Sulfur

Statema, B. C. P.

Mineral

Sulfur

Solfo

Known today as: Brimstone; “live” sulfur (solfo vivo) is native sulfur.
Kind: Mineral, in 2 older authorities
Constituents: sulfur, hydrogen sulfide
Earliest authority here: Homer (fl. c. 8th century BC)
Qualities: Hot and dry (Galenic tradition). What the degrees mean
In other databases: Wikidata search
In the Canale glossary: On the Manner of Discerning and Healing the Bewitched, Appendix A: Part Three, Chapters 7–8: The Bath and Fumigations

Sulfur: what did Canale use it for?

Burnt in the fumigation to expel a spirit; four grains in the oil for the bewitched; in Treatise Two, blessed “by the God who rained you down upon Sodom” (chs. 8–9; Treatise Two).

Sulfur: what does modern science say?

Burning sulfur gives off sulfur dioxide, which is choking and, in a closed room, dangerous. The association with hell is biblical (Genesis 19; Revelation 21). Sulfur is a real antifungal and antiseptic on the skin.

Pharmacognosy & Toxicology

Constituents

sulfur ChEMBL
hydrogen sulfide ChEMBLformed on the skin

Mechanism

Sulfur on the skin is reduced to hydrogen sulfide and pentathionic acid, which kill fungi and the scabies mite and loosen the skin’s scales: the oldest remedy for scabies, still used in infants and pregnancy where permethrin is avoided.

Toxic dose

Harmless on the skin; the burning sulfur of fumigation gives sulfur dioxide, which injures the lungs.

Standing

Precipitated sulfur ointment remains in the pharmacopoeias; sulfur is in acne preparations.

Gupta, A. K., and Nicol, K. (2004). “The use of sulfur in dermatology.” Journal of Drugs in Dermatology 3. Verified against its record · PMID 15303787

The abstract of each source, beneath its citation. For Club members. About the Club or sign in.

Constituent names open the compound’s record at PubChem, and “ChEMBL” beside a name opens its record at ChEMBL, the European Bioinformatics Institute’s database of bioactive molecules. Where a mechanism line was checked against ChEMBL (ChEMBL 37, read 1 October 2026), the check is shown with the measured value and its source paper, or says plainly that nothing has been measured. Doses are as the references give them, for description only; this is not medical advice. Each source carries the result of its check against Crossref, PubMed, or the authority’s page: see Verification.

Sulfur: what lore surrounds it?

Brimstone was the smell of hell in Scripture (Revelation 21:8) and therefore, by a hard logic, the smoke that drove the damned away: it stands among the foul fumigations of the Italian exorcists. See also the press’s page on Alchemy.

Sulfur: what did the older authorities say?

Homer: After the slaying of the suitors, Odysseus calls for sulfur, “the cure of ills,” and fire, and fumigates the hall and the courtyard.
Paracelsus: Made sulfur one of the three principles of all things, with salt and mercury: the principle of combustibility, the soul of a substance.

Sources

[2] Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. ToxFAQs for Sulfur Dioxide. wwwn.cdc.gov/TSP. Book, seen in reviews
[38] Encyclopaedia Britannica, online edition, britannica.com. Articles: Ambergris; Aristolochiaceae; Asafetida; Azurite; Castor-oil plant; Civet; Dragon’s blood; Garden cress; Jet; Kermes; Laudanum; Lye; Monemvasía; Musk; Precious coral; Saltpetre; Sulfur dioxide; Tartar emetic; Tropaeolum. Book, seen in reviews
[56] Gupta, A. K., & Nicol, K. (2004). The use of sulfur in dermatology. Journal of Drugs in Dermatology 3(4): 427. Verified against its record · PMID 15303787

In Symbols of the Psyche

Sulphur: what it stood for in alchemy and in analytical psychology.

Verification

Checked

October 1, 2026

Passes

Every sentence read against its sources, in the pass over the remaining 343 entries
The Standing line checked against the authority it names (EMA, WHO, FDA, CITES, Commission E)
Every dated or regulatory claim checked by category across the database

Sources

4 cited: 2 verified against its record, 2 book, seen in reviews. 1 with the abstract on file.

Corrections

None were needed.

What was checked, how, and what was found is set out on the Verification page. A checked source is one whose record was found; it does not make the entry medical advice.

Cite This Entry

Version 1 · first published September 25, 2026

Chicago: “Sulfur.” In Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1. The Thinking Press, 2026–. Last modified September 25, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/sulfur.
MLA: “Sulfur.” Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema, version 1, The Thinking Press, 25 Sept. 2026, thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/sulfur. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.
APA: Sulfur. (2026, September 25). In B. C. P. Statema (Ed.), Materia medica (Version 1). The Thinking Press. Retrieved October 8, 2026, from https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/sulfur

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