From the book
A Chymical Dictionary
Gerhard Dorn and John French · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordA dissolving water described through the root and matrix of vinegar.
- In the bookThe dictionary also gives the direct identification of Aqua solvens as distilled vinegar.
- A place to readThe historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 1; facsimile PDF page 329.
Historical definition
Acetum radicale is vinegar distilled from its own root and matrix, and is called the Dissolving Water.
Meaning
“Root” and “matrix” make origin central to this definition: the water is named through the substance or generating source from which it is distilled. Neither expression supplies a measurable recipe. Preserve that distinction when reading a passage that promises a radical solvent. The word may mark a claimed relationship to a substance’s origin rather than simply an unusually strong commercial vinegar.
Use in the book
The dictionary also gives the direct identification of Aqua solvens as distilled vinegar. Reading the two together shows that the vocabulary can describe both a named liquid and an account of its source. Acetum Philosophorum introduces a further, mercurial association. The shared language of dissolving does not establish chemical identity among them.
Places to read
- Acetum radicaleRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- Acetum PhilosophorumA philosophical solvent described as a mercurial water and Virgin’s Milk.
- Aqua solvensA direct identification of a dissolving water as distilled vinegar.
- Matrices rerumThe elements considered as matrices of things.
Source note
Historical source. 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 1; facsimile PDF page 329 — Facsimile