313: The History of Alchemy (with Sara Norja)

What you know about alchemy might only be a scratch on the surface. Metal to gold? It’s so much more than that! We’re joined by Sara Norja, who is teaching us the history of alchemy. Also featuring PhD swords, philology, and the alchemy of ISAAC NEWTON??   Content Warning: This episode contains conversations about or mentions of pseudoscience, stillbirth, death, and medical issues.    Guest Sara Norja dreams in two languages and has a predilection for tea. Born in England to Finnish parents and settled in Helsinki, Finland, she lives for words, dance, and moments of wonder. She has a PhD in English language history; her dissertation was on early English alchemical manuscript texts. She writes fiction, nonfiction, and poetry in English and Finnish.   Housekeeping - Recommendation: This week, Julia recommends The Wisteria Society for Lady Scoundrels by India Holton.  - Books: Check out our previous book recommendations, guests’ books, and more at spiritspodcast.com/books - Call to Action: Check out Join the Party, a collaborative storytelling and roleplaying podcast co-hosted in part by Julia and Amanda. Search for Join the Party in your podcast app, or go to jointhepartypod.com.   Sponsors - BetterHelp is a secure online counseling service. Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/spirits - Brooklinen delivers luxury bed sheets, pillows, comforters, & blankets straight to your door. Visit Brooklinen.com today and save 15% on your first purchase plus free shipping  - Calm is the #1 app to help you reduce your anxiety and stress and help you sleep better. Get 40% off a Calm Premium subscription at calm.com/spirits.   Find Us Online If you like Spirits, help us grow by spreading the word! Follow us @SpiritsPodcast on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Goodreads. You can support us on Patreon (http://patreon.com/spiritspodcast) to unlock bonus Your Urban Legends episodes, director’s commentaries, custom recipe cards, and so much more. We also have lists of our book recommendations and previous guests’ books at http://spiritspodcast.com/books. Transcripts are available at http://spiritspodcast.com/episodes. To buy merch, hear us on other podcasts, contact us, find our mailing address, or download our press kit, head on over to http://spiritspodcast.com.   About Us Spirits was created by Julia Schifini, Amanda McLoughlin and Eric Schneider. We are founding members of Multitude, an independent podcast collective and production studio. Our music is "Danger Storm" by Kevin MacLeod (http://incompetech.com), licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0.