The Secrets of Alchemy

Lawrence M. Principe

2023-03 · Tantor Media Inc · Skaito Gary Tiedemann

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In The Secrets of Alchemy, Lawrence M. Principe, one of the world's leading authorities on the subject, brings alchemy out of the shadows and restores it to its important place in human history and culture. By surveying what alchemy was and how it began, developed, and overlapped with a range of ideas and pursuits, Principe illuminates the practice. He vividly depicts the place of alchemy during its heyday in early modern Europe, and then explores how alchemy has fit into wider views of the cosmos and humanity, touching on its enduring place in literature, fine art, theater, and religion as well as its recent acceptance as a serious subject of study for historians of science. In addition, he introduces the listener to some of the most fascinating alchemists, such as Zosimos and Basil Valentine, whose lives dot alchemy's long reign from the third century and to the present day. Through his exploration of alchemists and their times, Principe pieces together closely guarded clues from obscure and fragmented texts to reveal alchemy's secrets, and-most exciting for budding alchemists-uses them to recreate many of the most famous recipes in his lab, including those for the "glass of antimony" and "philosophers' tree." This unique approach brings the listener closer to the actual work of alchemy than any other book.

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Lawrence M. Principe is the Drew Professor of the Humanities and director of the Singleton Center for the Study of Premodern Europe at Johns Hopkins University.

Gary Tiedemann is a Florida and New York-based narrator, but learned how to act in Chicago's improv, sketch-comedy, and theater scene. He came to audiobook narration after voicing countless commercials and videos over a twenty-year voice-over career.