The Letter of Petrus Peregrinus on the Magnet, a.d. 1269

CHAPTER I. Purpose of This Work

PURPOSE OF THIS WORK

Dearest of Friends:

At your earnest request, I will now make known to you, in an unpolished narrative, the undoubted though hidden virtue of the lodestone, concerning which philosophers up to the present time give us no information, because it is characteristic of good things to be hidden in darkness until they are brought to light by application to public utility. Out of affection for you, I will write in a simple style about things entirely unknown to the ordinary individual. Nevertheless I will speak only of the manifest properties of the lodestone, because this tract will form part of a work on the construction of philosophical instruments. The disclosing of the hidden properties of this stone is like the art of the sculptor by which he brings figures and seals into existence. Although I may call the matters about which you inquire evident and of inestimable value, they are considered by common folk to be illusions and mere creations of the imagination. But the things that are hidden from the multitude will become clear to astrologers and students of nature, and will constitute their delight, as they will also be of great help to those that are old and more learned.

CHAPTER II. Qualifications of the Experimenter

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE EXPERIMENTER

You must know, my dear friend, that whoever wishes to experiment, should be acquainted with the nature of things, and should not be ignorant of the motion of the celestial bodies. He must also be skilful in manipulation in order that, by means of this stone, he may produce these marvelous effects. Through his own industry he can, to some extent, indeed, correct the errors that a mathematician would inevitably make if he were lacking in dexterity. Besides, in such occult experimentation, great skill is required, for very frequently without it the desired result cannot be obtained, because there are many things in the domain of reason which demand this manual dexterity.

CHAPTER III. Characteristics of a Good Lodestone

CHARACTERISTICS OF A GOOD LODESTONE

The lodestone selected must be distinguished by four marks—its color, homogeneity, weight and strength. Its color should be iron-like, pale, slightly bluish or indigo, just as polished iron becomes when exposed to the corroding atmosphere. I have never yet seen a stone of such description which did not produce wonderful effects. Such stones are found most frequently in northern countries, as is attested by sailors who frequent places on the northern seas, notably in Normandy, Flanders and Picardy. This stone should also be of homogeneous material; one having reddish spots and small holes in it should not be chosen; yet a lodestone is hardly ever found entirely free from such blemishes. On account of uniformity in its composition and the compactness of its innermost parts, such a stone is heavy and therefore more valuable. Its strength is known by its vigorous attraction for a large mass of iron; further on I will explain the nature of this attraction. If you chance to see a stone with all these characteristics, secure it if you can.

CHAPTER IV. How to Distinguish the Poles of a Lodestone

HOW TO DISTINGUISH THE POLES OF A LODESTONE

I wish to inform you that this stone bears in itself the likeness of the heavens, as I will now clearly demonstrate. There are in the heavens two points more important than all others, because on them, as on pivots, the celestial sphere revolves: these points are called, one the arctic or north pole, the other the antarctic or south pole. Similarly you must fully realize that in this stone there are two points styled respectively the north pole and the south pole. If you are very careful, you can discover these two points in a general way. One method for doing so is the following: With an instrument with which crystals and other stones are rounded let a lodestone be made into a globe and then polished. A needle or an elongated piece of iron is then placed on top of the lodestone and a line is drawn in the direction of the needle or iron, thus dividing the stone into two equal parts. The needle is next placed on another part of the stone and a second median line drawn. If desired, this operation may be performed on many different parts, and undoubtedly all these lines will meet in two points just as all meridian or azimuth circles meet in the two opposite poles of the globe. One of these is the north pole, the other the south pole. Proof of this will be found in a subsequent chapter of this tract.

A second method for determining these important points is this: Note the place on the above-mentioned spherical lodestone where the point of the needle clings most frequently and most strongly; for this will be one of the poles as discovered by the previous method. In order to determine this point exactly, break off a small piece of the needle or iron so as to obtain a fragment about the length of two fingernails; then put it on the spot which was found to be the pole by the former operation. If the fragment stands perpendicular to the stone, then that is, unquestionably, the pole sought; if not, then move the iron fragment about until it becomes so; mark this point carefully; on the opposite end another point may be found in a similar manner. If all this has been done rightly, and if the stone is homogeneous throughout and a choice specimen, these two points will be diametrically opposite, like the poles of a sphere.

CHAPTER V

HOW TO DISCOVER THE POLES OF A LODESTONE AND HOW TO TELL WHICH IS NORTH AND WHICH SOUTH

The poles of a lodestone having been located in a general way, you will determine which is north and which south in the following manner: Take a wooden vessel rounded like a platter or dish, and in it place the stone in such a way that the two poles will be equidistant from the edge of the vessel; then place the dish in another and larger vessel full of water, so that the stone in the first-mentioned dish may be like a sailor in a boat. The second vessel should be of considerable size so that the first may resemble a ship floating in a river or on the sea. I insist upon the larger size of the second vessel in order that the natural tendency of the lodestone may not be impeded by contact of one vessel against the sides of the other. When the stone has been thus placed, it will turn the dish round until the north pole lies in the direction of the north pole of the heavens, and the south pole of the stone points to the south pole of the heavens. Even if the stone be moved a thousand times away from its position, it will return thereto a thousand times, as by natural instinct. Since the north and south parts of the heavens are known, these same points will then be easily recognized in the stone because each part of the lodestone will turn to the corresponding one of the heavens.

CHAPTER VI. How One Lodestone Attracts Another

HOW ONE LODESTONE ATTRACTS ANOTHER

When you have discovered the north and the south pole in your lodestone, mark them both carefully, so that by means of these indentations they may be distinguished whenever necessary. Should you wish to see how one lodestone attracts another, then, with two lodestones selected and prepared as mentioned in the preceding chapter, proceed as follows: Place one in its dish that it may float about as a sailor in a skiff, and let its poles which have already been determined be equidistant from the horizon, i. e., from the edge of the vessel. Taking the other stone in your hand, approach its north pole to the south pole of the lodestone floating in the vessel; the latter will follow the stone in your hand as if longing to cling to it. If, conversely, you bring the south end of the lodestone in your hand toward the north end of the floating lodestone, the same phenomenon will occur; namely, the floating lodestone will follow the one in your hand. Know then that this is the law: the north pole of one lodestone attracts the south pole of another, while the south pole attracts the north. Should you proceed otherwise and bring the north pole of one near the north pole of another, the one you hold in your hand will seem to put the floating one to flight. If the south pole of one is brought near the south pole of another, the same will happen. This is because the north pole of one seeks the south pole of the other, and therefore repels the north pole. A proof of this is that finally the north pole becomes united with the south pole. Likewise if the south pole is stretched out towards the south pole of the floating lodestone, you will observe the latter to be repelled, which does not occur, as said before, when the north pole is extended towards the south. Hence the silliness of certain persons is manifest, who claim that just as scammony attracts jaundice on account of a similarity between them, so one lodestone attracts another even more strongly than it does iron, a fact which they suppose to be false although really true as shown by experiment.

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