1926 RADCLIFFE [Tr.] the Leyden Papyrus X

8/13/2019 1926 RADCLIFFE [Tr.] the Leyden Papyrus X

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THE LEYDEN P PYRUSAn English Translation with Brief NotesEARLE A D C L ~ P BALEY,MONROEVILLE,IO

I. IntroductionThe chemical arts and knowledge of the ancient world are known to

us chiefly through the writings of Pliuy, Dioscorides, Theophrastus,Vitruvius, and a few other writers, aided in a considerable degree by theexamination and chemical analysis of the various relics and remains ofthe older civilizations. While these writings do furnish us with a veryconsiderable degree of information concerning the beginnings of chemicalknowledge they are, at th e best, only indirect sources and are lacking indetails. By a fortunate chance, however, there have come to light inrecent years two original sources in the form of two remarkable Greekpapyri known to students of the early history of chemistry as the LeydenPapyrus X and the Stockholm Papyrus. These invaluable documentsare by far the most ancient that we possess dealing with chemical artsand operations as such. The earliest authentic alchemical manuscriptis that of St. Marks a t Venice which is believed to have been transcribedfrom earlier writings during the tenth or eleventh centuries. These twopapyri have, however, upon the basis of unquestioned philological andpaleographic evidence, been ascertained to have been written a t about theend of the thud century A.D. so that they are by fa r the earliest originalhistorical evidence that we have in our possession concerning the natureand the extent of ancient chemical knowledge. They are, therefore, of thehighest value for the history of chemistry and throw a whole flood of l ightupon t he origins of the pseudo-science, alchemy, as the researches ofBerthelot have so clearly demonstrated.

These two documents formed part of a valuable collection of Greekpapyri gathered at Thebes by Johann d ha st as y, vice-consul for Swedenat Alexandria, Egypt, during the first decades of the nineteenth century.The major portion of this collection was sold in 1828 to the NetherlandsGovernment and deposited in the Museum of Antiquities at Leyden. Theexamination of the various papyri in this collection occupied a period ofnearly forty years, the first results being published by the NetherlandsGovernment in 1843. None of the papyri first translated offered anyresults of chemical interest. t was known, though, through preliminaryresearches th at some of the remaining documents were in the nature oftechnical treatises. t was not until 1885 that the remaining papyritogether with their Latin translations were made public by the Nether-lands Government in the form of a volume entitled: apyri raeci musa'

1 M. Berthelot, Les Origines de L'Alchemie, Paris, 1885


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antiquurii ublici Lug dun i Batavi Edid it, interpetationem latinam, an-notationem, indices et ta bu la addidit C Leemans, Musei anliquarii LugduniBatmi Director. From the chemical point of view the most interestingof the papyri then translated into Latin was the one now known as theLeyden Papyrus X, which is under our special consideration a t the presenttime.

A similar Egyptian papyrus has been quite recently brought to lightin Sweden and published with extensivr notes by Otto Lagercrantz. Aninvestigation has revealed the fact t ha t this papyrus also formed part ofthe collection of Johann d' has ta sy and that i t was a special gift madeto the Swedish Academy of Antiquities a t Stockholm by this collector in1832. There it remained unnoticed until a transfer of the document t othe Victoria Museum a t Upsala brought it t o the attention of the ahove-mentioned philologist. A comparison with the Leyden Papyrus hasestablished the fact that the two papyri are not only contemporaneous,bu t th at they were also probably the work of the same writer. Togetherthey form a most remarkable collection of chemical recipes and processes.The writer hopes to publish in the near future a complete English transla-tion of t he Stockholm Papyrus similar to the translation of the LeydenPapyrus here given. This latter papyrus will now be especially con-sidered.

The Leyden Papyrus X is in a remarkable st ate of preservation. t isformed of ten large leaves, each about thirty centimeters long and havinga width of around thirty-four centimeters. It contains sixteen pages ofwriting of from twenty-eight to forty-seven lines each, in Greek capitalletters such as were in use during the third century A.D. It gives evidenceof having been copied from still earlier documents and is full of grammati-cal errors and incorrect spelling^ ^ It is written in the form of a recipebook and the recipes are often in an abbreviated, incomplete form suchas workers, more or less familiar with the nature of the process, would use.The total number of recipes given is one hundred and eleven. Seventy-five of these deal with methods for purifying metals, making alloys,testing metals for purity, imitating precious metals, and coloring the sur-faces of metals and alloys. There are fifteen recipes on methods forwriting in let ters of gold and silver. Eleven recipes deal with methodsof making dyes and dyeing cloth in purple and other colors. The lasteleven recipes are simply short extracts from the Materia Medica ofDioscorides Pedanius. They are chiefly descriptions of certain minerals.t is of interest to note that the extracts in the papyrus are very close t o

the present editions of this Greek writer compiled from quite differentsources. No translation is given of these extracts since they are contained

C. Leemans, Op Cit. and M. Berthdot Introduction a L'Etude de la himiees Anciens et du Moyen Age. Paris, 1889.


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VOL.3, No. 10 TEE LEYDEN A P ~ I J S 5

in published editions of the work of this a ~ t h o r . ~ o English translationof t he papyrus in i ts entirety has ever been published as far as the writerknows. few recipes have been published previously by Stillman bu tthese have been retranslated here in a more accurate manner.4 The authorhas based his translation upon the work of Leemans, previously noted,and upon the French translation of Berthelot. n endeavor has beenmade to give a close literal translation. Words in parentheses are lackingin the original, but are thought necessary to give the proper meaning inthe various places where used. Words and phrases needing special inter-pretation are discussed in th e form of brief notes following each recipe.

more detailed discussion of the general chemical significance and valueof the recipes will be given following the text of the translation.

11. Th e Translation1 Purification and Hardening of Lead.

Melt it, spread on he surface lamellose a lum and copperas reduced to a fine p m d wand mi re d, and i t will be hardened.The word alum or rather alumen was employed by the ancient writers as a general

term to signify a vari ety of products. Generally, they were impure mixtures of sulfatesof iron and a1umin m. This must have been widely used for purifying metals a s thefallowing recipes show.2. Another (Purification) of Tin .

