Hey dear Hive community, I hope you have a great week in general and a day that was full of positive experiences! Today I would like to discuss an interesting topic in alchemy and hope you can expand your knowledge.
Here are some pictures of the metal mercury which is also called mercurium and in the past it was even counted to the precious metals. Mercury has the characteristic to liquefy at room temperature and the industry has already taken advantage of it, for example, in fever thermometers, electrical appliances, batteries, dental fillings and many more and also used it in amalgam processes for the extraction of gold. In alchemy, it is of particular importance and was also associated as one of the seven metals with the planet Mercury, which was named after the god from Roman mythology, which was also considered a representative of alchemy. From a symbolic point of view, mercury is often regarded as the metal of the center in the middle, which is located between positive and negative, male or female as well as left and right and so on. In alchemy, it was considered one of the most important elements and was revered as a sacred metal and regarded as the light of the soul and is one of the three principles of the ancient alchemists who were also regarded as Tria Principia.
Due to the property that it liquefies quickly, it was also associated with transformation and was often considered liquid silver. As a liquid metal, it also embodied the principle of durability and the well-known alchemist Geber saw mercury as the substance of metals and an elementary component of all metals. From a symbolic point of view, it was often associated with a snake and it was also associated with intellect, imagination or mental influences and it embodied spirituality. Mercury was also of great interest for attempts to produce gold and the old alchemists thought to recognize the great work by the redness, which was also called rubedo. Mercury and gold form an amalgam and by heating the mercury evaporates and the gold remains, but of course you had to be very careful with the distillation because mercury is toxic and it can become a great danger if you inhale the vapors. Pliny the elder mentioned mercury and many other scholars as well as Aristotle mentioned this metal.
The mythology of different cultures were also influenced by mercury and was often regarded as a sacred metal and the property of liquefaction was already used in ancient times to operate fountains or other attractions with mercury. Despite the toxicity, it was used as a medicine for skin diseases and in the Middle Ages it was used to treat many diseases and can be found in many old writings and until the 20th century, it was still often used in medicine until it was finally displaced more and more and more due to toxic effects and, as Paracelsus wrote, the dose makes the poison and that can also be related to it. Nowadays, it is still used in homeopathy and administered in the form of ready-made preparations, but it should always be mentioned here that in case of illness, you should always ask your doctor or pharmacist about the correct use, dosage and side effects!
Many thanks for stopping by and I hope you like my new contribution! I captured these pictures with my Camera Sony Alpha 6000 plus 55-210 mm lens!
