MEDULLA ARTIS

Christopher the Parisian


fifteenth century


In Dei nomine intemerataque Virginis Maria

Here begins the book of Mr Christophle le Parisien
which is called Medulla Artis


My very dear brother, considering the saying of the very wise Philosophers, that between the sciences, there is the theoretical part, which is called by them Divine, and between these Divines there is one called Alchemy, and which they say is more than Divine, and which they have endeavored to hide under the veil of various figures and exquisite words, so that the vulgar profane may not discover what is worthy to know, and also so that others than the very wise children of wisdom, do not use so much excellent, and occult magisterium of nature.

Considering therefore that you are one of these, for this purpose your mind should not be offended by the various speeches of the Philosophers. I am happy to briefly declare all the contents of the truth. And for what, according to the Philosophers,

So take the first liqueur called by the Cahos philosophers, and in distilled the spirit and the element of the water, in a suitable vessel as I teach you in its place, until the body remains at the bottom of the vessel, in the manner of melted pitch, which you will wash from its aquatic element by ten distillations, then take its mind, and put it on it, as long as it is very fingers. . Put it in a distillation vessel without any breathing, as is customary; and put it to putrefy for six days in a competent vessel, and then distill it through the ashes. Then take the other spirit, and put it on top, and putrefy it for six days as before. And so repeat the work until you see that the spirit has removed his soul.And the infallible sign of this is that you will see that his land will be hardened and dry; then you will be certain that the body died for its salvation: which you can quicken and make incorruptible, and it will no longer fear in this world either death or corruption.

Take this body and weigh it, and put it in its competent vessel, and put on it its spirit which has its own soul, the eighth part. And quench our ship, as you know, and put it on digestive fire, as we will declare to you below, and continue the fire until you have seen the dead head and have drunk its liquor. Then open the vessel, and put his alembic on it, collecting so little liquor that it will be there, which will be like lukewarm water without any taste. Imbibe the matter for the second time with the seventh part of the above spirit, which has the soul with it, making a similar regimen as above.Afterwards imbibe the third with the sixth part, the fourth with the fifth, the fifth with the fourth, and no longer multiply the weight of the above spirit, but continue making the diet of the above work, until matter is white, which will have regained its spirit by means of which it will be linked with its soul . Take the aforesaid earth, and grind it subtly in a glass mortar, then put it in a competent sublimatory vessel, fought above as much as matter rises, and sublimate the pure part of the impure, by means of what you know, and thus you will have sublimated our mercury, which will be clear and resplendent like a diamond. The Philosophers call it by various metaphors, first matter, armoniac salt, our mercury, our sulfur of nature, and yet the whole is the same thing.then put it in a competent sublimatory vessel, fought above as much as matter rises, and sublimate the pure part of the impure, by means of what you know, and thus you will have sublimated our mercury, which will be clear and resplendent like a diamond. The Philosophers call it by various metaphors, first matter, armoniac salt, our mercury, our sulfur of nature, and yet the whole is the same thing. then put it in a competent sublimatory vessel, fought above as much as matter rises, and sublimate the pure part of the impure, by means of what you know, and thus you will have sublimated our mercury, which will be clear and resplendent like a diamond. The Philosophers call it by various metaphors, first matter, armoniac salt, our mercury, our sulfur of nature, and yet the whole is the same thing.

So take from the other very simple spirit that you have drawn from chaos, which will not have drunk its soul, and make it subtle in this way.

