"The APPARATUS, PREPARATIONS and METHODS of ANCIENT CHINESE ALCHEMISTS," by Y. Y. TS'AO A REVIEW
WILLIAM H. BARNES* McGill Uni\,ersity, Montreal, Canada
I
AM INDEBTED to Professor Tenney L. Davis of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for drawing my attention to a paper in Chinese by Y. Y. Ts'ao -in Science (published monthly by the Science
* Lecturer in Chemistry.
Society of China at Shanghai) on the "Apparatus, Preparations and Methods of Ancient Chinese Alchemists".' Mr. Ts'ao is a member of the Science Department of the National Central University a t Nanking and his survey of Chinese literature on alchemical apparatus and ex655
the subject as having come to an end by the time of the Ch'ing dynasty. Johnson states that " . . . . .the dream of the Taoist alchemist still survives, and not infrequently in the remoteness of some mountain temple, may be found earnest men making diligent and persistent search for the elixir of life. . . . .and for the philosophers' stone. . . . . " (Zoc. cit., p. l09),.and Dr. Swann informs me that in recent years she has encountered alchemical practices in the interior hill districts of China. A similar condition, of course, exists in the West, and in my files I have abundant evidence of the existence of secret societies and individuals who believe in the alchemy of the Dark and Middle Ages and are in alleged possession of the philosophers' stone or a modem equivalent, and for the paltry sum of sixty dollars entrusted to a certain corporation one may learn the "Law of Perpetual Youth," study the "Science of Existence," and live forever1 Of the two principal pursuits of alchemy, namely, everlasting life and the transmutation of metals, the former was the earlier and always more important phase in China in contrast to the relative periods of emersion and the relative importance of these two aims in the West. In addition to, or pursuant to, their search for a drug or elixir of immortality and an agent of transmutation, Chinese alchemists occupied themselves with the melting of gold and the manufacture of medicines, ferments, oils and waxes, coloring matter, foods, and stage magic. Many articles on chemical subjects were written during this period. In Part 2 the fundamental requirements for the location of alchemical apparatus are considered. Of first importance were silence and cleanliness, and hence an uninhabited region was advocated. Thus KO Hung (third to fourth century A.D.)recommends a mountain, while a book of the seventh century A.D. which purports to he a critical study of an earlier work ascribed to the Yellow Emperor (2698-2598 B.c.) specifies that the mountain must have steep cliffs and contain neither beasts nor human beings. The same book also suggests a thick, deserted forest, but claims that the necessary operations may he performed satisfactorily in an inhabited district if the alchemist is surrounded by an inaccessibly high and thick wall. Preliminary measures of a disciplinary character were necessary before commencing the work. These included fasting, bathing and shampooing, avoidance of dirt of any kind, and the shunning of cruel, ignorant, bereaved, or married people, according to the two authorities mentioned in the preceding paragraph. Furthermore, it was necessary to hide a knowledge of Ts'Ao, Y. Y., Science (Science Soc. of China, Shanghai). alchemical plans from skeptics because of the fear that 17, 31-54 (Jan.. 1933). they might cake steps to frighten away good spirits, ' JonNsoN, 0. S., "A study of Chinese alchemy," The Com- while suitable precautions were essential to rid oneself mercial Press, Shanghai, 1928. DAVIS, T. L. AND Wu, L. C., Sci. Mo., 31, 225-35 (1930); of evil spirits. Technology Reu., 33 (May, 1931); J. CHEM.EDUC., 9, 859--62 Specifications for the platform employed to support (May, 1932); Isis, 18, 21&89 (1932). DAVIS, T. L., "K?, Hung (Pao P'u Tzu), Chinese alchemist of the alchemical oven are given in Part 3. It was made the Fourth century. J. CHBM. EDUC., 517-20 (Sept., 1934). earth, but authorities T i e r with respect to the opti' WALBY.A., B d l . Sch. Oriental Studies, 6 , 1-24 (1930); of mum dimensions. Thus a hook of the T'ang dynasty 6, 1102-3 (1932). L F ~A.. ~Arckiu. ~ Ges. ~ Philosophie. , 41, 115-26 (1932). says it is eight inches high by twenty-four inches wide. perimental methods forms an important contribution to data on Chinese alchemy. Mr. P. K. Wong and Mr. T. K. Hum, science students a t M&ill University, have made a translation of the paper, and Dr. Nancy Lee Swann, Curator of the Gest Chinese Research Library, has checked parts of the translation and has transliterated many of the proper names into their English equivalents by the Wade system. Grateful acknowledgment is made for this invaluable assistance which has made the contents of an interesting paper available to the West. It is hoped that arrangements can be made with Mr. Ts'ao for a complete and accurate translation of his paper. Such a translation, supplemented with notes to connect the data with those already available from the work of 0. B. Johnson,' T. L. Davis, and L. C. W U , A. ~ wale^,^ A. F ~ r k e and , ~ others, should constitute an important addition to the literature on Chinese alchemy available to the student of the history of chemistry. Pending the completion of such arrangements and in view of the unavoidable delay occasioned by the time required for correspondence with China, it is hoped that a general review of the paper will be of interest. As its title implies the article consists of a detailed description of the experimental methods and apparatus of Chinese alchemists. It is divided into ninc parts, as follows. Part 1 consists of an introduction and a general history of Chinese alchemy. Alchemical beliefs are supposed to have originated in China about the time of the Period of Contending States (482-246 B.c.) and the Emperor Ch'in Shih (246-210 B.c.) is reported to have had a t least two of his subjects carrying out research toward the development of an elixir which would make him immortal. Alchemy was very popular from about 300 B.C. to the time of the Han Emperor Wu (14G87 B.c.) who is reputed to have employed 10,000 alchemists. The Emperor Wu believed that a certain cinnabar could be made into gold. Further references to alchemy are found up to, and including, the periods of the T'ang dynasty (61&906 A.D.) and the Sung dynasty (96G1279 A.D.) during which times it was most highly developed. After the Yuan dynasty (12801367 A.D.) i t gradually fell into disrepute until it was abandoned completely by the time of the Ch'ing dynasty (1644-1911 A.D.) It may be noted that Mr. Ts'ao undoubtedly refers to what we may call scientific alchemy practiced by men familiar with current trends in science when he dismisses