Lead and white tin are also purifLed w ith pitch end bitu men . Th ey ere made pureby having alum, salt of Cappadocia and stone of Magn esie t h r o w on their surfaces.The ancient practice of naming chemical products an d minerals according to th e

place of their origin is well shown in this recipe. Th e salt of Cappadocia probablywas common salt while stone of Magnesia had various meanings bu t generally re-ferred to magnetic iron oxide or to hematite.3. Purijication o j T i n that is put into the Alloy of Asem .

Ta ke tin purified of an y other substance, melt it, let it cool; after having well mixe d en dcovered it with od, melt it again; then having crushed together some oil, some bitumen, andsome salt, rub it on the metal and melt a third time; after fusion, break apart the tin afterhaving purified i t by was hing; for it will be like hard silver. Th en i f you .vh to em ployit i n he manufacture of silv r objects, of such a kind tha t the y cannot be found out and whichhave the hnrd ness of siluer , blend 4 parts of silver and 3 parts o tin and the product will be-come es a silcer objectThe word asem or asemon was employed for alloys intended to imitate gold or

silver, most generally the latte r.4. Purification o T i n .

Liquid pitch and bitumen, a pert o each; throw (them on the ti n) , melt, stir. Drypitch, 2 drachmas; bitumen, 12 drachmas.Such as Des Pedanios Dioskorides. . in fiinf Buchern. Translated by J

Berendes, Stuttgae, 1902.Stillman, Story of Ear ly Chemistry, Cha pte r 11 D. Appleton Co., New Yark,

1924Contained in his Introduction a L'Etude de la Chimie Des Anciens et du Moyen

Age.


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5 Ma nufad are of Asem .T i n , 12 drachmas; mercury, 4 drachma s; earth of Chio s, 2 dmchmas. To the meltedti n, add the crushed earth, then the mercury, stir with an iro n, and put the fioduc t) i n use.The earth of Chios mentioned here was a kind of clay.

6 Th e Doubling of As em.One takes : refined copper, 40 drachmas; esem , 8 drachmas; tin i n buttons,40 drachmas;one first melts the copper and after tw heetings, the tin; then the asem. Wh en all aresoftened, remelt several tim es and cool by me ans of the preceding com position. Aft er hauing augm ented the metal by these proceedings, clean it wit h talc. The trip ling i s effectedby the same procedure, the weights being proportioned i n confo rmity with what has beenstated above.The preceding composition referred to in this recipe apparently relers to No. 5

7 Inerhaustible Stock.n s prepared by the procedures described in the doubling of ase m. I f you wir todedud 8 drachma s from the stock, separate them end remelt with 4 drachma s of t his samcasem; melt these three times and then repeat, then cool and place i n a m e n he talc.

8 Manufacture of Asem.Take soft ti n i n s m l l pieces, purified four times; take 4 parts of i t and 3 parts of purewhite copper and part of a s a Melt, and after the casting, clean several times and m k cwith it whatever you w ish to. It will be asem of the jirr t qu ality, wh ich will deceive even theartisans.The term, white copper, refers to a particular copper alloy. single word

A d was applied by the Ancients to bat h pure capper and its alloys.9 Manufactur e of Fusible Asem .

Copper of C ypr us, 1 mina; tin i n sticks, 1 mina; stone of Magnesia, 16 drachmas;mercury, 8 drachmas, stone of Pa ms , 20 drachmas. Having melted the copper, throw thetin on it , then the stone q Magn esia in pwdered form, then the stone of Paros, and finallythe mer cury; stir with e n iron rod and pour at the desired time.The island of Cyprus was an impor tan t source of copper in ancient times and the

metal from this source was considered then t o he of superior quality. Stone of Parosis mentioned by Pliny as being a white, hard stone similar to the marble from this place.10 Doubling of Asem.

Take rejined copper of Cyp rus, throw upon i t epual parts, that i s, 4 drachmas of saltof Am mo n end drachma s of alum ; melt and add equal parts of asem11 Manufacture of Asem.

Pu rif y lead carefully with pitch and bitumen, or t in as well; and mix cadmia andlitharge i n equnl parts with the lead, and stir until the alloy is completed and solidijFes. I tcan be used like natural asem

The word cadmia was applied to condensed fumes and smoke gathered from theinterior of copper and brass smelters and hence was often a complex mixture of metallicoxides. In a special s ns it meant zinc oxide. Natural asem was the naturallyoccurring alloy of gold and silver known as electrum.


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VOL.3 , NO. 10 TH LEY EN APYRUS 115312 Menufacture of Asem.

Take some shreds of (met allic) leaves. d.ip i n vinegar and wh ite lamellose alu m and letthem soak during seven days, and then melt with a fourth part of copper, 8 drachmas o jearth of Chios. 8 drachma s of ase minn earth, 1 dmchma of salt of Cappadocia (an d) addi-tional lamellous alum, 1 drachma; m ir , melt, and cad the black (refus e) r m the surface.The nature of the metal first used is not stated. The chemical nature of theasemian e a r t h is a1.w unknown to us.

I S Manufutuve oj an Al loy .Copper from Gale , 8 drachmas; tin i n sticks, 1 2 drachmas; stone o j Magnesia, 6drachmas; mercury,1 drachmas; esem, 6 drachmas.

1 4 Manu facture of an Alloy for a Preparation.Copper,1 mi ne , melt and throw on it 1 mine of t in in but tons and use thus.

15 Th e Coloration of G old.To color gold to render it fit for usage. Misy, salt, end vinegar accruing fyan thcpu ri fic at ia of gold; m ix i t ell and throw i n the vessel (w hich contains it ) the gold describedi n the preceding preparation; let it remain sane time, (and then) hasing drawn (the gold)from the vessel, heat it up on the coals; then again throw it i n the vessel which con tains theabove-mentioned preparation; do this several time s unt il i t becom esfit for me.According to Pliny the misy of the Ancients was either iron or capper pyrites

or oxidation products of these, that is, basic iron or copper sulfates or various mixturesof these salts. See Pliny, N atural History. BookXXXIV chap. 31.)16 Augmentation of Gold.

