artificial golden ink

Ingredients

ṭalq, honey, red vitriol

Preparation Steps

Original Recipe Text

The recipe for Golden ink (no. 10) involves the distillation of ṭalq, honey, and red vitriol (p. 215). According to the text, the distillation is performed using an alembic, a gourd, and a long-necked flask. The resulting precipitate must be stored in a sealed receptacle where it undergoes several color changes over twenty days until it reaches a nuance of red gold (p. 214-215).

Evidence

"A recipe for the distillation of an artificial golden ink has been replicated in order to better understand the interaction between the text and the chemical reality behind it."

Remarks

The author notes that the focus on metallic substances and distillation in this recipe reflects an alchemical influence, where the manipulation of minerals was used to imitate precious metals (p. 214).