Alchemy

In the history of science, alchemy from the Arabic (al-kimiya) refers to both an early form of the investigation of nature and an early philosophical and spiritual discipline, combining elements of chemistry, metallurgy, physics, medicine, astrology, semiotics, mysticism, spiritualism, and art all as parts of one greater force. Alchemy has been practiced in Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, Persia, India, Japan, Korea and China, in Classical Greece and Rome, in the Muslim civilization, and then in Europe up to the 19th century — in a complex network of schools and philosophical systems spanning at least 2500 years.