while another of the Yiian or Ming (1368-1644 A.D.) period describes a more elaborate structure consisting of three tiers, one foot two inches high by five feet five inches wide, one foot high by four feet five inches wide, and eight inches high by three feet five inches aide, respectively. In addition to the platform itself other details of importance had to be arranged before the sacred house or cave was regarded as suitably equipped for the work in hand. A book of the twelfth century A.D. specifies that two pounds of cinnabar must be buried under the platform, an old sword must be placed beside the oven, and an old mirror must hang on the north side of the oven. It was considered essential by others that certain articles should be buried around the platform, such as one pound of cinnabar one foot away to the south, one pound of plaster to the north, one pound of cast iron to the east, and one pound of silver to the west. Finally, all apparatus and the earth for constructing the house or for use on the floor of the selected cave had to be clean. The earth might not be salty orbitter. It was necessary that it should be yellow and hard. Part 4 is concerned with descriptions of the alchemical ovens. Apparently the ingredients for the elixir were placed in a container or crucible which was enclosed in an oven. The crucible was surrounded completely or partially by suitable fuel which was then ignited. The crucible and fire were thus contained in a common vessel or oven and no methods appear to have been employed for heating the crucible by means of a fire in an independent container or stove. The types of ovens in use were many and varied. The simplest consisted of a cylindrical pot closed a t the bottom and sometimes perforated near the top and bottom to permit a circulation of air through the fire. Another was shaped like a beehive with a flat top, in the center of which was a hole for the introduction of the container and the emission of flame. Hollow cylinders were employed with a grating of iron rods a t the bottom. This type was supported about two inches above the ground on legs to allow air to pass upward through the fire. Rice shells often were employed for fuel. In two of the more elaborate examples the oven was divided into an upper and a lower section. In the first, or "reverse oven," the upper (fire) section held the container and fuel and had a perforated top. In the lower section was mounted a water vessel packed in ashes and mud. Tubes passing through the sides of the oven allowed water to be introduced when desired and also served as outlets for steam. The crucible was in contact with the water container a t the junction between the upper and lower sections of the oven. In the second apparatus the lower half was the fire section while the upper part contained water. Thus in both types a small area of the reaction vessel could be kept cool during the heating. Examples of these two types are shown in Figure 1. That on the left [Figure 3(a) of Mr. Ts'ao's paper] belongs to the "reverse oven" type
with the container and fuel above and the cooling system below. That on the right (Figure 4 of Mr. Ts'ao's paper) is an example of the second type, "water on top and fire in the bottom," in which the container was supported on three round iron legs and surrounded by the fuel, while the vessel with which it was in contact at the top contained water. Two kinds of crucibles or containers are discussed in Part 5 . The first, or "fire crucible," already has been mentioned as containing the necessary substances and being surrounded completely or partially by the fire. The second, or "water crucible," sometimes called "water jar," was employed solely as a container for water in order to cool part of the "fire crucible," as in the first type of oven described in the precedmg paragraph. One of these "water crucibles" is given in Fig-
.
ure 2 (Figure 18 of Mr. Ts'ao's paper). It consisted of a jar half-filled with water and covered with a brick having a hole through its center. The reaction vessel was placed on the brick and over the hole. The "water jar" and brick were packed in moist earth (shown black in Figure 2) while the fire as usual surrounded the "lire crucible" or reaction chamber. The complete apparatus was enclosed in a suitable oven as illustrated. In cases such as that outlined a t the end of Part 4 above, when the water was placed above the "fire crucible," the "water lake" was employed instead of the "water jar." This consisted of a water container placed above the reaction vessel and usually sealed into its mouth. The top of the "fire crucible" was thus cooled by the bottom surface of the "water lake." Various means were employed to increase the cooling surface. For example, a straight or coiled tube extended from the "water lake" into the "fire crucible," and the former sometimes was equipped with fins consisting of circular plates of gold through the centers of which the tube passed normally to their surfaces. In Figure 3 (Figure 9 of Mr. Ts'ao's paper) a is a "water lake" and was made of silver. The lower tube which projects from i t was of impure gold, had a length of about four, inches, and weighed about one ounce. The reaction chamber (b) also was made of impure gold and had a weight of from one-half to one pound. The gold tube of a passed through the hole in the top of b and the reaction chamber with its "water lake" was then placed in the porcelain or china vessel (6) the body of which was covered with ''six-one mud." All connecting parts were closely fitted and presumably sealed with plaster or mud because the apparatus was allowed to dry before heating in the oven.
