Editing Jabir ibn Hayyan (section)

== Historical background ==

=== Greco-Egyptian, Byzantine and Persian alchemy ===
[[File:Jabir ibn Hayyan Geber, Arabian alchemist Wellcome L0005558.jpg|thumb|upright=.85|Artistic impression of Jabir.]]

The Jabirian writings contain a number of references to Greco-Egyptian alchemists such as [[Pseudepigrapha|pseudo]]-[[Pseudo-Democritus|Democritus]] (fl. c. 60), [[Mary the Jewess]] (fl. c. 0–300), [[Agathodaemon (alchemist)|Agathodaemon]] (fl. c. 300), and [[Zosimos of Panopolis]] (fl. c. 300), as well as to legendary figures such as [[Hermes Trismegistus]] and [[Ostanes]], and to scriptural figures such as [[Moses of Alexandria|Moses]] and Jesus (to whom a number of alchemical writings were also ascribed).<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 42–45}}.</ref> However, these references may have been meant as an appeal to ancient authority rather than as an acknowledgement of any intellectual borrowing,<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, p. 35}}.</ref> and in any case Jabirian alchemy was very different from what is found in the extant Greek alchemical treatises: it was much more systematic and coherent,<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 31–32}}.</ref> it made much less use of allegory and symbols,<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 32–33}}.</ref> and a much more important place was occupied by philosophical speculations and their application to laboratory experiments.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, p. 40}}.</ref> Furthermore, whereas Greek alchemical texts had been almost exclusively focused on the use of mineral substances (i.e., on '[[inorganic chemistry]]'), Jabirian alchemy pioneered the use of vegetable and animal substances, and so represented an innovative shift towards '[[organic chemistry]]'.<ref name="auto">{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, p. 41}}.</ref>

Nevertheless, there are some important theoretical similarities between Jabirian alchemy and contemporary [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] alchemy,<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 35–40}}.</ref> and even though the Jabirian authors do not seem to have known Byzantine works that are extant today such as the alchemical works attributed to the [[Neoplatonism|Neoplatonic]] philosophers [[Olympiodorus the Younger|Olympiodorus]] (c. 495–570) and [[Stephanus of Alexandria]] (fl. c. 580–640),<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, p. 40}}. Kraus also notes that this is rather remarkable given the existence of works attributed to Stephanus of Alexandria in the Arabic tradition.</ref> it seems that they were at least partly drawing on a parallel tradition of [[Theory|theoretical]] and [[Ancient Greek philosophy|philosophical]] alchemy.<ref>{{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 40–41}}.</ref> In any case, the writings actually used by the Jabirian authors appear to have mainly consisted of alchemical works falsely attributed to ancient philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Apollonius of Tyana,<ref name="auto"/> only some of which are still extant today, and whose philosophical content still needs to be determined.<ref>Manuscripts of extant works are listed by {{harvnb|Sezgin|1971}} and {{harvnb|Ullmann|1972}}.</ref>

One of the innovations in Jabirian alchemy was the addition of [[sal ammoniac]] ([[ammonium chloride]]) to the category of chemical substances known as '[[List of alchemical substances#Waters, oils and spirits|spirits]]' (i.e., strongly volatile substances). This included both naturally occurring sal ammoniac and synthetic ammonium chloride as produced from [[Organic compound|organic substances]], and so the addition of sal ammoniac to the list of 'spirits' is likely a product of the new focus on [[organic chemistry]]. Since the word for sal ammoniac used in the Jabirian corpus (''nošāder'') is [[Iranian languages|Iranian]] in origin, it has been suggested that the direct precursors of Jabirian alchemy may have been active in the [[Hellenization|Hellenizing]] and [[Syriac language|Syriacizing]] schools of the [[Sasanian Empire|Sassanid Empire]].<ref>All of the preceding in {{harvnb|Kraus|1942–1943|loc=vol. II, pp. 41–42}}; cf. {{harvnb|Lory|2008b}}. On the etymology of the word ''nošāder'', see {{harvnb|Laufer|1919|pp=504–506}} (arguing that it is a [[Persian language|Persian]] word derived from [[Sogdian language|Sogdian]]); {{harvnb|Ruska|1923a|p=7}} (arguing for a Persian origin).</ref>