Emily Chan
Archaeological remains from the 16th century have revealed some secrets about the activities that a European Renaissance alchemist conducted in his laboratory. Among the remains was a “mysterious metal.”
The remains were discovered during excavations between 1988 and 1990 at Uraniborg, the site of a former castle located on the island of Ven, Sweden. Historically, the island was under Danish rule.
The castle was once the residence of Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, who lived from 1546 to 1601. He was also known for his interest in alchemy. His castle was built in 1580, and he equipped it with an alchemical laboratory.
After his death, a royal decree declared that Uraniborg must be demolished. Not much of the laboratory has survived except for five shards—four glass and one ceramic. In a recent study, researchers from Denmark analyzed the shards.
During the age of alchemy, alchemists, including Brahe, were reluctant to share their knowledge with others. As a result, very little is known about his lab practices.
A few of his alchemical recipes have survived, which indicates that Brahe was part of a group of alchemists who aimed to develop medicines to treat diseases such as syphilis, leprosy, and the plague. Other alchemists at the time were interested in figuring out ways to produce gold from less valuable minerals and metals.
“It may seem strange that Tycho Brahe was involved in both astronomy and alchemy, but when one understands his worldview, it makes sense,” said Poul Grinder-Hansen, a co-author of the study and a curator from the National Museum of Denmark. “He believed that there were obvious connections between the heavenly bodies, earthly substances, and the body’s organs.”
The authors of the study wanted to see if they could detect any traces of chemical substances from the shards, which were the original containers that Brahe used in his lab. They identified significant quantities of nine elements on the surfaces of the shards. The elements were copper, nickel, zinc, tin, gold, tungsten, mercury, lead, and antimony.
Copper, gold, mercury, and antimony were used in three of Brahe’s preserved recipes of medicinal treatments. The other five elements did not appear in the recipes. Possibly, they are residues from different experiments.
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