The various crucibles were made of gold, silver, copper, iron, or earthenware. Part 6 deals with distillation and distilling apparatus, employed chiefly in the preparation of mercury from the roasting of cinnabar or the decomposition of mercuric oxide. A number of recipes for the preparation of mercury from cinnabar are unduly complicated by irrelevant details. One in particular must be commenced only a t midnight on a selected date and after placing three iron nails on the sealed cover of the reaction chamber in which the ingredients [cinnabar and yellow vitriol (?)I, after preliminary treatments, have been placed carefully and accordmg to specific directions. Heating may then be commenced and it requires about three days and three nights before the oven may be allowed to cool in order to remove the mercury. Figure 4 (Figure 19 of Mr. Ts'ao's paper) illustrates
a very simple form of still which consisted of a porcelain container (a)resembling a short-necked,round-bottomed flask in appearance. It had a capacity of fifty ounces. Ten ounces of cinnabar and eight ounces of particles of native gold were placed in the flask, the month of which was then closed with pieces of porcelain. The flask was inverted and set in a jar (b) neck downward so that it sealed the circular mouth of the latter as in c. The bottom of the jar was filled with water to a depth of onefifth of an inch. Flask and jar were placed in an oven and heated, whereupon mercury flowed out of the flask and collected in the water in the jar. The fact that "particles of native g o l d were introduced indicates that this procedure probably had as its object the extraction of the gold. Sometimes powdered coal was used with the cinnabar in this apparatus, apparently as a reducing agent. Stills of more efficient design, with the still-head projecting from the oven and a long air-cooled condensing tube leading to a receiver, were in use a t least as early as the twelfth century A.D. It may be noted that a similar type of still, according to Berthelot, was employed in the West in the fourth century A . D . ~ The operation of grinding is dealt with in Part 7. It had the two obvious purposes of decreasing the size of particles and hastening chemical reactions. For example, black mercuric sulfide was obtained as early as ' Eo~opa, G . AND LOWRY,C. D., "Distillation as an alchemical art," J. CHEM.E~uc.,7, 2063-76 (Sept., 1930).
the second century A.D. by grinding together mercury and sulfur. Lead amalgam was prepared similarly. A book of the seventh century A.D. states that a good sieve is better than grinding because with its use grinding is not necessary-n economy of labor if not of material. A book of the eighth century n . ~ recommends . horsehair for the manufacture of the sieve. Many of the prescriptions of the alchemists called for sublimation. This operation is outlined in Part 8. Many of the crucibles described in Part 5, particularly those equipped with a "water lake," were employed for sublimations. Quotations are given, describing the preparation of pure cinnabar, flowers of sulfur, arsenious oxide, mercurous and mercuric chlorides. Finally, Part 9 contains formulas and procedures for compounding the mud, plaster, or earth for sealing the crucibles and, in certain cases, for insulation purposes to prevent the ingredients in the reaction vessel from heating too rapidly. Occasionally, the earth played a part in the reaction. Further articles on such operations as crystallization, evaporation, filtration, and precipitation are promised. Much of the charm and value of the original paper lies in the numerous quotations from alchemical writings. None of these have been reproduced in this review because we have been unable t o give them the time and care which would be necessary to insure, not only accuracy of content, but also retention of their style and spirit. The article contains a bibliography of thirty-five items which include nine of the twenty-six dynastic histories of China, a t least three medical works, two books apparently of an archaeological character, and the remainder alchemical in content. It is illustrated with twenty-one figures from Chinese alchemical literature, of which four from a twelfth-century text have been reproduced independently from original sources by Professor Tenney L. Davis and Dr. Lu-Ch'iang Wu in the Technology Rm'ew of the Massachusetts Institute of Te~hnology.~ The number of Science in which the paper appears1 has as frontispiece (reproduced a t the beginning of this article) a painting by Mr. Ts'ao depicting two Chinese alchemists engaged in their operations in a mountain cave. A fire bums brilliantly in an oven upon a platform which consists of three layers and a base. An old sword stands point downward in the second step of the platform. A circular mirror hangs on the wall of the cave. Pieces of paper painted with appropriate designs flutter a t the mouth of the cave to frighten away evil spirits. Two other ovens are in operation upon the floor and a large still stands in a comer. Jars of cinnabar, old manuscripts, and sundry pieces of miscellaneous apparatus complete the picture. One of the alchemists stands in the mouth of the cave with his right hand on his heart and his hair knotted on top of his head in the style of the modem Taoist priest, while the other makes obeisance before the platform. This colorplate makes an engaging addition to an important and interesting paper.
