Alchemy in the Book of Cabllero Zifar and in the Book of Examples - Libro del Caballero Zifar

ALCHEMY IN THE BOOK OF KNIGHT ZIFAR AND THE BOOK OF EXAMPLES

During the late Latin Middle Ages, alchemy spread throughout Europe very quickly, becoming extremely well known at all levels of society. Faced with the hieraticism of the alchemical treatises of the time, popular literature collects in various medieval works anecdotes related to the adventures of the alchemist scoundrel who has a poor command of his "Ars" and who dedicates himself to swindling the unwary who lets himself fall into his traps. networks eager for wealth. The most typical example of this type of narrative is the story " The Canon's Yeoman's Tale" included in "The Canterbury Tales" by the Englishman Geoffrey Chaucer; However, the Spanish pens of the 14th century also recorded these behaviors in various works of great importance. We collect here the chapters "Of the advice that the infant Rehoboán gave to the emperor of Trigida about a physicist", included in the anonymous "Book of the Knight Zifar" and "Example XX" of "The Count Lucanor" written by the Infante of Castile Don Juan Manuel.

Jose Rodriguez

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Bibliographic references:

- DON JUAN MANUEL, "El Conde Lucanor", Madrid, Editorial Castalia, 1991 Critical edition by José M. Blecua.
- ANONYMOUS, "Libro del Caballero Zifar", Madrid, Ediciones Cátedra, 1983. Critical edition by Cristina González.

Studies of interest:

- JESÚS L. SERRANO REYES, "Didacticism and Moralism in Geoffrey Chaucer and Don Juan Manuel: A Comparative Textual Study", Córdoba, Publications Service of the University of Córdoba, 1996, PP. 252-273
- JESÚS L. SERRANO REYES, "Three Spanish Analogues for an English Story", in «Azogue», no. 1, January-June 1999

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Book of the Knight Zifar (14th century)

From the advice that the infant Rehoboan gave to the emperor of Trigrida about a physical

Where the story goes that this infant was very well loved by the emperor of Triguiada, he was so well served in all the things he could and so loyally that one of his companions did it. And when everyone came to the emperor to advise him, there was no one who was as good at giving good advice as he was. So one day a physicist who was from a foreign land came to the emperor. And the emperor asked him if he was a teacher with a degree in physics, and he said yes, and then showed him his letters about how he was qualified, and that he protected them from all the diseases in the world with three diseases that he knew: the first was for drinking. , and the other to make ointments with it, and the other to make baths with it. And he showed him how it was right, and he gave strange names to the daughters, so that the physicists at the emperor's house did not know them, but they were similar to what he spoke about as how it was right. And the emperor asked him where those wildernesses would fail, and he told them that on the shore of the sea where the sun sets. And the emperor asked his physicist and all of his council for advice, and they advised him to go through those wildernesses. And then that strange physicist called and told him that he wanted to send for the wilderness, and that he would give some of his house to go with him. And the physicist responded and told him that he did not want anyone to be with him; that what he captured with great effort throughout his life, that he did not want those he sent with him to capture him in one hour; but that he should give him everything he wanted, and thirty or fifty camels, and he would bring them loaded; It takes a lot of effort to make the bathrooms properly. And when they counted how much he needed for two years to come and go, they found that he had ten thousand silver marks.

So the advisors and physicists advised the emperor to do so, since this physics could not be purchased by air. The emperor wanted to do it, but he demanded that the infant Rehoboan say what he seemed to do. And he told him that he did not dare to advise him on this reason. Because he did not want me to answer, through his advice, what he answered to a Moorish king about such a fact as this. "And how was it?" said the emperor. “Sir,” said the infant, “I will tell you.”

Thus it was that a Moorish king had a very good and very rich alfajeme, and this alfajeme had a permanent man who never wanted to use his father's profession, but always used cavalry, and was a very good knight of arms. And when his father died, the king told him that he wanted to take advantage of his father's office, and that he would receive a lot of favor. And he told him that he knew well that he would never deal with that job, and that he would always deal with chivalry, and that he did not know how to do it as he knew; But he asked for a favor rather than for not being proud among the knights he knew, who knew that he was a permanent member of Alfajeme, that he ordered his letter of request to be given to another king, his friend, in which he sent him to pray that he would do well and receive a favor, and that he would punish as much as possible. And it was for the king's sake that the king ordered to give, and he ordered his chancellor to give gela. And the knight took the letter and went to that king who was a friend of his lord.

