Sir Isaac Newton Visits the Alchemist Lair

We do not have news bulletins here at the Abbey. Indeed, it is part of the idea of ‘retreat’ not to be subjected to the everyday happenings and horrors of the outside world.

Today, however, I found something quite fascinating in the news and decided it was my DUTY to report it here. An intriguing discovery was just made regarding Sir Isaac Newton, renowned for his revolutionary work in mathematics, optics, gravity and the laws of motion. It seems that Sir Isaac and I have more in common that getting hit on the head with a falling apple. (Yes, I did.)

A collection of Newton’s notes thought to have been lost 70 years ago reveal he had a passion for alchemy. His handwritten notes, commenting on the work of other famous 17th century alchemists and documenting his own attempts to manufacture precious metals, were rediscovered in the vaults of the Royal Society and will go on display for the first time next week at the its summer science exhibition.

The notes were originally uncovered following Newton's death in 1727, but they were never properly documented and were thought to be lost following their sale for £15 at an auction at Sotheby's in July 1936. But during the cataloguing of the society's miscellaneous manuscripts collection the notes were discovered and, with the help of Imperial College's Newton Project, were identified as being the papers that had disappeared nearly 70 years before.

Newton kept hidden his interest in alchemy during his lifetime, in part because the making of gold or silver had been a felony since a law was passed by Henry IV in 1404. But throughout his career Newton, and other scientists of the time, many of whom were fellows of the society, carried out extensive research into alchemy.

The text is written in English, but it is evidently not easy to read. It is written in symbolic language and code so that it couldn’t be understood by anyone else. One excerpt reads: "It is therefore no wonder that - in their advice lay before us the rule of nature in obtaining the great secret both for medicine and transmutation. And if I may have the liberty of expression give me leave to assert as my opinion that it is effectual in all the three kingdoms and from every species may be produced when the modus is rightly understood: only mineralls [sic] produce minerals and sic de calmis."

Yes, indeed. Just what I’ve always thought myself. Don’t you agree? You can discuss it with him, if you can catch him. He's wandering around here somewhere, looking distracted and sort of transparent. If you see him, tell him thanks for letting me borrow his wig. Now I look just like an 80's version of Michael Bolton too.

COSTELLO