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It was actually quite nice being able to return to Hogwarts to teach a special class; Althea Schirmer, new Department Head of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes did miss her former students at least a little bit. Most of them. Some of them. She did hope her particular favourites would be interested in attending, even if she wouldn't acknowledge who they were out loud. Not charms of course, rather she was presenting an introduction to Alchemy, one of the subjects rather close to her heart as a metal charmer.
She rather hoped that it might just encourage an interest amongst some of the students. Usually Alchemy lessons were only offered to 6th and 7th years, but Gaellen had asked her to make the material as accessible as possible to all ages, and she'd done her best though she intended to make it clear that if anyone did not understand anything, they should look into it further in their own time, she was only tasked with introducing key concepts, not ensuring that the slower children knew the subject inside out.
And really there was only so much you could do in one lesson.
Tables had been set up in the observatory rather similarly to what might be found in the potions classroom, except that there was an array of unusual equipment on each table -no two tables had precisely the same item, though all seemed similar somehow, or perhaps like they were made for similar purposes, or to be used together. Some appeared to be in miniature, as a representative of what it might truly be, just for demonstration purposes.
She had set up a board behind her, on which was the following, charmed to scroll across the top:
Quote:
The Goals of the Alchemist
--find the panacea
--find the alkahest
--turning things into gold (chrysopoeia) and other noble metals
Magnum Opus (The Great Work, or finding the Philosopher's Stone) nigredo-a blackening or melanosis albedo -a whitening or leucosis citrinitas - a yellowing or xanthosis rubedo - a reddening, purpling, or iosis
Definitions Alkahest - Believed by Paracelsus to be the Philosophers Stone, or an element of its creation. This is a hypothetical universal solvent, having the power to dissolve every other substance, including gold.
Azoth - This serves as the essential agent of alchemical transformation, and embodies the concept of the main goals in Alchemy it is a possible universal medicine, universal solvent, or Elixir of Life. It is a name for Mercury as cardinal principle of Alchemy.
Chrysopoeia - A symbolic representation of the Philosophers Stone, chrysopoeia means transmutation into gold, from the Greek khrusōn, 'gold', and poiēin, 'to make'.
Panacea - also called the pancrest, or Panakeia in Greek, is named for the Greek Goddess of universal remedy, she supposedly had a magical medicinal substance which could cure all ills. It is a remedy that is supposed to cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely.
Solve et Coagula - 'Separate and Join Together' (or dissolve and coagulate')
Spagyrics -the production of herbal medicines using alchemical techniques such as fermentation, distillation and the extraction of mineral components from the ash of a plant. Greek for 'separate and recombine'
The Cardinal Principles of Alchemy The Alchemical trinity of principles.
In alchemical terms all things are composed of three parts- Sulphur , Mercury, and Salt. The alchemist separates and recombines these three cardinal principles as often as necessary until they are in perfect proportion and harmony, and the raw material has been reduced to its purest essence.
Mercury
- principle of fusibility and volatility
- represents water element
- represents the life force
Salt
- principle of fixity and in-combustibility
- represents earth element
- represents the physical body
Sulphur
- principle of flammability
- represents fire element
- represents the soul or individualized essence of being
The Alchemy / Astrology Relationship
Sun - Gold
Moon - Silver
Mercury - Mercury
Venus - Copper
Mars - Iron
Jupiter - Tin
Saturn - Lead
The Three Major Strands of Alchemy Distinguishable as relatively independent from one another.
