A Chymical Dictionary

Compositum

Qualities powers and relations · A Chymical Dictionary

At a Glance

The word. A compound body considered before separation.

In the book. Corpus names the subject in which virtues are hidden, and Digestio describes preparation through the separation of pure from impure.

A place to read. The historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 17; facsimile PDF page 345.

Historical Definition

Compositum, used without qualification, is a body that has not been separated.

Meaning

The qualification “used without qualification” is part of the definition. It tells a reader how the word is to be understood when an author gives no more specific context. The body is defined by its unseparated condition, rather than by a list of ingredients or a statement about their proportions.

That condition is relative to an operation. The same subject can be considered as a body containing several things and as the source from which distinct portions may be separated. The entry does not require that all apparent bodies can be divided by one common process.

Use in the Book

Corpus names the subject in which virtues are hidden, and Digestio describes preparation through the separation of pure from impure. Extractum names what has been extracted while grossness is left behind. These connections make Compositum useful for tracking whether a passage is discussing a whole subject or a selected product.

Places to Read

Corpus. A body understood as the subject containing a thing’s hidden efficacy.

Digestio. Preparation understood through digestion and the separation of pure from impure.

Extractum. A selected product distinguished from bodily concretion and its gross remainder.

In This Edition

“Compound” should not silently acquire the narrow meaning of a chemically pure compound in modern classification. The dictionary’s governing distinction is separation.

Historical source: 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 17; facsimile PDF page 345 — Facsimile

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

See also. Corpus; Digestio; Extractum