Divine Water, oil of vitriol or sulfuric acid, scientifically denoted H₂SO₄, is commonly used in alchemy experiments. A mineral acid, it burns skin and its fumes are dangerous to sinus and respiratory tract. It's corrosive, explosive and one of the favorite fluids of ancient alchemists.
This potent oily liquid is called the King of Acids today. Divine water is used for dissolution and purification in alchemical experiments. Sulfuric acid will dissolve almost anything but gold. Thus, divine water becomes part of the purity test, or the acid test, for metals.
In trade and commerce it's easy to test metal authenticity by applying a few drops of sulfuric acid. If the metal is anything but gold, it dissolves. The only acid able to dissolve gold is aqua regia or royal water, made of sulfuric and nitric acid, the Acid Queen.
Pure sulfuric acid doesn't occur naturally due to its attraction to water vapor. It readily absorbs water vapor from the air, becoming an element of acid rain. Because of this hygroscopic quality sulfuric acid causes severe chemical burns, and decomposition by dehydration.
Sulfur itself reacts explosively with oxidizing agents including perchlorates, peroxides, permanganates, nitrates, chlorates, chlorine, bromine and fluorine. In alchemy sulfur is the male principle with qualities of "hot, dry" and combustible.
In alchemy, sulfur also relates to evaporation, expansion, and dissolution. Corresponding to the human being, it represents the soul (anima), as mercury is spirit or spiritus, and salt is corpus or body.
Zosimus of Panopolis, in his tract on "The Divine Water" refers to The Domestic Chemistry of Moses. Moses is often conflated with the biblical figure; he is however the Jewish alchemist Moses of Alexandria, who works in the early centuries AD.
"This is how, in the maza of Moses [it is said] one burns with sulfur, with salt, with alum, and with sulfur" (white sulfur - the term maza otherwise means black lead, or magnesia) "... as in the instructions of Maria the Jewess ... "
Moses recommends this maza be used as the material with which to start the alchemical opus. Works attributed to Moses of Alexandria include alchemical prescriptions for treatment of mercury, copper, arsenic, distillation of water and instructions for chrysopoeia.
Preparation of Divine Water - A Few Methods
In his tract on The Divine Water, Zosimus says: "The operation of burning [is] one which all the ancients extolled. Maria, the first, says, 'The copper burnt with sulfur.'"
In the late 15th century, Basilius Valentinus describes methods of creating sulfuric acid. One is by burning sulfur with potassium nitrate, or saltpeter.
Sulfur and saltpeter are combined in a vessel. A retort or alembic can be used. Through a series of steps, the mixture is distilled and purified, culminating in the creation of Divine Water.
In 17th century, Dutch-German chemist Johann Glauber creates sulfuric acid by burning sulfur with saltpeter (potassium nitrate, KNO3) in presence of steam. As saltpeter decomposes, it oxidizes sulfur (S) to sulfur trioxide (SO3), which combines with water to make sulfuric acid.
Ferrous Sulphate: Green Vitriol
This is a popular way of acid-making. Ferrous sulfate is roasted in an iron retort. The acid distills and drips down the spout into a collector vessel.
This can be done in a lab-quality glass container too. On heating, ferrous sulphate crystals lose water and anhydrous ferrous sulphate FeSO4 is formed.
Color changes from green to off-white. On further heating, anhydrous ferrous sulphate decomposes to ferric oxide (Fe2O3), sulfur dioxide (SO2) and sulfur trioxide (SO3), which creates sulfuric acid when combined with water.
From the American Chemical Society:
" ... Heating in a retort changes the sulfate to ferric oxide and sulfur trioxide. Absorbing the trioxide in water results in concentrated sulfuric acid; absorbing it in normal sulfuric acid forms the “fuming oil of vitriol” needed to produce dyes. It's a complex, difficult process; yields are low and costs are high."
An alchemical step by step preparation for divine water is as follows:
Source Materials: Alchemists begin by sourcing materials rich in sulfur, such as pyrite (iron sulfide) or naturally occurring sulfur crystals. These materials embody the essence of sulfur, believed to contribute to the transformative properties of Divine Water.