Indian Alchemy
Chinese Alchemy
Western Alchemy
--Hellenistic Egyptian Alchemy
--Islamic Alchemy
--Medieval European Alchemy
Famous Alchemists
Albertus Magnus
Albus Dumbledore
Carl Jung
Chang Tao Ling
Cleopatra the Alchemist
Cornelius Agrippa
Enki
Hermes Trismegistus
Ibn Umail
John Dee
Mary Anne Atwood
Mary the Jewess
Merlin
Nagarjuna
Nicholas Flamel
Olympiodorus of Thebes
Ostanes the Persian
Paracelsus
Pseudo-Geber
Robert Boyle
Roger Bacon
Salomon Trismosin
Samuel de Falk
Sir Isaac Newton
Wei Boyang
Yogi Vemana
Zhang Guo the Elder
Zosimus of Panapolis
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
SPOILER!!: coding for the notes if you want to copy them ;)
[COLOR="Black"]
[B][U]The Goals of the Alchemist[/U][/B]
--find the panacea
--find the alkahest
--turning things into gold (chrysopoeia) and other noble metals
[B][U]Magnum Opus[/U][/B] (The Great Work, or finding the Philosopher's Stone)
[U][URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nigredo"]nigredo[/URL] [/U]-a blackening or melanosis
[U][URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albedo_(alchemy)"]albedo[/URL][/U] -a whitening or leucosis
[U][URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citrinitas"]citrinitas[/URL][/U] - a yellowing or xanthosis
[U][URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubedo"]rubedo[/URL][/U] - a reddening, purpling, or iosis
[B][U]Definitions[/U][/B]
[U]Alkahest[/U] - Believed by Paracelsus to be the Philosophers Stone, or an element of its creation. This is a hypothetical universal solvent, having the power to dissolve every other substance, including gold.
[U]Azoth[/U] - This serves as the essential agent of alchemical transformation, and embodies the concept of the main goals in Alchemy it is a possible universal medicine, universal solvent, or Elixir of Life. It is a name for Mercury as cardinal principle of Alchemy.
[U]Chrysopoeia[/U] - A symbolic representation of the Philosophers Stone, chrysopoeia means transmutation into gold, from the Greek [I]khrusōn[/I], 'gold', and [I]poiēin,[/I] 'to make'.
[U]Panacea[/U] - also called the pancrest, or Panakeia in Greek, is named for the Greek Goddess of universal remedy, she supposedly had a magical medicinal substance which could cure all ills. It is a remedy that is supposed to cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely.
[U]Solve et Coagula[/U] - [I]'Separate and Join Together[/I]' (or [I]dissolve and coagulate[/I]')
[U]Spagyrics[/U] -the production of herbal medicines using alchemical techniques such as fermentation, distillation and the extraction of mineral components from the ash of a plant. Greek for '[I]separate and recombine[/I]'
[/COLOR]
[U][B]The Cardinal Principles of Alchemy[/B][/U]
[I]The Alchemical trinity of principles.[/I]
In alchemical terms all things are composed of three parts- Sulphur , Mercury, and Salt. The alchemist separates and recombines these three cardinal principles as often as necessary until they are in perfect proportion and harmony, and the raw material has been reduced to its purest essence.
[U]Mercury[/U]
- principle of fusibility and volatility
- represents water element
- represents the life force
[U]Salt[/U]
- principle of fixity and in-combustibility
- represents earth element
- represents the physical body
[U]Sulphur[/U]
- principle of flammability
- represents fire element
- represents the soul or individualized essence of being
[B][U]The Alchemy / Astrology Relationship[/U][/B]
Sun - Gold
Moon - Silver
Mercury - Mercury
Venus - Copper
Mars - Iron
Jupiter - Tin
Saturn - Lead
[B][U]The Three Major Strands of Alchemy[/U][/B]
[I]Distinguishable as relatively independent from one another.[/I]
[U]Indian Alchemy[/U]
[U]Chinese Alchemy[/U]
[U]Western Alchemy[/U]
--Hellenistic Egyptian Alchemy
--Islamic Alchemy
--Medieval European Alchemy
[B][U]Famous Alchemists[/U][/B]
Albertus Magnus
Albus Dumbledore
Carl Jung
Chang Tao Ling
Cleopatra the Alchemist
Cornelius Agrippa
Enki
Hermes Trismegistus
Ibn Umail
John Dee
Mary Anne Atwood
Mary the Jewess
Merlin
Nagarjuna
Nicholas Flamel
Olympiodorus of Thebes
Ostanes the Persian
Paracelsus
Pseudo-Geber
Robert Boyle
Roger Bacon
Salomon Trismosin
Samuel de Falk
Sir Isaac Newton
Wei Boyang
Yogi Vemana
Zhang Guo the Elder
Zosimus of Panapolis
"Welcome everyone." Althea greeted as the students began to file in. "Remember this is an optional lesson. I don't much mind if you choose not to stay, but I will see to it that anyone who disrupts this seminar will lose house points, so if you choose to leave, do so quietly." And she was sure the great majority of them knew she wasn't to be trifled with - if she said points might be lost, well, they might just.
