Thomas Norton (alchemist)
Encyclopedia
Thomas Norton was an English poet and alchemist
. He is known as the author of the Ordinall of Alchemy (1477), an alchemical poem of around 3000 lines. According to Jonathan Hughes, Norton was born in Calne
, Wiltshire
. He became an alchemist in the 1450s, and was a courtier at the court of Edward IV of England
, to whom the Ordinall was dedicated.
The Ordinall gained a wide reputation in a Latin verse translation, in the 1618 Tripus Aureus of Michael Maier
. The English original was included in the 1652 Theatrum chemicum Britannicum of Elias Ashmole
.
Alchemy
Alchemy is an influential philosophical tradition whose early practitioners’ claims to profound powers were known from antiquity. The defining objectives of alchemy are varied; these include the creation of the fabled philosopher's stone possessing powers including the capability of turning base...
. He is known as the author of the Ordinall of Alchemy (1477), an alchemical poem of around 3000 lines. According to Jonathan Hughes, Norton was born in Calne
Calne
Calne is a town in Wiltshire, southwestern England. It is situated at the northwestern extremity of the North Wessex Downs hill range, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty....
, Wiltshire
Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset, Somerset, Hampshire, Gloucestershire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire. It contains the unitary authority of Swindon and covers...
. He became an alchemist in the 1450s, and was a courtier at the court of Edward IV of England
Edward IV of England
Edward IV was King of England from 4 March 1461 until 3 October 1470, and again from 11 April 1471 until his death. He was the first Yorkist King of England...
, to whom the Ordinall was dedicated.
The Ordinall gained a wide reputation in a Latin verse translation, in the 1618 Tripus Aureus of Michael Maier
Michael Maier
Michael Maier was a German physician and counsellor to Rudolf II Habsburg, a learned alchemist, epigramist and amateur composer.- Biography :...
. The English original was included in the 1652 Theatrum chemicum Britannicum of Elias Ashmole
Elias Ashmole
Elias Ashmole was a celebrated English antiquary, politician, officer of arms, astrologer and student of alchemy. Ashmole supported the royalist side during the English Civil War, and at the restoration of Charles II he was rewarded with several lucrative offices.Ashmole was an antiquary with a...
.