gnostic mystic who applied his religious ideas about the purifying and redeeming properties of baptismal waters to his studies of metals and other substances. Just as the Gnostics believed that water purified a person's spirit or soul, Zosimos believed that a substance existed that could purify gold and silver. His ideas about using one physical substance to change another became the basis for what is considered the first book about alchemy. Zosimos's writings were included in later books that combined the work of many early alchemists.

Alchemy was the practice of seeking ways to transform one type of material into another. People who practiced alchemy worked with chemicals such as sulfur and mercury and used science-like techniques combined with elements of magic and spell casting. While the practice of alchemy has since been discredited, from the time of Zosimos until the first quarter of the 1700s alchemy was considered a serious science on the same level as what is now known as chemistry.

Overview

Zosimos and the alchemists who followed him noticed more and more instances where one substance or chemical would act on another to change one or both substances into something different. This led to a relentless search over several centuries to find the substance or combination of substances that could be used to turn less valuable and more plentiful metals such as iron, nickel, copper, tin, or lead into much more valuable and scarce metals such as gold and silver. Alchemists' writings record their many experiments as they hunted for what was variously described as "the materia prima," "a tincture," "red earth," or simply "the powder" that would result in this coveted reaction.

Alchemists believed that any substance powerful enough to cause such transformations would have other special abilities as well. For example, alchemists thought that when they uncovered the secret of the philosopher's stone, they would possess the "elixir of life" with the power to heal, restore youth, and even bestow immortality. This made it one of the most highly sought after items of all time.

While no one ever revealed a substance or formula that could be the philosopher's stone, at least one man claimed to have decoded its secret. Nicolas Flamel was a French notary and bookseller who said he successfully changed lead to gold in 1382. Flamel said he used information from an ancient Hebrew text known as the Kabbala to complete the transformation. While he provided no proof of his claim, Flamel did become wealthy at around the same time and donated much of his wealth to charity. Flamel achieved a second claim to fame when his name was used in the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the United States) by J. K. Rowling.

Several other famous scientists are associated with alchemy and the search for the philosopher's stone. Robert Boyle was an Irish-born scientist and philosopher who believed he had achieved the opposite reaction of the philosopher's stone and turned gold into a less precious metal. However, Boyle is best known for his methodical approach to science that led to the invention of the vacuum pump. Boyle's law of gas pressure was named after him as well. Boyle is credited with taking the more scientific aspects of alchemy and redirecting them to the science known as chemistry. As a result, he is known as the father of modern chemistry.

Sir Isaac Newton is known for his theories of gravity and motion and for the establishment of the mathematical discipline of calculus, but he was also an alchemist. A document rediscovered in a private collection in early 2016 revealed that Newton had conducted experiments aimed at finding the philosopher's stone. Entitled "Preparation of Mercury for the Stone," the document includes a formula for creating a substance known as philosophic mercury, which alchemists believed would break down a base metal into its components before the philosopher's stone was applied to convert the metal to gold. The document included Newton's handwritten notes and even a correction to the original formula.

Although alchemy as a true science was discredited not long after Newton's death, the discoveries and writings of people who pursued its study and its goal of finding the philosopher's stone left behind a legacy of scientific knowledge and technique. They uncovered several new elements, including zinc, metallic arsenic, and phosphorus. They also discovered improved processes for making china. Chinese alchemists seeking the philosopher's stone discovered how to make gunpowder. The quest for discoveries and the increasingly methodical techniques alchemists used became the basis for today's science of chemistry.

Bibliography

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Lewis, Danny. "Isaac Newton Used This Recipe in His Hunt to Make a Philosopher's Stone." Smithsonian.com, 11 Apr. 2016, www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/isaac-newton-used-recipe-his-hunt-make-philosophers-stone-180958709/?no-ist. Accessed 20 Oct. 2016.

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