A lively and strange excerpt from Bright Earth by Philip Ball, gives us a recipe for Spanish Gold using pure magical thinking.
From the writings of Theophilus:
"There is also a gold named Spanish gold, which is compounded from red copper, basilisk powder, human blood, and vinegar. The heathen, whose skill in this art is commendable, create basilisks for themselves in this way." According to the myth, "these fabulous creatures emerge from hen's eggs hatched by toads fed on bread. When the eggs are hatched, male chickens emerge just like chickens born of hens, and after seven days serpent tails grow on them. The blood, meanwhile, must come from a red-haired man and must be dried and ground."
Philip Ball explains that the art conservator, Spike Bucklow, suggests this can be seen as an allegory for the making of an alchemical mixture of a red "sulfur" (the blood) and a white "mercury" (the basilisk ash); sulfur and mercury being the two main ingredients of red/gold pigments.
You just never know where a little research on a subject is going to lead you. If you would like to see a picture of this creature, basilisk, click here.
It’s so much fun when tangental minds converge. In my youth I had abundant red hair and somehow that may have connected me to a lifetime interest in art, alchemy and mythology to weave just a few strands together (for the sake of brevity). Of course, we are speaking of the fantastic alchemical/chemical process of combining mercury and sulphur to produce mercuric sulphide or vermillion, the processed form of natural cinnabar.
Both the natural mineral and complex methods of production for HgS were known to the ancient Indians, Chinese, Persians, Greeks and Romans. The whole history is just fabulous and would stimulate any artist to know more about these magical colors and how they wove themselves into the European world of emerging alchemy and art.
Thanks Margret, once again you subtly and interestingly point people in the direction of your passion. I could never be so kind, having to point out to my fellow artists the soulful difference between vermillion and napthal reds.
Once again I read with fascination your latest post, and am again reminded of the complexities of the web that surrounds humanity. The interplay of science, proto–science, and art that has combined to create our daily lives and make them richer, continues to astound me.