Download the full version of the ebook at

https://ebookmass.com

Python Debugging for AI, Machine Learning,

and Cloud Computing: A Pattern-Oriented
Approach 1st Edition Vostokov

https://ebookmass.com/product/python-debugging-
for-ai-machine-learning-and-cloud-computing-a-
pattern-oriented-approach-1st-edition-vostokov/

Explore and download more ebook at https://ebookmass.com

 Recommended digital products (PDF, EPUB, MOBI) that
you can download immediately if you are interested.

Python Debugging for AI, Machine Learning, and Cloud

Computing: A Pattern-Oriented Approach 1st Edition Dmitry
Vostokov
https://ebookmass.com/product/python-debugging-for-ai-machine-
learning-and-cloud-computing-a-pattern-oriented-approach-1st-edition-
dmitry-vostokov/
testbankdeal.com

Fundamentals of Trace and Log Analysis: A Pattern-Oriented

Approach to Monitoring, Diagnostics, and Debugging 1st
Edition Dmitry Vostokov
https://ebookmass.com/product/fundamentals-of-trace-and-log-analysis-
a-pattern-oriented-approach-to-monitoring-diagnostics-and-
debugging-1st-edition-dmitry-vostokov-2/
testbankdeal.com

Fundamentals of Trace and Log Analysis A Pattern-Oriented

Approach to Monitoring, Diagnostics, and Debugging 1st
Edition Dmitry Vostokov
https://ebookmass.com/product/fundamentals-of-trace-and-log-analysis-
a-pattern-oriented-approach-to-monitoring-diagnostics-and-
debugging-1st-edition-dmitry-vostokov/
testbankdeal.com

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning for EDGE

Computing 1st Edition Rajiv Pandey

https://ebookmass.com/product/artificial-intelligence-and-machine-
learning-for-edge-computing-1st-edition-rajiv-pandey/

testbankdeal.com
Productionizing AI: How to Deliver AI B2B Solutions with
Cloud and Python 1st Edition Barry Walsh

https://ebookmass.com/product/productionizing-ai-how-to-deliver-
ai-b2b-solutions-with-cloud-and-python-1st-edition-barry-walsh/

testbankdeal.com

Financial Machina: Machine Learning For Finance: The

Quintessential Compendium for Python Machine Learning For
2024 & Beyond Sampson
https://ebookmass.com/product/financial-machina-machine-learning-for-
finance-the-quintessential-compendium-for-python-machine-learning-
for-2024-beyond-sampson/
testbankdeal.com

Productionizing AI: How to Deliver AI B2B Solutions with

Cloud and Python 1st Edition Barry Walsh

https://ebookmass.com/product/productionizing-ai-how-to-deliver-
ai-b2b-solutions-with-cloud-and-python-1st-edition-barry-walsh-2/

testbankdeal.com

Foundations of ARM64 Linux Debugging, Disassembling, and

Reversing Dmitry Vostokov

https://ebookmass.com/product/foundations-of-arm64-linux-debugging-
disassembling-and-reversing-dmitry-vostokov/

testbankdeal.com

Machine Learning Guide for Oil and Gas Using Python Hoss
Belyadi

https://ebookmass.com/product/machine-learning-guide-for-oil-and-gas-
using-python-hoss-belyadi/

testbankdeal.com
Dmitry Vostokov

Python Debugging for AI, Machine

Learning, and Cloud Computing
A Pattern-Oriented Approach
Dmitry Vostokov
Dalkey, Dublin, Ireland

ISBN 978-1-4842-9744-5 e-ISBN 978-1-4842-9745-2

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4842-9745-2

© Dmitry Vostokov 2024

Apress Standard

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks,

service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the
absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the
relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general
use.

The publisher, the authors, and the editors are safe to assume that the
advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate
at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the
editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the
material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have
been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This Apress imprint is published by the registered company APress

Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.
The registered company address is: 1 New York Plaza, New York, NY
10004, U.S.A.
To Ekaterina, Alexandra, Kirill, and Maria
Introduction
Python is the dominant language used in AI and machine learning with
data and pipelines in cloud environments. Besides debugging Python
code in popular IDEs, notebooks, and command-line debuggers, this
book also includes coverage of native OS interfacing (Windows and
Linux) necessary to understand, diagnose, and debug complex software
issues.
The book begins with an introduction to pattern-oriented software
diagnostics and debugging processes that, before doing Python
debugging, diagnose problems in various software artifacts such as
memory dumps, traces, and logs. Next, it teaches various debugging
patterns using Python case studies that model abnormal software
behavior. Further, it covers Python debugging specifics in cloud native
and machine learning environments. It concludes with how recent
advances in AI/ML can help in Python debugging. The book also goes
deep for case studies when there are environmental problems, crashes,
hangs, resource spikes, leaks, and performance degradation. It includes
tracing and logging besides memory dumps and their analysis using
native WinDbg and GDB debuggers.
This book is for those who wish to understand how Python
debugging is and can be used to develop robust and reliable AI,
machine learning, and cloud computing software. It uses a novel
pattern-oriented approach to diagnosing and debugging abnormal
software structure and behavior. Software developers, AI/ML
engineers, researchers, data engineers, MLOps, DevOps, and anyone
who uses Python will benefit from this book.
Source Code: All source code used in this book can be downloaded
from github.com/Apress/Python-Debugging-for-AI-
Machine-Learning-and-Cloud-Computing.
Any source code or other supplementary material referenced by the
author in this book is available to readers on GitHub. For more detailed
information, please visit https://www.apress.com/gp/services/source-
code.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1:​Fundamental Vocabulary
Process
Thread
Stack Trace (Backtrace, Traceback)
Symbol Files
Module
Memory Dump
Crash
Hang
Summary
Chapter 2:​Pattern-Oriented Debugging
The History of the Idea
Patterns and Analysis Patterns
Development Process
Development Patterns
Debugging Process and Patterns
Elementary Diagnostics Patterns
Debugging Analysis Patterns
Debugging Architecture Patterns
Debugging Design Patterns
Debugging Implementation Patterns
Debugging Usage Patterns
Debugging Presentation Patterns
Summary
Chapter 3:​Elementary Diagnostics Patterns
 Functional Patterns
Use-Case Deviation
Non-Functional Patterns
Crash
Hang
Counter Value
Error Message
Summary
Chapter 4:​Debugging Analysis Patterns
Paratext
State Dump
Counter Value
Stack Trace Patterns
Stack Trace
Runtime Thread
Managed Stack Trace
Source Stack Trace
Stack Trace Collection
Stack Trace Set
Exception Patterns
Managed Code Exception
Nested Exception
Exception Stack Trace
Software Exception
Module Patterns
Module Collection
 Not My Version
Exception Module
Origin Module
Thread Patterns
Spiking Thread
Active Thread
Blocked Thread
Blocking Module
Synchronization Patterns
Wait Chain
Deadlock
Livelock
Memory Consumption Patterns
Memory Leak
Handle Leak
Case Study
Summary
Chapter 5:​Debugging Implementation Patterns
Overview of Patterns
Break-Ins
Code Breakpoint
Code Trace
Scope
Variable Value
Type Structure
Breakpoint Action
 Visit https://ebookmass.com
now to explore a rich
collection of eBooks and enjoy
exciting offers!
 Usage Trace
Case Study
Elementary Diagnostics Patterns
Debugging Analysis Patterns
Debugging Implementation Patterns
Summary
Chapter 6:​IDE Debugging in the Cloud
Visual Studio Code
WSL Setup
Cloud SSH Setup
Case Study
Summary
Chapter 7:​Debugging Presentation Patterns
Python Debugging Engines
Case Study
Suggested Presentation Patterns
Summary
Chapter 8:​Debugging Architecture Patterns
The Where?​Category
In Papyro
In Vivo
In Vitro
In Silico
In Situ
Ex Situ
The When?​Category
 Live
JIT
Postmortem
The What?​Category
Code
Data
Interaction
The How?​Category
Software Narrative
Software State
Summary
Chapter 9:​Debugging Design Patterns
CI Build Case Study
Elementary Diagnostics
Analysis
Architecture
Design
Implementation
Data Processing Case Study
Elementary Diagnostics
Analysis
Architecture
Design
Implementation
Summary
Chapter 10:​Debugging Usage Patterns
 Exact Sequence
Scripting
Debugger Extension
Abstract Command
Space Translation
Lifting
Gestures
Summary
Chapter 11:​Case Study:​Resource Leaks
Elementary Diagnostics
Debugging Analysis
Debugging Architecture
Debugging Implementation
Summary
Chapter 12:​Case Study:​Deadlock
Elementary Diagnostics
Debugging Analysis
Debugging Architecture
Exceptions and Deadlocks
Summary
Chapter 13:​Challenges of Python Debugging in Cloud Computing
Complex Distributed Systems
Granularity of Services
Communication Channels Overhead
Inter-Service Dependencies
Layers of Abstraction
 Opaque Managed Services
Serverless and Function as a Service
Container Orchestration Platforms
Continuous Integration/​Continuous Deployment
Pipeline Failures
Rollbacks and Versioning
Immutable Infrastructure
Diversity of Cloud Service Models
