A Goodly Gallery, Book 5
❧ The fift booke of earthly Meteores or bodies perfectly mixed.
THis last treatise conteyneth suche bodies whose chief matter is the earth,Earthly bodies. & are called ꝑfectly mixed because they ar not easly resolued in to the chiefe matter, wherof they ar generated. These are deuided into foure kyndes. The first be diuerse sortes of earth, the second be liquors concreat, the third be metalls and metalliques, the fourthe be stoones. This deuision is not altogether perfect both for that ther be many of these mineralls whiche partake of two kyndes, & also for that the names of some of these kyndes may be sayde of other. Yet mindyng as plainly as can be, to declare the thynges them selues, the controuersye and cauillation of names, shall not greatly trouble vsus. Especially seyng we pretende not to teache Philosophers, but such as nede a ruder & plainer instruction. They may therfor be cōtēt wc this diuisiō, which shal not serue them to dispute of these matters, but to vnderstād ye truth of these thinges that they desyre. Of these fowr, therfore we will speake orderly and generally, not mynding to intreate of eueryevery particuler kynde (for that were infinit) but to open suche vniuersall causes, as they whiche hauehave witte, may learne, (if they list) to apply vntounto al particulers.
¶ Of earthes.
THe earth is an element,Of earths one of the foure, cold and drie, moste grosse and solyde, moste heauy and weighty, the lowest of all other in place. When I saye an element, I meane a simple body vncompounded. This earth is no Meteore, but as it was shewed in the water, to ye end ther should be generatiō of things, there is no element that we can hauehave, whiche is pure and symple, but all are mixed and cōpounde. Our fyre is grosse and compounde, so is our ayer our water, and our earth. But the earth notably and aboue the rest is mixed. For the puer and naturall earth is drye and cold, but we sée much to be moist, and much to be hoat The naturall earth is blacke of collor, but we sée many earthes white many yelowe, and many redde. So that first the greatest part of ye earth is mixed with water, that maketh it to cleane together, with ayer and some fyre, which make an oyly fatt or claymy earth, as is claye made. &c. Another great part is dryed not into the natural drienes of the first qualitie, but as a thing ones mixed and after dryed, ether by to cold, as sand grauell, &c. or els by heate, as chalke, oker &c. And yet somwhat more plainly and particularly to discourse vpen these causes, admitting the naturall collour of the earth to be black, of ye water to be blewe, of the ayre to be whyte, & of the fyre to be ruddy, it followeth that vponupon the mixtion of these collours, or chief domination of them, al thinges hath their collour. The grosse substaunce of the earth therefore beinge diuersly myxed with other elementes, and those myxtures againe being eftsones altered, by dyuerse and sometime cōtrary qualities, hath brought forth so manye kyndes of earth, as claye, marle, chalke, sand, grauell &c. Claye is mixed with fat moisture takyng his colloure of the mixture with redde from whyte, but beyng colde, it is not so fructfull as marle, whiche is not alwayes so moiste as it. Chalke is an earth by heat cōcocted, after diuerse mixtions and dried vp. Oker both yelow & redde with suche like are of the same nature with mixtiō of redde more or lesse.
Sande and grauell are dried erthes, as it were froasen by colde, grauell is grosse and apparent, sand though it be finer, is of the same generation cōsisting of many small bodies, which ar cōgeled into stones. Sād semeth to be clay dried by cold and coacted together into small stones, wherof some ar through shining which were the moyst partes, the thicke were of the grosse parte. The same is grauel, but of greater stoones consisting. The lyke iudgement is to be geuen of all other kyndes of earth, whose generation by the similitude of these, wyll not be very harde to fynde out. They that lyst to knowe the diuerse kyndes of earthes, must hauehave recourse to Plinius, Cardane, Plinius. Cardanusand other wryters, that recite a great nomber of them, but these are the chief and most commen kyndes.
¶ Of liquors concreat.
