Alchemy

The word “alchemy” is made of two words: the first one is referred to a Greek word “chumeia”, and the second one to the arabesque “al”; if put at the beginning of a word expresses an important matter: the alchemy for excellence. The alchemists classified their art as a true philosophy or for the employed staff. Their aim was to produce gold or to find out a universal remedy. Nowadays, the word “alchemy” mainly refers both to a spiteful manner and to a quack man who speaks about science.

Font: L.S. Lenormand, L'Art du distillateur, Parigi 1817.