Hostname: page-component-78c5997874-j824f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-03T04:37:41.043Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

The Chemical Workshop Tradition and the Experimental Practice: Discontinuities within Continuities

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 September 2008

Ursula Klein
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for the History of Science

Abstract

The overall portrayal of early modern experimentation as a new method of securing assent within a philosophical discourse sketched in many of the recent studies on the historical origin of experimentation is questioned by the analysis of the experimental practice of chemistry at the Paris Academy. Chemical experimentation at the Paris Academy in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth century originated in a different tradition than the philosophical. It continued and developed the material culture of the chemical work shops of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and explored epistemic objects which had rather loose connections to philosophy. On the other hand, I argue against the classical dichotomy between the work of the mind that of the hand, and for an epistemology of experimentation that acknowledges that experimental manipulation goes hand in hand with reflexion. In particuler, I argue against the view that chemists at the Paris Academy were “pragmatists” who merely gathered experimental facts and classified substances and operations without perplexing themselves over general conceptions. I claim that the chemists at the Paris Academy constructed a general conception framework which shaped the significance of their experiments. This conception that I call conception of the chemical combination, compound and reaction was rather quickly reified into an experimental fact. Despite its generality it was a genuine chemical conception rather independent of philosophy.

Type
Controversy
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1996

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

ADS. Publications of the Académie Royale des Sciences, Paris: (HuM) – Historiede I' Académie Royale des Scienced. Année 1699 [etc.] Avce des Mémoires de Matheématiquede Physique, pour la même Année, Paris 1702–1797.Google Scholar
Agricola, Georg. 1556. De re metallica. 12 books. Basel.Google Scholar
Agricola, Georg. [1556] 1950. Georgius Agricola: De Re Metallica. Translated by Hoover, H. C. and Hoover, L. H.. New York.Google Scholar
Bacon, Francis. [1620] 1860. Novum Organon (NO). In The Works of Francis Bacon, edited by Spedding, J., Ellis, R. L. and Heath, D. D., vol. 4. London.Google Scholar
Bachelard, Gaston.1953. Le Matérialisme Rationnel. Paris.Google Scholar
Beguin, jean. [1610] 1615. les Elemens de CHymie. Paris. Orogonally published as Tyrocinium Chymicum.Google Scholar
Biriguccio, Vanoccio. [1540] 1966. The Pirotechnia, translated by Smith, C. S. and Gundi, M. T.. Cambridge, Mass. Orginally published as De la pirotechnia.Google Scholar
Boyle, Robert. [1661] 1680. The Sceptical Chymist. In Works, edited by Birch, Thomas, vol. 1. London.Google Scholar
Contant, Jean-Paul. 1952. L'enseignement de la Chimie au Jardin Royal des Plants de Paris. Strasbourg.Google Scholar
Crosland, Maurice. 1962. Historical Studies in the Language of Chemisty. London.Google Scholar
Darmstaedter, Ernst. 1926. Berg-Probier- und Kunstbüchlein. Munich.Google Scholar
Davisson, William. 1651. Les Elemens de la Philosophie de l'Art du Feu ou Chemie. Paris.Google Scholar
Debus, Allen G. 1977. The Chemical Philosophy: Paracelsian Science and Medicine in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. 2 vols. New York.Google Scholar
Debus, Allen G. 1991. The French Paracelsian: The Chemical Challenge to Medical and Scientific Tradition in Early Modern France. New York.Google Scholar
DeClave, Estienne. 1646. Cours de Chimie. Paris.Google Scholar
Duhem, Pierre. [1902] 1985. Le mixte et la combinaison chimique: Essai sur l' évolution dune id'e. Paris.Google Scholar
Duncan, A. M. 1964. “Some Theoretical aspects of eighteenth-century tables of affinity—i.”Annals of Science 18(3):174–94.Google Scholar
