Section 41

Another way
with quick- filver : Put quick- filver into an earthen veflel with a very wide mouth, and l~t it heat lb long at the fire, that you can endure the heat of it with your finger, put into it: put the gilt plate of filver into it, and when the quick-filver flicks to the go'd, take it out and put it into a Charger, into which thegoid, when it is cold, wi 1 fall with the quick-filver. Going over this work again , until no more gold appears in the veflel. Then put the gold with the quick-filver that was fha- ken into the Charger, into a linnen clout, and preis it out with your hands, and let the quick filver fall into ibme other receiver ,the gold will flay behind in the ragj take it and pat it into a cole made wirh a hole in it,blow till it melt, make it into a lump, and boil it in an earthen veflel with a little Stibium , and pour it forth into ano- ther veff. l,that the gold may fall to the bottcm , and the Stibium flay atop. But if you will
Part Cold from a veffel of Brafs9
wet the veflel in cold water , and fet it in the fire : when it is red hot, quench it in cold water ; then fcrape off the gold with latin wire bound together.
Chap. IX. To part Metals without aquafortis.
bat wo ji y/a ; if?ra fig |fij ^-.>^-h A-31 b'!flf iiftjy 'srfj j*i baa $attst"d \*i «
BEcauie waters are drawn from falts with difficulty , with lofs of time and great charges ; 1 fhall fta w you how to part gold from filver and brafs, and filver from brals , without rqttafortit; but by fome *.afie operations , wich little coll or lofs of time : And firrt I fhall (hew how
To part Go Id from Silver. Caft a limns of cold mixt with filver into an earthen veffel, that will hold fire, with the fame weight of Antimony, thus: when the veflel is red hot, and the lump is melted, and turned about with the force of the fire ; caft a little Stibium in, and in a little time it will melt alfo ; and when you fee it, caft in the reft of the Stibium, and cover the veff, 1 with a cover : let the mixture boil, aslongas one may repeat the Lords-prayer: takeaway the; veffel with a pair of tongs, and call it into another iron Pyramidal veffel red hor, called a Cm ible, that hath in the bottom of it rams fat!; fhaking it gently , that the heavier pau of gold fcparated from the filver , may
\*j6 Natural Magick. Soo^ 5.
fall to the bottom: if hen the veflel is cold it is ftuken off , and che part next the bottom will be gold , the upper part filver ; and if it be not well parted, refufe not to go over the fame work again , buc take a lefs quantity of Stibium. Let therefore the gold be purged again, and let the Stibium be boiled, and there will be always at the bottom a little piece of gold. And as the dregs remain, after the fame man- ner purge them again in the copple, and you ftiall have your filver, withouc any lois of the weight, becaufe they are both perfect bodies ; but the filver onely will lofc a lit- tle. But would you have your filver to lofe lefs, do thus : adde to two pound and half of Stibium, wine-lees two pounds , and boil them together in an earthen veflel, and the mafs will remain in the bottom, which mud be alfo boil'd in a copple ; then adding pieces of lead to ic, purge it in a copple, wherein the other things being con- fumed by the fire, the filver onely will remain : but if you do not boil your Stibi m in wine-lees, as I faid, part of the filver will be loft, and the copple will draw the fil- ver to it. The fame may be done
Another -way.
