Meeting of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry: What’s the Matter? The Material Culture of Chemistry

The 2012 Autumn Meeting of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry

What’s the Matter? The Material Culture of Chemistry

Saturday 8 December 2012
Science Museum, London

11.00: Tour of James Watt and our World (including Watt’s workshop) by Jane Insley (Science Museum)

11.45: Tour of Signs, Symbols, Secrets: An Illustrated Guide to Alchemy, the Museum’s new alchemy exhibition, by Jennifer Rampling (Cambridge University)

13.00: Lunch (there is no organised lunch but there are several restaurants and cafes in the Science Museum and the vicinity)

13.40: AGM of the Society for the History of Alchemy and Chemistry

13.55: Introduction by Peter Morris (Science Museum)

14.00: Session 1 – Recovering Material Culture

Marcos Martinón-Torres (UCL), “No crucible, no chemistry: reaction vessels in early modern laboratories”

Haileigh Robertson (University of Leeds), “Replicating early modern gunpowder” (tbc)

Robert Anderson (Clare Hall, Cambridge), “Material material culture: new Black finds”

15.30: Tea

15.50: Session 2 – Materials and Practices

15.50: Robert Bud (Science Museum), “Narratives of science-practice in the 19th century as inspired by accounts of chemical practice and Watt in particular”

16:20: Peter Oakley (UCL), “Managing a Stream of Gold: the UK Assay Office in the 20th century” (tbc)

16.50: Roundtable Discussion

17.20: Meeting ends

To register, please go to the Society's website: http://www.ambix.org . For any questions, please contact the SHAC Hon. Secretary, Dr Anna Marie Roos: anna.roos@history.ox.ac.uk