Excrementa

Body disease and historical medicine · A Chymical Dictionary

At a Glance

The word. Superfluities described through expulsion by Nature.

In the book. Emunctorium names the place of expulsion, while Anodus is what is separated from nutriment by the kidneys.

A place to read. The historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 21; facsimile PDF page 349.

Historical Definition

Excrementa are all superfluous things expelled by Nature.

Meaning

The definition is deliberately broad: all superfluous things, not only one bodily product. Nature is the agent of expulsion in the account. The term consequently names a relation between what is judged surplus and the activity that casts it out.

This breadth matters when reading a passage about preparation or the body. The familiar modern noun can suggest a narrower meaning than the dictionary gives. The material intended must be identified from the surrounding discussion rather than presumed from the headword.

Use in the Book

Emunctorium names the place of expulsion, while Anodus is what is separated from nutriment by the kidneys. Impurum alcali concerns scum removed when alkali is purified. These entries provide different forms of location and separation, without making every removed residue the same kind of thing.

Places to Read

Anodus. A bodily product defined through renal separation.

Emunctorium. A bodily place identified through expulsion.

Impurum alcali. A residue distinguished through the purification of alkali.

In This Edition

The edition keeps “Nature” and “superfluous” because both express the historical explanation. It does not decide independently what a body or preparation ought to expel.

Historical source: 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 21; facsimile PDF page 349 — Facsimile

Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary 1650, s.v. Excrementa

See also. Anodus; Emunctorium; Impurum alcali