A Chymical Dictionary

Andena

Metals minerals and metallic preparations · A Chymical Dictionary

At a Glance

The word. An eastern steel characterized by melting and casting.

A place to read. The historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 3; facsimile PDF page 331.

Historical Definition

Andena is steel brought from eastern countries, which melts in fire like other metal and is cast into various forms.

Meaning

The entry identifies a metal, gives it a geographical provenance and emphasizes its capacity to be cast. The latter distinguishes the author’s account from a description concerned only with the shaping of solid metal. Yet the definition offers no precise place of manufacture, composition or trade route. “Eastern countries” should therefore remain a broad historical claim rather than being expanded into an unsupported national origin.

For reading, preserve the sequence: the material is called steel, is melted, and then receives different forms by casting. The fact that a passage mentions one of these actions does not by itself establish every other feature of the dictionary’s definition.

Places to Read

Hadid. A dictionary name for iron.

Fusio. An operation defined by melting and flow in fire.

Historical source: 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 3; facsimile PDF page 331 — Facsimile

Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary (1650), s.v. Andena ; compare Hadid, Fusio

See also. Hadid; Fusio