Old names for chemicals
(I realise that a lot of people on this list will know a lot more about this
subject than I do)
Anyway, I've got the big Websters (3rd) dictionary in front of me, and it gives
the following
spirit(s) of hartshorn - ammonia water
spirit(s) of salt (archaic) - hydrochloric acid
spirit of vitriol (archaic) sulfuric acid
spirit(s) of wine - rectified spirit, alcohol
aqua fortis - 1nitric acid
2 etching in which nitric acid is used as a mordant
aquafortist - one who uses aquafortis for etching
I'm not entirely sure why only two are labelled 'archaic' - I wouldn't think
that there were many people calling themselves aquafortists around these days.
- Chris
_________________________Reply Header_________________________
Author: TERRY KING <KINGNAPOLEONPHOTO@compuserve.com>
Subject: Re: Garden Centre photo supply
06-04-98 05:13 PM
Message text written by Peter Charles Fredrick
>In the UK for a good many years poor quality sulphuric acid was indeed
called Spirits of Wine and also hydrochloric acid was called Spirits of
Salts,Aqua Fortis was weak Nitric Acid, and you could purchase this rather
lethal liquids from the local Hardware Store then we became Americanised
in this respect and common sense prevailed.
<
Thanks Pete. I knew that I had seen it somewhere. I remember now that it
was not in a dictionary but on a bottle that I had seen it in a local
hardware store on the same shelf as the spirits of salt where you could
still buy both last time I looked. It was the kind of old fashioned store
that people with 10 x 8s like to photograph and buy their spirits of salt
for clearing Pt prints and spirits of wine for clearing green chrome salts
from some gum prints.
Strangely I could not find a referece in Chambers 21 Century, Chambers
Technical, the Complete Oxford or Websters dictionaries.
Perhaps Chris Fox, with his his lexographical skills, could advise.
Terrry King