Trans. N. V. Ac. Set. 54 Dec. ii, 



This symbolic derivation of the signs was very generally adopted 

 by the historians of astronomy, especially by Lalande, Huet and Roger 

 Long. 



Salmasius regarded the symbols for the sun and the moon as ideo- 

 graphic, and traced the origin of the remaining five signs to hastily 

 written initial letters of the Greek names of the planets. This is illus- 

 trated in the following table : 



Salmasius' theory is ingenious, and has been favorably regarded by 

 Letronne, Delambre and others ; it has, however, weak points. Mars 

 was commonly called Trvpoeig or 'AprjQ, and the epithet Oovpov, "impetuous," 

 is rare. Again, the derivation of ^ from Sr/Z/^wi' seems forced, but 

 Beckmann defends it in this wise : the old form for 2 was indisputably 

 C, and this turned on its back and written above a - resembles the char- 

 acter for mercury. The speaker stated that, in confirmation of this, 

 he had found a sign for mercury thus ¥ . Early Greek MSS. abound 

 in ligatures and abbreviations, which are not farther removed from their 

 parent letters, than this sign from the initials of its ancient name. 



The paper was illustrated by several diagrams giving early forms of 

 the symbols used to designate planets and metals. The subject of 

 alchemical symbolism in general was reserved for a future paper. 



DISCUSSION. 



Prof. W. GooLD Levison remarked that, however obscure may 

 be the origin of these long neglected symbols, Prof Bolton's effort 

 to trace it may be encouraged by an interest of more dignity than 

 mere curiosity. It is no less appropriate to designate apparatuses 

 by such symbols than the elements themselves, although in the form- 

 er case they can never serve so important a purpose. For many 

 years he has u^ed such symbols as a short-hand method of record- 



