Alchemy (RTE) by Siobhán Cleary

Alchemy (2001)
Alchemy was inspired by the opus alchimicum, the texts and woodcuttings of the medieval alchemists. In their investigaions into the transformation of base metal into gold and the elixir of life, the alchemnists developedan imaginary world which Jung discovered had a close resemblance to the dreamworld of his patients. There is also a staggering correspondence between the symbols of the artwork and the hallucinations of modern day drugs such as LSD. The theory is that the alcehmist, in pursuit of the impossible, allowed full flight to his unconscious ( as nature abhors a vacuum) aided in many cases by drugs such as belladonna and henbane. The result was a symbolic world rich in myth and fantasy, peopled by Kings and Queens and strange beasts.

Alchemy is in four parts, corresponding with the four stages of the opus: the earthy nigredo or “blackening” stage; the watery albedo or “whitening stage: the airy citrnnatus or “yellowing stage” and the fiery rubedo or “reddining stage.
Furthermore there are four degress of heat associated with the stages. The first, slow and mild, as of the flesh or embryo, the second, moderate and temperate, as of the sun in June, the third great and strong, as of a clacining fire, the fourth, burning and vehement, as of fusion. Each of these is twice as great as the preceding degree