WE take not lyquors cōcreat so largely, as the worde dothe signifie, for than should we comprehende, bothe the other kyndes followyng. But onelyonly those liquors, called in latin Succi, which are as it were midle betwene metals & stones, of whiche some being fat & only, do burne, as brimstone, séecoles, geate, bitumen, &c. and the kyndes of all these. other some doth not burne, as salt, alū, coperus, saltpeter, &c. and the kindes of these. Of the first sort, which are generated of earthy & ayry vapors, fumes & Exhalations, the chief & most notable, is brimstone, which semeth to be the matter of all drie & whot qualities, yt ar in earthly Meteores. The rest are generated of such lyke vapors as brymstone is, but thē they be diuersly mixed. As ye coles, hauehave much earth mixed with brimstone. Gette, séemeth to be all one, but better concocted then coles. Of amber is great contentiō whether it be a mineral, or ye sperme of an whale, for it is foūd in the sea, cast vp on the shore. Now ye whales séede, being of the very same qualities, is takē more & lesse cōcreate of diuers hardnes, som al most as hard as amber, som softer, & som liquid. Yet Cardan plainly defineth,Cardanus that amber is a minerall. Whether he hauehave reason or experiēce, cōtrary to ye vulgar opinion, let them consider that list to cō tende. These minerals that will resolue with fyre, it is apparent, that they were concreat with colde. In that they burne it is manifest, they hauehave a fatte and clā my substaūce, mixed with them. As the other kynde hath not, whiche wyll not resolue so well with fyre, as wc water, whiche be salt, coperus, saltpeters, &c. these burne not being watry, earthy, & not fatt, vnctuus, nor clammy.
These be of diuerse collours, black as coles and geat, because ther is much earthy substaunce mixed with their sulphureus matter. Some be shere as saltt and alume, hauing a substaunce watry, dryed, and concreat. Coperus is greane, because it hath muche colde matter that is blwe, mixed with it. Salt the most cō men and necessary of all these liquors concreat, that be moist & not fatty, hath two maner of generations, one naturall, and the other artificiall. The naturall generation, is when it is first generated, in the earth, after commeth the water of the sea, and is infected with it, out of whiche the salt is againe artificially gathered. Of these liquors concreat be those strange wells and sprynges infected, of whiche was spoken, in the latter ende of the fourth booke. Most notably brimstone causeth the whot bathes, and burneth in aetna, of Scicilia, and Vesuuius of Italye,Aetna & Vesuuius casting vp the pumise stones, of whiche is no place here to entreate.
¶ Of Metalles.
MEtalles be substaunces perfectlye myxed,Metalls. that wyll melte, with heate, and be brought into all manner of fashions that a man wyl. Of these the Alcumistes saye, there be seuen kyndes, to aunswere to the seuen Planetes. Gold, syluer, copper, tynne, lead, Iron & quicksyluer, that they cal Mercury. Mercury.But sauing their authorities, quicksyluer is no more a metall, then brymstone, whiche is as necessarye to the generation of metall, as quicsyluer is. For they all agrée, that all metalles are generated of sulphur,Sulphur. that is brymstone, whiche because it is whot, they call the father, and Mercury that is quicksiluer, whiche because it is moyst, they call the mother. So by as good reason, may they call brymstone a metalle, as Mercury. Then there remaineth but six perfect metalls, Gold, Syluer, Copper, Tinne, Lead, and Iron.
¶ Of Golde.
THat moste vnprofitable and hurtfull of al metalls golde,Golde. which most men disprayse, and yet all men would hauehave, is of all other metalles the rarest, it is only ꝑfect, all other be corruptible. Gold neuer corrupteth by rust,why gold rusteth not. because it is pure from poysonus infection & most solide, that it receiueth not the ayre into it, which causeth all thinges to corrupt. It is perfectly concocted with sufficient heate, and mixture of Sulphur, all other metalls, either are not so well concocted, or els they hauehave not the due quā titie of brimstone. This opiniō hath also place among the Alcumistes,The opinion of the Alcumistes. yt because nature in al her workes, seketh the best ende, she entēdeth, of al metals to make gold▪ but being let either for wante of good mixture, or good cōcoction, she bringeth forth other metals, in deede not so precius, but much more profitable, & the lesse pretius, the more ꝓfitable, for ther is more vse to the necessitie of mannes life, in Iron and lead, then is in golde, & syluer. But either the bewtie, or the perfectiō, or at lestwyse the rarenes of gold & siluer, hauehave obteineth the estimatiō of al men, so yt for them is sold al maner of things, holy, & prophane, bodely & spirituall. What paynes doth not men take to wynn gold? eueryevery man hath one way or other, to hunt after it, but ye Alcumist despising all other wayes as slow, vnnaturall, & vnprofitable, laboreth ether to helpe nature in her worke, as of vnperfect metals to make ꝑfect, or els to force natur to his purpose, by his quintessence & elixors, so that what by purging, what by cōcocting, what by mixing of sulphur & quicksiluer, & muche other like stuffe, at length he turneth the wrong side of his gowne outward, all the teeth out of his head, & his body frō helth to a palsey, and then he is a Philosopher, and so he will be called.
