Alchemists employed both physical procedures and magic to convert base metals, such as lead, into gold, and to create elixirs of eternal life. While alchemy is commonly defined as a field of knowledge developed in Europe from the Middle Ages until the eighteenth century, its roots reach into the distant past. The term alchemy is derived from the Arabic definite article al and chymia, a term which may have been used to indicate the practice of manipulating substances. Indeed, the practice of manipulating substances, exemplified by the art of cosmetics, was known to the ancient Egyptians, and predates alchemy itself.

Before the practice of alchemy was established in Alexandria, Egypt, at around 300 b.c., humankind had been changing substances and developing techniques that would be used by alchemists and later by chemists. Heat was used to cook and dry foods to make them more readily digestible and/or...