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 spirit preparation identified through a particular animal material.
- A place to readThe historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 15; facsimile PDF page 343.
Historical definition
Cerviculæ is the spirit made from the bone in a hart’s heart.
Meaning
The definition gives an animal source, an anatomical location and a prepared form. It describes a bone said to be in a hart’s heart and a spirit made from it. The animal and the location should not be lost in a vague summary such as animal spirit, because they are the entry’s principal identifying details.
Scacurcula provides a closely matching account: the spirit of a bone in a hart’s heart. This direct parallel identifies the same anatomical source. Neither short entry supplies a complete preparation or establishes an attributed efficacy, so the shared wording should not be expanded into an unstated recipe.
Places to read
- CerviculæRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- ScacurculaA spirit associated with a bone in a deer’s heart.
Source note
Historical source. 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 15; facsimile PDF page 343 — Facsimile
Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary (1650), s.v. Cerviculæ ; compare Scacurcula