Description
The symbols employed by the alchemists to represent the various elements, metals, substances, processes and operations used in their art, that developed to such a great extent in the Middle Ages, go back to an early period. Originally designed to ensure secrecy in the alchemists’ formulae and to prevent the uninitiated from acquiring their knowledge, they also served as a kind of shorthand for working out their recipes and notes just as the symbols used by chemists do to-day. Secret alphabets, ciphers, and emblematic drawings representing various processes also served as a medium of understanding between the adepts of different nations and became universally employed in Europe.