Infrastructure as a Service
Platform as a Service
Software as a Service
Evolving Cloud Platforms
Adapting to Changes
Staying Updated
Environment Parity
Library and Dependency Disparities
Configuration Differences
Underlying Infrastructure Differences
Service Variabilities
Limited Visibility
Transient Resources
Log Management
Monitoring and Alerting
Latency and Network Issues
Network Instabilities
Service-to-Service Communication
 Resource Leaks and Performance
Resource Starvation
Concurrency Issues
Race Conditions
Deadlocks
Security and Confidentiality
Debugger Access Control Restrictions
Sensitive Data Exposure
Limited Access
Cost Implications
Extended Sessions
Resource Provisioning and Deprovisioning
Data Transfer and Storage Fees
State Management
Stateful Services
Data Volume
Limited Tooling Compatibility
Versioning Issues
Deprecations and Changes
SDK and Library Updates
Real-time Debugging and User Experience
External Service Dependencies
Dependency Failures
Rate Limiting and Quotas
Asynchronous Operations
Flow Tracking
 Error Propagation
Scaling and Load Challenges
Load-Based Issues
Resource Contention
Multi-Tenancy Issues
Resource Contention
Data Security
Reliability and Redundancy Issues
Service Failures
Data Durability
Summary
Chapter 14:​Challenges of Python Debugging in AI and Machine
Learning
The Nature of Defects in AI/​ML
Complexity and Abstraction Layers
Non-Determinism and Reproducibility
Large Datasets
High-Dimensional Data
Long Training Times
Real-Time Operation
Model Interpretability​
Hardware Challenges
Version Compatibility and Dependency Hell
Data Defects
Inconsistent and Noisy Data
Data Leakage
 Imbalanced Data
Data Quality
Feature Engineering Flaws
Algorithmic and Model-Specific Defects
Gradients, Backpropagation, and Automatic Differentiation
Hyperparameter Tuning
Overfitting and Underfitting
Algorithm Choice
Deep Learning Defects
Activation and Loss Choices
Learning Rate
Implementation Defects
Tensor Shapes
Hardware Limitations and Memory
Custom Code
Performance Bottlenecks
Testing and Validation
Unit Testing
Model Validation
Cross-Validation
Metrics Monitoring
Visualization for Debugging
TensorBoard
Matplotlib and Seaborn
Model Interpretability​
Logging and Monitoring
 Checkpoints
Logging
Alerts
Error Tracking Platforms
Collaborative Debugging
Forums and Communities
Peer Review
Documentation, Continuous Learning, and Updates
Maintaining Documentation
Library Updates
Continuous Learning
Case Study
Summary
Chapter 15:​What AI and Machine Learning Can Do for Python
Debugging
Automated Error Detection
Intelligent Code Fix Suggestions
Interaction Through Natural Language Queries
Visual Debugging Insights
Diagnostics and Anomaly Detection
Augmenting Code Reviews
Historical Information Analysis and Prognostics
Adaptive Learning and Personalized Debugging Experience
Test Suite Integration and Optimization
Enhanced Documentation and Resource Suggestions
Problem Modeling
 Generative Debugging Strategy
Help with In Papyro Debugging
Summary
Chapter 16:​The List of Debugging Patterns
Elementary Diagnostics Patterns
Debugging Analysis Patterns
Debugging Architecture Patterns
Debugging Design Patterns
Debugging Implementation Patterns
Debugging Usage Patterns
Debugging Presentation Patterns
Index
 Visit https://ebookmass.com
now to explore a rich
collection of eBooks and enjoy
exciting offers!
About the Author
Dmitry Vostokov
is an internationally recognized expert,
speaker, educator, scientist, inventor, and
author. He founded the pattern-oriented
software diagnostics, forensics, and
prognostics discipline (Systematic
Software Diagnostics) and Software
Diagnostics Institute (DA+TA:
DumpAnalysis.org + TraceAnalysis.org).
Vostokov has also authored multiple
books on software diagnostics, anomaly
detection and analysis, software, and
memory forensics, root cause analysis
and problem-solving, memory dump
analysis, debugging, software trace and log analysis, reverse
engineering, and malware analysis. He has over thirty years of
experience in software architecture, design, development, and
maintenance in various industries, including leadership, technical, and
people management roles. In his spare time, he presents multiple topics
on Debugging.TV and explores software narratology and its further
development as narratology of things and diagnostics of things (DoT),
software pathology, and quantum software diagnostics. His current
interest areas are theoretical software diagnostics and its mathematical
and computer science foundations, application of formal logic, artificial
intelligence, machine learning, and data mining to diagnostics and
anomaly detection, software diagnostics engineering and diagnostics-
driven development, diagnostics workflow, and interaction. Recent
interest areas also include cloud native computing, security,
automation, functional programming, applications of category theory to
software development and big data, and artificial intelligence
diagnostics.
About the Technical Reviewer
Krishnendu Dasgupta
is currently the Head of Machine
Learning at Mondosano GmbH, leading
data science initiatives focused on
clinical trial recommendations and
advanced patient health profiling
through disease and drug data. Prior to
this role, he co-founded DOCONVID AI, a
