Diotimos Library · Esotericism & Spirituality Collection · Bilingual Edition
Nine Books on the Nature of Things
A fresh translation from the early Latin text with annotations and study apparatus
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Latin Page · Branch 100 of 642
Book 3 · Preservation · Passage 7
Source reference
- Latin witness
- 1605 p. 210
Latin
Post haec sciendum est etiam, quod metalla inter se inimicitias exerceant, & se invicem oderint ex ingenita natura, ut videtis in ♄, qui soli summus hostis est, ex congenita natura: nam omnia auri membra disrumpit, reddit illud deforme, invalidum, & perdit & corrumpit illud ad summum usque; ad mortem, plusquam ullum aliud metallum. Stannum etiam odit, & hostis est omnium metallorum: nam reddit ea degeneria, immalleabilia, dura, inepta, si misceatur illis in igne & fluxu.
English
It must also be understood that metals exercise hostilities among themselves and hate one another by their innate nature. You see this in Saturn, which is the Sun’s greatest enemy by its inborn nature: it breaks up all Gold’s members, makes it disfigured and weak, and ruins and corrupts it utterly, even to death, more than any other metal. Tin too hates and is the enemy of all metals: if mixed with them in fire and fusion, it makes them degenerate, unmalleable, hard and unserviceable.
Socrates
Reading Nine Books on the Nature of Things · Book 3 · Preservation · Book 3 · Preservation · Passage 7
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Socrates will begin with this book and its sources.About This Reading Edition
The complete supplied Latin–English edition of the historical title, dedication and all nine books, with 363 separately labelled historical marginal notes, 117 modern annotations and the complete Diotimos study apparatus. The transmitted composite work is traditionally attributed to Paracelsus; individual authorship remains qualified.
Historical Text and Translation
The normalized Latin follows the complete 1605 Frankfurt Palthenian witness, volume six, printed pages 198–271, in SUB Göttingen PPN578052199, historical scans 182–255. Earlier textual tradition is German; the individual translator of the 1605 Latin text is not identified. The dedication’s 1537 date is transmitted text, not an established date for the composite work.
About Diotimos Editions
This historical edition credits Diotimos Editions as its English translator.
Rights
The historical Latin text is in the public domain. The fresh English translation and editorial material were prepared with AI assistance for Diotimos Editions in 2026 and are published with the site owner’s authorization.