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 green earth identified through resemblance to verdigris.
- A place to readThe historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 16; facsimile PDF page 344.
Historical definition
Chrysocolla is a kind of green earth resembling verdigris.
Meaning
The comparison is the key qualification: the material is like verdigris, not simply defined as verdigris. Colour and earthy character supply the stated recognition clues. The entry does not establish one modern mineral species or say how the material was prepared.
Calx Veneris and Almizadir provide direct verdigris equations. Reading them beside Chrysocolla helps a reader distinguish resemblance from identity. That small grammatical difference is materially important in a dictionary whose entries often connect unfamiliar substances through familiar analogues.
Places to read
- ChrysocollaRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- Calx VenerisA Venus-qualified calx identified as verdigris.
- AlmizadirA historical name directing the reader to verdigris.
Source note
Historical source. 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 16; facsimile PDF page 344 — Facsimile
Sources. A Chymicall Dictionary (1650), s.v. Chrysocolla ; compare Calx Veneris, Almizadir