An alchemist is seated at a table with bowl and scales, with two kneeling figures attending to the furnaces, c. 1477. An illustration from the Ordinal of Alchemy by English poet and alchemist Thomas Norton (). The Ordinal is an alchemical poem of around 3000 lines, famous for having the earliest known illustration of a scientific balance, a balance enclosed by glass to prevent drafts. It can be seen on the table in this image.

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Keywords: 1477, 1500s, 16th, alchemist, alchemy, alchimy, art, century, chemist, chemistry, experiments, furnace, history, illustration, man, medieval, norton, oldest, ordinal, ordinall, person, preparation, science, thomas