Alchemical symbols, originally devised as part of alchemy, were used to denote some elements and some compounds until the 18th century Note that while notation like this was mostly standardized, style and symbol varied between alchemists, so this page lists the most common Contents [hide] • Three primes • Four basic elements • Seven planetary metals • Mundane elements • Alchemical compounds • Alchemical processes • Unicode • References • External links Three primes[edit] According to Paracelsus (1493-1591), the three primes or tria prima are[1][2] • Salt (base matter) • Sulfur (omnipresent spirit of life) • Mercury (fluid connection between the High and the Low) Four basic elements[edit] Main article: Classical elements Western alchemy makes use of the Hellenic elements The symbols used for these are: [1] • Earth • Water • Air • Fire Seven planetary metals[edit] Main articles: Classical planets in Western alchemy, Planets in astrology and Metals of antiquity Seven metals are associated with the seven classical planets, and seven deities, all figuring heavily in alchemical symbolism Although the metals occasionally have a glyph of their own, the planet's symbol is used most often, and the symbolic and mythological septenary is consistent with Western astrology The planetary symbolism is limited to the seven wandering stars visible to the naked eye, and the extra-Saturnarian planets such as Neptune are not used • Gold dominated by Sol ☉ ☼ ( • Silver dominated by Luna ☽ ( • Copper dominated by Venus ♀ (also: • Iron dominated by Mars ♂ ( • Tin dominated by Jupiter ♃ ( • Mercury (quicksilver) dominated by Mercury ☿ ( • Lead dominated by Saturn ♄ ( ) ) ) ) ) ) )[1] The Monas Hieroglyphica is an alchemical symbol devised by John Dee as a combination of the planetary metal glyphs Mundane elements[edit] "Squaring the circle": an alchemical glyph (17th century) of the creation of the philosopher's stone • Antimony ♁ • Arsenic • Bismuth • Boron • Magnesium ⊛ • Phosphorus • Platinum ☽ ☉ • Potassium • Stone • Sulfur • Zinc Alchemical compounds[edit] • Sal ammoniac * • Aqua Fortis A.F • Aqua Regia A.R • Spirit of Wine S.V • Amalgama • Cinnabar (Mercury sulfide) • Vitriol � A table of alchemical symbols from Basil Valentine's The Last Will and Testament, 1670 Alchemical processes[edit] The alchemical magnum opus was sometimes expressed as a series of chemical operations In cases where these numbered twelve, each could be assigned one of the Zodiac signs as a form of cryptography The following example can be found inPernety's 1758 Mytho-Hermetic Dictionary:[3] • Calcination (Aries • Congelation (Taurus • Fixation (Gemini • Dissolution (Cancer • Digestion (Leo • Distillation (Virgo • Sublimation (Libra • Separation (Scorpio • Incineration (Sagittarius ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) • Fermentation (Capricorn ) • Multiplication (Aquarius ) • Projection (Pisces ) Unicode[edit] Unicode 6.1 adds support for an Alchemical Symbols block Alchemical Symbols Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) [1][2] A B C D E F U+1F7 0x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 1x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 2x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 3x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 4x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 5x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 6x � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � � U+1F7 7x � � � � Notes 1.^ As of Unicode version 7.0 2.^ Grey areas indicate non-assigned code points ... (Aquarius ) • Projection (Pisces ) Unicode[edit] Unicode 6.1 adds support for an Alchemical Symbols block Alchemical Symbols Official Unicode Consortium code chart (PDF) [1][2] A B C D E F U+1F7... Sulfur • Zinc Alchemical compounds[edit] • Sal ammoniac * • Aqua Fortis A.F • Aqua Regia A.R • Spirit of Wine S.V • Amalgama • Cinnabar (Mercury sulfide) • Vitriol � A table of alchemical symbols from... table of alchemical symbols from Basil Valentine's The Last Will and Testament, 1670 Alchemical processes[edit] The alchemical magnum opus was sometimes expressed as a series of chemical operations