Take some of the first vegetable matter you made, a pound, and put it in a competent vessel. And put this vessel in the vessel of the Marine Bath (sic), and leave it until the matter is dissolved, then put the screed over it, and draw out the superfluous wateriness. Then throw three books of the aforesaid simple spirit, and quench this vessel with its antinotory, and put it to putrefy on a natural day in this manner, namely: Have a vessel of copper a quarter wide and two quarters and a half long, and towards the mouth, be added to it a solare of copper buxate, put on it a lid that fits inside, and tighten, let there be one or two bux, according to the vessels you will put in it, and these vessels are covered with their antinotories,which lid of the copper vessel are a quarter high, and in this putrefactive vessel be put water, then the agency on its competent furnace, with an honest fire: by the vigor of which fire the fumes of the water will rise, and will heat the vessel, in which is the matter which must putrefy and digest. And by this means must be digested and putrefied with perfect order of digestion and putrefaction, all work of our excellent and royal magisterium. Afterwards, distill on the ashes, in the heat of the Sun so that all its juice is drawn. Afterwards, dissolve the matter, and put on it its proportion of the aforesaid very simple spirit, so long as there are three more parts, than is the aforesaid matter which remained, and from which you drew the aforesaid juice.And thus reiterates the magisterium four times, doing in all and for all as above. And thus you will have the spirit of chaos, which the Philosophers call purified fire, brought from power to effect, with the virtue of vegetable matter.

Take a vessel of the tenor of a large bucket (16 pints), which is of balanced glass, and clean, and which is long in the head, that the neck is a quarter and a half of a bucket long, and that it has an antinotory above, which holds. And in this vessel thus ordered, be put to circulate four pounds, and not more, of the spirit or purified fire, which you brought from power to effect with the virtue of the vegetable matter, by the way that I taught you above. And then put it in the bath, or in the manure, and let it circulate for the space of 60 days. And when the conversion of the aforesaid spirit, brought about in power, the Quintessence will be made.It will be known in that at the bottom of the vessel will be a hypostasis, or residence of faeces, similar to that which the urine of a healthy man makes. And you will see the Quintessence more clear and resplendent than the diamond, which overcomes in clearness, the clearness of the stars, which cannot be affirmed, nor with the eye make judgment, if it is with the vessel or not. Which you will separate from its hypostasis by inclination, and keep it well stuffed in a cool place. O admirable mystery of this Divine and celestial virtue.This is the one which the envious Philosophers, however wise, have endeavored to hide under various figures of various metamorphoses, infinite and very disguised and exquisite names, one calling it the living spirit, another living silver water, another celestial water, another star of Diana, another soul of vegetable menstrual, another smoke of wind, another our sky, another menstrual blood, the other sublimated urine,

So far we have briefly said the means to make our first vegetable matter, and to steal our igneous spirit, similarly to compose our sky.

Now, we will give you the way to make our first metallic material, without which neither medicine of the first, nor of the second, nor of the third order can be made. And because that of the first and the second is simpler than that of the third, we will teach you this first, then that of the second, then after that of the third order diffusely and at length, with all its circumstances. By which, know that you will need to sharpen your mind well, to be able to understand it. So do that of the first and the second in this manner.

Take the armoniac salt which you first made, and lime from one of the two luminaries, which you will want either gold or silver. And soaks it in a glass mortar, little by little, with a long trituration. After putting it in a competent vessel, and washing the mortar with distilled vinegar three times in a bath, and putting the washing on the lime and drying it over a low heat, like the heat of the Sun. Next grind it with our aforesaid Mercury, doing the above regimen all and over as above, and always reiterating with our aforesaid sulphur, until the body has retained and taken three parts more than it weighs, of the substance of our sulphur. Then put it in the bath the way I told you above, and most of it will dissolve. And what will be dissolved,set aside and keep apart with great care, and diligently, and dry up the part that is not dissolved in its vessel, and grind it with new sulphur, as you have done before, until the body has acquired three parts, more than it is, of the aforesaid new sulphur. Dissolve and putrefy, in the aforesaid manner in the bath in the copper vessel, and so repeat the work, until the whole body is dissolved. And this is the simple first- and second-order solution. and so iterates the work, until the whole body is dissolved. And this is the simple first- and second-order solution. and so iterates the work, until the whole body is dissolved. And this is the simple first- and second-order solution.