"I'm Althea Schirmer, most of you know me as your former Charms professor, But I am now Department Head of Accidents and Catastrophes at the British Ministry of Magic, and today I'm here to introduce you all to the field of Alchemy, which I studied alongside Experimental Charms, Medieval Charms and Metal Charming during my university career. You may still address me as Professor Schirmer. We will begin in a few moments."
----------------------- OOC: This is your first seminar for the term! Totally optional to attend, all students may join in except mine. It will be around 20 hours before the class actually begins, feel free to post arriving and settling in until then, and remember that your charrie is being watched, so don't be bad and stuff. It will be open for 1 week.
Additional updates regarding when the next posts can be expected will be found in my most recent post.
My posts will be indexed in this first post, and anyone can PM or VM me if they aren't sure how to jump in.
Don't forget, you're encouraged to RP your charrie not knowing things if you don't think that they would. As long as they're listening and taking notes and being engaged in the lesson, you won't be penalised and will still earn points. Its up to you what you think your character would already know.
INDEX OF POSTS AND QUESTIONS Question One: What is the purpose of Alchemy? What are the goals of the Alchemist? asked here ----- answered here Question Two: What do you know about the cardinal principles of Alchemy, salt, sulphur and mercury? What are they? What do they mean? asked here ----- answered here Question Three: What connections can you think of between Astrology and Alchemy? Also, if there are any questions about what has been covered so far, now is the time to ask them. asked here ----- answered here Question Four: Aside from Carl Jung and Sir Isaac Newton, who are some famous Alchemists and what are some of their achievements? asked here ----- answered here
Activity: "What I want you to do, is have one person from your table stand up, and I will call on that person and explain what the instrument on their table is and what it does. Then as a class, you'll each look through your symbol sheets and see if you can identify related symbols. You may have noticed the symbol lists aren't in English, but you are all familiar enough with Latin by now that you should be able to deduce which is correct. So one person from each group please stand up and we'll get started."
OOC: Please PM this to Tegz with your username, usernumber, house, character name and year. IE if I were submitting it I'd include:
Tegz
89590
Slytherin
West Odessa, First Year
Title the PM 'Alchemy Homework'
This assignment is due Saturday 30 June 1am GMT
1) Short essay /5 points Choose one famous Alchemist and research the following:
1a) What was their contribution to the field of Alchemy?
1b) When were they alive?
1c) Are they Muggle or Magical? If you can't find out for sure, guess and explain your choice.
1d) Name one piece of Alchemical equipment they used, or guess at a piece of Alchemical equipment they used, and explain why you think they would have used it.
1e) Find an interesting fact about your chosen Alchemist to share. You can present this as a short essay or address the questions seperately, its up to you.
2) Short answer questions
2a) Choose any one of your other class subjects and explain how it is linked to Alchemy. (2 points)
2b) According to the Alchemist Michael Maier, who were the four women who knew how to make the philosopher's stone? (1 point)
2c)Choose any two symbols from your hand outs, investigate what they mean, and explain how they are used in Alchemy (2 points)
Please note that up to 5 points extra credit may be given for this assignment for thoughtful or outstanding answers, particularly where answers remain concise, informative, and original.
"While Kurumi hands out those sheets with the Alchemical symbols, lets touch a bit on the history of Alchemy, and of those who have made advances in the field." And this was technically why their History of Magic professor had been invited to pop in. The man needed as much education as he could get, and Althea was ever so obliging.
"In Alchemy there are three major strands which are distinguishable as relatively independent from one another. That isn't to say they did not originate from the same source, just that the knowledge is lost to us and there is no written record which links these three strands to a common origin." Were they following?
"Those strands are Indian, Chinese, and Western Alchemy. Western Alchemy includes Hellenistic Egyptian Alchemy, Islamic Alchemy and Medieval European Alchemy. As you can see the cultures in which Alchemy exists are varied. You'll find there are many famous Alchemists across these cultures, Miss Potter already mentioned Carl Jung and Sir Isaac Newton, does anyone else know of any famous Alchemists? And, if you know anything about their achievements, do share those too, but please only name one Alchemist." Althea requested, knowing that there were a few students who would happily rattle off half a dozen, given the chance.
