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Civilopedia Entry
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Alchemy and chemistry, magic and science, are not as far removed as they might initially seem. For anthropologists of magic (such as Marcel Mauss), each seeks to manipulate the world in order to produce an effect. With the case of alchemy and chemistry, each involves the transformation of one substance into another, a transformation that looked to medieval observers as though one was changing its essence. For medieval alchemists, the potential that this change could have was dramatic – one might change lead into gold or transform an old body into a young one. While the Alchemy Society here is based upon the medieval and Renaissance European tradition, elsewhere, Chinese, Indian, and other parts of the world developed their own alchemical traditions and practices.
In the middle ages, Islamic science spread throughout medieval Europe, as Muslim scholars had preserved Latin texts, developed their own universities and institutions of learning, and brought in insights from Asia. For Europeans, these new bodies of knowledge presented a dizzying array of languages, propositions, ideas, and possibilities – scientific, political, religious, and, of course, magical. For this latter end, Europeans put together societies to put what they were reading into practice, and – at least in their hopes – unlock the key to the universe. Alchemy was focused on understanding the ancient truths that were embedded in these texts. For this reason, as 18th and 19th century scientific schools focused on experimentation rather than translation, new knowledge rather than old, alchemical societies went further underground and out of the mainstream of Western thought.