From the book
A Chymical Dictionary
Gerhard Dorn and John French · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordGold identified by being beaten into a thin form.
- A place to readThe historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 8; facsimile PDF page 336.
Historical definition
Aurum planatum is what they call leaf gold, or hammered gold.
Meaning
The definition emphasizes a physical form created by working the metal. It does not describe a philosophical gold, a liquid medicine or an ore. The phrase “leaf gold” provides the principal recognition clue, and “hammered” records how its form is understood.
This is a useful anchor beside the dictionary’s more elaborate Aurum terms. A passage about planatum begins with a materially specified form rather than automatically invoking every philosophical meaning of gold. Any later transformation belongs to the described operation, not to the headword alone.
Places to read
- Aurum planatumRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- ChrysosA direct name equivalence for gold.
- Aurum potabileA purported gold liquor accompanied by a sharp criticism of its preparation.
- Aurum vitæA gold preparation identified through precipitation, heating and intense redness.
Source note
Historical source. 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 8; facsimile PDF page 336 — Facsimile
Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary (1650), s.v. Aurum planatum ; compare Chrysos, Aurum potabile, Aurum vitæ