Eklund, Jon. 1975. The Incompleat Chymist: Being an Essay on the Eighteenth-Century Chemist in his Laboratory, with a Dictinary of Obsolete Chemical terms of the Period. Washington.Google Scholar
Ercker, Lazarus. [1574] 1960. Beschreibung der allerornehmsten mineralischen Erze und Bergwerksarten. Frankfurt am Main. Reprint edited by Beierlein, Paul Reinhard. Berlin.Google Scholar
Ercker, Lazarus. [1574]. Lazarus Ercker's Treatise on Ores and Assaying. Translated from the German edition of 1580 by Sisco, A. G. and Smith, C. S.. Chicago.Google Scholar
Fachs, Modestin. [1595]. Probier Bächlein Leipzig.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, EtienneFrançois. 1704. “Maniéare de recomposer le Souffre commun par la réünion de ses principes, et d'en composer de nouveau par le mélange de semblables substances, avec quelques conjectures sur la composition des métaux.” ADS (HuM), (M) 278–86.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, EtienneFrancois. 1709. “Expériences sur les Máaux, faites avce le Verre ardent du Palais Royal.” ADS (HuM), (M) 162–76.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, EtienneFrancois. 1717. “Du changement des Sels acdies en Sels alkalis volatils urineux.” ADS (HuM) (M) 226–38; (H)3436.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, EtienneFrancois. 1718 “Table des differents rapports observás en Chimie entre differentes substances.”. ADS (HuM), (M) 202–12 (H) 3436.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, EtienneFrancois. 1720. “Eclaircissements Sur la Table insáaréae dans les Méamoires de 1718 concernant les Rapports observéas entre difféarentes Substances.” ADS (HuM), (M) 20–34.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, Etienne Francois. 1736. A Treatise of the Fossil, Vegetable, and Animal Subtances, That Are Made Use of in Physick. Translated from qa manuscript copy of the author's lectures, read in Paris, by Douglas, G. and London, M. D..Google Scholar
Christopher, Glaser. 1663. Traitéa de la Chymie. Paris.Google Scholar
Glaser, Christopher. [1663] 1677. The Compleat Chymist, or, A New Treatise of Chymistry. London.Google Scholar
Glauber, JohannRudolph. 1646–49. Furni novi philsophici oder Beschreibung einer New-erfundenerr Distillir-Kunst 5 vols. Amsterdam.Google Scholar
Glauber, JohannRudolph. [1646–49] 1651. A Description of New Philosophical Furnaces. London.Google Scholar
Golonski, Jan. 1992. Science as Public Culture: Chemistry and Englihtenment in Britain, 17601820. Cambridge.Google Scholar
Hannaway, Owen. 1975. The Chemists and the Word: The Didactic Orgins of Chemistry. Baltimore.Google Scholar
Holmes, FredericLawrence. 1989. Eighteenth-Century Chemistry as an investigative Enterprise Berkeley, Calif.Google Scholar
Holmes, FredericLawrence. 1991 “Argument and Narrative in Scientific Writing.” In The Literary Structure of Scientific Argument: Historical Studies, edited by Dear, Peter, 164–81. Philadelphia.Google Scholar
Homberg, Wilhelm. 1701. “Observations sur les Analyses des Plantes.” ADS (HuM), (M)113–17.Google Scholar
Homberg, Wilhelm. 1702. “Essays de Chimie.” ADS (HuM), (M) 33–52.Google Scholar
Homberg, Wilhelm. 1703. “Essay de l analyse du souffre commun.” ADS (HuM), (M) 3140.Google Scholar
Homberg, Wilhelm. 1708. “éamoire, Touchant les Acides & les Alcalis, pour servir d'addition éa l'article du Sel principe.” ADS (HuM), (M) 312–23.Google Scholar
Klein, Ursula. 1994a. “Origin of the Concept of Chemical compound.” Science in Context 7 2: 163204.Google Scholar
Klein, Ursula. 1994b. “Robert Boyle — Der Berudigrnder der neuzeitlichen Chemie?Philosophia Naturalis 31 1: 63106.Google Scholar
Klein, Ursula. 1994c. Verbindung und Affinität. Die Grundlegung der neuzeitlichen Chemie an der Wende vom 17. zum 18. Jahrhundert. Basel.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Klein, Ursula. 1995. “E. F. Geoffroy's Table of Different ‘Rapports’ Observed between Different Chemical Substances — A Reinterpretation.” Ambix 42 2: 79100.Google Scholar
Klein, Ursula. 1996. “Experiment, Spiritus und okkulte Qualitäten in der Philosophie Francis Bacons.” Philosophia Naturalis 33 2, in print.Google Scholar
Kopp, Hermann. [18431847] 1966. Geschichte der Chemie. 4 vols. (Braunsch–weig) Hildesheim.Google Scholar