startup that leveraged applied AI and
medical imaging to detect lung
abnormalities and neurological
disorders.
With a strong background in
computer science engineering,
Krishnendu has more than a decade of experience in developing
solutions and platforms using applied machine learning. His
professional trajectory includes key positions at prestigious
organizations such as NTT DATA, PwC, and Thoucentric.
Krishnendu’s primary research interests include applied AI for
graph machine learning, medical imaging, and decentralized privacy-
preserving machine learning in healthcare. He also had the opportunity
to participate in the esteemed Entrepreneurship and Innovation
Bootcamp at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, cohort of 2018
batch.
Beyond his professional endeavors, Krishnendu actively dedicates
his time to research, collaborating with various research NGOs and
universities worldwide. His focus is on applied AI and ML.
Random documents with unrelated
content Scribd suggests to you:
Yet these interpretations were, for the most part, not more subtle
than true.
“Not finding, therefore, in my operation or course of the process,
the signs, at the time written in my book, I was ever to begin again.
“In the end, having lost all hope of ever understanding those
symbols or figures, I made a vow to God to demand their
interpretation of some Jewish priest belonging to some synagogue in
Spain.
“Whereupon, with the consent of my wife Perrenelle, carrying with
me the extract or copy of the figures or pictures, I took up a pilgrim’s
habit and staff, in the same manner as you see me figured without
the said arch, in the said churchyard in which I put these
Hieroglyphic Figures.
“Whereupon also I have set on the wall, on both hands, the
process, representing in order all the colours of the stone, as they
rise and go away again.
“This is, as it were, the very beginning of Hercules his book,
entitled ‘Iris, or the Rainbow,’ which treats of the stone in these
words:—The process of the work is very pleasing unto nature.
“And these words I also put there expressly, for the sake of great
scholars and learned men, who may understand to what they allude.
“In this same manner, I say, I put myself upon my journey to Spain,
and so much I did that I, in a short time, arrived at Mountjoy, and, a
while after, at St James, where, with much devotion, I accomplished
my vow.
“This done, in Leon, I, at my return, met with a merchant of
Boulogne, who brought me acquainted with a physician, M.
Canches, a Jew by nation, but now a Christian, dwelling at Leon
aforesaid.
“I showed him the extract or copy of my figures, by which he was,
as it were, ravished with great astonishment and joy. He desired
immediately if I could tell him any news of the book whence they
were drawn.
 “I answered him in Latin (in which language he asked me the
question) that I doubted not of obtaining the sight of the book, if I
could meet with any one who could unfold the enigmas. Hearing this,
and being transported with great earnestness and joy, he began to
decypher unto me the beginning. To be short, he was much pleased
that he was in hopes to hear tidings of the book, and I as much
pleased to hear him speak and interpret it. And, doubtless, he had
heard much talk of the book, but it was, as he said, of a thing which
was believed to be utterly lost. Upon this, we resolved for our
voyage, and from Leon we passed to Oviedo, and thence to
Sareson, where we took shipping, and went to sea in order to go into
France.
“Our voyage was prosperous and happy, and, being arrived in the
kingdom of France, he most truly interpreted unto me the greatest
part of my figures, in which, even to the points and pricks, he could
decypher great mysteries, which were admirable to me. Having
attained Orleans, this learned man fell sick, even to death, being
afflicted with extreme vomitings, which still continued with him, as
being first caused by sea-sickness. Notwithstanding which, he was in
continual fear lest I should leave or forsake him, which was a great
trouble to him. And although I was continually by his side, yet he
would be almost always calling for me. At the end of the seventh day
of his sickness he died, which was no small grief to me, and I buried
him, as well as my condition would permit me, in a church at
Orleans.
“He that would see the manner of my arrival and the joy of
Perrenelle, let him look upon us two in the city of Paris, upon the
door of the chapel of James of the Boucherie, close by the one side
of my house, where we are both painted, kneeling and giving thanks
to God. For through the grace of God it was that I attained the
perfect knowledge of all I desired.
“Well, I had now the prima materia, the first principles, yet not their
first preparation, which is a thing most difficult above all other things
in the world; but in the end I had that also, after a long aberration,
and wandering in a labyrinth of errors for the space of three years, or
thereabouts, during which time I did nothing but study and search
and labour, so as you see me depicted without this arch where I
have placed my process; praying also continually unto God, and
reading attentively in my book, pondering the words of the
philosophers, and then trying and proving the various operations,