Take this body thus dissolved and digested in the way that I have given you, and evaporate all the wateriness by the bath, and there will remain at the bottom of the vessel a matter like honey. Take a part of this, and of the quintessence which you have kept, three parts, and put them in a competent vessel, and close it with its antinotory, and put it in the bath by twelve hours, then put it to digest in our copper vessel, in the aforesaid manner, on a natural day, then put it in the ashes with honest heat, and distill all that can distill; then put on the matter three parts more than is the matter which remained, of new quintessence, and put in the bath as above. After, put to digest in the copper vessel, and after do the distillation on the ashes as above,until you have drawn all the substance you can. And so repeat this work in all and for all, until you have all the substance of the metal, or else, the mercurial substance of the metal has passed through the still with the quintessence. All the distillations that you have distilled, put them together in a competent vessel with its screed, and put to distillation in the bath. And at the bottom of the vessel will remain a serene liquor in no way coarse, which is called by the Sage Philosophers, soul of the mercury of metals. Keep it to its place. put them together in a competent vessel with its screed, and put to distil in the bath.And at the bottom of the vessel will remain a serene liquor in no way coarse, which is called by the Sage Philosophers, soul of the mercury of metals. Keep it to its place. put them together in a competent vessel with its screed, and put to distil in the bath. And at the bottom of the vessel will remain a serene liquor in no way coarse, which is called by the Sage Philosophers, soul of the mercury of metals. Keep it to its place.

Then afterwards, take the earth which remained to you, from which you drew the soul of the mercury of the metal, which one you want, and prepare it in this way. Take a part of its water, which thou hast drawn by the bath from above the soul of the mercury of the metal, and of it water the aforesaid earth, giving it first the eighth part of this water, secondly the seventh part, thirdly the sixth part, fourthly the fifth part, fifthly the fourth part of the aforesaid water. And so no longer multiply the proportion of the said water, but always continue with the fourth part, until the earth is well prepared, doing this magisterium by dissolving in the bath, putrefying in the aforesaid vessel by eight days, more or less according to the nature of the earth, which will be more suitable one than the other,and more ready than the other, or less ready to receive the soul of its own mercury of metal, which thou hast made above. And note that whenever you prepare the earth by drawing its wateriness from the ashes, there will come its liquor: keep it, for it will be good for incerating medicines of the first, second, and third order, and is called by the philosophers our physical treasury, and is sufficient of itself alone to retain mercury. And by that no one is mistaken. But in this well-known passage, the earth retaining or having its mercury, you have to pass through all these magisteriums.And when the said earth will be prepared, you will know it in this way: take a fine silver lamina, and make it redden in the fire, and put on it a little of the aforesaid earth, and it will flow without any smoke, then the due preparation is made, and therefore she will be worthy to receive the soul of her own metallic mercury . And if she smokes, repeat the aforesaid work, in all and in all, until it is done.Then afterwards take from this earth thus prepared of Sun or Moon, and put it in a competent vessel, watering it with the soul of its metallic mercury, of which I have shown you the manner above, which our Duke Raymond calls the mercury which you know, firstly giving it the eighth part of the said soul of the aforesaid mercury, secondly the seventh, thirdly the sixth, fourthly the fifth, fifthly the fourth part of the aforesaid mercury. And here no longer multiply this proportion, in his own soul of his own mercury. And you shall do this in the tempered bath, dissolving and digesting in the copper vessel, as above per eight days, more or less according as the nature of the earth will be apt to ravish more or less promptly its own soul from its own metallic mercury.And when the earth appears dry to you, open the vessel, and evaporate the superfluous on light, tempered ashes. And so continue thy royal magisterium, in the manner aforesaid, namely, watering, digesting, and drying, until the spirit is fixed in the sulphurous earth. Which is called by the Sages, toad, very wicked venom, because its dryness is sufficient to convert its own natural metallic mercury into pure sulphur. And having completed the work of this royal magisterium, you will see the earth become firm and become peaceful in a single pale white color, without changing various colors. And then it will be volatile and spiritual: because by putting it on a red-hot lamina, most of it will go up in smoke.And if not, repeat this magisterium with the fourth part of his own soul of his own aforesaid mercury, until you have reached this aforesaid sign. Then sublimate it with strong fire, as you know. And he will attach the first metallic matter to the sides of the ship, leaving at the bottom of it a black earthiness, which is called by Raymond earth damned, superfluous, vituperated, and does not enter into our work.