¶ Of Syluer.
SIluer the most pure metalle,Siluer. next vntounto golde, hath indifferent good concoction in the earth, but it wanteth sufficiēt heat in the mixtur, that maketh it pale. It is founde as they saye, running into diuerse vaines as all other metalles be, but this most specially, after ye shape & fashion of a trée, lying alonge with a bodye or stocke of proportion lyke to the body of a trée, also with armes, braunches, leaues and fruictes. This metall syluer, lacketh sufficient heate, and therfore cō meth neyther to the collour, soliditie, nor perfection of golde, and is generated in colde countries, neare vntounto the North, and South poles. In so greate quantitie, that hasbandmen, when they plowe the grounde turne vp syluer, among the clottes in their dayly labours. Whiche they doe hyde, and conceale, least the gready Princes, for couetousnes of the metall, should ouerturne and destroye their lande. The golde mynes, are contrarywyse, moste founde in the whote countries of India and Aethiopia, because in them is sufficient of heate for that vnhappy generation.
This syluer also, the Alcumistes woulde fayne make by arte, but Mercury the chief maister of the worke, is so subtill, and so slye, that nothinge can holde hym, nothing can kyll hym. For if the glasse be not very thyck, he wyll soone breake out of pryson, and so there is nothyng left.
¶ Of Copper.
COpper in collour,Copper▪ comming nearest to golde, beyng not solyde, nor massy, (for of all metall golde is the heauiest) geueth waye to corruption, beyng infected with that greane minerall copperus. Hereof be dyuerse kyndes, brasse, latine and suche lyke, whiche differ in in digestion, the copper beyng purest, is of best digestion and nearest vntounto golde, and so the rest in lyke degrees. Copper is moste lyke to syluer in the wayghte, and in the hammeryng, wherefore the Alcumistes hauehave learned to make it whyte, that it deceyueth mens syghte & handlyng, but the Goldsmythes doe easely trye it & by the teast of coūterfect siluer, maketh copper agayne. Copper or brasse, doth alwaye growe neare vntounto the myne of copperus, whiche runnyng with it in the digestion or naturall contoction, hyndreth it of perfectiō, maketh it to stynke, and to be eaten of a greane …se. Muche a doe the Alcumistes hauehave to turne it into golde, if it might be, they dispute very reasonablye, and conclude almoste necessarily in their talke, that it may be conuerted into golde as, a body, that wāteth litle of perfectiō which may be easely added vntounto it. But in conclusiō of the worke, it is an harder matter, to bryng it to passe, then it was to purpose before they had done it, to builde an abbay at eueryevery myles ende, vpō Salisbury playne, as one was mynded.
¶ Of Tinne.
TYnne, wherof great plenty groweth in the West partes of Englande,Tinne. in bewty and collour cōmeth nearest to siluer, & of siluer wāteth nothing, but soliditie & hardnes. For tinn is a rawe & vndigested metall, also very porose & vncō pact, which causeth it to crashe, when it is broken or bitten. So it faileth of heat, in the cōmixtiō & also sufficiēt digestiō in the earth. Otherwise it is a fayre & proffitable metal, to serue ye vse of thē, vntounto whom siluer & gold are not so plentiful.
¶ Of Lead.
LEad also found in great abūdance wt in this realm,Lead. is a rawe & vndigested metal, as tin is, but yet of better digestiō thē cōmixtiō. For it is mixed, wc a grosse earthy substance, which maketh it to be in collor so black, & so fowl to corrupt. So that of ye same fumes & exhalatiōs, which if they had ben pure & well digested, if ye place & matter wold hauehave suffered, shold hauehave ben concreat into siluer, for lack of the same, lead is generated, which comming plentifully, doth better seruice thē syluer.
¶ Of Iron.
IRon the most necessary and profitable of all other metalls,Iron. & yet as ill vsed of many as any other, is generated of such substaunce as syluer is, but myxed with a redde minerall, whiche eateth it with redde ruste, and also being of two extreme degestion, passing all other metalls in hardenes. And as other metals to the perfection of syluer, wante sufficient cō coction, wherby they comme not to the same hardenes: so Iron paseth and exceadeth syluer in immoderate digestion. But though it come not to the perfectiō of syluer, God forbidde that al Iron had béen tourned into syluer, for then we should more hauehave myssed it, then syluer or golde, the want of whiche would hurder vsus nothyng at al.
