historical alchemy

The science of alchymy I like very well, and indeed, 'tis the philosophy of the ancients. I like it not only for the profits it brings in melting metals, in decocting, preparing, extracting and distilling herbs, roots; I like it also for the sake of the allegory and secret signification, which is exceedingly fine, touching the resurrection of the dead at the last day.
Martin Luther's Table Talk ^[1]

Traditional alchemy was a protoscience that combined chemistry, physics, metallurgy, medicine, astrology, mysticism, and religion. At a fundamental practical level, alchemy was pure research, involving the combination of different materials and chemicals and studying the results. In this sense it was one of the first true sciences, for the fact that alchemists preferred to test their theories and hypotheses for themselves, rather than take the word of an authority such as the Church.

There are several theories as to the origin of the word 'alchemy':

Ancient Egyptian transmitted through Arabic 'al-khem', from the Egyptian hieroglyphics Km.t which form the native name of Egypt, 'Chem', meaning 'black earth'. Thus one derivation of the word alchemy is the 'Egyptian art', or the 'art of the black earth'.
Greek, 'chemeia', found in the writings of Diocletian, the art of making metal ingots.
Greek, 'chumeia', the art of extracting juices or infusions from plants, and thus herbal medicines and tinctures. From 'chumos' meaning juice.

Most alchemists were seeking the philosopher's stone, with the generally accepted theory that a final substance (or 'stone') would be created out of a series of chemical reactions, and the final result would be a substance powerful enough to transmute one substance into another. Commonly the intention was to change lead — the most base metal — into gold, which was considered the ultimate metal. Not incidentally, most patrons were also interested in an easy creation of gold, and thus bankrolled their personal alchemists in hopes that they would be the first to have access to the alchemist's final success.

Of course, success never happened, but alchemists discovered a number of early chemical facts along the way. And a few probably blew up their labs in the meantime, but alchemy generally consisted of actions such as 'mix two pounds of saltpeter with one pound of sulfur, then boil until something happens.' Whether the resulting substance was inert, poisonous, or explosive, the alchemist noted this and continued with a different set of metals or chemicals.

The alchemical operation consisted essentially in separating the prima materia, the so-called chaos, into the active principle, the soul, and the passive principle, the body, which were then reunited in personified form in the coniunctio or 'chymical marriage'... the ritual cohabitation of Sol and Luna.
C.G. Jung, Mysterium Coniunctionis ^[1]

Today, alchemy is considered a pseudoscience, in that it operates based on a faulty assumption; that is, that a chemically-produced substance could alter another substance on the molecular level. However, alchemy was often treated as a metaphor, or process, that could be applied to all aspects of life, and not just in a chemical sense. These days, alchemy is often considered a mystical or philosophical branch of study, where the substance in the crucible is not sulfur and mercury, but the person's experiences and psyche.

Alchemical Research Notes

In chapter 10 of the manga, Edward is reviewing research documents, and explains to a non-alchemist, "To an ordinary person, it looks like...culinary research documents... But they really are highly advanced files on alchemy with many hidden meanings and metaphors that only the one who wrote would understand."

Most of the early alchemists' texts are encoded for the same reasons. For the most part, no one wanted their notes to be decipherable if they fell into the wrong hands. In this case, 'the wrong hands' could be both alchemical competitors, or the Church. And it could also be the alchemist's patron, who might wish to determine for himself (or herself) just what the alchemist was up to.

Many of the alchemical texts that survive are couched in poetry and pictures, with a heavy use of metaphor, both religious and mythological. From a more cynical point of view, alchemical studies were utter failures when it came to achieving the philosopher's stone, but that was the last thing an alchemist wanted anyone to discover.

Conclusion: FMA is an accurate representation of historical alchemical record-keeping practices.

Transmutation of Substances

In chapters 1-13 of the manga, and 16 episodes of the anime, not once has Edward (or any other alchemist) transformed one object into a different object not made of the same chemical or molecular properties as the first. Even when Edward 'creates' gold, he does so not by creating gold, but by reshaping coal into ingots and covering it with gold. By the end of the episode, the false gold is revealed as such. Alphone explains that he cannot create a larger radio with the parts of a smaller radio, and even the walking statues in Liore (or Riore) are made from the stone of the destroyed building.

