Article ID: CBB293570302

Hans Egede (1686–1758) and the Alchemical Tradition in Denmark-Norway (2019)

unapi

Hans Egede (1686–1758), the famous missionary and natural historian in Greenland, was one of very few known Norwegian alchemists. This article seeks to place Egede’s alchemy in the context of the European alchemical tradition by identifying his sources in alchemical literature. Through an analysis of Egede’s account of an alchemical experiment performed by him in 1727, Ole Borch, Johann Joachim Becher, and Michael Sendivogius are identified as his main sources. Egede’s procedure and choice of materials are shown to be based on texts by these authors. The article argues that Egede’s alchemical interest was more pervasive than hitherto understood, through the demonstration of connections between his alchemical studies and his work as a natural historian. Further it is argued that Egede’s alchemy was not unique or anachronistic but exemplifies the continued belief in and practice of transmutational alchemy in Denmark-Norway in the early decades of the eighteenth century.

...More
Included in

Article Shaul Katzir (2018) Introduction: Physics, Technology, and Technics during the Interwar Period. Science in Context (pp. 251-261). unapi

Citation URI
https://data.isiscb.org/isis/citation/CBB293570302/

Similar Citations

Article Mirko Ancillotti; Niklas Holmberg; Mikael Lindfelt; Stefan Eriksson; (2015)
Uncritical and Unbalanced Coverage of Synthetic Biology in the Nordic Press (/isis/citation/CBB013648247/)

Book Kapel, Finn O.; (2005)
Otto Fabricius and the Seals of Greenland (/isis/citation/CBB000600304/)

Article Brenna, Brita; (2012)
Natures, Contexts, and Natural History (/isis/citation/CBB001250231/)

Article Overskaug, Kristian; Steffensen, Morten; (2014)
Communicating Science for 253 Years: The History of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters and Its Museum (/isis/citation/CBB001421592/)

Article Mads Langballe Jensen; (2020)
Libertas Philosophandi and Natural Law in Early Eighteenth-Century Denmark-Norway (/isis/citation/CBB029014718/)

Article Doel, Ronald E.; Friedman, Robert Marc; Lajus, Julia; Sörline, Sverker; Wråkberg, Urban; (2014)
Strategic Arctic Science: National Interests in Building Natural Knowledge---Interwar Era through the Cold War (/isis/citation/CBB001450344/)

Article Rafał T. Prinke; (2016)
New Light on the Alchemical Writings of Michael Sendivogius (1566–1636) (/isis/citation/CBB136354446/)

Article Nielsen, Henry; Knudsen, Henrik; (2013)
Too Hot to Handle: The Controversial Hunt for Uranium in Greenland in the Early Cold War (/isis/citation/CBB001212895/)

Book Rafał T. Prinke; (2014)
Zwodniczy Ogród Błędów: Piśmiennictwo Alchemiczne Do Końca XVIII Wieku (/isis/citation/CBB965491908/)

Article Porto, Paulo Alves; (2001)
Michael Sendivogius on Nitre and the Preparation of the Philosophers' Stone (/isis/citation/CBB000300020/)

Chapter Roberts, Peder; (2013)
Nordic or National? Post-War Visions of Polar Conflict and Cooperation (/isis/citation/CBB001421149/)

Chapter Prinke, Rafał T.; (2010)
Beyond Patronage: Michael Sendivogius and the Meanings of Success in Alchemy (/isis/citation/CBB001023511/)

Chapter Dammann, Günter; (2004)
Modernität durch hermetisches Denken. Alchemie und Ökonomie bei Johann Joachim Becher (/isis/citation/CBB000670146/)

Article Wutzke, Ulrich; (2000)
Das Mylius-Erichsen-Mysterium (/isis/citation/CBB000340458/)

Article Heymann, Matthias; Knudsen, Henrik; Lolck, Maiken L.; Nielsen, Henry; Nielsen, Kristian H.; Ries, Christopher J.; (2010)
Exploring Greenland: Science and Technology in Cold War Settings (/isis/citation/CBB001211528/)

Authors & Contributors
Prinke, Rafał T.
Wutzke, Ulrich
Nielsen, Henry
Knudsen, Henrik
Holmberg, Niklas
Jensen, Mads Langballe
Concepts
Alchemy
Cross-national interaction
Cold War
Communication of scientific ideas
National histories
Scientific expeditions
Time Periods
17th century
18th century
16th century
20th century
20th century, late
20th century, early
Places
Denmark
Greenland
Norway
United States
Polar regions
Arctic regions
Institutions
Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters (1760-)
Comments

Be the first to comment!

{{ comment.created_by.username }} on {{ comment.created_on | date:'medium' }}

Log in or register to comment