John Augustus Tulk alchemical notebook : manuscript.

Format:

Book

Manuscript

Author/Creator:

Tulk, John Augustus, 1756-1845, compiler.

Contributor:

Edgar Fahs Smith Memorial Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Alchemy.

Chemistry.

England.

England--Intellectual life.

Genre:

codices (bound manuscripts)

Manuscripts, English -- 19th century.

Penn Provenance:

Sold by Christian White Rare Books (Ilkley, England), 2024.

Physical Description:

1 volume (50 leaves) ; 18 x 12 cm

Production:

London, England, 1807-1811.

Other Title:

Title page: A clew to the Hermetic Labyrinth; selected from the Theatrum Chemicum of Lazarus Letznerus: Briefly supported and proved, by the principles, practice of authority, of the most eminent and candid writers, on the occult Philosophy. To which is subjoined; The possibility of a shorter process to the manipulation of the work, upon the same principles.

Summary:

This volume was written between 1807 and 1811 in London, England by John Augustus Tulk and contains his treatise-style writings and notes on alchemy. It is bound in half leather over marbled paper boards and is divided into three sections: "A clew &c" (p. 1r-10r), "Conclusion" (p. 11r-18r), and "Addenda" (p. 19r-36r). The three primary sections are followed by blank pages (p. 36v-42r) and a short section titled "Cursory thoughts on creation" (p. 42v-44v). The first section begins with a transcription of Magister Odomar's "A perfect preparation of common salt for the Philosopher's Stone" from Book III of the Theatrum Chemicum written on the rectos with some of Tulk's own thoughts and comments written on the versos. The second section, "Conclusion," is subtitled "with a philosophical suggestion of a more expeditious mode of educing the secret of the philosophers founded on what follows." The "Addenda" includes numerous references to literature in addition to passages and poems, some of which may have been written by Tulk. In this section, Tulk describes and discusses Beecher's Concordatia Chymica; Peter Shaw's Philosophical Principles of Universal Chemistry; and poems by Elias Ashmole in Theatrum Chymicum Britanicum. This section also contains "Remarks upon several authors" (p. 30v-36r), including Eirenaeus Philalethes, Paracelsus, Abbe Rousseau, and Alipili the Moor. Throughout the volume, there are a significant number of references to alchemical texts and figures. This volume gives insight into the position and reception of alchemy in the London intellectual community at the beginning of the 19th century.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Edgar Fahs Smith Memorial Fund.

Cited as:

John Augustus Tulk Alchemical Notebook (Ms. Codex 2227). Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania.

OCLC:

1465361618