which I thought to myself they might mean by their words. At length I
found that which I desired, which I also soon knew by the scent and
odour thereof. Having this, I easily accomplished the magistery. For
knowing the preparations of the prime agents, and then literally
following the directions in my book, I could not then miss the work if I
would.
“Having attained this, I come now to projection; the first time I
made projection was upon mercury, a pound and a half whereof, or
thereabouts, I turned into pure silver, better than that of the mine, as
I proved by assaying of it myself, and also causing others to assay it
for me several times. This was done in the year of our Lord 1382,
January 17, about noon, being Monday, in my own house, Perrenelle
only present.
“Again, following exactly the directions in my book, literally and
word by word, I made projection of the red stone, on the like quantity,
Perrenelle only being present, and in the same house, which was
done in the same year of our Lord, namely, 1382, April 25, at five in
the afternoon. This mercury I truly transmuted into almost as much
gold, much better, indeed, than common gold, more soft also, and
more pliable.
“I speak it in all truth: I have made it three times, with the help of
Perrenelle, who understood it as well as myself, because she
assisted me in my operations. And without doubt, if she would have
done it alone, she would have brought it to the same, or full as great,
perfection as I had done. I had truly enough when I had once done it;
but I found exceeding great pleasure and delight in seeing and
contemplating the admirable works of Nature within the vessels, and
to show to you that I had thus done it three times, I caused to be
depicted under the same arch, three furnaces, like to those which
serve for the operations of this work.
 “I was much concerned for a long time lest Perrenelle, by reason
of extreme joy, should not hide her felicity, which I measured by my
own, and lest she should let fall some words among her relations
concerning the great treasure we possessed. For an extremity of joy
takes away the understanding as well as an extremity of grief and
sorrow. But the goodness of the most great God had not only given
and filled me with this blessing, to give me a chaste and sober wife,
but she was also a wise and prudent woman, not only capable of
reason but also to do what was reasonable, and was more discreet
and secret than ordinarily other women are. Above all, she was
exceedingly religious and devout: and therefore seeing herself
without hope of children, and now well stricken in years, she made it
her business, as I did, to think of God, and to give ourselves to the
works of charity and mercy.
“Before the time wherein I wrote this discourse, which was at the
latter end of the year of our Lord 1413, after the death of my faithful
companion, whose loss I cannot but lament all the days of my life,
she and I had already founded, and endowed with revenues,
fourteen hospitals, three chapels, and seven churches, in the city of
Paris, all which we had new built from the ground, and enriched with
great gifts and revenues, with many reparations in their churchyards.
We also have done at Boulogne about as much as we have done at
Paris, not to speak of the charitable acts which we both did to
particular poor people, principally to widows and orphans, whose
names should I divulge, with the largeness of the charity, and the
way and manner of doing it, as my reward would then be only in this
world, so neither could it be pleasing to the persons to whom we did
it.
“Building, therefore, these hospitals, chapels, churches, and
churchyards in the city, I caused to be depicted under the said fourth
arch the most true and essential marks or signs of this art, yet under
veils, types, and hieroglyphic covertures, in imitation of those things
which are contained in the gilded book of Abraham the Jew;
demonstrating to the wise, and men of understanding, the direct and
perfect way of operation, and lineary work of the philosophers’ stone.
Which being perfected by any one, takes away from him the root of
all sin and evil, which is covetousness, changing his evil into good,
and making him liberal, courteous, religious, devout, and fearing
God, however wicked he was before. For from thenceforward he is
continually ravished with the goodness of God, and with His grace
and mercy, which he has obtained from the fountain of Eternal
Goodness, with the profoundness of His divine and adorable power,
and with the consideration of His admirable works.”
According to Langlet du Fresnoy, the evidence of these things
remained in the year 1742. In the cemetery of the Holy Innocents
stood the arch built by Flamel with the hieroglpyhic figures upon it. In
two niches, without the arch and on the cemetery side, were statues
of St James and St John. Below that of St John was the figure of
Flamel himself, reading in a book, with a Gothic N. F. to mark his
name. The progression of the colours in the order of the process,
originally represented on the wall, was, however, effaced.
In the same cemetery was a charnel house, or receptacle for the
skulls and bones disinterred in the digging of new graves. Upon one
of the pillars of this charnel there was a Gothic N. F., with this
inscription:—

