OF THE MINERAL WORK

This Preface is clear and distinct in itself; it needs no singular explanation; but on the contrary, this Process which he mentions requires a more accurate one.
Recipe: Antimony, let it flow with Nitre and Tartar: take 1 loton of this. 1 loton of Gold. 3 drachms of Tin. 1 drachm of Schlich. 2 lotons of Sulfur. 2 lotons of Vitriol, let them flow with Silver in a crucible with Arsenic.
This is the Process for making Gold and Silver, which Paracelsus does not wish to be considered similar to others involving much labor and a long time, but trusts that by its aid Gold and Silver can be prepared with light work, time, and expense. There is no doubt that this has been attempted by myriads, and has frustrated the hope of the operators, and not without cause, thinking that absurd species are to be received. I myself have heard not a few of those who tested this, complaining. In what manner gold and silver could be created from volatile and predatory things, such as Antimony, Sulfur, Vitriol, and Arsenic, which not only do not melt any gold or silver, but furthermore corrupt them, reduce them to smoke, or at the very least convert them into dross. I, testing this as I smelted everything, saw that these metallic species, for instance Schlich finely ground metallic ore, Vitriol, Sulfur, and Arsenic, had corrupted the Sun gold and the Moon silver, stripped them of their metallic form, and transmuted them into dross: But this very thing Paracelsus had required, which should by no means have deterred us