To augment gold, take cedmia of Thm cia, make the mixture with cadmie i n crusts,or that from Galacia.This is apparent ly the beginning of a longer recipe. No. 17 seems to be the re-mainder of it. Berthelot has suggested th at the title O No. 17 was a comment or gloss

erroneously copied into the papyrus by a copyist.I? Felsi ation g Gold.

Misy and Sinopien red, equal parts to m e part of gold. After the gold has been throwni n the furnace and i t has becane of good color, th r m upon it these two ingredients, and re-moving (the gold) let it cool and the gold s doubled.The meaning of sinopian red is various. The description of Dioscorides ( M a -teria Medice V ) would make it appear tha t it was an iron ochre, although it sometimes

referred to red lead.1 8 Manufacture of Asem.

T in , a tenth of a min a; copper of Cyprus, a sixteenth of a mina ; mineral of Magne sia,a thirty-second; mercury, two staters. Melt the copper, throw on it at first, the tin , then thestone of Ma gnesi e; then having m elted these mate riels, add to them e n eighth (p ar t) of goodwhitc asen o fa suitable nature. Then , when the alloying h s taken place and at the time ofcooling, or of remelting together,add hen the merc ury last of a ll.1 9 Another (Formula).

Copper of Cyprus, 4 staters; carth of Snmos. 4 staters; lamcllosc alum, 4 staters;common salt, 2 staters; blackened asem, 2 staters, or if you sire to make it more beautiful,


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4 statms. Having melted the copper, spread up on it the eerth of Chios and the lamellosealum crushed together, stir i n such a way 0 s to mix them; end ha~lingmelted this asem, pour.Hav ing mixed that which has just been me ted wi th s n e (wood of) juniper, burn it; beforesetting aside after having heated it , extinguish the product i n lamellore alu m and salt takeni n equal parts, with s a n e slimy water slightly thick; and i f you wish to finish the work im -merse aga in i n the above-m entioned; heat so (the m ea l) becomes white. Take care to em-ploy refined copper beforehand, having heated it et the beginning and s uhnitte d it to the ac-tion of the bellows, until t hi s hes rejected it s scale and become pure; and th en use it as hasjust been stated.20 Another (Form ula).

Take a Ptolemaic Stater; for t k y contain copper i n their camposition and immer seit; now, the composition of the li v i d for the immersion i s this: lamellose alu m, commonsalt, in uineger for immersing ; (make it of ) slimy thickness. After having immersed and atthe moment w k n the melted metal has been clcaned w ith this compo sition, heat, then im -merse, then take out, then heat.20 ( A n additional part without a title).

Here s the composition of the liquid for immersing: lamellose alum , cammon salt,i n the dnegar for iinmersinq; (make of ) slimy thickness; having immersed i n this m ixture,heat, then immerse, then take out, then heat; when you haw immersed four times or more, bypreviously h eating each time, the (m etal ) will become superior to blackened nsem T h smore numerous the treatments, beatings and immer sions ere the more it will imp rw e.21 Trea tmen t of Hard A sem.

How it is exp edient to proceed to change black and herd sem into n white dnd soft(metal). Taking some leaves of the castor-oil plant inf us e them e day i n water; then soak( it ) n the water before melting and melt twice and sprinkle with ep h~ on itr on . And throwalum on the casting; put into use It possesses guality for it i s beeutiful.

The word aphronitron was applied to a variety of saline eWorescences especiallyfrom dry or arid regions. Most probably it w s a natural alkali which w s essentiallysodium carbonate.22 Another (Formula).

A remedy for all tarnished asem . Taking strew, barley, and wild rue, inf us ein vinegar,pour on it s a n e salt and coals; throw it all i n the furnace, b l m or a long while and let cool.2 Whitening q Copper.

For whitening copper, i n order to m ix it with equal parts of asem, so that no one canrecognize it. Taking same Cyprian copper, melt it, throwing on it I min a of decomposedsandarech, 2 drac hmas of san dara ch of the color of iron , end 5 drachmas of lnmellosealum and melt (a gain) . I n the second melting, there i s thrown on 4 drac hma s, or les s, ofvr z of Pon tus; it is heated and then poured.

Sandarach w s the term used to denote the native arsenic sulfide that s todayb o w n as realgar by the mineralogists. Decomposed sandarach possibly referredto that subjected to a roasting process and would in reality be the oxide.24 Hardening of T in .

For hardening ti n, spread scpamtely (o n ts surface) lamelJose alum and copperas;i f , moreover, you he w puri fid the ti n as s necessary and have employed the materials


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previously m med, i n sucha way that they did not escape by mRog away during the heating,you will hawe Egyptian esem for the manufacture qf objeds (of jewelry).25 Gold Polish.

For treating gold, otherwise called, purifying gold and rendering it brilliant: Misy,4 parts; alum, 4 parts; salt, 4 parts. Pulverize with waten And having coated the gold(with i t) , place it i n an earthenware vessel deposited i n a furnace and luted with cle - , (andheat) until the above-named substances ha08 become molten, then witkdraw it and scourcercfdly.26. Purification of Siluer.

Hmu silver ir purified and mads brilliant. Take part of s i l w and an qua1 weightof lad; place En a furnace, and keep up the melting until the lend has j u t been consumed;repeat the operatia seiaral tiwes until it becomes brilliant.27 Coloring in Silwer.

or silwrilrg objects of copper: ti n in sticks, 2 drachmas; mercury. 2 dmchmes; earthof Chior,2 drachmas. Melt the ti n, throw on the crwhed earth, then the mercury, and stirwith e n iron and fashion into globules.28. Manufacture of Copper Similar to Gold.

Crush some cumin; pour on it rom water, dilute, and let it remain in contad duringthree days. On the fourth day shake, and i f you wish to use it as a coating mix chrysocollawith it; and the gold will appear.

he word chrysocalla referred to salts of copper and l oa gold alloy used for solderinggold. In the above recipe which is evidently a varnish the latter was probablyused in apulverized form9 Manufacture of Fusible Asem.