First individual

Take an ounce of this first metallic matter that you made, and six ounces of the quintessence that you reserved above and put them together to circulate in the bath for twenty days and everything will be fixed. Keep it until you need it. Take an ounce of the aforesaid medicine and put it with 100 ounces of vulgar mercury in a competent vase, called the nassa, and give it the fire of the lamp, or of soft ashes, for fifteen days, and after, you refine it in strong ash with ten pounds of saturn, which is very hot, and you will have 80 ounces of perfect metal.

Second individual

In another and simpler way, you can practice. Take an ounce of our mercury, which you first made with an ounce of the metallic matter, and pound it in a glass mortar, then dissolve it in a bath, then digest it in a copper vessel in a natural day, as above. Then circulate it for twenty days in the Bath, and for another twenty days in the ashes, as above, and the whole will settle. Put in one ounce with one hundred ounces of vulgar mercury, in the aforesaid vessel, that is to say in the nassa, and give it a lamp fire, as above, for fifteen days, and then reduce it by strong cinder, as above, and you will have 80 ounces of perfect metal.

Third branch of the first order

In another way you can still practice. Take the first metallic material as much as you like, and make the simple separation of the elements in this way. Hang the above-mentioned metallic matter and put it to dissolve in the bath, and let it digest in the copper vessel, as above, for one day. Then return it to the aforesaid bath and put the screed on the vessel, and have all its water distilled in the bath. And afterwards, put on the matter which has remained at the bottom of the vessel, as much of its own water, which you have drawn, that it rises four fingers above, and covers the vessel with its antinotory, and put it in the aforementioned honest bath for three days. And then distill it through the light ashes, in the usual manner above.And when the matter has distilled all its humor, you will increase the fire, until the air leaves it, and enters its distilled water. So let the vessel cool, and put on the matter that remained to you, as much of its own water, which you drew by the bath, which it surmounts by four fingers, reserving however what you drew by the ashes, where is the air. Then put it to digest in the aforesaid bath for three days as above, and digesting in the vessel as above, then distilling by light ashes as above, and putting this second distillation where this air is, with the first which has air. And thus iterates the work ten times, watering it, dissolving it, digesting it, and distilling it, by light fire of ashes as above, and assembling all the distillations into one.And if by chance the instrumental water fails you, take all the aforesaid distillations, which you have put together, and put them to be distilled in the bath, in a urinal, and of the water which will come out of it, you will work in your operations up to ten times. And what will remain in your urinal when you have drawn the water from above the above distillations that were together, is the air, which you will keep well quenched, because it is air is oil and is good for infusing medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order.And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above. and put them to distil in the bath, in a urinal, and from the water which will come out of it, you will work in your operations up to ten times. And what will remain in your urinal when you have drawn the water from above the above distillations that were together, is the air, which you will keep well quenched, because it is air is oil and is good for infusing medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order.And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above. and put them to distil in the bath, in a urinal, and from the water which will come out of it, you will work in your operations up to ten times. And what will remain in your urinal when you have drawn the water from above the above distillations that were together, is the air, which you will keep well quenched, because it is air is oil and is good for infusing medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order.And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above. you will work in your operations ten times. And what will remain in your urinal when you have drawn the water from above the above distillations that were together, is the air, which you will keep well quenched, because it is air is oil and is good for infusing medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order. And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above.you will work in your operations ten times. And what will remain in your urinal when you have drawn the water from above the above distillations that were together, is the air, which you will keep well quenched, because it is air is oil and is good for infusing medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order. And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above. because it's air is oil and is good for inserting medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order.And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above. because it's air is oil and is good for inserting medicine of the first and second order. And this is the simple separation of the elements, of the first and of the second order. And then prepare the earth that you have left with its own water, in the manner that I told you above, in the preparation of the metallic earths, until it flows on a heated laminate, like wax as above.

