Powder of Sympathy
Encyclopedia
Powder of sympathy was a form of sympathetic magic
, current in 17th century in Europe, whereby a remedy was applied to the weapon that had caused a wound in the hope of healing the injury it had made. The method was first proposed by Rudolf Goclenius, Jr.
and was later expanded upon by Sir Kenelm Digby. An abstract of Digby's theory is found in an address given before an assembly of learned men in Montpellier
, France, and which is discussed in Pettigrew's Superstitions Connected with Medicine and Surgery. The recipe for the powder is: "take Roman vitriol [copper sulphate] six or eight ounces, beat it very small in a mortar, shift it through a fine sieve when the sun enters Leo; keep it in the heat of the sun and dry by night."
The powder was also applied to solve the longitude
problem in the suggestion of an anonymous pamphlet of 1687 entitled "Curious Enquiries." The pamphlet theorized that a wounded dog could be put aboard a ship, with the animal's discarded bandage left in the trust of a timekeeper on shore, who would then dip the bandage into the powder at a predetermined time and cause the creature to yelp, thus giving the captain of the ship an accurate knowledge of the time. There are no records of the effectiveness of this procedure. It is also uncertain if it had ever been tried, and it is possible that the pamphlet was a form of satire
.
The powder of sympathy was termed weaponsalve ("A salve which was supposed to cure the wound, being applied to the weapon that made it.") by Dr. Johnson in his Dictionary of the English Language (1755).
's novel The Island of the Day Before
. In the novel, set in the 17th century, the protagonist learns of the powder, and gives a lecture on it in a salon
. He is then ordered by Cardinal Mazarin to spy on a secret English Pacific voyage to test an unknown application of the powder to solve the longitude problem
. The method attempted in the novel involved a dog wounded with a weapon which would then be heated every day at noon in London. The men on the ship would interpret the dog's suffering as a sympathetic response, and thus would try to calculate the difference between local time and London time.
In 2010, BBC series James May's Man Lab attempted to navigate the English Channel
using the Powder of Sympathy, among other traditional methods. Rather than injure the dog with a knife, they played "I Dreamed a Dream
" to it, dipping the CD in the powder at the appropriate time. It is unclear if this had the necessary effect, as the dog barked incessantly during the voyage regardless.
Sympathetic magic
Sympathetic magic, also known as imitative magic, is a type of magic based on imitation or correspondence.-Similarity and contagion:The theory of sympathetic magic was first developed by Sir James George Frazer in The Golden Bough...
, current in 17th century in Europe, whereby a remedy was applied to the weapon that had caused a wound in the hope of healing the injury it had made. The method was first proposed by Rudolf Goclenius, Jr.
Rudolf Goclenius, Jr.
Rudolf Goclenius the Younger was a German physician and professor of physics, medicine and mathematics at the Philipps University of Marburg. He was the oldest son of Rudolph Goclenius, who was also professor of rhetoric, logic and ethics at Marburg.As a physician he worked on cures against the...
and was later expanded upon by Sir Kenelm Digby. An abstract of Digby's theory is found in an address given before an assembly of learned men in Montpellier
Montpellier
-Neighbourhoods:Since 2001, Montpellier has been divided into seven official neighbourhoods, themselves divided into sub-neighbourhoods. Each of them possesses a neighbourhood council....
, France, and which is discussed in Pettigrew's Superstitions Connected with Medicine and Surgery. The recipe for the powder is: "take Roman vitriol [copper sulphate] six or eight ounces, beat it very small in a mortar, shift it through a fine sieve when the sun enters Leo; keep it in the heat of the sun and dry by night."
The powder was also applied to solve the longitude
Longitude
Longitude is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east-west position of a point on the Earth's surface. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds, and denoted by the Greek letter lambda ....
problem in the suggestion of an anonymous pamphlet of 1687 entitled "Curious Enquiries." The pamphlet theorized that a wounded dog could be put aboard a ship, with the animal's discarded bandage left in the trust of a timekeeper on shore, who would then dip the bandage into the powder at a predetermined time and cause the creature to yelp, thus giving the captain of the ship an accurate knowledge of the time. There are no records of the effectiveness of this procedure. It is also uncertain if it had ever been tried, and it is possible that the pamphlet was a form of satire
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
.
The powder of sympathy was termed weaponsalve ("A salve which was supposed to cure the wound, being applied to the weapon that made it.") by Dr. Johnson in his Dictionary of the English Language (1755).
In media
The concept of the powder of sympathy plays a significant role in the plot of Umberto EcoUmberto Eco
Umberto Eco Knight Grand Cross is an Italian semiotician, essayist, philosopher, literary critic, and novelist, best known for his novel The Name of the Rose , an intellectual mystery combining semiotics in fiction, biblical analysis, medieval studies and literary theory...
's novel The Island of the Day Before
The Island of the Day Before
The Island of the Day Before is a 1994 novel by Umberto Eco.It is the story of a 17th century Italian nobleman who is the only survivor of a shipwreck during a fierce storm. He finds himself washed up on an abandoned ship in a harbour through which, he convinces himself, runs the International...
. In the novel, set in the 17th century, the protagonist learns of the powder, and gives a lecture on it in a salon
Salon (gathering)
A salon is a gathering of people under the roof of an inspiring host, held partly to amuse one another and partly to refine taste and increase their knowledge of the participants through conversation. These gatherings often consciously followed Horace's definition of the aims of poetry, "either to...
. He is then ordered by Cardinal Mazarin to spy on a secret English Pacific voyage to test an unknown application of the powder to solve the longitude problem
History of longitude
The history of longitude is a record of the effort, by navigators and scientists over several centuries, to discover a means of determining longitude....
. The method attempted in the novel involved a dog wounded with a weapon which would then be heated every day at noon in London. The men on the ship would interpret the dog's suffering as a sympathetic response, and thus would try to calculate the difference between local time and London time.
In 2010, BBC series James May's Man Lab attempted to navigate the English Channel
English Channel
The English Channel , often referred to simply as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates southern England from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about long and varies in width from at its widest to in the Strait of Dover...
using the Powder of Sympathy, among other traditional methods. Rather than injure the dog with a knife, they played "I Dreamed a Dream
I Dreamed a Dream
"I Dreamed a Dream" is a song from the musical Les Misérables. It is a solo that is sung by the character Fantine during the first act. The music is by Claude-Michel Schönberg, with orchestrations by John Cameron...
" to it, dipping the CD in the powder at the appropriate time. It is unclear if this had the necessary effect, as the dog barked incessantly during the voyage regardless.