Copper of Cyprus, 1 part; tin, 1 part; stone of Magnesia, 1 part; raw stone of Per mpowdered finely. One melts the copper first, then the ti n, and then the stone of Magnesia;then next, one throws the pulverized stone of Paros upon this; the itirring is done with aniron end the operation is performed in rucible.30. Manufadure of Asem.

Tin, e measure; copper of Galacia, a half measure. Melt at first tlw copper, then thetin, stir vith an iron, and threw on it dry pitch, until it is satureted; immediately pour,remelt, employing lamellose alum i n the same manner as the pitch, and then pour (again).If you wish to melt the tin first, then the copper in filings after, follow the same proportbnsin the same manner.31. Preparation of Chrysocolla.

Solder for gold is prepared thus: copper of Cyprus, 4 parts; aaem, 2 parts; gold, I part.The copper is irst melted, then the asem andf inal ly the gold.32. To Recognize the Puri ty of Tin.After having melted, place some papyrw below it end pour; i f the papyrus burns, thetin contains rome lead.33. Manufacture of Solder for Working Gold.

How one goes about making the solder for works of gold: Gold, 2 parts; Copper, pert;melt (and) divide up. When you desire a brilliant color melt with a little silser.


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56 JOURNAL oa CHEMICALDUCAT~ON OCTOBER 92634. A Procedure for Writin g i n Letters o Gold.

To write i n etters of gold, take some mercury, pour i t i n a suitable oessel, end add i tsome gold i n leawes; when the gold a ppea rs dissolved i n the merc ury, agitate sharp ly; dd alittle gum, I grain for example, and , (afte r) etting stand, vri te i n he letters of gold.35 Another Recipe).

Golden-colored litharge, 1 part; alu m, parts.36 M ufu ture of Asem that i s Black like Obsidian.

Asem, 2 parts, lead, 4 parts. Place i n an eerthen vessel, thrmu on it a triple weight ofunburnt sulfu r, and having placed it i n the furnace, melt. And having withdrawn it fra nthe furnace, beat, and m ake what you wish. If you wish to makefLgured objedr i n beatenw cast metal, t h a polish and cut. Zt will not rust.37 Manufacture of A s m .Good tin, 1 part; add to it, dry pitch , one quarter o the weight of the tin; having dirr ed,let the pitch froth until it has been completely ejected; then, hating let the tin solidify, remeltit and add 13 drachmas of tin ( an d) 1 drachma o mercury, (th en) Air up; let cool and workjust like asem.38 For Ginring to Objects o Copper the Appearance o Gold.

An d neither touch nor rubbing against the touchstone will detect them, but they can serveespecially for (the man ufactu re of a ring of fin appearance. Here is the preparation forthir. Gold and lead are ground to a fi n e powder like flour, parts of lead for 1 o j gold, thenhaving mir ed, they are incorporated with gum, and one coats the ring with this mixtare; thenit is heated. m epeats this several times until the objed has taken the color. Zt is di ultto detect (the frau d), because rubbing gives the ma rk q a gold obiect, and the heat cons um esthe lead but not the gold.39 Writing i n Letters of Gold.

Lef ters of gold: saff ron ( an d) bile of a river tortoise.40 Manufacture of Asem.

Take white tin , finely divided, (an d) pur ify i t four times; then teke 4 ports g it , and afourth part of pure white copper and 1 part of asem (an d) melt: when the mixture has beenmelted sprinkle it with the greatest possible quantity o salt, and make what you wish withit , either by hammering or by any way you please. The metal vil l be equal to true asem somuch so as to deceive men the artisa ns.41 Another @rocedure).

Silver, 2 parts; pur ifid tin, 3 parts; copper 1 ) drachmas; melt, then rm m e andclean; put i n use for works o j ilver oft he best kind .42 Coating of Copper.

I f you desire that the copper shall have the appearance o j iluer; after having purifiedthe copper with care, place it i n mercury and white lead; mercury alone snfice s for coatingit.43 Testing of Gold.

I f you wish to test the purity of gold, remelt it and heat it: if it is pure i t will keep itscolor after heating end rem ain like a piece of m oney . If it becomer white, it co ntains siluer;i t becomes roughcr and herder sane copper and f in ; if i t blackens and softens, lead.


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Vor 3. No 10 Tne LEY EN APYRUS 5744 Testing of Silver.

Heat the silv r or melt it, as with gold; and if it remains white ( and ) brilliant, it is pureand not false; if it appears black, it contains s ne lead; if it appears hard and yellmu, i tcontains some copper.45 Writing in Letters of Gold.

o write i n letters of gold. Wr ite what you desire wilh goldsmith's solderand vinegar.46 Cleaning of Copper Objects.

Having boiled some beets, carefully clean the objects of copper and silmer d h he juice.The beets m boiled aler.47 Copper Equal t Gold.

Copper equal to gold i n color, as follows: grind some c um in i n water; let it set cerefirllyduring three days; on the fourth, hamng wet ( it ) abundantly, coat the copper (wit h it ) andwrite whatever you wish. For the coating and the writing have the same appenrance.48 Cleaning of Silver Objects.

Clean with sheep's wool, after having dipped i n sharp brine; then clean with m e t waterand put in to use.49 Gilding of Silver.

For ding a vase of silver or copper ho d leaves (of gold ), dissolve some ellow natronand some salt in water, rub it with this and it will be ( lded).The chemical nature of yellow uatron is not h o r n with certainty. From cer-

tain passages in Pliny and other writers it would appear that this was a sodium sulfidemade by fusing sulfur and native sodium carbonate together. In this c se the metalwould not be gilded but would at least be colored by the above recipe.50 Writing in Letters of Gold.

Grind arsenic with gum, then wi th some vrcll water; in the third place, write.The ward arsenic in this recipe refers to the native yellow arsenic sulfide.