Ce charnier fut fait & donné à l’Eglise,

Pour l’amour de Dieu, l’an 1399.

The second of these evidences was upon the Marivaux door of the
Church of Saint Jacques-la-Boucherie, where on the left side at
entering was the figure of Flamel, kneeling at the feet of St James,
with a Gothic N. upon the pedestal. The figure of Perrenelle was
represented on the opposite side, kneeling at the feet of St John, the
pedestal bearing a Gothic P.
The third evidence was in the street of Notre Dame, at the portal of
Genevieve of Arden. There Flamel’s statue was to be seen in a
niche, kneeling with a desk at his side, looking towards St James.
There was a Gothic N. F. below and the inscription, “This portal was
built in 1402, by the alms of many.” Flamel is supposed to have
concealed in this manner that he was the principal donor, but the
figure may have been erected to his memory.
 The fourth and final evidence was in the street of the cemetery of
St Nicholas of the Fields, where there was the wall of an unfinished
hospital with figures engraven on the stone and the initials of Flamel.
After the death of Perrenelle the bereaved adept is supposed to
have prepared for posterity several works on the supreme science
which had enriched him:—Le Livre des Figures Hieroglyphiques; Le
Sommaire Philosophique, written in verse after the manner of the
Roman de la Rose; Trois Traités de la Transformation Metallique,
also in rhymed verse; Le Desir Désiré, ou Trésor de Philosophie; Le
Grand Eclaircissement de la Pierre Philosophale pour la
Transmutation de tous Métaux; La Musique Chimique; Annotationes
in D. Zacharmin, &c.
Approaching near the end of his life, and having no children, he
chose his burial place in the parish church of St Jacques-la-
Boucherie, before the crucifix. To this end he made a contract with
the wardens of the church, which is mentioned in his testament. He
then disposed of his property and goods to the church and to the
poor, as may be seen in his will, which is lodged in the archives of St
Jacques. It is dated the 22nd November 1416, and begins thus:—“To
all those to whom these present letters shall come, I, Annegny du
Castel, chevalier, counsellor chambellan of the King, our Sire,
Keeper of the Prevot of Paris, greeting: Know ye, that before Hugues
de la Barre and Jean de la Noe, notary clerks of the King, at the
Chatelet, was established personally, Nicholas Flamel, scrivener,
sound in body and mind, speaking clearly, with good and true
understanding,” &c. It fills four sheets of parchment, which are
sewed one to the end of the other, like the rolls of ancient writing. It
contains thirty-four articles; in the twentieth he bequeaths to his
relations the sum of forty livres. He lived three years after making
this will, dying about 1419.