When he arrived, he said greetings from his lord the king, and gave him the letter he had sent. And before the king opened the letter, he made him understand that he had an agreement with him, and asked him if his lord was healthy. And he told him yes. And I asked him if he was okay with his time. And he told him that yes, and that he was very suspicious of them. And he asked him if he was rich, and told him that all the kings around him were not as rich as him alone. And then the king opened the letter and read it. And he said in the letter that this gentleman, who was a permanent member of an alphajeme, who sent him to serve him, and who was favored by him, felt that he would know very well how to do what he commanded. The king asked him what he needed to do. And when the knight heard it, he was very scared, because he understood that in the letter he said how he was a permanent member of Alfajeme. And thinking what answer he would give him, the king asked him another time what he needed.

And the knight answered him: «Sir, since you are so established and because you are a friend of my lord, I want to tell you my poridat. You know, sir, that my master is to make gold. «Certas», said the king, «beautiful Master, he pays much attention to chivalry, and I take great pleasure in your coming, and from God good fortune to the king, my friend, who has just sent you; "And I want you to get to work later." "In the name of God," said the knight, "whenever you want."

And the king ordered the knight to be lodged immediately, and ordered him to think very well of the future. And the knight could not sleep that night, thinking about how he could escape the crime. And of the doubles that Calçino 20 brought, and fizolas poluos, and he went to a grocer that was at the end of the town and said to him like this: "Friend, I want to make you win, and I will win with you." "Plaze me," said the grocer. "Well, take these poluos," said the knight, "and if someone comes to demand you if you have alexandrique's poluos, and it's been a short time since you heard three quintals of them, more merchants came and bought it all from you and read it, and that You don't know if I'll tell you anything.

And when the Qatarrs, say that it was not only these few who owned you, and do not give it less than ten doubles; and the five folds you will give to me, and the other five will belong to you. And the spicer took the poluos and kept them very well, and the knight went to the king's house, which had already been sent by him. And when the king saw it, he ordered everyone to leave the house, and stayed alone with that knight, and said to him: "Caualler, you have put me in great covetousness, for I cannot sleep until I get my hands on this work." «Çertas, sir», said the knight, «you face straight; When you are rich, you will open everything you want, and all your neighbors will be suspicious of you, just as they do to my lord the king, because of the great fortune he has, that I believe in this way. "So what do we need," said the king, "to do this?" «Sir», said the knight, «send some of your men of poridat to go look for the merchants and for Alexandrique's dirty spices, and buy them as many as you can; "ca for what it will cost one double fare two, and for the whole year we will have enough of the poluos, I will give you a great treasure, which you will not open to put." "My God, knight," said the king, "your coming was good for me, and this is what you do for me."

And then he sent his butler and another ome of his poridat with whom he went to search for these poluos. And they went all over the town to look for these poluos and they never failed to find someone who told them that he knew them, nor did they know what they were, and they turned to the king and told him that they never failed to collect any of these poluos; They said they were merchants and spicemongers who never saw them or heard about them except now. "Commo non!" said the knight. «They bring so many to the land of my lord the king, that two hundred azeymilas could carry some of them; But I think that because you don't know them, you don't know how to sue them. And I search there, and perhaps we have failed them. "Well says the knight," said the king. «And then you go there.» And they went to all the spice stores asking about these groceries, and they did not fail to find any.

And the knight demanded that the king's butler and other spice and grocery stores go there, since it couldn't be that they wouldn't fail. "Certas," said the butler, "there are no other stores in the entire town, greetings from the three that are in the arraual." And they went there, and in the first ones they did not fail to find any; But one who was better off than all of them, said that it was only a short time before they brought in merchandise worth three quintals of the same amount as they said. And they asked him if he could find out anything about it, and he said that he did not know, and he pretended to be examining his coffers and his sacks, and showed them those few bags that the knight had given him. And they asked him for how much he would give them, and he said no less than ten doubles. And the knight said that they should give them money for it, even for making the proeua, and they gave him ten doubles, and the butler took the money and money for the king. And they told him how they couldn't buy more of those kilos, how he told them that he had little time, even if he sold three quintals of them. And the knight said to the king: "Sir, keep these powders, and order to take lead, weighing twenty doubles, and bring coal to melt it, and let your steward do as I will tell him, and it is certain that he will fail me." true in what I told you." "God willing," said the king, "may it be so!"