So take this earth thus prepared, an ounce, and an ounce of lime of the Moon, or of the Sun, according to which will be the earth from which you have drawn the air, and grind them in a glass mortar, then put it in a urinal on a light fire of ashes, with as much of its own water with which you have prepared the earth, as long as half of the material can be. And then do the Philosophical preparation as above, drying, and watering, until the ferment is conjoined with the earth. The infallible sign will be, when you make the dissolution with its own water, the decoctions will become in any way greenish, or azure, and most of the matter will dissolve. Then the aforesaid mercurial earth will have received its leave.And after, coagulate the matter, and fix it with its air, which you drew above, giving it the fifth part of the aforesaid air, incerating, watering, and drying as above, always with the fifth part of the said oil, until it is fixed. And this watering, and drying, you will make it with the fire of lamp, after dissolved it with the bath, then makes it circulate by twenty days, and with the ashes by twenty other days, and it will be fixed as above. And you shall project this medicine one part out of 100.

Second-order particular on Saturn

Take lime from Saturn as much as you will, and dissolve it in the igneous spirit make hidden, and bring power indeed with the virtue of the power of our armoniacal salt, or else vegetable matter, which is that which you have made above, and when it is well dissolved, take it, and put it to putrefy for a week in a vessel of brass, then separate from it the elements, namely, water and air only, as you have done above. above, when you separated them from the metallic matter of gold or and silver. Afterwards prepare the earth of the said Saturn, as you did of that of silver and gold, until it flows like wax, as I said above. Then take it and water it with its air, in the way you did when you drew our sulfur or vegetable matter,from its own earth, that is, watering, drying, sublimating, and drawing its harmonic salt to itself, and thus you will have the first matter of Saturn, in admirable salt. Take it and incinerate it with the oil of the Moon, which thou hast made merely of the metallic matter of the Moon, namely, by separating from the aforesaid metallic matter, the element of air, in the manner which I have above said, namely, by putting on top of the said sulfur of Saturn, the twelfth part of the said oil, and put it on the fire of a lamp in a urinal, until the aforesaid sulfur is wiped off and dry. Then insert it a second time with the twelfth part of the said oil, and with the same lamp fire, until the said sulfur is dried up. And so reiterates the foresaid work,always watering it with the twelfth part of the said oil, until the said sulfur of Saturn is fixed, and does not sublimate. And then put this medicine one part out of a hundred of vulgar mercury, or else on saturn, and you will have perfect metal. If you want to make it to gold, insert it with gold oil, doing the above regimen, and doing the same projection, you will have perfect gold.

Particular second of the second order on Jupiter

If you want to work on Jupiter, do the aforesaid magisterium in all and by everything, namely by drawing the sulfur of the said Jupiter, as you did with Saturn, and infusing it with the simple oil of the Moon or the Sun, and do the same projection on vulgar mercury, or on Jupiter.

Third particular of the second order on Venus

If you want to work on Venus, do it the way above, namely by drawing the sulfur from Venus, incorating it and fixing it, with the oil of the Moon or the Sun, as you have done above, and making the same projection on Mercury, or Venus.

Fourth particular of the second order on Mars

If you want to work on mars, do the above regime in everything and everything, as you did with saturn, jupiter, and venus, but the projection is made of one part in 200 of mercury or mars.

