Ten metals are used in alchemy since its ancient emergence. They are antimony, bismuth, copper, gold, iron, lead, quicksilver (mercury),...

Displosis is the ancient practice of doubling gold. It's considered to be a skill of alchemists and early metal workers as well. If done...

Zinc (Zn) is an essential metal of life and one of the four components in the Tetrasomia of Maria in alchemy. The 30th element on the...

Galls and gall nuts are growths on plants, particularly oak trees, used for a number of purposes throughout history. They form due to...

The Almadén Mines in central Spain have an infamous past driven by profit and greed. The deadly history of ancient Almadén revolves...

A vibrant golden spice, turmeric captivates kingdoms, heals the sick and rules the routes of the spice trade. The humble root has a long...

Testing metals is a precise and varied process in the ancient world. It's a crucial skill in ensuring fair trade and preventing fraud....

Tin purification is important to various alchemical practices, and a fundamental step in many recipes and formulas. In alchemy purified...

Glass production is known before the Bronze Age. Early glassmakers in Egypt and the ancient Near East produce colored beads and later...

Opium poppy (Papaver somnifum) is the common source of opium and derivatives such as morphine or heroin. All poppies produce the narcotic...

Pistacia is a shrub or tree prized for food , resin, tannins, oils and natural turpentine for thousands of years in the Mediterranean...

Wheat, barley, millet and rice are four of the ancient grains, going back to the Neolithic agrarian revolution c. 10,000 BCE. Ancient...

Verdigris is the green rust or patina on copper, created as the metal reacts with oxygen in the environment. Copper corrodes green to...

Cinnamon birds appear in folklore of Eurasia shortly after Arab merchants begin trading with ancient lands to the north. Cinnamon enjoys...

Cinnamon ( Cinnamomum ) is the oldest known spice in the world. The fragrant bark comes into popular use by c. 2000 BCE, when Egyptians...

Nigella sativa or kalonji is a blackseed plant with healing properties. Use in cooking and folk medicine is documented by the 2nd...

Carnelian (early: cornelean ) is already used in the Stone Age to make beads. Pebbles of the reddish orange gemstone might be polished by...

Nephrite jade is the foremost commodity to travel along the Pacific Coasts of the East. The seaway route is the original Jade Road named...

Myrrh ( Commiphora sp) has a history older than humankind. Deeply connected to death, healing and the divine, myrrh is a smoky, strongly...

One of the crystals known since ancient times, amethyst holds it own characteristics, magic and myth. Purple is hard to get ancient...