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177
The Story of Alchemy and the Beginnings of Chemistry
·
M. M. Pattison Muir
79
It
was
impossible
to
express
the
alchemical
ideas
in
any
language
save
that
of
far-fetched
allegory.
The
alchemical
writings
abound
in
such
allegories.
Here
are
two
of
them.
The
first
allegory
is
taken
from
The
Twelve
Keys,
of
Basilius
Valentinus,
the
Benedictine:--
"The
eleventh
key
to
the
knowledge
of
the
augmentation
of
our
Stone
I
will
put
before
you
in
the
form
of
a
parable.
"There
lived
in
the
East
a
gilded
knight,
named
Orpheus,
who
was
possessed
of
immense
wealth,
and
had
everything
that
heart
can
wish.
He
had
taken
to
wife
his
own
sister,
Euridice,
who
did
not,
however,
bear
him
any
children.
This
he
regarded
as
the
punishment
of
his
sin
in
having
wedded
his
own
sister,
and
was
instant
in
prayer
to
God
both
by
day
and
by
night,
that
the
curse
might
be
taken
from
him.
One
night
when
he
was
buried
in
a
deep
sleep,
there
came
to
him
a
certain
winged
messenger,
named
Phoebus,
who
touched
his
feet,
which
were
very
hot,
and
said:
'Thou
noble
knight,
since
thou
hast
wandered
through
many
cities
and
kingdoms
and
suffered
many
things
at
sea,
in
battle,
and
in
the
lists,
the
heavenly
Father
has
bidden
me
make
known
to
thee
the
following
means
of
obtaining
thy
prayer:
Take
blood
from
thy
right
side,
and
from
the
left
side
of
thy
spouse.
For
this
blood
is
the
heart's
blood
of
your
parents,
and
though
it
may
seem
to
be
of
two
kinds,
yet,
in
reality,
it
is
only
one.
Mix
the
two
kinds
of
blood,
and
keep
the
mixture
tightly
enclosed
in
the
globe
of
the
seven
wise
Masters.
Then
that
which
is
generated
will
be
nourished
with
its
own
flesh
and
blood,
and
will
complete
its
course
of
development
when
the
Moon
has
changed
for
the
eighth
time.
If
thou
repeat
this
process
again
and
again,
thou
shalt
see
children's
children,
and
the
offspring
of
thy
body
shall
fill
the
world.'
When
Phoebus
had
thus
spoken,
he
winged
his
flight
heavenward.
In
the
morning
the
knight
arose
and
did
the
bidding
of
the
celestial
messenger,
and
God
gave
to
him
and
to
his
wife
many
children,
who
inherited
their
father's
glory,
wealth,
and
knightly
honours
from
generation
to
generation."
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