Hostile criticism has endeavoured to destroy the testimony which

the history of Flamel affords to the reality of transmutation, and has
adopted various means. It has attempted to disprove his wealth by
reducing his munificence, representing him simply as an honest
bourgeois, who, thanks to his economy and his assiduity, acquired a
comfortable competence, which a childless condition enabled him to
devote to works of benevolence, and to the erection of public
buildings on a moderate scale. The alchemical testaments and
treatises attributed to him are condemned one and all as absolutely
spurious. The chief expositor of this view is the Abbé L. Vilain in his
Essai sur une Histoire de Saint-Jacques-la-Boucherie, published in
duodecimo at Paris, in 1758, and again in a Histoire Critique de
Nicolas Flamel et de Pernel sa Femme, Paris, 1782, &c.
It must be granted out of hand that all the alchemical compositions
which have passed under the name of Flamel are open to more or
less suspicion, and some are undoubtedly forgeries. The work on
metallic transmutation, which is the earliest traceable treatise, was
unheard of till a hundred and forty-three years after the death of its
accredited author. It was published in the year 1561 by Jacques
Goharry. Le Grand Eclaircissement first saw the light in 1628, when
the editor, who apparently abounded in Flamel manuscripts,
promised the publication in addition of La Joie Parfaite de Moi,
Nicolas Flamel, et de Pernelle, ma Femme, which has not, however,
appeared.
On the other hand, there are strong arguments for the
genuineness of the Trésor de Philosophie. “There exists in the
Bibliothèque du Roi” says M. Auguste Vallet, “a small manuscript
book, grossement relié, according to all appearance belonging to the
end of the fourteenth century, and which treats of alchemical
operations. It commences with these words:—
“‘Excipit the True Practice of the Noble Science of Alchemy, the
desired desire, and the prize unappraisable, compiled from all the
philosophers, and drawn out of ancient works.’
“It teaches the manner of accomplishing the Magnum Opus by the
aid of successive operations, which are termed Lavures in this
treatise. On the last leaf of the manuscript is the following inscription
written by the same hand as the rest of the text:—‘The present book
is of and belonging to Nicolas Flamel, of the Parish Saint-Jacques-
de-la-Boucherie, who has written and illuminated it with his own
hand.’”
With regard to the extent of the scrivener’s resources, the genuine
testament of Pernelle, dated 1399, and the endowments of hospitals
and churches which undoubtedly took place on a scale of great
munificence, are a sufficient evidence that he was an exceedingly
wealthy man.
Other critics, including Louis Figuier, admit the fact of his riches,
but enlarge upon the remunerative nature of a scrivener’s
occupation previous to the invention of printing, and upon the careful
frugality of the supposed alchemist; but in the teeth of their own
theory they are obliged to admit that Flamel did become a student of
alchemy, that the hieroglyphics, figures, and emblems in the
Cemetery of the Holy Innocents are evidence of this fact; that, unlike
most followers of Hermes, he was not impoverished by his
experiments; and that he fostered the report that his wealth was in
the main a result of his possession of the mysterious book of
Abraham, by which he had been able to compose the philosophical
stone.
Gabriel Naudé, who detested magic, and seems to have despised
alchemy, vilifying the possessors of both of these sciences alike,
accounts for the riches of Flamel by asserting that he managed
affairs for the Jews, and upon their banishment from the kingdom of
France, and the confiscation of their property for the king, “he,
knowing the sums due by several individuals, compromised, by
receiving a part, which they paid him to prevent his giving
information which would oblige them to surrender it entirely.”
This explanation of the source of Flamel’s riches is a purely
unfounded assertion. If we carefully examine history, there were
three expulsions of the Jews from France between 1300 and 1420.
They were banished in 1308, were soon after allowed to return, and
were again banished in 1320. These persecutions occurred before
the birth of Flamel. The Jews were re-established by Charles V. in
1364, and they remained in quiet until the riots which occurred in
Paris in 1380, at the beginning of the reign of Charles VI., when the
people rose up against the Jews, committing great outrages and
demanding their expulsion. The sedition, however, was quelled, and
the Jews protected until 1393, when, upon several charges preferred
against them, they were enjoined to quit France, or else become
Christians. The historian Mezeray says that some of them chose
rather to quit their religion than the kingdom, but others sold their
goods and retired. Thus it appears that the only expulsion of the
Jews which could agree with Naudé’s surmise was without the
confiscation of their property, and, therefore, could not give Flamel
the opportunity alleged, if, indeed, it were reasonable to suppose
that all the Parisian Israelites entrusted their affairs to a single
person, when it does not appear that necessity required such an
agency. There is, therefore, no reason to suppose that Flamel was
enriched by the property of the Jews, or that those who owed them
money compounded with Flamel, lest he should denounce them to
the king.[Q]
Thus the theories of hostile criticism break down before impartial
examination, and to whatever source we may choose to ascribe the
wealth of Nicholas Flamel, we have no reason to question his
integrity, nor to deny the explanation of the alchemists, except upon
the à priori ground of the impossibility of transmutation.
The divine gift which was so fortunate a possession to Flamel is
supposed to have been a curse to his descendants. He is reported to
have given some of the transmuting powder to M. Perrier, a nephew
of Perrenelle. From him it descended to Dr Perrier, and was found
among his effects at his death by his grandson, Dubois. The
prudence and moderation that accompanied the gift to the Perriers
was not found in Dubois. He exhibited the sacred miracle to
improper persons, says an anonymous writer on alchemy, and was
brought before Louis XIII., in whose presence he made gold of base
metal, and this gold augmented its weight in the cupel. The
consequence of this generosity was an infamous death. The vanity
of Dubois was in proportion to his imprudence. He fancied that he
could make or augment the powder, and promised to do so, but
without success. It seems that he was, consequently, suspected of
withholding the art from the king, a circumstance sufficient in politics
to justify strong measures, lest the possessor of the sinews of war
should go over to the enemy.
Whatever were the charges against Dubois, he was hanged, and
his fate should be a proof, says the writer already quoted, that a
science producing unbounded riches is the greatest misfortune to
those who are unfitted and unprepared to manage the dangerous
trust with discretion.
After the death of Flamel, many persons supposed that there must
be doubtless some buried treasures in the house which he had
