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Marcasita
Metals minerals and metallic preparations · A Chymical Dictionary
At a Glance
The word. A varied category of metallic matter understood as unripe.
In the book. Kachimia similarly concerns the first, unripe state of metallic ore.
A place to read. The historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 32; facsimile PDF page 360.
Historical Definition
Marcasita is an unripe matter of metals, with as many kinds as there are metals.
Meaning
The dictionary does not give one fixed mineral identity. It defines a category by its relation to metallic development and expressly multiplies its kinds according to the metals. Unripe therefore does explanatory work: the matter is discussed in relation to a condition it has not yet attained.
Use in the Book
Kachimia similarly concerns the first, unripe state of metallic ore. Magnesia is commonly used for a marcasite, but its artificial sense is separately described as a white, brittle mixture. Those links give both a near parallel and a reminder that one name may cover different accounts.
Places to Read
Kachimia. Metallic ore described as unripe and at its beginning.
Magnesia. One name with a common mineral use and a distinct artificial preparation.
In This Edition
A later restricted mineral use of marcasite is not substituted for the compiler’s plural and developmental definition.
Historical source: 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 32; facsimile PDF page 360 — Facsimile
Sources. A Chymical Dictionary 1650, 1650 dictionary, facsimile PDF page 360, Marcasita