Fifth particular over all imperfect fields

There is another shorter way to make another medicine that goes on all imperfect bodies. And this one is named by our duke Raymond, the fifth matrimonial branch. Take a pound of Roman vitriol, a pound of nitre salt, six ounces of calcined rock alum, and three ounces of cinnabar, and make it strong in the usual manner, of which you shall take four parts, one part of nitre salt, and grind it on this one, so many times (always adding to it the fourth part of nitre salt) that it dissolves the two perfect luminaries. Then take two parts of the decoction of the Moon, and one part of that of the Sun, and accompany them together. And immediately the waters will aggregate, distilled by the bath until all the water has come out, and the matter will remain at the bottom dry, clayey,and thus you will have two perfectly calcined bodies. Take this lime and dissolve it with our mercury, which you drew from the earth of the igneous spirit, namely, amalgamating and grinding it in a glass mortar as above, then following the work that was done, in making the first vegetable matter, namely drawing sulfur from these two bodies, as you did from each of the others apart from itself. And thus you will have the first vegetable matter of these two luminaries joined together in a kind. Take it and put it in his urinal, and incinerate it with the quintessence of the simple oil of the Moon, as you have done above, until it is dried up, and thus continue the work, namely, incerating, watering, and drying, always with the fifth part of the aforesaid oil of the Moon,until matter will be united into a crystalline stone, not green at all. It will transmute any imperfect metal into true Moon, namely, one part out of 100. If you want it red, take this stone and insert it with half its weight, simple gold oil, and dry it in a bath. And then put the matter in a urinal, infusing it with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and drying it in the lamp-fire, as you have done above, and so still infusing it with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and drying it as above, until you see the matter red as a ruby. This one will transmute you any imperfect body into true Sun. one part out of 100. If you want it red, take this stone and insert it with half its weight, oil of simple gold, and dry it in the bath.And then put the matter in a urinal, infusing it with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and drying it in the lamp-fire, as you have done above, and so still infusing it with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and drying it as above, until you see the matter red as a ruby. This one will transmute you any imperfect body into true Sun. one part out of 100. If you want it red, take this stone and insert it with half its weight, oil of simple gold, and dry it in the bath. And then put the matter in a urinal, infusing it with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and drying it in the lamp-fire, as you have done above, and so still infusing it with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and drying it as above, until you see the matter red as a ruby.This one will transmute you any imperfect body into true Sun. and drying in the lamp-fire, as you have done above, and so always insert with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and dry as above, until you see the matter red like a ruby. This one will transmute you any imperfect body into true Sun. and drying in the lamp-fire, as you have done above, and so always insert with the fifth part of the oil of simple gold, and dry as above, until you see the matter red like a ruby. This one will transmute you any imperfect body into true Sun.

So far, I have told you the way of making medicine of the first and second order, and the simple dissolution of bodies with our mercury, now we will give you that of the third order, which is done in this way.

Take the two perfect metals, and put each one apart in a competent dissolving vessel, and put on top of the igneous spirit made acute that you have reduced it from potency to effect with the virtue of vegetable matter, in such quantity that it overcomes the lime by four fingers, and boil it in an ash fire, or in a bath, on a natural day, and very wisely remove what will be dissolved, and put it in another vessel, and extinguish it. pe well, and keep him in a light bath.And then soak the lime as above with the sharp spirit, and put it to boil in the ashes, or in the bath, on a natural day, as above, and what will dissolve, you will keep it with that which you keep in the light bath. And so iterates this work until these two bodies are dissolved, each apart, or the mercurial part of them. Note, however, that you must putrefy, and digest in the manner that I told you above, in a copper vessel. Note also that, as you will have dissolved the lime of the Moon and the Sun, each apart with keen mind, and drawn out its substance, dissolving, digesting and drying, as I have said and given the means above.If you then take the solution of the Sun, and make it circulate in the bath for forty days, and then you evacuate its wateriness, you will have drinkable gold, which is called by the Philosophers, simple resurrection of human bodies. If you want to do metallic medicine, according to the magisterium of the third order, it is not necessary for you to circulate, but take the body which you have dissolved, and digested with the acute spirit, in the aforesaid manner, and evaporate all its wateriness by the bath, and you will remain at the bottom of each, a matter in the form of honey .Take from each of them a part, and from the quintessence of which I showed you the manufacture above, three parts, namely on each part of these two bodies, you will put three parts of the aforesaid quintessence, each apart. And quench the vessels with their antinotories, then put them in the bath for twelve hours, then put them to digest in the brazen vessel for a day, and each one apart. Then put on each of the parts of the said materials, which remained after the distillation, three parts of the said quintessence, namely on each part of the said earths, three parts of the quintessence distinctly. Then bathe as above, digest as above, distill through the ashes as above.And thus reiterates this work until all the substances of these two metals, that is to say their mercurial part, have passed together through the still, with the part of the said quintessence. Which distillations of each of these two bodies, you will put to distil in the bath, each separately, and at the bottom of each vessel there will remain to you a very clear liquor, in no way gummy, which I told you is called the soul of the mercury of the metal.