Take three ounces of brimftone, powder them, and mingle them with one ounce of common oyl , and fet them to the fire in a giazed difh of earth : let the fire be firft gentle, then augment it, till it run, and fcemto run over: take ic from the fire, and let it cool , then caft it into (harp vinegar , fo the oyl will fwim above the vinegar, the brimftone will fall down to the bottom ; caft away the vinegar, and let the brim- ftone boil in ftrong vinegar, andyoufhall fee the vinegar coloured : you fhall ftrain the vinegar through a wilp into a glafed veflel, to which adde more brimftone , boil it again , and again ftrain out the lye into the veflel : doing this fo oft , till the Lixivium comes forth muddy, or of a black colour. Let the Lixivium fettle one night: again ftrain ic through a wi(p, and you ftiall find the brimftone almoft white at the bottom of the veflel : adde that to what you had before, and fet it again to boil with three parts as much diftilled vinegar, till the vinegar all evaporate and dry the brimftone : take heed it burn not : when it is dry, put it again into diftilled vinegar, working the fame way fo often, until putting a little of it upon a red hot plate of iron , it will melt without flame or fmoke. Then caft it on a lump of gold and filver, and the gold will fink to the bottom prefent ly, but the filver will remain on the top. For if brimftone be boil'd in a Lixivium fo ftrong , that it will bear an egg, until it will not fmoke , and will melt on a fire-cole : if ir be projected on a mafs of gold and filter mingled , when they are melted , it will part the gold from the fil- ver. Alfo there is an ingenious and admirable way
Tcrpirt fiver from brafs with certain powders. The beft are thoie are made of powdred lead , half fo much quick brimftone., and arfenick , and common fait double as much , falt-peter one half ; powder thole fine each by themfelves, then mingle them. Take the mixt me- tal, with half fo much more ef the powder, and in a vefTel that will endure fire, ftrew it in by turns , and fet the veffel fil'd at a ftrong fire, till all melt ; take it out and caft it into another veflel, that is broad atop, narrow at bottom, and hot, as we faid, and imeeredwith ram or fowes greafe clarified: let it cool, for you (nail find the filver at the bottom, and the brafs on the top: part one from the other with an iron rafp, or file: if you will, you may purge your filver again in a copple. But the filver muft be made into thin plates , that when it is ftrewed interchangeably with the powders, they may come at it on all fides : then cover the veflel with its cover, and lute it well. But the falc muft be decrepitated that it lean-not out , and the brimftone prepared and fixed. But we may thus
Part gold from brafs :
Make fait of thefe things that follow,namelys Vitriol, Alcm, Salt- peter, qokk Brim- ftone, of each a pound, Salt-ammomatk half a pound. Powder ihcmall, and boil them in a lye made of aOie melt them at the fire,and decant them,tnd boil them till the Lixivium be gone ; then
dry
Of changing Metals, 1 77
dry ir, and keep it in a place not moil}, letiitmelt; and mingle with it one pound of powder ef lead, and ftrew on of this powder fix ounces for every pound of brafs made hot in a melting veflel ; and let them be (haken, and ftirrcd vehemently with an iron thing to itir it with : when the veflel is cold, break it, you fhall find a lamp of gold in the bottom. Do the reft as I faid.
Chap. X.
A comfendiou* way to part gold or fylvtr from other Metals with aqua fortis.
•\X7£ (hall teach thus compendioufly to part gold from filver , and filver from other metals ; and it is no fmall gain to be got by it , if a man well underftood what I write : for 1 have known lbme by this art that have got great wealth. For example, take a mixture of brafs and filver, diflblveitin common aquafortis : when it is coo- fumed, cait foontain-water into >t , to remove the ftiarpneisof the water, and that it can no more corrode the metal. Put the water into a great mouthed earthen vef- fel, and plange plates of brafs therein ; for the filver will flick to them like a cloud, the brafs is beft in the water : put the water into a glafs retort with a large belly, and mike a foft fire tinder, and the fountain-water will diftil forth by degrees. When \ou know that the whole quantity of fountain-water is diftilled out, or the belly of the retort looks of a yellow colour , and the fent of the falts pierccth yonr noftrils : t a ke away the receiver, and put another that is empty to it, and lute it well that no- thing break forth. Augment the fire, and you fhall drttw off your aquafortis as ftrong as before , and the brafs will be at the bottom of the retort : The aquafortis will be as good as it was, and you may ufe it oft- times.
Cc
THE
178
S I X T H HE BOOK
o f
Natural Mao-ick :
Of counterfeiting Precious Sones.
The Proem i.
F Rom the adulterating of Metals , we(haXpafs to the counterfeiting of Jewels, They me by the fame reafon, both Arts are ef kin, and done by the fire. And it u no (rand, faith Pliny fo get gam to live by t and the defire of money hath fe kindled the firebrand ef luxury ^ that the moji cunning arttfis are fometimes cheated. They are counterfeited by divers ways, either bj cutting Jewels in the middle, and putting in the colour s, And joyntng them toge- ther ; or elfe by giving a tinttnre to Cryfial that ts all one puce , or counterfeiting Cry ftal by many ingredients • or vie fh 'all attempt to make true Jewels to depart from their proper colour, and all of them to be fo handfomly coloured , that they may (hew lt\e natural Jewels. Lafily, I (hall fhew how to makf Smalt of divers colours*
Chap. I. Of certain Salts nfed in the compofition of Gems.
