List of alchemical substances

Alchemical studies produced a number of substances, which were later classified as particular chemical compounds or mixtures of compounds.

Many of these terms were in common use into the 20th century.

* Aqua Fortis - nitric acid, can be formed by 2 parts saltpetre in 1 part (pure) oil of vitrol(sulfuric acid). (Historically, this process could not have been used, as 98% oil of vitrol was not available)
* Aqua Ragia/Spirit of turpentine/Oil of turpentine/Gum turpentine - turpentine, formed by the distillation of pine tree resin.
* Aqua Regia (Latin: "royal water") - a mixture of aqua fortis and spirit of salt.
* Aqua Tofani - arsenic trioxide. Extremely poisonous.
* Aqua Vitae/Spirit of Wine - ethanol, formed by distilling wine
* Auric Hydroxide - formed by precipitation by potash from gold dissolved in aqua regia.
* Bismuth (German: Wismuth)
* Blende
* Blue Vitriol/Bluestone - A mineral; copper(II) sulfate pentahydrate.
* Brimstone - sulfur.:* Flowers of sulfur - formed by distilling sulfur.
* Butter (or oil) of antimony - antimony trichloride. Formed by distilling roasted stibnite with corrosive sublimate, or dissolving stibnite in hot concentrated hydrochloric acid and distilling.
* Cadmia/Tuttia/Tutty - probably zinc carbonate.
* Calamine - zinc carbonate.
* Calomel/horn quicksilver/horn mercury - mercury(I) chloride, a very poisonous purgative formed by subliming a mixture of mercuric chloride and metallic mercury, triturated in a mortar and heated in an iron pot. The crust formed on the lid was ground to powder and boiled with water to remove the calomel.
* Caustic potash/Caustic Wood Alkali - potassium hydroxide, formed by adding lime to potash.
* Caustic Soda/Caustic Marine Alkali - sodium hydroxide, formed by adding lime to natron.
* Caustic Volatile Alkali - ammonium hydroxide.
* Chalk - a rock composed of porous biogenic calcium carbonate.
* Chrome green - chromic oxide and cobalt oxide.
* Chrome orange - chrome yellow and chrome red.
* Chrome red - basic lead chromate - PbCrO4+PbO.
* Chrome yellow/Paris Yellow/Leipzig Yellow - lead chromate - PbCrO₄.
* Cinnabar/Vermilion - refers to several substances, among them: mercury(II) sulfide (HgS), or native vermilion (the common ore of mercury).
* Copper glance - copper(I) sulfide ore.
* Corrosive sublimate - mercuric chloride, formed by subliming mercury, calcined green vitriol, common salt and nitre.
* Cuprite - copper(I) oxide ore.
* Dutch White - a pigment, formed from one part of white lead to three of barium sulfate.
* Flowers of antimony - antimony trioxide, formed by roasting stibnite at high temperature and condensing the white fumes that form.
* Fool's gold - a mineral; iron disulfide or pyrite, can form oil of vitriol on contact with water and air.
* Fulminating silver - silver nitride, formed by dissolving silver(I) oxide in ammonia. Very explosive when dry.
* Fulminating gold - gold hydrazide, formed by adding ammonia to the auric hydroxide. When dry, can explode on concussion.
* Galena - lead(II) sulfide. Lead ore.
* Glass of Antimony - impure antimony tetroxide, formed by roasting stibnite. A yellow pigment for glass and porcelain.
* Glauber's Salt - sodium sulfate.
* Green Vitriol - a mineral; iron(II) sulfate heptahydrate. (or ferrous sulfate):* Marcasite - a mineral; iron disulfide. In moist air it turns into green vitriol.:* Rouge/Crocus/Colcothar - ferric oxide, formed by burning green vitriol in air.
* Gum Arabic - gum from the Acacia tree.
* Gypsum - a mineral; calcium sulfate.
* Horn silver/Argentum Cornu - a weathered form of chlorargyrite, an ore of silver chloride.:* Luna cornea - silver chloride, formed by heating horn silver till it liquifies and then cooling.
* King's Yellow - formed by mixing orpiment with white arsenic.
* Lapis solaris (Bologna stone) - barium sulfide - 1603, Vincenzo Cascariolo
* Lead fume - lead oxide, found in flues at lead smelters.
