Alchemical Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence

George Starkey

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Alchemical Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence

Edited by: and

Language: English

Published/Copyright: 2004

About this book

George Starkey—chymistry tutor to Robert Boyle, author of immensely popular alchemical treatises, and probably early America's most important scientist—reveals in these pages the daily laboratory experimentation of a seventeenth-century alchemist.

The editors present in this volume transcriptions of Starkey's texts, their translations, and valuable commentary for the modern reader. Dispelling the myth that alchemy was an irrational enterprise, this remarkable collection of laboratory notebooks and correspondence reveals the otherwise hidden methodologies of one of the seventeenth century's most influential alchemists.

Author / Editor information

William R. Newman is a professor of the history of science at Indiana University. Lawrence M. Principe is a professor of the history of science and technology and of chemistry at The John Hopkins University. Together, Newman and Principe are the authors of Alchemy Tried in the Fire: Starkey, Boyle and the Fate of Helmontian Chymistry, also published by the University of Chicago Press.

Topics

General Interest

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Frontmatter
i

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Contents
v

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Acknowledgments
vii

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Introduction
ix

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Editorial Practices
xxxi

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Abbreviations
xxxiii

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Brief Chronology of Starkey’s Life
xxxv

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Documents
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1. Letter to John Winthrop Jr., 2 August 1648
1

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2. Laboratory Notebook Fragment; before Spring 1651
3

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3. Letter to Robert Boyle, Containing “The Key”; ca. April /May 1651
12

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4. Letter to Johann Moriaen, 30 May 1651
32

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5. Laboratory Notebook Fragment, December 1651
42

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6. Letters to Robert Boyle, January–February 1652
49

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7. Laboratory Notebook Fragment; February–March 1652
84

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8. Letter to Samuel Hartlib, Undated (ca. 1652–55)
86

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9. Letter to Frederick Clodius, Undated (ca. 1653–54)
90

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10. Laboratory Notebook, early 1650s, ca. July–August 1653, and January–March 1656
93

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10a. “A Perfect Day Booke,” 11–14 December 1655
124

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11. Laboratory Notebook, before mid-1653–March 1656
127

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12. Laboratory Notebook, ca. November 1654 –August 1656
220

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13. Prefaces to the Epistle to King Edward Unfolded, 1657
309

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14. Laboratory Notebook Fragment, ca. late 1657–58
318

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15. Autobiographical and Laboratory Notes, September 1658 to 1660
328

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16. Letters to Philip Frith, January–May 1663
333

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Chymical Symbols
337

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Glossary
339

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Index
347

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Publishing information

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

eBook published on:

November 15, 2010

eBook ISBN:

9780226577104

Pages and Images/Illustrations in book

Main content:

378

Other:

4 halftones

https://doi.org/10.7208/9780226577104

eBook ISBN: 9780226577104

Keywords for this book

alchemy; chemistry; chymistry; science; methodology; philosophy; nature; minerals; elements; laboratory; research; experiments; history; ancient; metaphysics; nonfiction; george starkey; robert boyle; records; data; biography; chymical symbols; epistle to king edward unfolded; john winthrop; the key; samuel hartlib; frederick clodius

Audience(s) for this book

Professional and scholarly;

University of Chicago Press

Alchemical Laboratory Notebooks and Correspondence

Overview

About this book

Author / Editor information

Topics

Table of contents

Frontmatter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Editorial Practices

Abbreviations

Brief Chronology of Starkey’s Life

1. Letter to John Winthrop Jr., 2 August 1648

2. Laboratory Notebook Fragment; before Spring 1651

3. Letter to Robert Boyle, Containing “The Key”; ca. April /May 1651

4. Letter to Johann Moriaen, 30 May 1651

5. Laboratory Notebook Fragment, December 1651

6. Letters to Robert Boyle, January–February 1652

7. Laboratory Notebook Fragment; February–March 1652

8. Letter to Samuel Hartlib, Undated (ca. 1652–55)

9. Letter to Frederick Clodius, Undated (ca. 1653–54)

10. Laboratory Notebook, early 1650s, ca. July–August 1653, and January–March 1656

10a. “A Perfect Day Booke,” 11–14 December 1655

11. Laboratory Notebook, before mid-1653–March 1656

12. Laboratory Notebook, ca. November 1654 –August 1656

13. Prefaces to the Epistle to King Edward Unfolded, 1657

14. Laboratory Notebook Fragment, ca. late 1657–58

15. Autobiographical and Laboratory Notes, September 1658 to 1660

16. Letters to Philip Frith, January–May 1663

Chymical Symbols

Glossary

Index

Bibliographic data