Geber

Meaning

II.3.36 cites Geber for the sulphur of Nature being white outside and red within. The saying is placed within the Proteus-like succession of colours and the distinction between removable sulphurs and the retained fixed power. It helps the author argue that an appearance can conceal a different inward capacity.

The attribution does not independently certify the textual origin of the saying or the practical success of a colour-change. The author also limits his disclosure: he is not setting out the whole teaching of the Elixir. The accompanying anonymous comparisons and warnings against fraudulent sellers of smoke should remain beside the authoritative name. Geber's presence lends weight to an interpreted distinction, not a warrant to reconstruct a complete preparation. The anonymous sage’s gold ring covered with silver is the adjacent image of a red interior beneath a white stage; it is not attributed to Geber merely because his name precedes it.