Attramentum

Salts solvents and liquid preparations · A Chymical Dictionary

At a Glance

The word. A context-sensitive term ranging across copperas, ink and blacking.

In the book. This entry belongs with Æs and Cheiri as a guide to qualified reading.

A place to read. The historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 8; facsimile PDF page 336.

Historical Definition

Attramentum means different things according to its qualifying adjective. What shoemakers use is copperas, of the sort red within; what writers use is ink, sooty in character, also called blacking. It also means all kinds of copperas.

Meaning

The opening instruction is unusually practical: inspect the adjective. The definition then distinguishes trades and applications, associating shoemakers with copperas and writers with ink. Its final clause widens the term to copperas generally. Those distinctions are more useful than choosing one English equivalent for every occurrence.

The references to red interior and soot-like ink are part of the author’s material descriptions. They should not be treated as a complete compositional test. A passage naming a trade, a colour or a preparation can clarify which sense applies.

Use in the Book

This entry belongs with Æs and Cheiri as a guide to qualified reading. In each case, an isolated headword is insufficient. Here both grammar and practical setting contribute to the identification.

Places to Read

Calcanthum. A historical term identified with vitriol.

Æs. A metal term whose referent must be established from context.

Cheiri. A term whose sense depends on both subject matter and qualification.

Historical source: 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 8; facsimile PDF page 336 — Facsimile

Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary (1650), s.v. Attramentum ; compare Calcanthum, Æs, Cheiri

See also. Calcanthum; Æs; Cheiri