Arnald of VillanovaDied 6 Sep 1311 (born c. 1235).Spanish physician and alchemist who was wealthy, widely travelled, and able to speak Arabic and Greek. Thus he transferred information from Arabic texts on the heart, drugs, and health regimens to Europe, as well as spreading the medical teachings of Galen and Avicenna. Believing in the mystic, he made enemies in the church, and even predicted the end of the world in 1378. Though he never considered alchemy a legitimate art, he was interest in it, and wrote about the subject. Yet in practical chemistry, Asimov says he was the first to observe that wood burning in restricted ventilation produced poisonous fumes, (which we now know is due to carbon monoxide) and he also was the first to produce pure alcohol. He died on a voyage from Sicily to Avignon, on his way to treat the Pope.« |
