Custom cover image
Custom cover image

Chapter Jan Baptist Van Helmont and the Medical-Alchemical Perspectives of Poison

By: Resource type: Ressourcentyp: Buch (Online)Book (Online)Language: English Publisher: [Erscheinungsort nicht ermittelbar] : Elsevier/Academic Press, 2017Description: 1 Online-Ressource (6 p.)ISBN:
  • 9780128095546
Subject(s): Online resources: Summary: This chapter discusses Jan Baptist Van Helmont’s (1579-1644) views on poison in light of his medical alchemy. First, it argues that his approach was fundamentally influenced by the theories of ‘universal poison’ and ‘potent poison’ developed by Theophrastus von Hohenheim, called Paracelsus (1493-1541). Paracelsus’s ideas supported Van Helmont’s own views that medical alchemy was the only key to curing all diseases and poisons. At the same time, Van Helmont sought to set these concepts more clearly in a Christian framework, and also used them to launch a scathing attack on Galenic medicine and practices. Moreover, Van Helmont used poison theory to advance his belief in the existence of a universal solvent Alkahest that could extract medical essences out of any being. The Alkahest could then be used to construct an all-powerful universal medicine that proved God’s special providence to mankindPPN: PPN: 1778557686Package identifier: Produktsigel: ZDB-94-OAB
No physical items for this record

Open Access. Unrestricted online access star

Creative Commons https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0 cc

English

KIT – The Research University in the Helmholtz Association                         Home | Impressum | Datenschutz | Barrierefreiheit | KIT