Tradução do texto alquímico do corpus de Zosimos: Sobre a evaporação da água divina que coagula o mercúrio

Abstract

This article presents an annotated translation of the Greek treatise Περὶ τῆς ἐξατμίσεως τοῦ θεῖου ὕδατος τοῦ πῆσοντος τὴν ὑδράργυρον, attributed to Zosimus of Panopolis. The text, written as a lesson addressed to Theosebia, combines technical-experimental instruction and hermetic reflection on the ‘divine water’ that ‘coagulates’ mercury. The recipe describes a sophisticated apparatus, such as tribikos, sealed male-female vessels, and strict control of pneûma, highlighting the importance of hermetic sealing in the manipulation of vapours. The operating protocol employs sulphur in a lower vessel and arsenikón on a perforated plate, with prolonged heating; the vapours whiten the solid, which is then applied to the metal with continuous blowing and bitumen. From a chemical point of view, the conversion of As₂S₃ to As₂O₃ is discussed, placing the procedure in the Greco-Egyptian empirical horizon. At the same time, the introduction places the treatise within late antique syncretism (Hermeticism and Gnostic currents), emphasising the interdependence between technique, instrumentation and soteriological symbolism.