Thesaurus & armamentarium medico-chymicum, or, A treasury of physick with the most secret way of preparing remedies against all diseases : obtained by labour, confirmed by practice, and published out of good will to mankind : being a work of great use for the publick / written originally in Latine by ... Hadrianus à Mynsicht ...; and faithfully rendred into English by John Partridge ...

The Gemm of Life.

TAke of Sal Gemm first prepared, then certain times Chymically dissolved in Rhenish Wine, then filtred and coagulated three pound. Put this into a Cucurbit well luted, and put upon it a double Alem∣bick (as Artists well know) with a Receiver large enough, and by degrees sublime it with a strong fire, till all the white and corrosive Spirits go forth, and the Receiver be filled with clouds, then let all be cleared again, and take away the Salt which is risen into the Alembick, and with Spirit of Wine extract it: the Spirit being impregnate with the Salt take it by inclination, and keep it by it self. The Salt left in the bottom dissolve again in the Rhenish Wine before abstracted, then filter it, and with an Alem∣bick draw off all the humidity: the Salt being dry∣ed, sublime it the second time, and being sublimed again with Spirit of Wine, as before, extract it, and this labour repeat four times or more, till there can be no more extracted. Lastly, all the Spirit of Wine impregnate with the Salt and kept apart, now mix them together, and in a gentle heat in Balneo bring it to the driness of Salt, and so you have a Salt spiritual, lovely, fair and crystalline, of great force and operation. At last put this Salt into a silver

Vessel gilt with gold, melt it, and when it is melted, put to it (under an earthen covering) so many leaves of Gold by degrees, as may make it of a most red colour, and after a quarter of an hour take it away, let it cool, and reduce it into a most fine Powder, and keep it for your use as an incomparable Trea∣sure.

Virtue, Use, and Dose. It is a Medicine that de∣serves great praise and esteem; and that I may say all in a few words, it is the only Treasure of humane life against all diseases, even the most desperate: its force and power in altering, penetrating, comfort∣ing, expelling, and resisting putrefaction, is greater than can be found in any other. Besides, it opens all obstructions, dissipates poisons, it renders the sub∣stance of the blood and all the Spirits more pure and lightsom, and prolongs life, unless opposed by Fa∣tal necessity, God so ordering it. The Dose is from four grains to half a scruple in some appropriate Me∣dicine, which must be considered according to the quality of the disease.