From the book
A Chymical Dictionary
Gerhard Dorn and John French · Diotimos Editions · 2026
Browse this book’s lexicon →Orientation
At a Glance
- The wordStone as a general designation of fixity.
- In the bookLapis Philosophorum is a particular exalted term, defined through terrestrial power and tincture.
- A place to readThe historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 29; facsimile PDF page 357.
Historical definition
Lapis is used for any fixed thing.
Meaning
The defining property is fixity, not geological origin. A substance may be called lapis because it remains fixed within the relevant work. The word therefore cannot always be understood as an ordinary stone picked up from the ground.
Use in the book
Lapis Philosophorum is a particular exalted term, defined through terrestrial power and tincture. The general Lapis entry should be read before that compound, but it does not make every fixed thing the philosophers’ stone.
Places to read
- LapisRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- Lapis PhilosophorumThe philosophers’ stone defined through supreme terrestrial power and its imparting of tincture.
Source note
Historical source. 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 29; facsimile PDF page 357 — Facsimile
Sources. A Chymical Dictionary 1650, 1650 dictionary, facsimile PDF page 357, Lapis