Traditional alchemy, in contrast, was not concerned with the Laws of Conservation, which were a discovery off in the future, at that time. Most of the alchemical discoveries were, in fact, re-discoveries of scientific facts lost during the Dark Ages. Alchemists were not concerned with whether they observed a law of equivalent trade; the notion didn't even really exist at the time.

Conclusion: The emphasis on a Law of Conservation fits the scientific mindset that pervaded alchemy, even if it uses a concept that's common now more than then. This underlines the mangaka's interpretation of Alchemy as a 'science', even if it's not entirely accurate to the traditional.

Philosopher's Stone

In several of the anime episodes, the Philosopher's Stone is referred to as an entity with a variety of names, fitting the fact that it has a variety of possible appearances: liquid when bottled, solid when exposed to the air. There are a number of chemicals that have odd properties, which fascinated alchemists. Mercury was a favorite, for its solid yet liquid tendencies, for instance. The Philosopher's Stone was often gived coded names, as well, both to protect the writer's research and to protect the alchemist from threats from the Church.

However, the original Alchemists did not use human souls, dead bodies, pregnant women, or small furry animals to create the stone. They were interested in chemicals, and exploring the chemical properties of substances. There are alchemical texts that speak of adding hair, fingernail clippings, fur, feathers, bones, and other such items, usually on the theory that such substances might have their own chemical properties that would add something to the reaction. In some ways, they might: fingernails retain potassium, and potash is a major ingredient in lye, a corrosive chemical.

But when alchemy is taken from its mystical, philosophical point of view, then the addition of a human soul becomes the major basis of the equation. When the alchemists began to apply this "throw it into the crucible, burn off the bad, and find the pure results" to his own psyche, then yes, one could say that a human soul became part of the philosopher's stone, if the stone is a metaphor for that which transforms a base, material-oriented person into an enlightened being.

Conclusion: if FMA takes the route that 'human souls' or 'deaths' is a metaphor for the final product (and not an actual ingredient), then it's closer to alchemy as a philosophical course of study. But there's nothing wrong with artistic license, and it does make for a better story if there's the risk that someone might die.

Religion vs. Science

One theme running through FMA — and no coincidence, probably, that it was introduced in both the first chapter of the manga as well as the first episode of the anime — is the issue of alchemy/science versus faith/religion. Because the original alchemists were operating at a time when the Western/European world was slowly crawling out from the shadow of the Dark Ages, they had to contend with an extremely strong Church that wanted its subjects to, well, remain subject. Alchemists threatened that strength, by preferring to discover for themselves, rather than sit back and wait for a diety to grant them the knowledge or ability.

Most of the early scientific practices rooted in alchemy are based on the belief that one must taste, touch, see, feel, hear and smell a tangible result — and be able to duplicate it — rather than take the results for granted. As the Church's tendency was to tell the unwashed masses to 'trust in God,' the alchemists who preferred to find out for themselves were practicing and preaching a dangerous concept.

Much of the mystical, hermetic, and gnostic traditions interwoven with philosophical-type alchemy stem from this insistence that one experience the results for oneself. Gnosticism, with its insistence on self-knowledge of the divine, dovetails in some ways with alchemical thought processes.

A mystic and an alchemist are partially overlapping sets, neither mutually exclusive nor inclusive. A mystic seeks connection to the transcendent (a diety, usually) and may or may not seek self-transformation. An alchemist's priority is self-transformation, and may or may not use a connection to the transcendent as the means to do so. It's a sweeping generalization in both cases, but enough to explain the similiarities and differences.

Conclusion: FMA is using the historical tension between the medieval Christian Church and alchemists, and echoing the same questions raised then.

