A MANUAL OF PARACELSUS THE GREAT,
That most excellent Philosopher and Doctor of both kinds of Medicine;
that is,
A Thesaurus of Special Alchemical Experiments under the Autograph of the Author himself—Paracelsus.
The Work on Mercury for Luna and Sol, which I have done with my Own Hands.
TAKE of calcined tartar 2lb., and of quicklime 1lb. Mix together. Place, in a vessel well luted, in a potter's furnace, that it may be calcined and rendered white. Dissolve that matter in the following lixivium. Let it stand until the calx in the bottom shall become tartar turned into water. Then distil by a filter; afterwards take the lixivium and place on it 1lb. of egg shell with 1lb. of quicklime. Make all boil together, so that it may become a stone. Put this to be again calcined as before, and also place it again in the lixivium; dissolve and distil it by the filter. Treat it again with egg shell and quicklime, as above, and repeat this three or four times; lastly, take the lixivium distilled by the filter, and make it boil until it is congealed. Let that tartar be calcined by itself for 15 or 16 hours; then dissolve it into an oil, and thus you will have oil of tartar. Then take the Mercury, sublimate it with quicklime and egg shell and calcined sulphur three or four times. Imbibe it nine times with the aforesaid oil, and sublimate it. What remains at the bottom, preserve in a glass vessel. What ascends, imbibe another nine times, sublimate, and preserve what remains. Imbibe yet again, and continue doing so until nothing ascends. Then take the mercury, pound it well, and imbibe it yet once again. Then dissolve it into an oil in a cold cellar. When all is dissolved put in 6oz., 1 oz. of silver foil. Place it in horse-dung, that it may be dissolved into water, and, when dissolved, coagulate it into Luna.
Into Sol.
In the place of Luna take Sol, and in the imbibition of the Mercury add crocus of Mars, that it may become red.
