Real Alchemy: A Primer of Practical Alchemy

Great read and introduction to alcamy

The 3 traditional pillars of the Hermetic arts are Alchemy, Astrology, and Qabalah. None of these are stagnant but are all living, growing and evolving arts which are completely compatible with both religion and science. This amazing tome, written by one of the foremost living authorites on Alchemy, combines practical modern science with the ancient Alchemical sciences and gives working students a firm fondation on which to build their temples. This book is truely a treasure which provides years of practicle work, and with it one could ascend to mastery in this both ancient and sacred art/scence/religion/philosophy (Magick.) For a deeper understanding of the philosophy I suggest "Sorcerer's Stone," by Hauck. And for a more guided introduction to the subject, especially for students with a background in other schools of magick, I suggest, "The Path of Alchemy," by Stavish. These three books I have called (semi jokingly but still in truth) the "Holy Trinity of Modern Alchemy." They compliment one another perfectly, each focuses in a slightly different manner and the combined information is a very nice place to start your journey in preparation for the actual process. Read all three, make sure you understand them well, and then slowley and with utmost care begin your Great Work!

This book is very well put together. His other book has more information on different alchemy processes he has found in his extensive research, but this book is perfect for the beginning student of alchemy. As someone who has researched alchemy for 12 years, I know a great deal about which methods work, and which ones were false information written in alchemy books by charlatans of the time. Bartlett did a good job of keeping out the bad info, and only telling the reader about the correct methods. The book won't teach you a quick and easy method to make the true Philosopher's Stone, but it does explain every other area of alchemy in great detail, such as plant extracts and tinctures. I always recommend Bartlett's book to anyone I talk to about alchemy who has never heard of it, or hasn't studied it well enough, but has the desire to know more. It's a perfect starting point that I wish would have been available to me when I was first learning about alchemy; an essential read for any student of the art. Bartlett is a good man, and through email conversations we were able to teach each other quite a lot, and he even posted a link to my alchemy site on his website, because I also write alchemy books myself. Most people who write alchemy books consider themselves masters of alchemy and won't let anyone teach them something new, because they are convinced they know everything already. Buy this book, and I guarantee you will not regret it! Also if you are looking to see proof of transmutation and the Philosopher's Stone, do some research on Patrick Riviera and "France 3". He was on a French TV show in early 2009 and demonstrated to the entire country how to make the stone and did a transmutation of mercury to gold, which was then immediately taken to a lab and assayed to prove it was really gold. There is no debating the matter any further -- transmutation is a reality, not just a metaphor for changing the human mind into gold.

A bit slow paced but an excellent primer on alchemy.

this book is definitely everything it claims to be: a good beginner's guide to practical lab alchemy! the suthor explains his own background in alchemy, a brief history of alchemy, the goals of alchemy, and the unfortunate downward spiral of alchemy (how charlatans ripped people off and how eventually alchemy was seen as Purely A Psychological Transformation). then he gives a good intro on lab alchemy, gives warnings where necessary, and all instructions are detailed but easily understandable. as someone who adores alchemy, this is a very helpful book!

I am doing research for a magical system and this book is AMAZING for understanding the basics. Bartlett really explains the processes or alchemy in a way that is easy to visualize both the process and the result. You can tell he is dedicated to truly teaching rather than preaching. If you are just interested in learning about alchemy for academic reasons or looking for a good manual then this is the book for you!

From a pure scientific view, this is really interesting! They mythology behind it is entertaining as well, especially to see the thoughts behind the old scientific process

Absolutely essential for studying lab alchemy. Wish I would have started with this. It would have saved so much time and questions 😂. Robert is an absolute treasure.