Things That Make You Go Hmmm

Van (or Von) Hohenheim, Edward and Alphone's father, gets his name from a town in Germany. It's also the surname of Philippus Aureolus Theophrastus Bombastus von Hohenheim, more often referred to as Theophrastus von Hohenheim, an alchemist with the penname of Paracelsus. Von Hohenheim, on its own, is the equivalent of calling oneself something like Jack of London. However, it indicates Arakawa spent at least some time digging through introductory alchemical histories or texts, that he would chose such a name for the boys' father.

"Paracelsus was a medical reformer who introduced a new concept of disease and the use of chemical medicines. He studied at several Italian universities and began to practice medicine and surgery in the 1520s. A difficult personality, he created controversy because of his wholesale condemnation of traditional science and medicine. He never obtained a secure academic position or permanent employment.

Paracelsus's new concept of disease emphasized its causes to be external agents that attack the body, contrary to the traditional idea of disease as an internal upset of the balance of the body's humors (yellow bile, black bile, blood and phlegm). Therapy, according to Paracelsus, was to be directed against these agents of disease, and for this he advocated the use of chemicals rather than herbs. Alchemy became the means of preparing such chemicals; in this way Paracelsus changed the emphasis of the alchemical art from chasing the elusive Elixir of Life or Philosopher's Stone, to making medicines." ^[2]

Seven Deadly Sins

Listed in order of introduction in (first) anime. ^[3]

Lust is an inordinate craving for the pleasures of the body.
Gluttony is an inordinate desire to consume more than that which one requires.
Envy is the desire for others' traits, status, abilities, or situation.
Sloth is the avoidance of physical or spiritual work.
Pride is excessive belief in one's own abilities, that interferes with the individual's recognition of the grace of God. It has been called the sin from which all others arise. Pride is also known as Vanity.
Anger is manifested in the individual who spurns love and opts instead for fury. It is also known as Wrath.
Greed is the desire for material wealth or gain, ignoring the realm of the spiritual. It is also called Avarice or Covetousness.

Homonculus

There are two predominant historical perspectives on what homonculi (sing: homonculus) are.

An exceedingly minute body which, according to the views of development held by medical scientists of the 16th and 17th centuries, was contained in a sex cell. From this preformed but infinitely small structure the human body was supposed to be developed.
The figure of a human sometimes superimposed on pictures of the surface of the brain to represent the motor or sensory regions of the body represented there. ^[4]

In traditional alchemy and related fields, a homunculus was not a full-grown, walking, talking, adult, but a miniature human. The full-grown version is often conflated with golems, which are an artificial man-monster, created from clay. More importantly, golems are created via a magico-religious ceremony, while a homunculus is an artificial miniature human being created by scientific-alchemical means.

Creation of a homunculus requires semen and blood, which are considered carriers of the "pneumamaterial prima, or elemental matter of which, in alchemical theory, all substances were ultimately composed." ^[5]

According to Paracelsus,

A man's semen must be put into a hermetically — sealed retort, buried in horse manure for 40 days, and magnetized'. During this time, it begins to live and move, and at the end of the 40 days it resembles a human form, but is transparent and without a body. It must now be fed daily with the arcanum (hidden mystery) of human blood (arcanum sanguinis hominis), and be maintained at the constant temperature of a mare's womb, for a period of 40 weeks, and it will grow into a human child, with all its limbs developed, as normal as any child born of a woman, except that it will be much smaller. It may be raised and educated like any other child, until he grows older and obtains reason and intellect, and is able to take care of himself.

A homunculus, traditionally, is almost like Tom Thumb — a 'small man' or 'little man', which mystically reflects the 'great man' of the macrocosm (universe). The homunculus, then, is the microcosm. Many of the mystical elements around alchemy were influenced by Qabbalism, Hermeticism, and Gnosticism, which have a common sub-theme of 'as above, so below.' One way to interpret this adage is to see humanity's creations as 'smaller' versions of creations by the divine.

Homunculi are believed to have difficulty existing in their bodies, which shows up as awkward or stilted movement. Some alchemists expected homunculi, due to their non-natural origins, to have characteristics similar to what we would now consider robotic. Homunculi were not always expected to have higher reasoning, such as language or arts, but some alchemists argued that as a miniature person, the homunculus could be taught.

