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Alchemy, sometimes misinterpreted as a primitive practice of modern chemistry or as witchcraft and magic, is addressed in this conference as a form of knowledge and from its dual nature, which relates it on the one hand with techniques of manipulation of matter close to artisanal practices and chemistry, and on the other with philosophical and spiritual aspects. The research professor at the Institute of Catalysis and Petrochemistry of the CSIC, Joaquín Pérez Pariente, presents a historical analysis of alchemy, from its emergence in Greco-Roman Egypt around the 1st century AD, and analyzes the relationship of the worldview and alchemical practices with medicine, chemistry and science in general, as well as its religious dimension; the trace of its symbolic language in multiple artistic and cultural manifestations is also illustrated. Lecture from the cycle “Occult Sciences in Antiquity and their Legacy” https://www.march.es/conferencias/det... April 19, 2018 Juan March Foundation, Madrid https://www.march.es/videos/index.asp... Full audio: https://www.march.es/conferencias/ant...