* Lime/Quicklime (Burnt Lime)/Calx Viva/Unslaked Lime - calcium oxide, formed by calcining limestone.:* Slaked Lime - calcium hydroxide.
* Liver of sulfur - formed by fusing potash and sulfur.
* Lunar caustic/lapis infernalis - silver nitrate, formed by dissolving silver in aqua fortis and evaporating.
* Lye - potash in a water solution, formed by leaching wood ashes.:* Potash/Salt of tartar - potassium carbonate, formed by evaporating lye.:* Pearlash - formed by baking potash in a kiln.
* Massicot - lead monoxide.:* Litharge - lead monoxide, formed by fusing and powdering massicot.:* Minium/Red Lead - trilead tetroxide, formed by roasting litharge in air.:* Naples yellow/Cassel yellow - oxychloride of lead, formed by heating litharge with sal ammoniac.
* Mercurius praecipitatus - red mercuric oxide.
* Milk of Sulfur (lac sulphuris) - formed by adding an acid to thion hudor (lime sulfur).
* Mosaic Gold - stannic sulfide, formed by heating a mixture of tin filings, sulfur and sal-ammoniac.
* Natron - sodium carbonate.
* Nitrum Flammans - ammonium nitrate.
* Oil of Vitriol/Spirit of Vitriol - sulfuric acid, a weak version can be formed by heating green vitriol and blue vitriol.
* Orpiment - arsenic trisulfide, an ore of arsenic.
* Pearl white - bismuth nitrate.
* Philosophers' Wool/nix alba (white snow)/Zinc White - zinc oxide, formed by burning zinc in air, used as a pigment.
* Plumbago - a mineral; graphite, not discovered in pure form until 1564.
* Powder of Algaroth - antimonious oxychloride, formed by precipitation when a solution of butter of antimony and spirit of salt is poured into water.
* Purple of Cassius - formed by precipitating a mixture of gold, stannous and stannic chlorides, with alkali. Used for glass coloring.
* Realgar - arsenic disulfide, an ore of arsenic.
* Regulus of antimony
* Resin of copper - copper(I) chloride (cuprous chloride), formed by heating copper with corrosive sublimate.
* Sal Ammoniac - ammonium chloride.
* Sal Petrae (Med. Latin: "stone salt")/Salt of Petra/Saltpetre/Nitrate of potash - potassium nitrate, typically mined from covered dungheaps.
* Salt/Common salt - A mineral; sodium chloride, formed by evaporating seawater (impure form).
* Soda/Soda Ash - sodium carbonate.
* Spirit of box/Pyroxylic Spirit - distillation of wood alcohol.
* Spirit of Hartshorn - ammonia, formed by the decomposition of sal-ammoniac by unslaked lime.
* Salt of Hartshorn/Sal Volatile - ammonium carbonate formed by distilling bones and horns.
* Spirit of salt/Acidum Salis - the liquid form of hydrochloric acid (also called muriatic acid), formed by mixing common salt with oil of vitriol.:* Marine Acid Air - gaseous form of hydrochloric acid.
* Spiritus fumans - stannic chloride, formed by distilling tin with corrosive sublimate.:* Tin salt - hydrated stannous chloride.:* Butter of Tin - hydrated tin(IV) chloride.
* Stibnite - antimony or antimony trisulfide, ore of antimony.
* Sugar of Lead - lead acetate, formed by dissolving lead oxide in vinegar.
* Sweet Vitriol- diethyl ether.
* Thion Hudor - lime sulfur, formed by boiling flowers of sulfur with slaked lime.
* Turpeth mineral - hydrolysed form of mercury(II) sulfate.
* Verdigris - copper(II) carbonate or (more recently) copper(II) acetate. The carbonate is formed by weathering copper. The acetate is formed by vinegar acting on copper. One version was used as a green pigment.
* White arsenic - arsenious oxide, formed by subliminating arsenical soot from the roasting ovens.
* White lead- lead carbonate, a toxic pigment, produced by corroding stacks of lead plates with dilute vinegar beneath a heap of moistened wood shavings. (replaced by blanc fixe & lithopone)
* White vitriol - zinc sulfate, formed by lixiviating roasted zinc blende.
* Venetian White - formed from equal parts of white lead and barium sulfate.
* Zaffre - impure cobalt arsenate, formed after roasting cobalt ore.
* Zinc Blende - zinc sulfide.