In comparison, the golem — a one-time creation of legend — did not have any higher reasoning, but was a weapon created solely for protecting the Jewish residents of the city against a pogram. When the golem achieved its purpose, according to some versions, it crumbled back into the dust from which it was created.

"To raise such life-forms one must fully understand the Power of Self and the Powers which surround. Faith, the Will, and the imagination may accomplish much. When one has attained such levels, one may use any form of ceremony to bring life into inanimate (statuette) objects. But this is temporary, as the life-force becomes deprived of its energy (arcanum sanguinis hominis / spermae), then it begins to wither and requires sustenance." ^[5]

Some homunculi are created fully formed, such as the type Paracelsus described. Others are dolls instilled with a spirit of some type, or through the use of the elemental matter of sperm or blood. In today's world, test tube babies are the closest to homunculi, being essentially the same process as described, requiring two items (semen and egg) that form the basis of life.

The Elric Brothers' Alchemical Symbol

From an entry by Northblue, on the FMA LiveJournal Communities:

Ed's alchemical symbol is actually a little unusual. See, in real alchemy, they almost always use a PAIR of serpents. The two serpents represent sulphur (the male principle) and mercury (the female principle). The alchemists thought that since creation happens through reproduction, true transmutation could only be accomplished through the unification of the male and female elements. The other symbol commonly employed by the alchemists was the phoenix. Since transmutation destroyed one thing to make another, they likened it to the phoenix's rebirth (with the unification of sulphur and mercury counting as "conception").

Sometimes they used lions instead of serpents. And sometimes salt is in there too, as a neutral element. But that's besides the point.

A single serpent is usually only seen when it's eating its own tail. Then it's Oroborus — the circle of eternity. But in Ed's symbol there's no tail-eating to speak of. Although the wings beside the crown may be representative of the transmutation phoenix. It's often depicted in similar ways in real life alchemical literature.

Either the author decided to use the symbol because it was Biblical, or he just didn't do a lot of research on alchemy! Although I'm rather impressed that they included Red Tincture in the series, which real alchemists also thought was equivalent to the Philosopher's Stone.

An addendum to the phoenix thing: The phoenix also represented the Philosopher's Stone. That's why the Philosopher's Stone and the Red Tincture were theorized to be, well, red. Red was the color of the phoenix. Many theorists thought that the Philosopher's Stone could be created by a four step process, which they represented with birds. It went from crow, to swan, to peacock, to the phoenix finished product. Diagrams of this process almost always show the "monarch" phoenix at the top.

Chimera, Chimeara

A chimera is a hybrid. In Greek mythology, the original Chimera (or Chimeara) was a female fire-breathing monster with a lion's head, a goat's body, and a serpent's tail.

An organism, organ, or part consisting of two or more tissues of different genetic composition, produced as a result of organ transplant, grafting, or genetic engineering. A substance, such as an antibody, created from the proteins or genes or two different species.
An individual who has received a transplant of genetically and immunologically different tissue.
A fanciful mental illusion or fabrication. ^[6]

Medicine pre-empted the term, applying it as a 'hybrid,' when it was first discovered that some people had two different blood types. A chimera is "a person composed of two genetically distinct types of cells. Most [people with two blood types] proved to be 'blood chimeras' — non-identical twins who shared a blood supply in the uterus. Those who were not twins are thought to have blood cells from a twin that died early in gestation. Twin embryos often share a blood supply in the placenta, allowing blood stem cells to pass from one and settle in the bone marrow of the other. About 8% of non-identical twin pairs are chimeras." ^[7]

Chimera is also an archaic term for hermaphrodite, in which one person carries the reproductive organs for both genders. While it's rare for both sets of reproductive organs to develop, it's virtually unheard of for both sets to be fully operational. The application of 'chimera' as a concept of hybridism still applies, however.

Sources

All images from Toriyama's World.