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Darrera modificació: 2026-04-21
Bases de dades: Sciència.cat
Viano, Cristina, "Les origines philosophiques de l' alchimie: Olympiodore, Anaximandre et l'‘intermediaire' (metaxu)", Technai, 16 [=The harmony of the elements: philosophical and technical perspectives from Antiquity to the Middle Ages, I] (2025), 85-103.
- Resum
- In the Greek-Alexandrian alchemical literature, the theoretical reflection on the elements, qualities and ingredients of transmutation is particularly lively in the so-called period of the “commentators” (4th-8th century AD). In this period, the treatise transmitted under the name of Olympiodorus is particularly emblematic because it presents itself as a sort of compendium of the principles and origins of the alchemical art. Reflection on the elements has a fundamental role and is developed according to various points of view. One of the most notable aspects is the author's declared intention to compare the elementary principles of the first naturalistic philosophers with those of the main alchemists through a double doxography. In this context, an “intermediate” principle is attributed to Anaximander, the metaxu, which serves to indicate both steam and smoke. It is made to correspond to the wet and dry sublimates (aithalai) mentioned by Zosimus and other ancient alchemists. Now, the appropriation of the “intermediary” principle by Greek-Alexandrian alchemy is a remarkable example of the path of the reception and transformation of a philosophical concept by alchemical theory which also allows us to advance hypotheses on the controversial question of the paternity of this treaty transmitted below in the name of Olympiodorus.
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- URL
- https://www.libraweb.net/articoli3.php?chiave=20251 ...
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