5 Gildin g of Silwcr.Grind m isy w ith sandarech and cinnabar and rub the object with it.

3 Wr iting i n Letters of Gold.Afte r hawing dried the gold leawes, grind wi th gu m and write.

54 Preparation of Liquid Gold.Place some leaves of gold i n a mortar, grind them wit h som mercury and it is done.

55 Coloration in Gold.Hmu one should prepare ~ildedilwer. M ix some cinnabar with alum, pour some whitevinegar upon this, and having brought it ell to the casir tenc y of wa x, press out severel timesand let it stand mer night.

56 Preparation of Gold.Asem I stater, or Copper of Cy pru s, 3; 4 staters of gold; m elt together.


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57 Another Preparation.To gild silver i n a durable fashion. Take s m e mercury and some leaws of gold, andmake u p into the consistency of waz; taking the vessel of silver, cl a n it with alu m, and takinga little of the waxy ma te~ ia l, ay it on with the polisher and let the materiel fasten itself on.Do this fine times. Hold the vesscl with a g enuine lin en cloth i n order not to soil i t. Thentaking some embers, prepere some ashes and with them ) smooth it ) wit h the polisher ndw e as a gold wessel. I t can be submitted to the test for regular gold.

58. Writin g i n Letters of Gold.Golden-colored arsenic, 20 drachmas; pulverized glass, 4 staters ; of wh ite of egg, 2staters, white gum, 20 staters, saffron. . after having written, let dry and polish with atooth.

59 Mantflacturc of Asem.A s m is also prepared with copper; s iluer) m im ; tin in grains, 1 mine; meltingfirst the copper, throw on it the ti n and some talc called ch alk, a half to one min e; proceedm t i l you see the silver and the chalk melt; after which the remaind er will have been disri-paled and only the siluar will rem ain, th en let it cool, and use it a s esem preferable to thegenuine.he c h d nature of the mineral or lux called talc or chalk in this recipe is un-

known. Certainly it does not correspond to the substances of that name that we areacquainted with.60 Another Preparation).

Everlesting a s a s prepared thus: 1 stater of good ase m; add to i t 2 s t a h of r efinedcopper, melt two or three times.61 Whitening of T in .

To whilmt tin. Having heated it )with alum and netron, melt.62 Wrili ng i n Letters of A sem.

Dilute some cop fiems and som suIfur with vinegar; write zith the thickened material.63 Writi ng i n Letters of Gold.

Flower of cnecos, white gu m, w hite of egg mixe d i n a shell, and inc orpor att with Mleof tortoise, by estima tion as one does for colors; put into w e . The Beery bitter ile of a calfalso s rv s for th e color.The plant mentioned here was evident19 one containing yellow coloring matter

although its exact species is not known.64 Testin g of Arem .

T o recognize i f asem is false. Place it i n brine and.)heat; if it is alse, it w ill blacken.65 Cleaning of Tin.

Place some gyprum on a rag and scour.66 Cleaning of Siloer.

Employ moisl alum.67 Coloring of Ase m.

Cinnabar, 1 part, lamellous alum, 1 part, Cino lian earth, part; moisten with seawater and put into use.


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Vos 3, No. 10 Tm LEY EN APYRUS 1159fi8. Soften ing of Copp er.

Heat i t; place it i n bird dung and after cooling, take out.69 Colwing of Gold.

Roasted misy, 3 parts; lamellose alum, (a nd ) celandine, about 1 part; grind to the con-sistency of honey with the uri ne of a small child and color the object; heat and imme rse i ncold water.70. W ~ i t i n qn Letters of Gold.

Take a quarter portion s tested gold, melt i n a goldrmith s crucible; when i t has becomemolten add a carat of lead; after it has become alloyed, set it aside , cool and take a m ortarof jasper, l h r m i n t the melted material; dd 1 carat of natron and ca refully mi x the powderwith some strong viaegar, i n the some m anner or for a n eye-salve med icine, for three days;then when the mixture is completed, incorporate 1 carat of lamellose alum , wi t e and polishwith tooth.7 1 Writing i n Letlers.of Gold.

oft leaves of Gold; pnlwrize w ith mercury i n a mortar; and employ them i n writing.after the man ner of black in k.72. Another (Preparation),

Incombustible sulfur.. . Lamellose alum.. . gum.. .. sprinkle the gum withwater.73. Another (Preparatia).

Unburnt sulfur.. . lamellose alum , a drachma; add a m edium quantity of dry rust;pulverize the rust, thc sulfur, and the alu mfi nel y; m ix properly, grind with care and em ployit for writing i n he same way s black ilzk by d iluting it m th some win e free from sea water.rite upon pepyryms or parchment.

74. Another (Preparation).To write i n letters of gold, witho ut gold. Celan dine, I part; pure resin, I part; golden-colored arsenic, o the fragile kin d, 1 part; pure gu m; bile of torto ise, 1 part; the liquid partof eggs, 5 parts; take 20 steterr by weight of all these materials dried; then throw i n 4 skztersof saffro n of Ci licia. Can be we d not only on papy rus or parchment, but also upon highly-polished marble, or as well when you wis h to make a beau tiful design up on some other objectand giw it the appeaearance of gold.

75 Gilding.Gilding gives the same effect. Lamellose arsenic, copperas, golden sandarach, me,-w r y , gum tragacanth, pith of ar um, e g u l parts; dilute the whole m th the bile of a goat.It is applied @ on copper objects, upon silver object;, upon figures ( i n metal) and u pon sm allshields. The copper should not haoe a rough surface.The terms lamellase arsenic and golden sandarach in the above recipe uu-

douhtedly referred to varieties of the native sulfides of arsenic that we term as realgarand orpiment. Pliny and Dioscorides both describe these minerals in their writings.76. Another (Procedure).

M k y from the miner. 3 staters; alum from the miner, 3 staters; celandine, 1 stater;pour o these the urine of a small ch ild; grind together until the mixtu re becomes z i s o w andimmersc (the object i n t) .


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77. Another (Procedure).Take some cumin, crush it (a? ) et it infu se three days i n water, on the fourth take ouf;coat the objects of copper with it, or whatever you wish. I t is necessary to keep the vesselclosed during the three days.

