Alchemy, chemistry and metallurgy in Renaissance Europe: a wider context for fire-assay remains

摘要

During the Renaissance, what we nowadays call 'alchemy' and 'chemistry' constituted a single, all-inclusive, sphere of activity, that involved the routine conduct of fire assays. The quest for the philosophers' stone was just one endeavour within a wider spectrum, and it did not convey the religious or speculative connotations attached to this practice in later interpretations. This all chemical world overlapped with metallurgy substantially: both fields were strongly intertwined and there was a bi-directional flow of theories and practices. Fire assay, as a technique for quantitative metallurgical analysis, was the most important point of intersection and, as such, it was essential for the development of modern metallurgy, but also of chemistry and science in general. These ideas are presented here in an attempt to provide a reference framework for the interpretation of fire-assay remains. The discussion is illustrated with material from the on-going study of the laboratory remains from Oberstockstall (Austria).