Secrets of the Alchemists
An old castle. A small room. Inside, a stone furnace burns brightly. Foul-smelling smoke fills the air. Odd tools, strange glass jars, and small bone cups clutter the table. Two robed figures bend over the fire gazing into a bubbling pot. Is it gold yet? Have they at last found the secret?
The year is 1548. All over Europe, alchemists are busy trying to turn ordinary metals into gold. Alas, they are doomed to fail. But along the way, they invent something much more important: the science we call chemistry.
But that’s the end of the story. Let’s start at the beginning.
Ancient Secrets
Alchemy traces its roots back to the metal-smiths and glass-makers of ancient Egypt. Thousands of years ago,