78 Wri ting in Letters of Gold.Grind some gold leaves wit h gum, d ry and use like black i nk .

79. Wr itin g i n Letters of Siluer.To write i n letters of siluer Litharge, 4 staters; dilute w ith the dung of a pigeon andE w e vinegar; write u d h a stylus massed through thefire.

80 Coloring of Asem.Cinnabar, Cimo lien earth end) iquid d u m , equal parts; m ix w ith sea water, heat and

dampen smeral times.81 Coloration i n SiluerSuch that it can only he removed by fire. Chrysocolla, cerzrse, ear th q Chios and mer-cury ground together; add some honey end havinf first treated the wessel with natron, coat(the vessel) with it.Ceruse or cerussa was the ancient term for white lead which was well-known and

widely employed as a cosmetic by the Greeks and Romans.82 Hardening of Ti n .

Melt i t, add to i t a homogeneous mix ture of lamellose alu m and copperas; pulseriseand spr inkle (over the meta l) and it d l e hard.83 Manufacture of Asem.

Good tin, 1 mina; dry pitch. 13 staters; bitumen. 8 staters; melt i n a vessel of bakedearth luted around (the top); after having cook d, mi x 10 staters of copper i n round grainsand 3 staters of asem first and ( the n)12 steters of broken stone of Ma gnesia . Melt, and ma kewhat you wish.84 Manufacture of Egyp tkn Asem.

Recipe of Phim enas (or Pa mm ae s). Take some soft copper of Cyprus, purify it w ithsome vinegar, some salt and some alum; af r having puvified i t, melt 1 staters of the copp erthrmuing on it 3 staters of well-purified cerure, 2 staters of golden-colored litharg e, afte rwhich i t will become white. The n add to it 2 staters of very soft smwithout Ue mirh and theproduct will be obtained. Take care i n melting that it does not lipuate. This is not thework of an ignora nt person, but of an experienced m en , and the union of the two metals willbe good.85 Another (Procedure).

A n erect preparation of esem, preferable to that o asem properly so-called. Take:orichakum, 1 drachma for example; place i n a crucible until it m elts; throw upon it 4drachmas of salt of Am ma r or Cappado cinn salt; remelt, add to it lame2lose alu m, (i n a namount equal to) the weight of an Eg yptian bean; remelt, add to it I drachma of decomposedsandarad, not the golden sandarach but that which whitens; then transfer to another cruciblepreviously coated zuit earth of Chios; after furi on add a fou rth part of asem and put in to use.

Orichalcum or aurichalcnm as it was sometimes spelled was n alloy consistingmainly of copper and zinc in other words what we term today as brass. The term


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VOL 3, NO 0 THELSYDENAPYRUS 1161

demmposed sandarach in the above would seem to indicate that the native arsenicsulfides were sometimes roasted and the resulting product, which would be essentiallyarsenious oxide was then used in making alloys.86. Another (Proceeding ).

Take: tin, 12 drachmas; mercury, 4 drachmas; earth of Chios, 2 drachmas; melt thetin , thrmu upon i t the ear& i n powder, ( an d) then the mnc ury ; stir with a bar j iron;fashion into globuks.87 Dmrbling of Gold.

For a ugm entin g the weight o cold. Mclt (i t) with a fourth pert o cadmia, and it willbecame heavier and harder.88 An oth n (Proceeding).

Gold can be altered and increased by means of m isy en d earth of Si no pu s. One firstcastsjt in t k urnace w ith epual p r l s (of them). Wh en it has became cknr i n the nuciblc,on adds each as i t k desired, and the gold i s doubled.89. Another (PreparatM n).

The invention of sulfur water. A h n d f u l of lime and anothero sulfur i n ine powder;place tk zm i n a vessel contnining strong vinegar or the urine of a sm ll child. Heat it frombdmu, until the supernatant liqui appea rs like blood. Decant this latter properly i n orderto separate it from the deposit, and use.9 0. H ow A s m s Diluted.

Having reduced the sem into leaves and h w n g covered it with mercury and applied ( it )strongly upon the leaf, one spr ink ks p ylites upon the leaf thus prepw ed, and places i t uponthe coals, i n order to dry i t u p to the point when the color of the leaf a ppears ch ng ed ; for themercury evaporates and the leaf softens. Then one incorporates i n the nun'ble part ofgold, (and) 2 parts of silver. Ha ving blended the m, throw upo n the fEoating scum somegolden-colored arsenbc, some pyrites, some salt of Am mo n, some cka ki tis , (a nd ) some blue;and having ground wi th sulfu r water, heat, then spread me rcury up on the surface.In the above recipe appears for the first time in written form, evidence of symbolism

in chemical arts, both gold and silver being designated by special characters. Theword chdcilis was used in ancient times to designate copper minerals, especially, ac-cording to Pliny's descriptions, copper pyrites. The unknown blue substance hintedat in the above was also most probably a copper salt ormineral.9 1. T he F h t i o n o Alkanet.

Ur ine of sheep, or arbute-berry , or henbane in the same manner.92 Falsijication of Alkamt.

Alka net i s diluted with pine-cones, the insid e wrt of peaches, purp ura, beet juice,dregs of w ine, the urine o f a camel and the inferio r of citrons.93 Fixation of Al kan d.

Navdw ort and d u m mixed i n e@ g%wts, rruskf inely (an d) thrum the alkanet in it.94 Styp tic Agents.

Mehntheria, calcined copperas, alum, chlcitis, cinnabar, lime, bark of pmnegranafe,pod o fa thorny tree, urine with aloes. These fhings serve i n dyeing.


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Melantheria was a word applied to the products of the weathering of copper oresat the surface of min shafts. Usually these ores were sulfides and the product thenmust have been chiefly basic iron and copper sulfate.95. The Prepara tion of Purp le.

Break into small 6eces stone o f Phryaia; PNt it to boiline, and havine immersed the

cool, wash i n see water. ..[th e stone o Phrygia is roasted before beil rgb mk en] . .until thepurple coloration appears.The stone of Phrygia was evidently same kind of a mordant and may have been,

as Berthelot suggested, a type of alunite. The seaweed mentioned above wasprobablythe so-called dyers moss or archil.96 Dyeing w ith Purple (Tw o Methods).

