http://www.loc.gov/mods/v3 http://www.loc.gov/standards/mods/v3/mods-3-2.xsd
175 pages : chiefly color illustrations ; 26 cm.
Alchemists are notorious for attempting to synthesize gold. Their goals, however, were far more ambitious, to transform and bend nature to the will of an industrious human imagination. For scientists, philosophers and artists alike, alchemy seemed to hold the key to unlocking the secrets of creation. Alchemists' efforts to discover the way the world is made have had an enduring impact on global artistic practice and expression. Concoctions produced in the world's alchemy labs include inks, dyes, and oil paints; cements and ceramic glazing; dazzling effects in metalwork and glass - and the modern media which now claim boasting rights as the ultimate chemical mirrors of nature: photography and the liquid crystal displays of the digital world. Alchemy may well be the most important human invention after the harnessing of fire. It was certainly a direct result, with consequences both inspired and dire. The field spurred on advancements in the visual arts and aids to human health. Ancient Chinese alchemists also unleashed the black magic of gunpowder onto the world of warfare. This book is the first to explore how the art of alchemy globally transformed human creative culture from antiquity to the industrial age, and displays the ways its legacy still permeates the world we make today.
Alchemy: the great art -- Alchemical genesis: inventing the art of artifice in ancient China, Egypt, and Greece -- Middle-aged alchemy: Hindu tantric tinctures and Islamic Al-kīmīya' -- The golden years: early modern alchemy -- Artists, artisans, and alchemists: the alchemical art of art making -- Ars magna: the "great art" of alchemy books -- Alchemical culture, courtly cliques, and cults: the swagger and stagger of alchemy's sway -- The lasting will and testament: the alchemical spirit.