List of alchemists

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

An alchemist was a person versed in the art of alchemy, an ancient branch of natural philosophy that eventually evolved into chemistry and pharmacology. Alchemy flourished in the Islamic world during the Middle Ages, and then in Europe from the 13th to the 18th centuries.

We know the names and doings of a large number of alchemists, thanks to the numerous alchemical manuscript and books that survived; some of those names are listed below. Possibly there were many more, bent on experimenting than writing, who have left no trace in history.

Contents

[edit] Legendary alchemists

[edit] Persian Empire alchemists

[edit] Egyptian, Greek, and Roman Empire alchemists

[edit] Indian alchemists

  • Nagarjuna, the 10th century South Indian king
  • Yogi Vemana

[edit] Chinese alchemists

[edit] Islamic alchemists

Further information: Alchemy (Islam)

[edit] Western alchemists

[edit] Revival and New Age alchemists

If you research the people on this list, you will find the label "alchemist" is a broad and speculative term, with each person having their own idea of what an alchemist might be.

  • Alexander Shulgin (1925- ) In 1991 and 1997, he and his wife Ann Shulgin authored the books PiHKAL and TiHKAL on the topic of psychoactive drugs. Like Terrence McKenna, he believed the Stone to be a mental state of mind and not something which could be produced in the lab.
  • Terrence McKenna (1946-2000) a more modern version of Timothy Leary, he believed the Stone to be a mental state of mind
  • Frater Albertus (Dr. Albert Reidel) (1911-1984) did laboratory alchemy and published several rare manuscripts, at least one of which was verified to produce the true Stone, the results of which were photographed and displayed only temporarily on a website (The manuscript was the one by Volpierre in the Golden Series books)
  • Robert Allen Bartlett (1950- )
  • Manfred M. Junius (1929-2004)
  • G. I. Gurdjieff (1866-1949)
  • Diane Di Prima (1932- ) a poet
  • Marie-Louise von Franz (1915-1998) studied psychological alchemy
  • Verônica de Thule (1973- )
  • Dennis Hauck (19?- )
  • Kelsey Reid (1993-)
  • Selenei Elric (1991-)

[edit] Fictional alchemists

[edit] See also

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