¶ Of Quick siluer.
THough quicksyluer, be no metal,Quicksyluer. yet because it is the mother of al metals, some thynge is here to be spoken of it.
There be diuerse and sondrie opinions, both of the generation, and also the qualities of it, whiche make the generation to be harde to fynde out. For if the qualitie were certainly agreed vppon, there were an easier waye founde, to trye out the generation. Some affirme, that it is exceading whott, and that they wolde proue, by the swyfte percing ther of into other thynges, that be porose.
Other saye, it is exceadyng colde, & that they proue, by the exceadyng weyght of it. As for the percyng, they saye: is caused of the exceading moystnes, of which qualitie both partes doe graunte that it is. Concerning the generation, some hauehave sayde that it is pure and elementall water, some agayne hath thought, that it droppeth out of heauen, and is a part of the heauenly substaunce. And other sayde, that it is generated in the cloudes, and falleth downe in the field, in a circle, on those round circles, which are séen in many fieldes, that ignoraunt people affirme to be the rynges of the fayries danses. It is certayne, that quick syluer hath dyuerse tymes fallen out of the cloudes, as we hauehave declared in the treatyse of wonderfull and merueylous rayne, but whether it so fall in circles, it is doubtfull. The moste probable opinion is, that it is generated of moyste vapors of the earth, coacted by cold, much lyke to water, as brymstone is of hotte fumes coacted by colde, muche lyke to fyer. And thus muche of metalles.
¶ Of Stones.
STones the fourth kynde of earthlye myxed bodies,Stones. hauehave two maner of generations, by moste contrarie qualities. For heate doth harden moyst bodyes in to stones, as we sée that of claye it maketh exceadyng harde brycke.
Also the thōderboltes in the cloudes, are generated by heate, as before hathe ben shewed. But colde dothe by congelyng, generate, many more stones then heate doth: for the moste parte of all the stones that are digged out of the earth, are generated by colde, whiche is able to conuerte any other kynde of myxed substaunce into stone, as hath been partly shewed in the nature of welles, and sprynges, of whiche there be some in Englande, whiche by their colde turne wodde or any lyke thyng into stones. I page missing sufficiently shalbe saide, of the vertue of stones.
That vertue that is ascribed vntounto them, is eyther naturall or magicall.The vertue of stones either natural or magicall. Natural vertue is either that whiche is knowen to hauehave a naturall cause, or a naturall effect, as the Magnes, or loadestone to drawe iron, whiche is by a similitude of nature, and suche an appetite, as is betwene the male and the female. Also the sayde Magnes, Magnes.moueth towarde the North, and as some saye, there is an other kynde founde in the Southe, that draweth towarde the south. They saye, that there is great hylles of this stone, in the North and South, which maketh it looke that waye.
Other bryng a Mathematicall reason, whiche because it is more curius then can be vnderstoode of the commen sort, not exercised in Geometrie, I omitte.
The gette and amber draw heares, chaffe, and lyke light matter, but beyng before chaffed,Geat and amber draweth chaf for heate is attractiue.
Also the precious stone called Astroites, moueth of it self in vineger,Astroites a stone moueth in viner. the sharpenes of the vineger, percing it, and the ayer excluded, driuing it forward. These vertues because I hauehave séen, I hauehave set for an example, generally all other lyke naturall vertues, proceade of lyke naturall causes, which by their effect the ingenious must seeke to fynde out. As for Magicall vertues be they, whiche are grounded of no reason, or natural cause whiche if they take effect, it is rather of the superstition & credulitie of hym that vseth them, then of the vertue of the stones. As that an Emerald encreaseth louelove, a Saphir fauoure, a Diamonde strength, & suche lyke vertues of whiche Albertus in his age surnamed the great,Albertus Magnus. tooke paynes to wryte a booke, whiche I suppose be englished. To conclude with the cause why stones melte not as mettalles doe, may be gathered by yt which hath béen sayde before, because they are congeled past that degrée, & also because there is left in them no vnctuus, or clammy matter. Let this suffise for stones, & so the whole purpose is at an ende.
W. F.
FINIS.
THINKE AND THANKE, LIVE IN FERE, KNOWE THY SELFE, FAR AND NERE.
❧ Impryted at London in Fletestreate, at the signe of the Faucone, by William Griffith: And they are to be sold at his shop in S. Dunstones churchyarde in the Weste. 1563.
End of the text · William Fulke, A Goodly Gallery (1563)