Renaissance women engaging in alchemical practices, showcasing their involvement in scientific endeavors.

Alchemy in the Renaissance: The Mysterious Isabella Cortese

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How do you become an alchemist? This is what a 16th-century book suggests: This advice is said to come from a woman; it’s from The Secrets of the Lady Isabella Cortese, published in Venice in 1561. But what does this book, and the mysterious writer to whom it is attributed, tell us about women, science, alchemy, authorship, authority and expertise …

Portrait of Caterina Sforza, attributed to Lorenzo di Credi.

Caterina Sforza: The Alchemy and Power of a Renaissance Icon

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Imagine you are the ruler of an Italian city in the Renaissance; your husband has been murdered and your children were taken hostage by your political enemies, who hope to take control of your fortress. Yet the people inside are still loyal to you and are not surrendering. So, leaving your children with your enemies, you go inside the castle, …

Portrait of Paracelsus by Quinten Massys (National Trust)

Paracelsus: The Rebellious Doctor Who Defied Tradition

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I recently found myself going down the rabbit hole of Japanese manga and anime fandom online. Now, this is something I know nothing about. I’ve never really been into anime or manga, but I was fascinated to learn about Van Hohenheim or ‘Hohenheim of Light’, a character who is a powerful alchemist in the anime series Fullmetal Alchemist, clearly inspired …

A woman cooking in Michael Maier’s ‘Atlanta Fugiens‘, 1617. (Credit: University of Glasgow Library)

‘Follow what I say’: Isabella Cortese and Early Modern Female Alchemists

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ow would you go about learning alchemy? Well, I would start by making a list of alchemists whose work I should read. Then, I would do a lot of reading. That might seem unimaginative – and it is – but, for centuries, that’s how people learned alchemy. Of course, they would eventually go to their laboratories or kitchens and try things out in practice. But reading was essential.