Lewis stopped playing with his quill when Kurumi was told to hand out a stack of sheets on...something. Oh, on Alchemical symbols. Interesting. Upon looking up his eyes drifted away from the Gryffindor however when he noticed somebody else. Their History of Magic professor. What was he doing here? Was he going to be part of the lesson? Or was he here to see Professor Schirmer?
His eyes quickly returning to his piece of parchment to copy down what the professor was telling them about alchemists, Lewis was glad that he HAD in fact already read a little bit about the subject. He might even ask Professor Schirmer where she'd studied Alchemy and why she'd instead decided to teach Charms and work at the Ministry now. Was the subject not as interesting as it sounded?
Lewis raised his hand when she asked them about alchemists they'd heard of. "There's Cleopatra." He'd read about her since he'd always thought it was funny how she had the same name as- Oh, maybe he should clarify a little there actually. "N-not the Egyptian Queen. Though, she was from Egypt too. And I think Cleopatra wasn't her real name actually." But none of that had anything to do with her achievements. "She's said to have been one of the people who knew how to make the Philosopher's Stone." One of the few women actually.
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SPOILER!!: Schirmer
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tegz
SPOILER!!: responses
"Thank you, Miss Hollingberry." Althea gave her the stack -and it WAS a stack- of hand outs. "These are just Alchemical symbols and their meanings, for later reference and review.
"Its the pursuit of gold, the idea of being consumed by greed and obsession, and that there are consequences for such greed that fits in the allegory of the Midas story." she nodded at the Slytherin and deigned to give him a smile of encouragement.
"Yes harvest and preparation can be effected by when you do it. Good thinking."
"Right." Althea agreed with a nod. "To many, especially muggles who fancy themselves as Alchemists, Alchemical pursuits are as much, if not more, about soul purity than creating a substance that can be used for magical purposes." Which made sense when you thought about it, since they could in theory purify a substance but wouldn't be able to use it magically anyway.
"Good thinking and there have been some studies regarding convergences and concordances of the planets, and how such celestial movements effect alchemical experiments, there should be a few texts in the library here at Hogwarts actually." When Stella continued, obviously speaking something she'd been thinking on, Althea simply nodded.
"And both underline the concept of Alchemy - breaking down the whole in order to recombine the prime principles to find the essence of the original whole in its purest form."
Althea listened and then nodded. "Yes, some people certainly focus on the spiritual aspects of both. Transmutation of the soul was certainly a metaphorical focus for Alchemists in the past, and the discovery of the self during that process of reflection and experimentation."
Nod. "Yes, some good points, Miss Reed."
"Yes, its poisonous, but also medicinal when appropriate purified via the proper procedures. Some might say its worth the risk." The professor answered.
Althea listened as Alyssa spoke and then nodded, though really, she did prefer when students didn't jump ahead, and stuck with lesson plan.
"Actually, Sir Isaac Newton saw himself primarily as an Alchemist. Some even believe that he succeeded in transmuting lead into gold and chose to keep it a secret. As for Carl Jung, his beliefs certainly reflected the concept of a metaphorical pursuit of gold as a representation of the purity of the soul, and Jungian psychology does heavily borrow from Alchemical theories and areas of research."
Since she'd asked.
"Moon magic and position has always had a heavy influence on both Alchemy and Astronomy. Good thoughts, Miss Potter."
"Give me your quill, I'll charm it to take notes for you." Althea answered.
"There are many similarities and relationships between chemistry and alchemy in regard to those prime properties, except in cases where salt, mercury, and sulfur are metaphorical of course." So, yes.
Althea nodded at the three students who sounded to be on a similar tack.
"Yes, timing and correspondences of planetary positions are relevant, just as is the case with potion brewing. It doesn't mean that alchemical processes won't work, just that the results are stronger when the correspondences are taken into account."
Althea eyed the Ravenclaw for a long moment.
"Perhaps, if I have the time and the inclination, I may." She raised one eyebrow. That would have to do because she couldn't say for sure.
...?
