Elias Ashmole

Elias Ashmole (* May 23, 1617 in Lichfield, Staffordshire, England; † 18 or May 19, 1692 in South Lambeth near London) was a scientist, lawyer, historian and alchemist and had connections to the University of Oxford.

Life

In 1646 he was involved with the astrologer William Lilly, the physician Thomas Wharton, the mathematician William Oughtred and others in founding the "House of Solomon ". This can be attributed to the idea of Francis Bacon from his utopian political novel The New Atlantis. From Ashmoles diaries is known that he was born on October 16, 1646 with Colonel Henry Mainwaring from Karin Cham (Cheshire ) a member of a Masonic Lodge in Warrington ( Lancashire ); he is referred opposite Robert Moray (Recording on May 20, 1641) as one of the first speculative masons.

During the 1650s to Ashmole was intensely occupied with alchemy and alchemical books translated from Latin into English, including a book of John Dee's son Arthur Dee. His 1652 published Theatrum Chemicum Britannicum, a collection of alchemical poems in English, is considered his masterpiece and was highly valued in alchemical circles.

To 1682 he founded the University of Oxford his extensive collection of historical documents and rarities, which stemmed in large part from the acquisition of the built of the royal gardeners John Tradescant the elder and his son John Tradescant the Younger Musaeum Tradescantianum. This collection formed the basis of the designated named after Ashmole Ashmolean Museum. Bernard Ashmole was one of his descendants.

Ashmole was "original Fellow" of the Royal Society.