Grind lime with water and let it stand over night. Haring decanted, deposit the wooli n the lipuid for a day; take it out ( an d) dry it ; haavig sprinkled the alkanet with someuimg ar, put it to boiling and throw the wool i n t and it will come out dyed i n purple, al-kanet boiled d t h wo kr and nalron produces the purple color.Th en dry the wool, and dye it a s follows; Boil the seaweed w ith water and when ithas been exhausted, throw in the water an imper ceptibl s quan tity of copperas, i n order to&elop the purp le, and then plunge the wool i n it, and it will he dyed. If there is too mu chcopperas. it becomes darker.97 Another (Procedure).

Grind some walnu ts wi th soma elkanet of good q uality. Th is done, place them i n somestrong vinegar; grind again; add some pomegramte bark to this; lay aside three days; andafter this, plunge the wool i n t and it will be dyed cold. It i s said thet thereis a certainacanthus which furnishes the purple color; moistened w ith some natr on of Berenice i n placeof nuts , it produces the same effect.98 Another (Procedure).

Clean the wool with fullers plant, end hold at your d isposal some lamellose a lum .( T hen)grinding the kk r io r pert of gall-nut, throw it i n a pot with the alum, then put i n thewool and let it rem ain several hours. Tak e it ut end let it dry. Follow this procedurefirst: Hav ing ground the lees Cfrom win e) end having placed them i n a messel, pour i n seawater, agitate and set aside. Th en , decant the clear water into another vessel and hold it atyour disposal. Taking the alkanet and placing it i n a vessel, m ix with the water from thelees unt il i t thickens consenien lly and becomes as though sen dy. The n place the producti n a vessel, diluting i t by estimati on with the preceding water which cane s from the alkanet.The n, when it has become as though slimy , place it i n a small kettle, add to it the remainderof the alkanet water, and leave until lukewarm. The n plunge the wool i n it, lay asideseveral hours, and you will find the purp le fast .99 Another (Process).

Taking alkanet, ( an d) some leontice, strip o f f he bark, take it and grind i t as ne a sstibnite i n mortar. Add to it some hydrmel diluted with wekr, grind again, place theground product in a vessel and bhl. When you observe (the lipuid) to be lukewarm,plunge the wool in it (an d) let it remain. The wool ought to be cleaned w ith fullers plantand thickened. The n take it , plunge i t i n ime water; let it soak; take it out; wash thorou&ywit h some sea salt ( an d) dry. Plunge it again i n the a lka net and let i t m i n .


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VOL . No. 10 THELEYDENAPYRUS 1163100. Another Procedure).

Take the juice of the upper part o he alkenet end a solid gall-nut roasted i n the oumHaving ground it with the addition of a little copperas.mi x with the juice, boil, end make thepurple dye.101. Substitute for Greenish-Blue Color.

I n place o greenish-blue color take scori of iron, crush it wilh care until redued to theappearance of smegma, nd boil it with some vinegar until it becmnes stif f. Imnzersc thewool, preuiously cleaned ?dt h hemy fullers herb, and you will find it dyed in purple. Dyein this way with the colors that yo- haw.Iron oxide or scales from the forging o iron was called scoriaof iron, while the term

smegma was applied to capper oxide made by blowing across the surface of moltencopper with bellows.102. Arsenic.103. Sandnmch.104. Misy.105. Cadmie.106. Chrysocolla.107. Rubric of Sinopio.108. Alum.109. Natron.110. Cinnabar.111. Mercury.

s mentioned in the introduction, the last recipes in the papyrus are sections extracted from the weU-known Materia Medica of Dioscarides. They are chiefly de-scriptive of certain minerals and metallurgical products used in antiquity. The titleonly of each recipe is given here since their contents have been widely published in themany editions of this writer's works.

111 CommentaryBy reason of th e antiquity and character of the papyrus there is much

in it of great interest to historians and philologists but no attempt willbe made here to comment upon this phase of the subject. Its significanceand meaning from the chemical standpoint will be chiefly stressed in asconcise a way as possible; emphasis being placed upon its general naturerather than upon a detailed examination of each of its recipes and prepara-tions.

Perhaps one of t he most striking points to be noticed about the collec-tion is the numerous repetitions in the nature of the recipes many ofthem only varying slightly in the proportions of the same ingredients.This doubtless indicates that i t was collected from various sources andfrom pre-existing documents now lost to us. Furthermore this factpushes still farther back the time when the chemical art s and operationsdescribed in the papyrus must have been known to mankind. To beremarked also is the fragmentary character of many of the recipes andthe essential omissions in many of them giving the impression that they


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were rather in the nature of reminders for skilled workers rather thandetailed descriptions for purposes of general information. This factemphasizes th e likelihood tha t this papyrus was a kind of a laboratorynote-book of the operations of the chemical rtsof the t i e s .

The recipes dealing with metals and alloys are certainly the mostnumerous. These may be conveniently grouped as follows: The makingof alloys, coloring the surfaces of metals, cleaning and purifying metals,and testing metals for purity.

The first of these, the manufacture of alloys, is the subject of the ma-jority of the recipes. And, in nearly all cases the alloy being made isthe same one namely, asem. The word itself referred either to silver,alloys of silver and gold, or in fact to any alloy used in jewelry resemblingthese. As a matter of fact, the whole viewpoint of the ancients regardingsubstances was so entirely different from ours that we sometimes forgetthat they generally failed to distinguish metals, chemically, from eachother very clearly and went wholly upon appearances. For example,if two alloys had the same appearance although diiering in composi-tion they considered them identical. This is checked further in othercases, notably among the Romans, who applied the same name aesto all kinds of copper alloys regardless of composition. In the papyrusmost of the recipes are simply straightforward working directions,although in one or two cases there is direct evidence of an intention todeceive. Thus in No. 8 we read, this will be asem of the first quality,which will deceive even th e artisans, showing th at there was some recog-nition of chemical differences aside from qualitative appearances. Per-haps the workers of the recipes knew this, but it is certain tha t this knowl-edge was not general, as th e philosophy of the ancients so well informs us.I t is these practical recipes and working directions for making alloysfrom various metals that later became fused with various mystical andphilosophical doctrines and so grew into alchemy. Hence, the papyrus isof the highest historical importance chemically in showing the real s tar t-ing point of the alchemical ideas of the transmutation of metals.