"You could actually reduce moon rocks and purify them Alchemically, if you wished." So he wasn't.... COMPLETELY wrong. Strangely.
"While Kurumi hands out those sheets with the Alchemical symbols, lets touch a bit on the history of Alchemy, and of those who have made advances in the field." And this was technically why their History of Magic professor had been invited to pop in. The man needed as much education as he could get, and Althea was ever so obliging.
"In Alchemy there are three major strands which are distinguishable as relatively independent from one another. That isn't to say they did not originate from the same source, just that the knowledge is lost to us and there is no written record which links these three strands to a common origin." Were they following?
"Those strands are Indian, Chinese, and Western Alchemy. Western Alchemy includes Hellenistic Egyptian Alchemy, Islamic Alchemy and Medieval European Alchemy. As you can see the cultures in which Alchemy exists are varied. You'll find there are many famous Alchemists across these cultures, Miss Potter already mentioned Carl Jung and Sir Isaac Newton, does anyone else know of any famous Alchemists? And, if you know anything about their achievements, do share those too, but please only name one Alchemist." Althea requested, knowing that there were a few students who would happily rattle off half a dozen, given the chance.
OOC: I am SO sorry for how long this took. I lost this post THREE times. *kicks SS and my laptop* Please only give ONE ALCHEMIST if your character is going to answer this question, there are PLENTY of possible answers so please try not to give one that has already been given if you can help it, and if they have been said already, ADD to the answer with some new information! - unique answers/post will earn more points in this respect. We have another three and a bit days for this class, just so you all know there's still plenty of time to get involved
More notes will be added soon.
Oh and sweetpinkpixie has been given ACTUAL hand outs to give to everyone, so don't RP getting them until she RPs handing them out
Again, I'll edit this post to include anyone I missed. doneee.
He sat unblinking when the blonde considered his question Only if she was so inclined and had time to spare... He nodded his head and thanked her. At least it wasnt a flat out no, but he had remind himself that the former Charms Professor does work for the Ministry now.
Famous Alchemists? Vickers clenched his eyes shut, trying to remember the name he was forgetting earlier..... the guy had such a long name he ended up with a moniker of his own making. After tossing a few clue words in his head he finally got his answer. Up goes the hand "Professor, that alchemist I referred earlier-- the one who believed that Alchemy should primarily be used for creating medicinal cures --his name was Paracelsus. "
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Ella copied down some more notes, scribbling madly as she tried to retain most of the information being thrown at her. It was a lot, that was for sure, but the second year really enjoyed the wealth of new information coming her way. Hopefully she would take away some good information and be able to use it in the future.
While waiting for the handout, Ella thought about the famous alchemists that she had read about during her many trips to the library. There was one in particular that she remembered...someone from the middle ages. "Professor, Albertus Magnus was a monk and I believe he was the one who first identified arsenic...which I guess is kind of unfortunate because isn't that-or wasn't it used a lot for murder?" *Shudder*
Ira furiously and diligently copied down all or almost all that she could copy, into her parchment.
Then looking up, she watched Professor Scabior sneak into the class and stand behind them. What was he doing her? ANd then she soon got her answer as Professor Schrirmer explained.
So.. history of alchemy was somewhat easier to understand.
This was one question and one part of he lesson that Ira understood and knew something. She raised her hand up and answered, "Professor there's Pseudo-Geber.." Yeah.. a false name, because, no one knew who the actual scientist was, though there were some speculations. "He was the one who first discovered Aqua Regia"
Belle was listening to all her classmates volunteering information about Alchemists. She didn't know any but she kept taking notes about what her classmates were saying. She was glad the professor put a charm on her quill to help her take notes. She was just happy to be learning about a new subject.
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Merlin! Charlit responded. Not to mention That this was a difficult agonizing question to answer, and Merlin was the only person of whom Charlit thought might have used alchemy. He was a famous wizard, but seemed very framiliar with the future so alchemy was probably somewhat involved in his work.
Desiree added on to her notes and waited for a handout to come to her. At least this time she was actually able to follow what Professor Schrirmer was saying. She felt like she should contribute something, so she twirled her quill thinking..
