Until quite recently, alchemy has received a distinctly cold welcome
among most historians of science, partly because the subject fit
quite poorly with the model of scientific research as a disembodied
and disinterested quest for truth.  As scientific and medical
research has become increasingly industrial and commercially
oriented, however, the pejorative view of alchemists as quacks
and “puffers” has correspondingly diminished.  At the same time, it
has come to light in recent years that Robert Boyle, G. W. Leibniz,
John Locke, and even Isaac Newton were devotees of the chrysopoetic
art.  Clearly alchemy was not a melancholic delusion practiced
solely by cranks and charlatans intending to delude the masses.
What then was the precise nature of early modern alchemy?  This
course will focus on about half a dozen of the most famous and most
allusive alchemical authors of the early modern period, in the
attempt to arrive at an answer.  We will read works by (pseudo-)
Nicholas Flamel, Basilius Valentinus, Eirenaeus Philalethes, Jean
d’Espagnet, John Webster, John de Monte Snyders, and perhaps other
primary sources.  At the same time we will examine the most current
historical literature available on these figures.  The connection
between alchemy and actual practices of material culture will be
explored in as much depth as possible.  All of the primary sources
will be available in English translation, although students will be
encouraged to make use of their particular linguistic skills during
the course.