Another day in the morning the knight came and ordered them to place the lead powder in a crescent, and melt it, and ordered them to throw other unused powder from the lime, from the bones, which wore down the lead and turned it into smoke. and they planted the twenty-double poluos all melted. And when they took it out, they lost twenty-double weight of the finest and purest gold that could be. And when the king saw it, he was very read and understood that God had granted him a great favor with the coming of that knight, and he asked him how he could obtain more of those beans to do more work. "Sir," said the knight, "order them to send to the land of my lord the king, and they will be able to deliver at least 100 loaded azeymilas." "Certas," said the king, "I don't want anyone else to go without you, because the king, my friend, trusts in you, I want to trust in you and others." And he ordered him to give him ten camels loaded with silver, so that he could buy those dollars. And the knight took his fortune and left, with the intention of never returning nor of putting himself in the place where the king could catch him; It was not something that the king wanted him to do, in which he could give effect in any way.

This Moorish king was so righteous in his land, that every night he walked around the town with ten or twenty to hear what everyone said and did. So one night a group of young Moors were in a house eating and drinking alone, and the king was standing outside the door listening to what they were saying. And a Moor began to say: "Let each of you now say which is the most necessary in this town." And each one has his own. And then that young Moor said: "Well, the most important person in this town that I know is the king." When the king heard it, he went very angry, and ordered his men to arrest them and keep them until another day in the morning, so that they could read. And therefore they say that whoever listens a lot hears harm from him. And they began to break the doors, and those inside demanded who they were. They told them that they were omes of the king. And that young Moor said to the others: «Friends, we are discovered, surely the king has heard what we said to each other; ca he he usually walks around the town listening to what they say about him. "It is the king that you ask some questions, you do not answer him anything, but leave it to me, and I will answer him."

Another day in the morning they were read before the king as prisoners, and the king with great anger began to say to them: "Dogs, dogs, what did you hear me saying that I was the most needy in the town?" "I want to know which one of you was the one who said it." "Çertas," said that mançebo Moor, "I said it." "You?" said the king: "tell me why you care because I am the most needy." "I'll tell you," said the Moor.

«Sir, if someone loses or has something of his belongings stolen because of bad care, or says some wrong word, it is necessarily because he does not keep what is his, nor is he careful in what he says about it; But it is not as necessary as he who gives what is his without owing, what he knowingly wants to lose as well as what you did. Lord, you know that a strange knight came to you, and because he told you that he would make you lead gold, which cannot be done in any way, you gave him ten camels loaded with silver with which to buy the gold to make gold. "And he certainly believed that you would never see him again before you, and so he lost everything you gave, and it was a great loss of understanding." "E sy veniere?" said the king. "It is certain, sir," said the Moor, "that it will not be possible in any way." "But if he comes?" said the king. «Sir», said the Moor, «if he comes, we will erase your name from the book of nesçedat e pornemos and yours; He knowingly caused great harm to himself, and perhaps to death; because he will not be able to do what he promised you, and thus he will be more necessary than you.

"And therefore, sir," said the infant Rehoboan to the emperor, "as long as you are very rich, and could use a lot of energy in such a noble thing as what you say about this physicist, if it may be true, I do not dare advise you that auenturedes so grant auer; If you should fail, tell us that you should not do so with good advice or good understanding; ca great loss of understanding is to guess or grant auer in a doubtful thing; every farm deceived and it does not end, and with loss. "Çertas," said the emperor, "I consider myself well advised by you."

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Book of examples (14th century)

Don Juan Manuel

Of what he answered to a king with an omne that he said that he would make alchemy

One day Count Lucanor spoke with Patronio, his advisor, in this way:

-Patronio, a man came to me and said that he would charge me a very grand pro et grand onra, and for this I would need him to taste something of mine with which that event began; After it was finished, for a sum of ten. And for the good understanding that God has placed in you, I beg you to tell me what you see that complies with me to do this.

-Lord Count, so that you can do your best in this, I would like you to know what he answered to a king with an omne who said he knew how to do alchemy.

The count asked what was what.

"Lord Count Lucanor," said Patronio, "an omne was a very good golfer and had a great taste for enrrequesçer and for getting out of that bad life he was passing through." And that man knew that a king who was not a very good man was working on alchemy.

