Paul of Taranto

Paul of Taranto was a 13th-century Franciscan alchemist and author from southern Italy. (Taranto is a city in Apulia.) Perhaps the best known of his works is his Theorica et practica, which defends alchemical principles by describing the theoretical and practical reasoning behind it. There is also evidence to suggest, however, that Paul is also the author of the much more widely known alchemical text Summa perfectionis magisterii, generally attributed to Pseudo-Geber.

When examining Paul’s work, it is important to make the distinction from modern definitions of words to the definitions used by medieval philosophers and scientists.

Substance – Paul does not use “substance” as the modern definition of “material” or “matter.” Instead, substance describes something that is primary and can exist on its own.

Accident – Paul doesn’t use this term as an unexpected/unplanned event. Instead, it is simply an attribute, or adjective, and cannot exist on its own.

Form/Substantial Form – Form is something that acts on matter that gives it characteristics (e.g. color, hardness, and heaviness). Substantial form is a fundamental type of “form.”

As an example to demonstrate: Substance is simply the object itself, including characteristics that define the object, whereas accidents simply qualify it, but are not necessary for its existence. For example, a bird could be considered the substance, generally combining characteristics such as feathers, a beak, and the ability to lay eggs. Describing a bird as big/small or timid/aggressive simply adds qualification to the bird, but is not defining characteristics of a bird. These concepts of substance and accident stem from Aristotle’s works.

Nature and intellect relationship

Paul argues that human intellect is superior to nature. Therefore, humans must have the ability to manipulate nature as they see fit. Sculptures and painters, for example, use nature (marble for statue, paint etc) to create various forms of art. They take natural materials and manipulate them in such a way (chiseling a statue, combining colors/drawing shapes, patterns, and figures) to create artistic works. They are able to in a controllable manner alter and improve nature. This thought is also reflected in the act of writing. “[T]he hand does not write by the motion alone of nature, but as ruled by intellect through art.” Artists are able to control nature and use it as a tool or instrument. This concept of intellect over nature is derived from the pseudo-Aristotelian Liber de Causis.

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