Latin — 1533, repaired
Virtutes rerum naturales, quaedam sunt elementales, ut calefacere, frigefacere, humefacere, exsiccare: et vocantur operationes seu qualitates primae, et secundum actu: hae enim qualitates solae totam omnino transmutant substantiam, quod alia qualitatum nulla facit; quaedam vero infunt rebus ab elementis componentibus tales, etiam ultra qualitates primas, ut sunt maturativae, digestivae, resolutivae, mollificativae, indurativae, stypticae, absterfivae, corrosivae, causticae, aperitivae, evaporativae, confortativae, mitigativae, conglutinativae, opilativae, expulsivae, retentivae, attractivae, repercussivae, stupefactivae, elargitivae, lubrificativae, et aliae plures: multa enim habet agere qualitas elementalis in mixto, quae per se non operatur. Et hae operationes dicuntur qualitates secundariae, quia sequuntur naturam et mensuram mixtionis primarum virtutum: quemadmodum de his in medicorum libris copiose tractatur; sicut maturatio, quae est operatio caloris naturalis secundum certam mensuram in substantia materiae; induratio operatio est frigoris; similiter et congelatio, et sic de similibus. Et hae operationes quandoque agunt in membrum determinatum, ut provocantes urinam, vel lac, vel menstrua, et dicuntur qualitates tertiae, quae sequuntur secundas, sicut secundae primas. Secundum has itaque primas, secundas et tertias qualitates, multae aegritudines et curantur et inducuntur.
Multa etiam artificialiter fiunt, quae homines valde admirantur, sicut est ignis aqua comburens, quem vocant ignem Graecum, cuius plures compositiones docet Aristoteles in tractatu de hoc singulari. Simili modo fit etiam ignis, qui oleo extinguitur, et aqua accenditur frigida, quando rorat desuper: et ignis qui pluvia, vel vento, vel sole accenditur. Et fit ignis, qui vocatur aqua ardens, cuius confectio novissima est, quia nihil consumit praeter seipsum; et fiunt ignes inextinguibiles, et olea incombustibilia, et lampades perpetuae, quae nec vento, nec aqua, nec ullo modo extingui possunt: quod penitus incredibile videtur, nisi fuisset famosissima illa lampas, quae in templo Veneris quondam lucebat, in qua ardebat lapis asbestus, qui semel accensus revera nunquam extinguitur. Cortice etiam praeparatur lignum, vel aliud quoddam combustibile, ut ab igne laedi non possit; et sunt confectiones quibus inunctis manibus possumus portare ferrum ignitum, aut mittere manum in metallum liquefactum, seu toto corpore ire in ignem absque ullo malo, et horum similia. Et est genus lini, quod Plinius asbestum vocat, Graeci [†JWW] dicunt, quod ignibus non absumitur, de quo Anaxilaus ait: circumdaram eo arborem, surdis, et qui non exaudiantur ictibus caedi.
Close translation
Of the natural powers of things, some are elemental, such as to heat, to cool, to moisten, to dry — and these are called first operations, or qualities, both in name and in act: for these qualities alone transmute the whole substance entirely, which no other quality does. Others, however, are present in things composed from the elements, being such as go beyond the first qualities — as are the maturative, digestive, resolutive, softening, hardening, styptic, cleansing, corrosive, caustic, opening, evaporative, strengthening, soothing, agglutinative, obstructive, expulsive, retentive, attractive, repercussive, stupefying, loosening, lubricating powers, and many others: for the elemental quality, in a mixed body, has much to do that it does not do by itself. And these operations are called secondary qualities, because they follow the nature and measure of the mixture of the first powers, as is treated at length in the books of physicians on these matters: as maturation, which is the operation of natural heat according to a certain measure upon the substance of matter; induration is the operation of cold; and likewise congelation, and so of similar things. And these operations sometimes act upon a determinate member, as those provoking urine, or milk, or the menses, and are called tertiary qualities, which follow the secondary, as the secondary follow the primary. According to these primary, secondary, and tertiary qualities, then, many sicknesses are both cured and brought on.
Many things are also done by art which greatly astonish men, such as the fire that burns underwater, which they call Greek fire, of which Aristotle teaches several compositions in his treatise on this singular matter. In like manner is also made a fire that is put out by oil, and kindled by cold water when it is sprinkled upon it from above; and a fire that is kindled by rain, or wind, or the sun. And there is made a fire that is called burning water, whose most recent recipe is such that it consumes nothing but itself; and inextinguishable fires are made, and incombustible oils, and perpetual lamps, which can be put out neither by wind nor by water nor by any means whatsoever — which would seem altogether incredible, were it not for that most famous lamp which once shone in the temple of Venus, in which burned the stone asbestos, which, once kindled, is truly never extinguished. Wood, too, or some other combustible thing, is prepared with a bark, so that it cannot be harmed by fire; and there are preparations with which, once the hands are anointed, we can carry red-hot iron, or put a hand into molten metal, or go into fire with the whole body without any harm, and other such things. And there is a kind of linen, which Pliny calls asbestos, and the Greeks call [†JWW], which is not consumed by fires, of which Anaxilaus says: surround a tree with it, and it will be deaf, and struck by blows that go unheard.
Modern rendering
Some natural powers belong to the elements themselves — heating, cooling, moistening, drying. These are called the primary qualities or operations, both in name and in effect, because they alone transform an entire substance — no other quality does that. Other powers belong to things made up of the elements, going beyond the primary qualities: things like maturing, digesting, dissolving, softening, hardening, astringent, cleansing, corroding, caustic, opening, evaporating, strengthening, soothing, binding, blocking, expelling, retaining, attracting, repelling, numbing, loosening, and lubricating effects, among many others. An elemental quality does a great deal inside a compound that it can't do on its own. These are called secondary qualities, because they follow from the nature and proportion of how the primary powers are mixed — this is covered at length in medical texts. Maturation, for instance, is what natural heat does to matter over a set span of time; hardening is what cold does; the same goes for freezing and similar processes. Sometimes these operations target one specific part of the body — like things that bring on urination, lactation, or menstruation — and these are called tertiary qualities, which follow from the secondary ones the way the secondary follow the primary. Many illnesses are both caused and cured through these primary, secondary, and tertiary qualities.
People also engineer plenty of things that amaze everyone — like the fire that burns on water, known as Greek fire, which Aristotle describes in several formulas in his treatise on the subject. In the same way you can make a fire that's put out by oil but ignited by cold water sprinkled on it, or a fire lit by rain, wind, or sunlight. There's also a fire called burning water, whose most recent formula consumes nothing but itself; people make inextinguishable fires, oils that won't burn, and eternal lamps that can't be put out by wind, water, or anything else — which would sound completely unbelievable if it weren't for the famous lamp that once burned in the temple of Venus, fueled by the stone asbestos, which, once lit, truly never goes out. Wood and other flammable materials can also be treated with a coating so fire can't harm them, and there are preparations that, rubbed on the hands, let you carry red-hot iron, plunge a hand into molten metal, or walk through fire unharmed, and other feats like it. There's also a kind of linen — what Pliny calls asbestos and the Greeks call [†] — that fire can't consume; Anaxilaus says wrap a tree in it and it becomes deaf, taking blows it can't even hear.
Editorial flags — draft status
- uncertain: The Greek term for asbestos-cloth rendered as 'JWW' in the clean OCR is unrecoverable; kept as [†JWW] in latin and [†] in both translations rather than guessed.
- uncertain: Final sentence quoting Anaxilaus on asbestos-wrapped trees is genuinely elliptical/compressed in the Latin itself (not just OCR damage) — close translation preserves the terseness rather than expanding it.