Kuhn, ThomasS. 1970. The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. 2nd (enlarged) ed. Chicago.Google Scholar
Latour, Bruno and Woolgar, Steve. [1979] 1986. Laboratory Life: The Construction of Scientific Facts. Princeton, N.J.Google Scholar
LeFebvre, Nicaise. [1660] 1664. A Compendious Body of Chymistry: Teaching the whole Practice Thereof by the Most Exact Preparation of Animals, Veget–ables and Minerals, Preserving Their Essential Vertues. London. Originally published as Traicté de la Chymie, 2, Paris.Google Scholar
Lefèvre, Wolfgang. 1978. Naturtheorie und Produktionsweise.Darmstadt.Google Scholar
Lemery, Nicolas. [1675] 1716. Cours de Chymie. (Paris) Leiden.Google Scholar
Lemery, Nicolas. [1675] 1677. A Course of Chymistry. London. Translated by Walter Harris.Google Scholar
Lemery, Louis. 1719. “Sur le défaut & le peu d'utilité des Analyes ordinaires des Plantes & des Animaux.” ADS (HuM), (M), 173188.Google Scholar
Licoppe, Christian. 1994. “The Crystallization of a New Narrative Form in Experimental Reports (1660–1690): The Experimental Evidence as a Transaction between Philosophical Knowledge and Artistic Power.” Science in Context 7 (2): 205–44.Google Scholar
Licoppe, Chritian. 1996. La Formation de la Pratique Scientifique: Le Discours de L'Expérience en France et en Angleterre (16301820). Paris.Google Scholar
Mandelbaum, Maurice. 1964. Philosophy, Science, and Sence perception: Historical and Critical Studies Baltimore.Google Scholar
Meinel, Christoph. 1982. “Der Begriff des chemischen Elements bei Joachim Jungius.” Sudhoffs Archiv 66 4: 313–38.Google Scholar
Metzer, Hélène. 1923. Les doctrines chimiques en France du début du XVIIe à la fin du XVIIIe Siècle. Paris.Google Scholar
Multhauf, Robert P. 1966. The Origins of Chemistry.Google Scholar
Olschki, Leonardo. 1919–27. Geschichte der neusprachlichen wissenschaftlichen Literatur. 3 vols. Heidelberg.Google Scholar
Pagel, Walter. [1958] 1982. Paracelsus: An Introduction to Philosophical Medicine in the Era of the Renaissance. Basel.Google Scholar
Partington, James Riddick. 19611970. A History of Chemistry. 4 vols. London.Google Scholar
Rheinberger, Hans–Jörg. 1922a. “Experiment, Differenz, and Writing: I. Tracing ProteinSynthesis.”Studies in History and Philosophy of Science 23(2): 305–31.Marburg.Google Scholar
Rheinberger, Hans–Jörg. 1922b. Experiment, Differenz, Schrift. Marburg.Google Scholar
Roberts, Lissa. 1991. “Setting the Table: The History of Eighteenth-Century Chemistry as Read through Its Table.” In The Literary Structure of Scientific Argument: Historical Studies edited by Dear, Peter, 99132. Philadelphia.Google Scholar
Roberts, Lissa. 1993. “Filling the Soace if possibilities: Eighteenth-Century Chemistry's Transition from Art of Science.” Science in Context 6 2:511–53.Google Scholar
Rocke, Alan J. 1984. Chemical Atomism in the Nineeteenth Centiry: From Dalton to Cannizzaro. Columbus, Ohio.Google Scholar
Shapin, Steven. 1984Pump and Circumtance: Robert Boyle's Literary Technology.” Social Studies of Science 14:480520.Google Scholar
Shapin, Steven, and Schaffer, Simon. 1985. Leviathan and the Air-Pump: Hobbes, Boyle and the Experimental Life. Princeton.Google Scholar
Smeaton, W. A. 1981. s.v. “Geoffroy, Etienne Francois.” In Dictionary of Scientific Biographie, edited by Coulston Gillspie, Charles, vol 5:352–54. New York.Google Scholar
Smith, Cyril Stanley. 1966. “Life of Biringuccio.” In Biringuccio, Vanoccio. The Pirotechnia.Google Scholar
Spleter, Max. 1929. “Geoffriy d ä. (16721731).” In Das Buch der Grosen Chemiker, edited by Bugge, Gänther, 221–27. Berlin.Google Scholar
Stichweh, Rudolf. 1984. Zur Entstehung des modernen Systems wissenschaftlicher Disziplinen: Physik in Deutschland 1740–1890. Frankfurt am Main.Google Scholar
Stillman, John Maxson. 1960. The Story of Alchemy and Early Chemistry. New York.Google Scholar
Thackray, Arnold. 1970. Atoms and Powers: An Essay on Newtonian Matter-Theory and the Development of Chemistyr. Cambridge, Mass.Google Scholar
Toulmin, Stephen. 1961. Foresight and Understanding: An Inquiry into the Aims of Science. London.Google Scholar
Venel, François Gabriel. 1753. s.v. “Chymis”. In Encyclopáadie ou Dictionnaire Raisonnáa des Siecnces, des Arts et des Méatiers, edited by Denis, Diderot. 17511780.Google Scholar