E wil firft fet down certain operations , which are very necefla- ry in the Making of Gems, left we be forced to repeat the fame thing over again : And firft,
How to make Sal Soda. The herb Kali or Saltwort is commonly called Soda: grinde this Soda very fmall, and fift it into powder : put it into a brafc Cauldron and boil it , pouring in for every pound of Soda, a fir- kin of water. Let it boil for four hours, till the water be confumed to a third part. Then rake it from the fire , and let it ftand twelve hours , while the dregs fettle to the bottom , and the water becomes clear : then drain out the water with a linnen cloth, into another vcflcl , and pour frefh water into the Cauldron : Boil it again, and when it is cold, as before, and all the drofs fetlcd, filtrate the clear water out a°ain : Do as much the third time, ftill having a care to try with your tongue, whe- ther it be ftill fait. ' At laft, ftrain the water, and fet ic in an earthen veflcl over the fire , keeping a conftant fire under it, until the moifture being almoft confumed, the water grow more chick, and be condenfed into fait ; which muft preiently be taken out with an iron ladle ; and of five pound of Soda, you will have one pound of falc.
How to make Salt of Tartar.
Take the lees of old wine, and dry it carefully ; it is commonly called Tartar : put ic into an Alimbcck, made infuchforc, that the flame maybe retorted from the top, and fo augment the heat. There let it burn, you will fee it grow white j then turn it with yonr iron tongs , fothac the upper part which is white may be at bottom, and turn the back upto the flame: when it hath ceaf'd frnoakin°, takeic out,and break part of it, to fee whether it be white quite through , for that is an argumenc of the fufficient burning; becaule ic oftentimes happens , that theoutfidc onely is burned, and the reft of it renuincth crude. Therefore, when ic hath gained the co- lour
Of counterfeiting precious Stones i y$
lour of chalk , it muft be taken out ; and when it is cold, grindc it, and lay it in wa- ter in feme wide-mouth'd veflel a quarter of a day. When the water is grown clears filtrate it, and Brain it into another veflel , and then pour water again unto the fettlement , obferving the fame things wefpoke before , until the water have taken out all the fait, which will come to pafs in the third or forth time. Poor your wa- ters which you favcd,mto a veflel of glafs ; and all things being ready, put live coles under it , and attend the work until the water be coniumed by the force of the fire, which being done , the fait will (tick to the bottom : it being thus made, preferve it in a dry place, left it turn to oyl.
Chap. II.
How Flint) or Cryftal is to be prepared^ and how Paftils are boiled.
THe matter of which Gems are made, is cither Cryftal or Flint, from whence wc ftrike fire, or round pebbles found by river fides : thofe arc the beft wnkh arc taken up by the river Thames, white, clear, and of the bignelsof aneggc; for of thofe are made beft counterfeit Gemms , though ail will fervc in feme loit. Some think that Cryftal is the beft for this purpofe , becaufe of the brightnefs andtranfpa» rency of it ; but they are deceived. The way of making Gems, is this : Take river- pebbles and put them into a fornace, in that place where the retorted flame is moft intenfe; when they are red hot , take them out and Bing them into water: then dry them, and powder them in a mortar , or a hand mill , uniil they arc very fine $ put them into a wide-mouthed veflel, full of rain water, and (bake it well in your hands, for fo the fineft part will rid to the top, and the grofleft will fettle to the bottom: to tkat which fwims at top pour frefh water , and ttir the duft again: and do this oftentimes , until the grofs part be quite fcparated and funk down. Then take out the water, and let it fettle, and in the bottom there will iie a certain flimy matter ; gather together , and referve the refined powder. But whil'tt the ftone is ground, both the morter and the mill will lofe femcwhatof themfelves, which being mixt with the powder will foul the Gem : wherefore it will be worth the la- bor to wafh that away : to which end, let water be often poured into the lavel , and Birred abouc i the duft of the morter will rife to the top, by reafon of its levity , and the powder of the pebbles will retire to the bottom by reafon of its weight ; skim the lavel, and feparate them with a fpoon , till all that ftndy and black duft be taken off ; then itrain out the water, and rcfervc the powder dry. Thefe being done, we muft teach
How Paftils are boiled.
Artificers call thofe pellets which are made of the falts, and the forenamed powder and water, Paftils. Take five parts of fait of Tartar , as many of fair of Soda j dou- ble the quantity of thefe of the forefpoken powder of pebbles, and mix them very well in a ftone morter: fprinkle them with water & wet them,fothat they may grow into a paft, and make Paftils of them in bignefs of your fift $ fet them in the fun, and dry them welL Then put them into a fornace of reverberation , the fpace of fix hours, encreafing the fire bv degrees , that at laft they may become red hot, but not melt ; wherefore ufc no bellows : when they are baked enough, let them cool, and they will become fo hard , that they will endure almoft the hammer.
Chap. III.
Of the Fornace^nd the Parts thereof.
NOw the Fornace i according to the proportion of the work. Let your fornace be eight foot high, and confii t of ?wo vaults; the roof of the lower muft be a handful and a half thick : the vault icfelf muft have a little door, by which you may call in wood to feed the fire