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 name commonly used for alchemy.
- In the bookSpagirus describes a person who distinguishes good from bad and separates pure from impure.
- A place to readThe historical definition below, 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 43; facsimile PDF page 371.
Historical definition
Spagiria is commonly taken to mean alchemy.
Meaning
Commonly marks a usage rather than an exact account of every possible occurrence. The entry establishes the ordinary equivalence with alchemy and leaves its more particular activity to the neighboring practitioner term.
Use in the book
Spagirus describes a person who distinguishes good from bad and separates pure from impure. Read together, the two entries supply both a name for the art and a description of the competence associated with its practitioner. Separation is consequently a useful starting point for following this vocabulary.
The dictionary’s alchemical language extends across herbs, animal materials, minerals, medicines and philosophical principles. The general equivalence here does not mean that every named operation aims at making metallic gold. The subject and purpose supplied by each passage remain decisive.
Places to read
- SpagiriaRead the complete historical definition and its commentary.
- QuintessentiaA purified spiritual matter obtained from living things.
- SpagirusThe alchemical practitioner defined through discrimination and separation.
- YsopusAlchemy described through separation of pure and impure.
In this edition
The historical spelling is retained as a searchable form. Related English forms can lead to this article, while their connection is treated as an editorial finding aid. No reconstructed derivation is required to understand the usage actually stated in the witness.
Source note
Historical source. 1650 dictionary, unnumbered definition page 43; facsimile PDF page 371 — Facsimile