Abstract
This paper investigates John Dee’s relationship with two kinds of alchemist: the authorities whose works he read, and the contemporary practitioners with whom he exchanged texts and ideas. Both strands coincide in the reception of works attributed to the famous English alchemist, George Ripley (d. c. 1490). Dee’s keen interest in Ripley appears from the number of transcriptions he made of ‘Ripleian’ writings, including the Bosome book, a manuscript discovered in 1574 and believed to have been written in Ripley’s own hand. In 1583, Dee and his associate Edward Kelley left England for East Central Europe, taking with them a proportion of Dee’s vast library, including alchemical books—the contents of which would soon pique the interest of continental practitioners. Kelley used Ripley’s works, including the Bosome book, not only as sources of practical information, but as a means of furthering his own relationships with colleagues and patrons: transactions that in turn influenced Ripley’s posthumous continental reception. The resulting circulation of texts allows us to trace, with unusual precision, the spread of English alchemical ideas in the Holy Roman Empire from the late sixteenth century.
Highlights
For a large part of his life John Dee was engaged in reading about and practising alchemy
This paper focuses on Dee’s relationship with two kinds of alchemist: the authorities whose works he read, and the contemporary practitioners he knew, or may have known
The earliest evidence for Dee’s interest in alchemy is his list of the alchemical books he read in 1556.1 This list is largely composed of the classics of Latin medieval alchemy, including works ascribed to Geber, Arnald of Villanova and Ramon Lull, together with a few English works by George Ripley and Thomas Norton
Summary
For a large part of his life John Dee was engaged in reading about and practising alchemy. The earliest evidence for Dee’s interest in alchemy is his list of the alchemical books he read (but did not necessarily own) in 1556.1 This list is largely composed of the classics of Latin medieval alchemy, including works ascribed to Geber, Arnald of Villanova and Ramon Lull, together with a few English works by George Ripley and Thomas Norton During his travels in Europe during the 1560s, Dee seems to have become acquainted with a wider range of alchemical doctrines, and began to accumulate a substantial library of alchemical literature. Dee’s interest was not confined to Ripley’s poetical masterpiece: he copied out several Ripleian prose works in his own hand, all of which may be distinguished by their practical, ‘sericonian’ character These include the Accurtations of Raymond, a theoretical treatise accompanied by a collection of recipes, which was transcribed (at least in part) by Dee, with copious annotations, in Wellcome Library MS 239 These connections shed light on the alchemical activities of Dee and Kelley in Bohemia, and suggest that these played a role in shaping Ripley’s own posthumous reception
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