As t o the practical composition of the alloys themselves, they are seento vary from simple two-metal combinations to those containing four orfive metals. The metals used were gold, silver, tin, copper, lead, mercury,arsenic, antimony, and zinc, the latter ones being used in the form of theircompounds and not being distinguished in the metallic state. A curiousfact to be noted in the making of these alloys is that in nearly all caseswhere compounds are employed there is no mention of a reducing agentbeing employed. Perhaps t he furnaces used were operated under reduc-ing conditions or i t was understood by the workers tha t charcoal or woodwas to be placed with the metals being fused. The limited range in thetype of alloys whose manufacture is described indicates th at the owner


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or owners of the papyrus were chiefly interested in making ornamentaljewelry and not in practical metals such as bronze and steel. At any ratethe recipes for alloys in this papyrus are the earliest detailed quantitativedirections for alloy manufacture tha t we have knowledge of. Otherancient writers such as Pliny and Dioscorides who touch upon technicalsubjects are singularly lacking in details, indicating their lack of directknowledge, but the papyrus here considered is certainly a direct laboratorydocument and hence its importance for the history of chemistry.

Next in importance t o the making of the alloys themselves come therecipes that deal with refining, cleaning, coloring, and otherwise treatingmetals. The second recipe in the papyrus is an example of the purifica-tion of metals by adding reducing agents to the molten metals, pitch andoils being used for this purpose. Another method of purification th atwas evidently in use in ancient times was the addition of various chemicalsalts to fused metals and alloys to serve as fluxes and solvents for theimpurities. Alum, iron sulfate, crude soda ash, and common sal t weremost commonly employed for this purpose. Several recipes are givenfor cleaning and polishing the surface of cold metals. The softening andhardening of metals was also quite well-known then as several of therecipes show, and this is borne out by the fact that the hardening of steelby tempering was a familar operation in Roman times. A curious side-light on the impurity of the crude metals then employed is shown by thefac t that recipes for hardening lead are in reality only those for removingexcessive impurities, an indication that the crude metal was mixed withquantities of oxides.The color iq of metals super icially was evidently widely practised.Mercury was applied to alloys and base metals to give a silvery appear-ance as well as being incorporated in the alloys themselves. A curiousmethod of gilding with gold is given in Recipe No. 8 in which a mixtureof powdered gold and lead are fastened upon an object with the snbse-quent burning off of the base metal. The use of gold amalgam in gildingsilver is also fully explained in No. 57. Besides using metals for coloringmetallic surfaces they also employed various colored varnishes and dyesas several of the recipes of the papyrus indicate. Recipe No. 89 is espe-cially interesting from the chemical point of view as being evidently apreparation of a solution of sulfides of calcium, th e original lime-sulfurmixture. This is the only actual preparation of a chemical salt listed inthe collection. Probably this was used t o color the surfaces of metalsalso.

The crude methods of testing gold and silver for purity employed inthose times are well described in Recipes No. 43 and 44. The discolora-tion of the metals by the formation of metallic oxides was depended uponto indicate fraud. No doubt this was sufficiently accurate to indicate


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gross adulterations but it certainly would not satisfy us in these days.The fact t ha t metals had different melting points was well-recognized andused as Recipe No. 3 on testing tin shows. Pliny also describes thismethod in Book XXXIV of the Natural History. This method wouldindeed distinguish between tin and lead but eutectic mixtures mustcertainly have deceived some of the workers of those days. This crudemethod of determining temperatures is truly indicative of the elementarystate of chemical arts a t the opening of the Christian Era.

Writing and making inscriptions in metallic letters or in characterscolored so as to resemble gold and silver must also have been an importantoperation for the workers of that period if the number of the recipes inthe papyrus bearing upon the subject are to be taken as a true indication.Gold amalgam is used for the purpose in several recipes. A point worthyof note about these is that no mention is made of heating the finishedwriting to drive off the excess mercury. No doubt this was understoodby the workers or transmitted by word of mouth. This fa d well indi-cates the fragmentary and incomplete character of the procedures de-scribed. Litharge sulfur and various organic pigments and colors were alsoincorporated with gum water and other mediums to yield colored writing.

Th e last recipes in the papyrus deal with methods of dyeing cloths.Various vegetable substances were applied to tbis purpose. There isdirect and indisputable evidence that the necessity and practice of mor-danting cloth previous to dyeing i t was well-understood. The fact thatthe recipes are usually those for dyeing in purple shows th at tbis papyruswas probably used in connection with royal or priestly workshops sincethe nobility were the only ones then generally permitted to wear purple.These recipes also expose the common fallacy that the ancient peoplesonly obtained their purple from the shellfish murex. They evidentlyused other dyes t o a larger extent. The f a d tha t the dyeing of cloths isso little touched upon in the Leyden Papyrus X and was of such impor-tance in ancient chemical rts leads us to believe th at the papyrus givesus only a partial view of the state of ancient chemical art. The Stock-holm Papyrus is really volume I of the set for in it very little space isgiven over to metallic arts while much space is devoted to dyeing clothsimitating precious stones and other operations not even mentioned inthe Leyden Papyrus. As sta ted before the writer hopes to publish thecontents of the second one in a similar translation in the near future.The recent finds of numerous papyri in Egypt may also bring to lightthose of technical importance and enrich our knowledge of the earlyperiod of chemical history although there is a certain degree of improb-ability about this since it is a known historical fact that books on alchemi-cal processes and technical arts were systematically destroyed in Egyptduring the first centuries of the Christian Era.

Documents

1926 RADCLIFFE [Tr.] the Leyden Papyrus X