Then take the lands from which you have taken the soul of mercury from the metal, and prepare them both each separately, in the manner that I have told you above, until they flow like wax, and are worthy of receiving their mercury. Take them after having thus prepared them, and put them in their competent vessels, each one apart, with their own soul of their own metallic mercury, holding the own manner which you have held, by making the metallic matter of the first and second order, which you have made of the dissolved body by the way of the amalgamation of our mercury with lime, in the glass mortar. And thus you will have the metallic matter of the said two bodies, by the way of the best dissolution.

Now take each apart, first taking the Moon, separating its elements in the manner given above, when we showed you how to make the oil of cremation of the first and second order medicines, observe all things, each in its place. Then take metallic matter of gold, and do the separation of the elements in the same way, until the separation of the air. Then separate the fire with the air proper from the metallic matter of the gold, doing the same means and regime that you did in separating its air, namely, with the same imbibitions, and digestions, distillations and similar preparations, and similar terms of fire, except that by distilling ashes in the fire, the fire must grow another point above, and repeat the above work 15 times in all and in all.Then take all the distillations made by the ashes in this second work, and put them to be distilled by the bath, and when all the water is distilled, take the air which you have reserved, and put it on the fire which remained to you in the urinal, and both conjoined together, put them in a retort, and distill by a very tempered fire of ashes, and when you see the gummy matter at the bottom, in the manner of honey, you will not distill any more. But the best sign is that, when you see that the five parts will be distilled from it the three, then cease your distillation, and keep with great diligence your first air, distilling it six or seven times. And afterwards, continue your distillation on the fire, which remained to you like honey, as I told you, and continue for so long your honest fire,until you see at the bottom of the retort the frozen fire. Then cease the distillation; and the liquor that you will have drawn, until the fire is frozen, it is the second air, called by the Philosophers, our Philosophical oil, and our physical treasure. And induces from her the medicine of the third order. Because this physical oil partakes much of the Philosophical substance (ie of the body) rectify it sevenfold, distilling it from within, and guarding it with great diligence, and the grounds which the said first and second air will make, when you distill them, each one apart, set them with the aforesaid fire. Then take the water that you have left, and distil it in the bath seven times apart.And the earth or faeces of the said seven distillations of water in the bath on one's own, put them with the earth which remained to you from the said elements, or else from their metallic matter, when you separated from them the water, the air, and the fire. Then take the aforesaid fire which you separated, and calcine it in this way. Put it in a distilling vessel, and put on top of it five parts of its own water, which you prepared, and distilled in the bath seven times apart from yourself, from which you took the earth, or else the faeces which you put with the aforesaid earth of the elements, and digest it in the brazen vessel as above, and distill it from above;and thus do this magisterium seven times, in all and for all, always giving him the fifth part of his aforesaid water as above. And in like manner thou shalt calcine the earth of their aforesaid elements, and with that same water. And this is because this aforesaid land, and this fire agree together in kind, for both are dry. And when the lands are charred, they will be ready to receive their spirit. You will know it by testing it on a laminate as I told you above. And afterward thou shalt take the earth which thou hast separated from the elements of the moon, and thou shalt prepare it in like manner as thou didst make of the elements of gold.Then take from each earth prepared an ounce, and put together the said water of the Moon, in the manner which you did in preparing each separately, by the way of imbibition, digestion, and desiccation. The preparation of these two earths together must be done by bath. And note that you must make the preparation of the aforesaid Moon water, first with the eighth part, secondly with the seventh, thirdly with the sixth, fourthly with the fifth, fifthly with the fourth, as you did above, when you have prepared each separately in a bain-marie for 8 days, with the water of its metal as above. And thus you will have the first vegetable matter, or sulfur, of the two luminaries conjoined and united together.

