Philipp Ulstad (; ) was a nobleman from

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

, who taught medicine at the academy in

Fribourg or is the capital of the Cantons of Switzerland, Swiss canton of Canton of Fribourg, Fribourg and district of Sarine (district), La Sarine. Located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss Plateau, it is a major economic, adminis ...

at the beginning of the sixteenth century. He is known for his work ''Coelum philosophorum seu de secretis naturae liber'' (Fribourg, 1525), a major work of

early modern The early modern period is a Periodization, historical period that is defined either as part of or as immediately preceding the modern period, with divisions based primarily on the history of Europe and the broader concept of modernity. There i ...

distillation Distillation, also classical distillation, is the process of separating the component substances of a liquid mixture of two or more chemically discrete substances; the separation process is realized by way of the selective boiling of the mixt ...

technology. The ''Coelum philosophorum'' contains extracts from

Arnald of Villanova Arnaldus de Villa Nova (also called Arnau de Vilanova, Arnaldus Villanovanus, Arnaud de Ville-Neuve or Arnaldo de Villanueva, c. 1240–1311) was a physician and a religious reformer. He is credited with translating a number of medical texts ...

Ramon Llull Ramon Llull (; ; – 1316), sometimes anglicized as ''Raymond Lully'', was a philosopher, theologian, poet, missionary, Christian apologist and former knight from the Kingdom of Majorca. He invented a philosophical system known as the ''Art ...

Albertus Magnus Albertus Magnus ( 1200 – 15 November 1280), also known as Saint Albert the Great, Albert of Swabia, Albert von Bollstadt, or Albert of Cologne, was a German Dominican friar, philosopher, scientist, and bishop, considered one of the great ...

, and

John of Rupescissa :''Johannes de Rupescissa may also refer to Cardinal Jean de La Rochetaillée'' Jean de Roquetaillade, also known as John of Rupescissa, (ca. 1310 – between 1366 and 1370) was a French Franciscan alchemist and eschatologist. Biography ...

. It saw numerous editions, including translations into German (

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, 1527) and French (

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, 1546). He was particularly influenced by John of Rupescissa and his work on the quintessence and its use in medicine. However, he did not believe the quintessence to be incorruptible, as did Rupescissa, but rather far less corruptible than the other four elements. Ulstad distanced himself from the philosophical strands of alchemy, and focused on the technical aspects, which he wanted to make accessible to

apothecaries ''Apothecary'' () is an archaic English term for a medical professional who formulates and dispenses '' materia medica'' (medicine) to physicians, surgeons and patients. The modern terms ''pharmacist'' and, in British English, ''chemist'' have ...

, doctors, and other practitioners. He described the preparation of the quintessence from plants, minerals, metals (gold, among others) and referred to medical applications throughout. He also authored a short text on the plague (''De epidemia tractatus''). Little is known of his life outside of his published work.

Works

* ''De epidemia tractatus.'' Basel, 1526. * ''Coelum philosophorum seu de secretis naturae liber.'' Fribourg, 1525. German translation, Strasbourg, 1527; French translation, Paris, 1546.

Bibliography

* Atkinson, Edward R., and Arthur H. Hughes. "The Coelum Philosophorum of Philipp Ulstad." ''Journal of Chemical Education'' 16 (1939): 103–107. * Fichman, Martin.

Dictionary of Scientific Biography The ''Dictionary of Scientific Biography'' is a scholarly reference work that was published from 1970 through 1980 by publisher Charles Scribner's Sons, with main editor the science historian Charles Coulston Gillispie, Charles Gillispie, from Pri ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ulstad, Philipp German alchemists 16th-century German nobility 16th-century alchemists