THE CHEMICAL THEATER,

original: "THEATRVM CHEMICVM." In the seventeenth century, the word "Theater" was often used in book titles to describe a comprehensive collection or a "world in a book" that put a specific subject on display.

CONTAINING THE PRINCIPAL

TREATISES OF SELECTED AUTHORS

CONCERNING THE ANTIQUITY OF CHEMISTRY AND THE

PHILOSOPHER'S STONE,

original: "LAPIDIS PHILOSOPHICI." The Philosopher's Stone was the central goal of alchemy, believed to be a substance that could transmute base metals into gold and serve as a universal medicine.

concerning its truth, legality, excellence, and

operations:

COMPILED FOR THE SAKE OF THOSE STUDYING TRUE CHEMISTRY AND

chemical medicine (so that they may gather from it a most abundant

harvest of the best remedies), and arranged into three

parts or volumes;

WITH EACH VOLUME HAVING ITS OWN CATALOG OF AU-

THORS AND BOOKS ON THE FIRST

pages: and an index of matters and

words attached to the last ones.

THE SECOND VOLUME.

A circular woodcut emblem depicting a profile bust of a man wearing a classical laurel headdress, resting upon a rectangular pedestal inscribed with the words "OF HERMES TRISMEGISTUS" original: "HERMETIS TRISMEGISTI." Hermes Trismegistus ("Thrice-Greatest Hermes") was the legendary Hellenistic figure to whom many foundational alchemical and philosophical texts were attributed.. To the right of the woodcut is a circular ink stamp from a library reading: "LIBRARY OF THE HIGHER SCHOOL OF PHARMACY OF PARIS."

OBERURSEL

original: "URSELLIS." This refers to Oberursel, a town in Germany near Frankfurt that was a center for printing during this period.

From the Workshop of Cornelius Sutorius, at the expense

of Lazarus Zetzner, Bookseller of Strasbourg.

original: "Argent." is an abbreviation for Argentoratum, the Latin name for the city of Strasbourg.

1602.