And that fool took 100 folds and limes, and of those filings he made, with other things that he put with them, 100 pellets, and each of those pellets weighed one fold, and the rest of the other things that he mixed with the filings of the folds. . And he went to a villa where the king was, and he dressed himself in very expensive cloths and took those pellets and sold them to a grocer. And the grocer asked what those pellets were for, and the golfin told him that they were for many things, and pointedly, that without that thing, alchemy could not be done, and he sold all the hundred pellets for the amount of two or three. you fold And the grocer asked him what they called those pellets, and the golfin told them that they had a tabard name.

That golfin lived for a time in that town as a highly valued omne and was telling some and others, in the manner of a poridat, that he knew how to do alchemy.

And these new things reached the king, and he sent for him and asked him if he knew how to do alchemy. And the idiot, as he did, shows that he wanted to hide and that he didn't know, in the end he made it clear that he knew; But he told the king that he advised that this fact should not be trusted by anyone in the world nor should he venture much from his knowledge, but if he wanted, that he would prove it before him a little and that he would show what he knew. This pleased the king greatly, and it seemed that, according to these words, he could not see any deception. He then ordered to bring the things he wanted, and they were things that could fail and among the others he ordered to bring a piece of tabardíe. And all the things he ordered to be brought did not cost more than two or three pieces of money. After they were brought and melted before the king, the weight of a double of fine gold came out. And after the king saw that something that cost two or three money cost twice as much, he was very happy and thought of himself as the most well-educated man in the world, and told the golfer that he did this, that the king, who was a very good man, took care of himself, that fiziesse more.

And the urchin replied, as if he didn't know anything else:

-Lord, as much as I knew, I have shown you everything, and from here on you will show it as well as I do; But you should know one thing: that any of these things that decrease could not be made from this gold.

And after having said this, he left the king and went home.

The king tried without that master of making the gold, and he doubled the receipt, and the weight of two doubles of gold came out. Again he doubled the receipt, and the weight of four doubles came out; And as the receipt grew, so did a lot of doubles. Since the king saw that he could make as much gold as he wanted, he ordered that as much of those things be brought so that he could make a thousand doubles. And all the other things failed, but the tabardid did not fail. Since the king saw that the tabardíe was diminishing and that he could not make gold, he sent for the one who could prove it, and told him that he could not make gold as he used to. And he asked him if he had all the things that he gave him in writing. And the king said yes, but the tabard diminished.

Estonçe told him that the gold could not be made because of anything that diminished, and that was what he had said on the first day.

Estonçe asked the king if he knew where this tabard was; and the golfín said yes.

Then the king ordered him, since he knew who it was, that he should go and troxiesse so much so that he could make as much gold as he wanted.

The golfin told him that since anyone else could do this as well or better than him, if the king failed him for his service, he would go for it: that in his land he would fail quite a lot. The king then told what the purchase and the pantry would cost and he set up a very grand affair.

And since the golfin had him in his possession, his career was gone and he never returned to the king. And so the king ended up deceived by his bad fortune. And after he saw that he was taking longer than he expected, he sent the king to his house to see if they knew any news about him. And nothing of the world failed in his house, but a closed ark; And since they failed, they failed and a writing that said like this:

«Believe well that there is no tabard in the world; But you know that I have deceived you, and when I said that you would become rich, you should tell me to do it to me first and that you would believe me.

After a few days, some omnes were laughing and working and writing down all the omnes they knew, each one in what way it was, and saying: «The tricks are so-and-so and so-and-so; et the rich, so-and-so and so-and-so; et the sane, so-and-so and so-and-so. And so are all other things good or contrary. And when the men began to write a bad message, they wrote to the king. And when the king found out about it, he sent for them and assured them that no harm would be done to them for it, and told them to write for omne of evil. And they said it: that was the reason why he gave such great attention to a stranger and about whom he had no information.

And the king told them that they had made a mistake, and that if the one who had carried out the crime came, he would not be guilty of wrongdoing. And they told him that they would not lose anything from his account, almost if the other came, that they would take the king out of the writing and that they gave him.

And you, Lord Count Lucanor, if you want not to be considered an evildoer, do not venture into something that is not certain so much of yours, for you will regret it if you lose it by force of aver grand pro, being in doubt.

The count spoke of this advice, and he did so, and it was decided well.

And Don Johan, believing that this example was good, wrote it in this book, and made these viessos that say like this:

Do not venture too far with your wealth,
for the advice of one who suffers great poverty.