‘Helmet’ of an alembic (distilling device)
Maker unknown
Presumably Netherlands, 17th century
Glazed earthenware
MAS, VM.2004.0992.001
Distilling 'helmet'
This 17th-century 'helmet' was not intended to be worn on the head, but for distilling liquids.
In Belgium, we know of no other such example. This makes the ‘helmet’ indispensable in illustrating the history of distillation in the Low Countries. In various 16th and 17th-century engravings and paintings, such as The alchemist by Pieter Bruegel from 1558, you can see how vapours were cooled down and converted into liquids in a helmet like this. These then ran into a jar or bottle.
The alchemist
Pieter Bruegel (designer, 1526/1530-1569), Philips Galle (engraver, 1537-1612) and Hieronymus Cock (publisher, 1518-1570)
Antwerp, 1556-1560
Engraving
Museum Plantin-Moretus | Prints Room, Antwerp, PK.OP.18564
