| Paper 304-b | Mayors, Merchants, Mercers, and a Fishmonger Practicing Alchemy in London from 1444-1461
(Language: English)
Wendy J. Turner, Department of History, Anthropology & Philosophy, Augusta State University, Georgia
Index terms: Economics - Urban, Law, Science |
|---|
| Abstract | Paper -a:
The Aurora Consurgens, a unique 13th century alchemical treatise both in style and content, has thus far received little scholarly attention other than a few Jungian speculations and other similar studies on imagery or metaphor. For this reason, 20th and 21st century scholars have largely misinterpreted the original intent of this anonymous author. This text, as I will argue in my paper, is a delicately and masterfully written treatise revealing the metaphysical requirements and instructions on achieving 'hieros gamos', or mystical marriage, between the alchemist and the divine. When one reads the text through the lens of this theme, the higher goal of metaphysical alchemy becomes clear and the author's original message comes to light. My primary source for this paper is the text of the Aurora Consurgens, as well as supplementary material for the various references and iconographic systems found therein.
Paper -b:
Several years ago I noticed an odd statement in Anthony Gross's book, The Dissolution of the Lancastrian Kingship, Sir John Fortescue and the Crisis of Monarchy in 15th-Century England. There he mentioned that the wardens of London Bridge might have been alchemists. I thought this interesting and did more research, both on alchemy and the wardens. This past summer, I realized that C. Paul Christianson, Memorials of the Book Trade in medieval London: the archives of the old London Bridge, also finds a connection between the wardens of London Bridge and the book trade.
In 1444, Henry VI granted his first license to practice alchemy to John Cobbe, a haberdasher and tailor of London. Over the next several years, except when Henry was ill, he licensed many more people and commissioned at least three groups to investigate and study alchemy. A few people, in the last of the commissions, were aristocrats, but most of the commissioners and petitioners to practice were ordinary citizens, working men of London. This paper will explore the lives and careers of these citizens - wardens and other Londoners - as well as their alchemical interests. It will look at why Henry chose these men for this work, and what, if any, relationship they had with their king.
Paper -c:
In modern society the monetary value of gold is related to its inherent nature. The purer the metal the more valuable it is. But to what extent is this association between nature and value representative of medieval thought? The question of value in the Middle Ages was linked to the art-nature debate. Philosophers debated the meaning of the idiom that art imitates nature, questioning the identity and value of artificial and natural materials. This paper investigates how the art-nature debate affected the way gold was valued through a comparative analysis of alchemy and coinage in the 13th and 14th centuries. It demonstrates that contrary to modern expectations both nature and art were used to attribute value.
|
|---|