She raised her hand, "Professor, Salomon Trismosin was a legendary German alchemist and teacher of the equally famous Paracelsus, who invented spagyric alchemy" which the professor mentioned earlier, "Salomon is probably most famous.." she thought for a second, "for his book, Splendor Solis, which talks about the Philosopher's stone" Which she hadn't read.. but it was in her sister's bookcase.
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Alyssa looked through her textbook but was having problems finding another person that she had not already named until she remembered someone very very very old back who lived in Greece. So she raised her hand and answered.
"There was this man called Zosimus of Panapolis. He lived sometime around early mid 200-300 A.D. Anyway, he collected all the knowledge about the subject and wrote a 28 volume encyclopedia about it. These are believed to be the oldest known books regarding Alchemy." She paused to think what purpose that served.
Then she remembered, "It was because of him that we know what we do about Egyptian/Greek alchemy."
Sophie should have known this seminar thing wasn't going to be too practical. Alchemy did have a lot of theory theory theoryy! And Sophie wasn't fond of theory...
It had reached a point where Sophie wasn't even listening to what professor Schirmer was saying. Poor thing, she had always listened carefully to her words, since the older witch was always talking about Charms before. Not anymore... and Sophie didn't feel like trying to understand this whole thing anymore. She knew she could follow what she was saying - it was pretty much Alchemy for dummies, right? -, but she... didn't feel like it.
So she sat there, doodling on her parchment and glancing sometimes at her friend Theodore, who was sitting next to her.
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Did Emmanuelle know any other famous alchemists? Well, besides the two that had been excluded and the already mentioned Nicholas Flamel, no. She kept silent while finishing her notes (trying to make them as easy to read as possible in the process) and listened as closely as possible to her classmates. She was glad some of them were getting it, because the class was flying almost right over her head! She was glad that it was just a lecture and not a required class because yikes!
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just quote this post to get your handouts guys :3
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Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
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Text Cut: Tegz
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tegz
"While Kurumi hands out those sheets with the Alchemical symbols, lets touch a bit on the history of Alchemy, and of those who have made advances in the field." And this was technically why their History of Magic professor had been invited to pop in. The man needed as much education as he could get, and Althea was ever so obliging.
"In Alchemy there are three major strands which are distinguishable as relatively independent from one another. That isn't to say they did not originate from the same source, just that the knowledge is lost to us and there is no written record which links these three strands to a common origin." Were they following?
"Those strands are Indian, Chinese, and Western Alchemy. Western Alchemy includes Hellenistic Egyptian Alchemy, Islamic Alchemy and Medieval European Alchemy. As you can see the cultures in which Alchemy exists are varied. You'll find there are many famous Alchemists across these cultures, Miss Potter already mentioned Carl Jung and Sir Isaac Newton, does anyone else know of any famous Alchemists? And, if you know anything about their achievements, do share those too, but please only name one Alchemist." Althea requested, knowing that there were a few students who would happily rattle off half a dozen, given the chance.
Okayyyy.
Sierra didn't know any of the people currently being named. This was her first experience with Alchemy ever. Well, except...
...there was that time. Hmm...
"Professor Althea Schirmer," she said, raising her hand. "That's my answer I mean. I've never really had any experiences with Alchemy. Only the ones I've had with you, so...you're my answer." Lowering her hand, she added, "So I guess I'll share why your accomplishments stand out to me. You once gave us an assignment to take care of a metal egg. I thought it was useless at first, but in the end, it really helped me understand more about the properties of metal." She shrugged. "I don't get too overly excited about things, but I thought the fact that we all got a metal animal in the end was pretty cool."
Her's had been a metal porcupine that shot actual spikes. Perfect metal creature for Sierra. Brilliant, it had been.
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Text Cut: Kurumi
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
As Emmanuelle continued to copy notes, Kurumi began her rounds with the worksheets When she got to her table, Emmanuelle took one of the sheets off the top of the pile as quickly and carefully as possible, so as not to cause the sheets to fall. When she looked down at the sheet that was now in her possession, she was sure her brain was going to melt. Were they going to have memorize all of this?! Because Emmanuelle wasn't sure she could. There were just too many symbols!
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Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Nigel was just listening to other peoples answers when the gryffindor prefect started handing out papers. Well since the teacher as condoning it Nigel had to take one.
Nigel was surprised and really confused by what he saw on the paper.
