PREFACE.

Therefore, I—as one who for many many years has been occupied with assaying testing ore to determine its metal content, smelting, parting the process of separating gold from silver, and other such arts—have been moved by the pleasure and love I hold for mining and the metallic arts (especially since I have not practiced these things for several years) to write something useful about them. Under the most gracious protection of Your Roman Imperial Majesty, etc., I have set this down on paper for the honor, benefit, and good of those extensive mines and those who are supported by them. Specifically, I have described how one should prepare ores and metals and everything belonging to them—each individually according to its true natural property—in the most convenient and useful ways and with various additives; how to assay them in a small fire laboratory-scale testing using a small furnace, cement a dry process for purifying gold, part, and purify them; and also, in part, how to smelt, make useful, and employ them in large-scale operations in special ways. Alongside this, I have included explanations and illustrations of all instruments, vessels, furnaces, tools, crucibles, glasses, and other accessories. This was done considering that in Your Majesty’s kingdoms, principalities, lands, and territories, there lie many excellent and fine mines of all kinds of metallic ores, which—by the means of divine help and diligent industry, based on thorough instruction—may be further revitalized and brought to prosperity for the advancement of the common miners and the improvement of Your Roman Imperial Majesty’s treasury, and may be maintained for a long time to come.

Now, the ancient philosophers and naturalists described seven metals or metallic ores, and assigned and dedicated each of them to a heavenly planet, through whose influence such a metal would have its properties and effects and be governed: namely, gold to the Sun, silver to the Moon, quicksilver mercury to Mercury, copper to Venus original: "Venerem", iron to Mars original: "Martem", tin to Jupiter original: "Jouem", and lead to Saturn original: "Saturnum". This was done out of special natural secrets and considerations contained in their books. And although there are besides these more mineral...