of the Black Eagle.

Now follows the Tincture of the Black Eagle, a great secret.

The Black Eagle.

Take two pounds of raw STEMO original: "STEMO"; a variation of Stibium, the alchemical name for Antimony., which the Philosophers call the Black Eagle, the very best you can obtain. From this, make a beautiful red glass, as laboratory workers are accustomed to doing. Take two pounds of this, grind it very fine for four hours on a painter’s stone or a grinding stone, and grind into it eight Loth A historical German unit of weight; 8 Loth is approximately 4 ounces or 125 grams. of well-purified Salmiar original: "Salmiar"; Sal ammoniac (ammonium chloride), frequently used in alchemy as a flux or to create volatile salts.. Put it all into a vial and place it in steaming horse manure original: "Roßmist"; manure was used in alchemy as a source of gentle, consistent heat (fermentation heat) for long-term digestion. for ten days and nights; thus the matter will resolve itself. Let it coagulate gently in a mild heat. Afterward, take the matter out of the glass, grind it small, put it back into a vial, and pour the following vinegar over it. Let it stand for three days and nights. Then pour the vinegar off into another glass or vessel; pour more fresh vinegar onto it and let it extract for three days and nights. Do this with fresh vinegar until it extracts nothing more.

Now take all the extracted vinegar into one glass and evaporate it in ashes until dry; thus the Flowers of Antimony original: "Flores Antimonij"; the powdery sublimate formed when antimony is heated. of the Black Eagle will remain at the bottom of the glass. Put these Flowers into a fresh glass, place a distillation head original: "Helm"; the cap of an alembic or still that collects vapors. upon it, and pour the infernal distilled Spirit of Sal Ammoniac original: "Spiritus Salmiar"; an aqueous solution of ammonia. over it—as described hereafter—so that it covers it considerably. Set it to putrefy with mild heat in a water bath original: "Balneo Mariæ"; literally "the bath of Mary," a double-boiler used to maintain a steady, gentle temperature. for three days and nights. Then distill it into a receiving glass; distill it slowly at first, then gradually stronger. Thus the burning Spirit of Sal Ammoniac rises, and afterward comes a blood-