Philosopher's stone

From Free net encyclopedia

The philosopher's stone, in Latin lapis philosophorum, is a mythical substance that supposedly could turn inexpensive metals into gold and/or create an elixir that would make humans younger, thus delaying death. It was a longtime "holy grail" of Western alchemy. In the mystic view of alchemy, making the philosopher's stone would bring enlightenment upon the maker and conclude the Great Work. It is also known by several other names, such as materia prima.

In alchemy

Transmutation of metals

The concept apparently originated from the theories of the 8th century alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan, known to the west also as Geber. He analyzed each Aristotelian element in terms of four basic qualities of hotness, coldness, dryness, and moistness. Thus, fire was both hot and dry, earth cold and dry, water cold and moist, and air hot and moist. He further theorized that every metal was a combination of these four principles, two of them interior and two exterior.

From this premise, it was reasoned that the transmutation of one metal into another could be effected by the rearrangement of its basic qualities. This change would presumably be mediated by a substance, which came to be called al-iksir in Arabic (from which comes the Western term "elixir"). It was often imagined as a dry powder, made from a mythical stone — the "philosopher's stone". The stone was believed to have been composed of a substance called carmot.

Geber's theory and the concept of the philosopher's stone may have been inspired by the knowledge that metals like gold and silver could be hidden in alloys and ores, from which they could be recovered by the appropriate chemical treatment. Geber himself is believed to be the inventor of aqua regia, a mixture of muriatic and nitric acids, which is one of the few substances that can dissolve gold (and is still often used for gold recovery and purification).

In art and entertainment

The Philosopher's Stone has been subject, inspiration, or plot feature of innumerable artistic works — novels, comics stories, movies, animations, and even musical compositions. It is also a popular item in many video games. The following is a very incomplete list.

Novels

• Philosopher's Stone, by Hans Christian Andersen.
• The Trumpeter of Krakow (1928), by Eric P. Kelly.
• The Philosopher's Stone (Colin Wilson book) (1971), by C. H. Wilson.
• The Ogre Downstairs (1974), by Diana Wynne Jones.
• The Alchemist (1988), by Paulo Coelho.
• Foucault's Pendulum (1988), by Umberto Eco, where a character claims that the Stone is actually the mythical Holy Grail.
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997), by J. K. Rowling.
• The Baroque Cycle trilogy (2003–2004), by Neal Stephenson, where it is used to explain an unusually dense gold sample.
• Indiana Jones and the Philosopher's Stone (1995), by Max McCoy.
• Many Dimensions, by Charles Williams.

Comics, movies and animations

• The Fabulous Philosopher's Stone (1945), a Donald Duck story by Carl Barks.
• The Flash, a DC Comics' series, where Doctor Alchemy uses the Stone to transmute elements.
• The Philosopher's Stone (1958) by Satyajit Ray.
• Slayers (1995), a Japanese manga and anime.
• Alexander Senki (1997), English title Reign: The Conqueror, where the stone is also called "Platohedron".
• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001); retitled Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in the US.
• A Knight of Shadows, an episode of the Justice League TV series.
• Fullmetal Alchemist (2003), a manga, anime, and video game series.
• Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters GX (2004), an anime where Daitokuji seeks to create the Stone.

Music

• The concept-album Grand Materia (2005) by the Swedish metal-band Morgana Lefay is about Nicholas Flamel and the Philosopher's Stone.
• "Philosopher Stone" is a Van Morrison song found on Wonder Boy.

Video and computer games

• In Castlevania: Lament of Innocence, it is related to the Ebony Stone and the Crimson Stone.
• In Devil May Cry, it is a key required to enter the underworld.
• In Dragon Quest (a.k.a. Dragon Warrior) the Philosopher's Stone (or "Sages' Stone") restores the player's points.
• In Embodiment of Scarlet Devil and Immaterial and Missing Power, "Philosopher's Stone" is one of Patchouli Knowledge's spell cards.
• In Golden Sun, it is called "Stone of Sages".
• In Shadow of Destiny, it is the source of the Homunculus.
• In Star Ocean: Till the End of Time, it is used to summon Anasla.
• In Valkyrie Profile, the Stone is called "the ten-billion-page codex."
• In World of Warcraft, it is used to transmute metals.
• In Tomb Raider: Chronicles in one part Lara is on a quest to recover the famed Philosopher's Stone.
• In Zork Nemesis

Also, a "philosopher's stone" (together with a "jewel-encrusted golden sword") were promised as grand prizes in contests connected to the Atari Swordquest Airworld video game. However, both the game and the contest were cancelled when Atari was sold to Jack Tramiel.

See also

• Midas
• universal panacea
• The Net (substance)
• Vitriol
• Azoth
• Nicholas Flamel (French alchemist)
• Edward Kelley
• Philosopher's stone (Fullmetal Alchemist)bg:Философски камък

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