Calcination: The sulfur source is then subjected to intense heat in a crucible, driven by the alchemical process of calcination. This step purifies materials while allowing release of volatile components.
Distillation: Following calcination, the resulting ash is mixed with water and subject to distillation. The alembic is a common alchemical vessel used for this purpose. Distillation ensures the separation of purified components from impurities. Distillate collected in this process represents the initial incarnation of Divine Water.
Concentration: The final step involves further distillation to achieve a higher concentration of sulfuric acid. This concentrated form of divine water is believed to possess the pure essence of sulfur and the capacity to catalyze transformation.
The importance of glass receptacles and utensils in alchemy and medicine is paramount to the proliferation of work in both media, often over-lapping. Sulfuric acid, H2SO4, is not able to dissolve glass and can be safely stored in a glass container.
Mercury, another crucial element of the alchemical paradigm, consumes gold, but also can't dissolve glass. This is because neither sulfuric acid nor mercury is corrosive enough to eat through the strong silicon dioxide (SiO2) bonds forming the main component of glass.
Words of Maria - White, Black & Yellow Divine Water
"The divine water will be lost for those who don't understand what has been written, to know that the [useful] product is sent upward by the long-necked vessel and the tube. But it is customary to designate by this water the vapor of the sulfur and of the sulfurated arsenics.
"Because of this you have jeered at me, because in one and the same discourse I have revealed to you such a great mystery. This divine water, whitened by the whitening materials, whitens.
"If it is yellowed by the yellowing materials, it makes yellow. If it is blackened by means of vitriol and gallnut, it blackens, and carries out the blackening of silver and that of our molybdochalkon (an alloy, on average 10% copper, 90% lead) ... "
Applications of Divine Water in Alchemy
Once prepared, Divine Water is a catalyst for alchemical transmutations. Its corrosive and purifying properties are used to dissolve impurities and reveal the pure substance. It's used for:
Dissolution of Matter
Alchemists use sulfuric acid to dissolve metals and minerals, extracting essential properties. This process, known as dissolution, can be seen as breaking down the old to facilitate birth of the new. The search for a universal solvent is one of the lesser known aims of alchemy.
In alchemy this can be seen as color stage black, the decomposition and putrefaction stage from which a pure substance arises. This stage leads ideally to the whitening, with possibly a side trip to the Tail of the Peacock in medieval alchemy.
Purification
Divine Water cleanses or purifies substances such as gold. Alchemists can use concentrated sulfuric acid to strip organic materials and isolate metals. Among the few metals divine water won't devour are gold and platinum.
Platinum is "discovered" in South America in the 18th century. It's already locally well known at that point. Because it occurs naturally in the alluvial sands of various rivers, it's first used by pre-Columbian South Americans to create artifacts.
Medicinal Applications
Historical texts refer to the use of divine water in herbal and mineral medicine. Dilute amounts of sulfuric acid in skin ointments is used to treat skin infections, such as canker sores. NEVER apply concentrated sulfuric acid to skin, eyes, etc. It "eats" living human tissue.
A main use of sulfuric acid is in the "wet method" for production of phosphoric acid.
Sulfuric acid is pivotal in fertilizer production The reaction of sulfuric acid with phosphate rock generates phosphoric acid, a crucial component in agriculture.
Battery Production:
Sulfuric acid is a key component in lead-acid batteries, widely used in today's electric vehicles. The reversible reaction between lead, lead oxide, and sulfuric acid allows for the storage and release of energy.
Laboratory Applications:
In laboratories, sulfuric acid is often used as a powerful dehydrating agent and as a reaction medium. Its strong acidic nature facilitates numerous reactions, including esterification and sulfonation processes.
Chemical Synthesis:
It plays an integral role in the manufacture of various chemicals, including hydrochloric acid, nitric acid, sulfate salts, and detergents. Its ability to donate protons makes it a strong dehydrating agent, essential in many reaction processes.
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