ABSTRACT
This chapter expands the discussion to include high medieval alchemy alongside the chymistry of the early modern period, in order to illustrate both continuities and diachronic shifts in the concept of material principles distinct from the traditional four elements. It is a well-established fact that the tria prima of early modern chymistry, namely, mercury, sulfur, and salt, descend from the medieval alchemical theory that metals and minerals are composed of mercury and sulfur. The theory that metals are composed of mercury and sulfur probably originated in the early Middle Ages with the Arabic Book of the Secret of Creation attributed to a pseudonymous Balīnūs. Albert's theory postulates that mercury and sulfur each contain two unctuosities or humidities, one volatile and one fixed. Albert thinks that alchemists can remove the extrinsic components of sulfur, at least, by operations involving sharp waters and sublimation.