He thought maybe symbols, but he had never seen theses types of symbols before.
Mhmm.. maybe the Professor will tell the class later what is on these notes, thought Nigel.
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SPOILER!!: Kurumi
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Ella continued to take notes while her classmates gave their answers but was a bit distracted when the Gryffindor prefect walked towards her chair with a rather GIANT stack of handouts. Poor girl, that pile was definitely going to cause back problems or something! She gave the older girl a smile as she took the topmost handout from the pile, careful not to knock any over. "Thanks." She said cheerfully before placing the handout down on her desk and trying to figure out what the heck it all meant.
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SPOILER!!: symbol handouts/Krumi
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
"Thank you Kurumi, Charlit said with a smile, as she Picked up a sheet off the top of the pile.
She scanned the sheet over and used an adhesion spell to stick it like glue to a page in her journal. So now it looked like it was printed on the page like a book.
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Annabelle took the handouts from then nice girl handing them out. "Thank you." she said as she took a handout. She was confused as to what the symbols meant on the paper. Hopefully the professor would explain soon.
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Desiree smiled and grabbed the top handout as the Gryffindor passed her, "Thanks". Setting it on her desk she skimmed over the symbols, or should she say gibberish. At least when she got to the bottom it had the English translations.. but still. She was pretty befuddled, ya not confused, befuddled, she liked it better. Anyway she was just going to wait for the Professor to explain.
~ Mrs. Steve Harrington ~ It be like that sometimes.
Jory raised his hand. "There's Acharya Nagarjuna, Professor,'' he said after listening to a few students giving their replies. "He's well known for founding a School of Buddhism.''
Quote:
Originally posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
He jotted down the responses the others had given and as Kurumi passed with the hand outs he took one. "Thanks,'' he said looking at the paper. It was all funny symbols. Maybe they need to be translated.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Chelle took the topmost handout for herself and smiled at Kurumi. Then she sank back into her seat, trying to hide from the Professor.
They had been told NOT to repeat answers, but she hadn't paid attention to what others were saying, and apparently, Newton had already been crossed out.
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SPOILER!!: Kurumi
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
As Kurumi came around, Zhenya took the top piece of paper off the pile and said "Thanks Kurumi," and put it in front of her. It looked very complicating so she just put it to the side without really looking at it. If she did look at it, she would probably cry in frustration. This subject wasn't making a whole lot of sense, but slowly she was understanding it bit by bit.
And now, naming one? She didn't know anything about Alchemy, let alone any individuals. She kept quiet, as she had done the entire lesson, and just wanted to band her head forward onto the table, but she stopped herself from doing this. What she really wanted is to just understand it. But... she couldn't make herself understand it until she could get her hands on a book and read it, that would make some of it sink in she was sure.
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SPOILER!!: Handout
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Alyssa waited until Kurumi approached her and took a sheet off the stack. Said,"Thanks." before looking at the sheet and then went back to listening to what the other students and Professor were saying.
Let's try this again. *stupidly closed my reply tab before I finished it*
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Text Cut: Kurumi
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
Text Cut: notes
The Goals of the Alchemist
--find the panacea
--find the alkahest
--turning things into gold (chrysopoeia) and other noble metals
Definitions Alkahest - Believed by Paracelsus to be the Philosophers Stone, or an element of its creation. This is a hypothetical universal solvent, having the power to dissolve every other substance, including gold.
Azoth - This serves as the essential agent of alchemical transformation, and embodies the concept of the main goals in Alchemy it is a possible universal medicine, universal solvent, or Elixir of Life. It is a name for Mercury as cardinal principle of Alchemy.
Chrysopoeia - A symbolic representation of the Philosophers Stone, chrysopoeia means transmutation into gold, from the Greek khrusōn, 'gold', and poiēin, 'to make'.
Panacea - also called the pancrest, or Panakeia in Greek, is named for the Greek Goddess of universal remedy, she supposedly had a magical medicinal substance which could cure all ills. It is a remedy that is supposed to cure all diseases and prolong life indefinitely.
Solve et Coagula - 'Separate and Join Together' (or dissolve and coagulate')
Spagyrics -the production of herbal medicines using alchemical techniques such as fermentation, distillation and the extraction of mineral components from the ash of a plant. Greek for 'separate and recombine'
The Cardinal Principles of Alchemy The Alchemical trinity of principles.