Composition of third-order medicine
Compose third-order medicine in this way.

Take from the fire which you have separated, and dissolve it into its own mercury, or else into its own soul. And dissolved it in the same way as you dissolved gold with the sharp mind, with our mercury; that is, dissolving, digesting and distilling. Then take of the first vegetable matter, which you have made of the two luminaries, whichever you want, and incinerate it with as much of the aforesaid fire, which you have dissolved with its own soul, according to the order of the inceration made above, and thus reiterate, giving it the proportion, until the sulfur is fixed and red like a ruby, give it its ferment in this way.

Take the first element of gold, namely water, and sharpen as much time as you can with the first vegetable matter of the two luminaries, which you have made above, in the same way as you did when you sharpened the fire with its own soul of its own metal, and keep it, then take calcined gold as much as you want, and make it amalgamate with the common fugitive, and embrace it by the leather, as long as 'there remains only three parts more of the said vulgar fugitive, than gold. Take twelve ounces of the said amalgam and six ounces of the said sulphur, which thou hast reddened above with fire, and grind them together at length in a glass mortar, then put all in a urinal, and imbibe it with the oil of gold, ie, with the element of air, imbibing, digesting, and drying as above.

Take the water that you have above sharpened with the vegetable matter of the two luminaries, and dissolve it very simply in the bath, and soak and dry with it the matter which is in the vessel, 7 or 8 times as you did with the aforesaid air, until everything is fixed. Then incise it with the physical oil, giving it its proportion, as above, and making according to the customary manner of the incerations given above, on the materials being silver and gold, and by this second magisterium the whole will settle perfectly, in the union of its sulphur, and will be a light, shining matter, and in no place like a ruby ​​inside, not being much charged with color. So is art in the fire that you sharpened with its own golden water,

Again, remember that you can conduct all gems to multiplication, in the same way that I conducted this third-order medicine and compounding. And praise God, and remember the poor.

So far I have told you and given you the means to make all kinds of medicines, of the first, second, and third order, but because in our magisterium the calcination of metals is required, for this purpose, let you not accuse me of negligence, I would distinctly set them apart.

Take some gold and calcine it this way. Amalgamate it with mercury, until the mass becomes thick like butter. Then put it in a vessel, and put over common strong water, repeating so many times that you will see the mercury lime separated on all sides, wash it with common hot water in a glass mortar, as long as the water comes out soft and clear. Dry the lime little by little, and grind it in a mortar, and put it in the urinal on a slow fire with a portion of hot water, and wipe it.

Secondly, take the Moon well cupelled, and filed, and dissolve it in starting water rectified with other silver, then put on it three or four parts of common salt dissolved in hot water, and immediately it will fall to the bottom. Wash and soften as above.

Calcine Jupiter and Saturn, with mercury and salt, in the usual way. Calcine venus with strong water, wiping it and drying it well.

Calcine mars with sulfur and vinegar.

End of the book by Mr Christophle le Parisien, entitled Medulla Artis

Laus Deo