Criminalia

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Aristotle, al-Fārābī, and the Dawn of Arabic Alchemy Mar 22, 2022

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Al-Fārābī learned from the Greeks, but he wrote for Muslims. This polymath translated Greek works on science and philosophy, offering important commentaries on both Aristotle and Plato -- in the Arabic language. You might be thinking, neither Plato nor Aristotle were nor are considered alchemists. Yes, but they formulated some ideas that went on to become part of the fabric of the traditions of alchemy, not only Arabic alchemy. And al-Fārābī is responsible for showing us that.

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Agnes Sampson and the Plot to Assassinate the King Mar 15, 2022

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Agnes Sampson was a midwife and local cunning woman in a small village in Scotland at the end of the 16th century when she was accused of practicing witchcraft and conspiring with the devil. After extreme torture, she confessed to 53 indictments against her -- including a plot to assassinate King James VI.

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How Mary the Jewess Helped Your Hollandaise Mar 08, 2022

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"One becomes two, two becomes three, and out of the third comes the One as the fourth.” That’s the most famous axiom attributed to Mary the Jewess, who, it’s said, is the first known alchemist of the Western world. She is known to have invented processes and apparatus that went on to be used for centuries, both in and out the scientific community – in fact one of them, you may have used in your home kitchen.

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Dee, John Dee: Codename 007? Mar 01, 2022

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John Dee: scientist, or sorceror? Much evidence suggests he inspired Marlowe’s Faustus, Shakespeare’s Prospero, and Ben Johnson’s The Alchemist. He spent much of his life studying alchemy, divination, mathematics, and Hermetic philosophy -- and his library, it's said, housed an amazing 4,000 works. He was accused of using mathematics, of being a conjurer, and of spying for the English crown - which makes sense, because it's rumored John influenced the character of James Bond.

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Theoris of Lemnos, and the Criminalization of Magic Feb 22, 2022

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The idea of magic wasn’t strange in ancient Greece. But it has a noticeable overlap with what we’d consider science or religion today – with a dash of superstition thrown in for flavor. Magic, it was believed, could provide protection. It was a source of healing. It was a way to ensure you were successful in business, in love, and really in anything you wanted to be successful doing. It could also be used as a method for viewing and predicting the future. But it could also get you arrested, sentenced, and executed -- sometimes.

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Did Mother Shipton Predict the Internet? Feb 15, 2022

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Her real name was Ursula Southeil, but she was known about town as Mother Shipton (and also “Hag Face”). She was believed to be the love child of a 15-year-old girl and the devil, himself. She was known as a powerful prophetess. While some scholars have argued that she a work of fiction, there are those, however, that argue she was an actual person, with her story embellished through local tradition into a folk legend.

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The Tale of William Butler and the Fake Philosopher’s Stone Feb 08, 2022

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Eccentric alchemist Dr. William Butler is described as being a "well-known alchemist, the pretended discoverer of the philosopher's stone and of a powder for bringing the dead to life.” In this episode, we're serving up a case of alchemy with a side of lies.

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The Extreme and Brutal Pappenheimer Witch Trial Feb 01, 2022

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The Pappenheimers were an itinerant family from Bavaria. Accused of murder and practicing black magic by just one person, a known thief, the family was tried and executed for having been instruments of the devil. Their trial was of one of the most well-publicized witch trials in German history, and it also exhibited sadistic accounts of torture.

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Georg Honauer and the Counterfeit Gold Jan 25, 2022

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Georg Honauer was maybe a scientist. He was maybe a goldsmith. He was definitely, a fraudulent alchemist in the service of Frederick I, Duke of Württemberg. And when he couldn't fulfill the sensational promises he made -- turning 2 tons of iron into 2 tons of gold, the duke ordered his execution. Welcome to Criminalia, where all that glitters is not gold.

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Matteuccia di Francesco: The Woman Who Could Fly Jan 18, 2022

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Imagine one day your local pharmacist is arrested and accused of drinking the blood of infants and flying on the back of a goat to an orgy involving the devil. From the 14th through the 18th century, there were some wild superstitions about witches. The first witch to confess to riding a broom was a man: Guillaume Edelin. But it was Matteuccia di Francesco who was the first accused and tried for flying.

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