In alchemical terms all things are composed of three parts- Sulphur , Mercury, and Salt. The alchemist separates and recombines these three cardinal principles as often as necessary until they are in perfect proportion and harmony, and the raw material has been reduced to its purest essence.
Mercury
- principle of fusibility and volatility
- represents water element
- represents the life force
Salt
- principle of fixity and in-combustibility
- represents earth element
- represents the physical body
Sulphur
- principle of flammability
- represents fire element
- represents the soul or individualized essence of being
Stella was back to just silently taking notes. She'd smiled at Professor Schirmer's response to her earlier suggestion, especially since it seemed her random tangent back to the Latin and Greek phrases hadn't seemed to irritate the woman. She'd been worried, but then now she was back to not being sure of the subject again. At least, she wasn't sure she could name any alchemists that hadn't already been mentioned, and so she was choosing to stay quiet. It seemed easier than any other option, at least, and that way she could focus on getting everything copied down into her notes. Her attention had wavered as Sierra had actually offered the professor herself as a famous alchemist, though, and she'd glanced over at the Slytherin girl. That wasn't exactly something she would have expected, especialy as it made her wonder if the former Charms professor knew she still carried Oberon around everywhere. In fact, the tiger was curled up in her school bag at that very moment.
She wasn't going to interrupt the lesson just to say that, in any case, and next thing she knew Kurumi had appeared next to her carrying a stack of handouts. That looked rather precarious, so she carefully slid one off the top of the stack before giving the Gryffindor prefect a smile. "Thank you, Kurumi," she said quietly, not wanting to speak too loudly and get in trouble. She wasn't about to not be polite, either, and she hoped the professor would excuse her if she wasn't supposed to talk. Either way, she went back to her notes after she'd gotten the handout, waiting to see what was going to be discussed next. Oddly, I think I recognize at least a few of these names, she thought, eyes scanning the list of symbols and names once she'd set her quill down for a moment. It made her feel a bit better.[/COLOR]
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Minerva threw her hand up, she might not know much about this subject, but there were other things she liked to read and she remembered. "Professor I read once that Albus Dumbledore was one." She then turned noticing the Kurumi skipped over her."Kurumi, can I have a handout please?" She didn't mind that she skipped over her with this many students it was bound to happen to someone, so if it was Minerva then it was Minerva no big deal.
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SPOILER!!: Kurumi and handouts
Quote:
Originally Posted by sweetpinkpixie
Rising from her seat and reluctantly letting go of Lewis hand again, Kurumi approached Professor Schirmer and gawked for a moment at the rather large stack of paper she was being handed. Merlin did she hope that she didn't drop all of these as she made her way around the room. Holding her arms out, Kurumi accepted the handouts and nearly fell over backwards from their weight. Merlin...Merlin Merlin Merlin...
"I....believe....that....Chang Tao Ling.....was....an....alchemist..." Kurumi huffed as she attempted to stable herself and the papers.
Turning around, slowly, the sixth year began to walk, almost waddling like a penguin with the stack of papers in her arms, around the classroom. "If you could just take the topmost handout," she instructed as she passed each student. There was no way she was going to risk removing one of her hands and having the entire stack scatter all over the room. The windows were closed, right?
SPOILER!!: symbol handouts
(ooc credit: From H.T. Scheffer, Chemiske forelasningar, Upsalla. 1775, Torbern Bergman's 1775 Dissertation Elective. These reproductions are in the public domain due to the age of the original material)
He waited for Kurumi to walk by his row then reached out for a handout. His eyes grew large, not in alarm, but at the sheer information held within its pages.
Cue geekout mode? Why yes.
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++Tenacius ++🐦++ Salander++🐦++ Deo ++🐦++ Vickers ++🐦++ Huxley ++🐦+ Aquila++ Yeah thats what crazy is, when its broken you say theres nothing to fix++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++And you pray that everything will be okay, while you're making all the same mistakes
Introduction to Alchemy 
x3 
x2
Yeah thats what crazy is, when its broken you say theres nothing to fix++++++++++++++++++++