inhabited during so many years, and in which all his Hermetical
triumphs had been performed. This opinion existed in all its strength,
at least in the mind of one individual, so late as the year 1576, when
a stranger applied to the Prévôt of Paris, and stated that he had
been entrusted by a deceased friend with certain sums for the
restoration of Flamel’s house. As the building was exceedingly
dilapidated, the magistrates availed themselves of the opportunity,
and repairs were begun under the direction of delegates of the works
of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Boucherie. The true object of the stranger
soon became evident by the determination with which he sought to
lay bare the whole foundations of the house, which was ransacked
from top to bottom in search of the treasures it was supposed to
conceal. No discoveries rewarded the zeal of the investigation, which
ended in the sudden disappearance of the stranger, without paying
for the operations which he had caused to be set on foot.
As a completion to the history of Flamel, it may be entertaining to
quote an extraordinary account which is seriously narrated by Paul
Lucas in his “Journey through Asia Minor.”
“I was at Bronosa, in Natolia, and going to take the air with a
person of distinction, came to a little mosque, which was adorned
with gardens and fountains for a public walk; we were quickly
introduced into a cloister, where we found four dervishes, who
received us with all imaginable civility, and desired us to partake of
what they were eating. We were told, what we soon found to be true,
that they were all persons of the greatest worth and learning; one of
them, who said he was of Usbec Tartary, appeared to be more
accomplished than the rest, and I believe verily he spoke all the
principal languages of the world. After we had conversed in Turkish,
he asked me if I could speak Latin, Spanish, or Italian. I told him, if
he pleased, to speak to me in Italian; but he soon discovered by my
accent that it was not my mother-tongue, and asked me frankly what
country I came from? As soon as he knew that I was a native of
France, he spoke to me in as good French as if he had been brought
up at Paris. ‘How long, sir,’ said I, ‘did you stay in France?’ He
replied he had never been there, but that he had a great inclination
to undertake the journey.
“I did all in my power to strengthen that resolution, and to convince
him that France was the nursery of the learned, and its king a patron
of the sciences, who defrayed the expense of my travels for
collecting notices of antiquities, drawings of monuments, correcting
maps, and making a collection of ancient coins, manuscripts, &c., all
of which he seemed to approve civilly. Our conversation being
ended, the dervishes brought us to their house, at the foot of the
mountain, where, having drank coffee, I took my leave, but with a
promise, however, that I would shortly come and see them again.
“On the 10th, the dervish whom I took for an Usbec came to pay
me a visit. I shewed him all the manuscripts I had bought, and he
assured me they were very valuable, and written by great authors.
He was a man every way extraordinary in learning; and in external
appearance he seemed to be about thirty years old, but from his
discourse I was persuaded he had lived a century.
“He told me he was one of seven friends, who travelled to perfect
their studies, and, every twenty years, met in a place previously
appointed. I perceived that Bronosa was the place of their present
meeting, and that four of them had arrived. Religion and natural
philosophy took up our thoughts by turns; and at last we fell upon
chemistry, alchemy, and the Cabala. I told him all these, and
especially the philosophers’ stone, were regarded by most men of
sense as mere fictions.
“‘That,’ replied he, ‘should not surprise you; the sage hears the
ignorant without being shocked, but does not for that reason sink his
understanding to the same level. When I speak of a sage, I mean
one who sees all things die and revive without concern: he has more
riches in his power than the greatest king, but lives temperately,
above the power of events.’
“Here I stopped him:—‘With all these fine maxims, the sage dies
as well as other people.’ ‘Alas!’ said he, ‘I perceive you are
unacquainted with sublime science. Such a one as I describe dies
indeed, for death is inevitable, but he does not die before the utmost
limits of his mortal existence. Hereditary disease and weakness
reduce the life of man, but the sage, by the use of the true medicine,
can ward off whatever may hinder or impair the animal functions for
a thousand years.’
“Surprised at all I heard, ‘And would you persuade me,’ said I, ‘that
all who possessed the philosophers’ stone have lived a thousand
years?’ He replied gravely:—‘Without doubt every one might; it
depends entirely on themselves.’ At last I took the liberty of naming
the celebrated Flamel, who, it was said, possessed the philosophers’
stone, yet was certainly dead. He smiled at my simplicity, and asked
with an air of mirth:—‘Do you really believe this? No, no, my friend,
Flamel is still living; neither he nor his wife are dead. It is not above
three years since I left both the one and the other in the Indies; he is
one of my best friends.’ Whereupon he told me the history of Flamel,
as he heard it from himself, the same as I had read in his book, until
at last when Charles VI., who was then upon the throne, sent M.
Cramoisi, a magistrate, and his master of requests, to enquire from
Flamel the origin of his riches, when the latter at once saw the
danger he was in. Having sent her into Switzerland to await his
coming, he spread a report of his wife’s death, had her funeral
celebrated, and in a few years ordered his own coffin to be interred.
Since that time they have both lived a philosophic life, sometimes in
one country, sometimes in another. This is the true history, and not
that which is believed at Paris, where there are very few who ever
had the least glimpse of true wisdom.’”
 According to the “Treasure of Philosophy,” alchemy as a science
consists in the knowledge of the four elements of philosophers,
which are not to be identified with the vulgar so-called elements, and
which are convertible one into another. The true prima materia is
mercury, prepared and congealed in the bowels of the earth by the
mediation of the heat of sulphur. This is the sperm and semen of all
metals, which, like other created things, are capable of a growth and
multiplication that may be continued even to infinity. The first step in
transmutation is the reduction of the metals worked upon into their
first mercurial matter, and this reduction is the subject of the whole
treatise.
It does not appear that the alchemical works attributed to Nicholas
Flamel have added anything to our knowledge of chemistry. On the
other hand, it is perfectly clear from his history that the physical
object of Alchemy was the end which he kept in view, and that also
which he is supposed to have attained.

FOOTNOTES:
[Q] According to Louis Figuier, there were two minor
persecutions of the Jews, one in 1346, when Flamel was merely a
boy, and the other in 1354, when he was scarcely established in
business.
 PETER BONO.
This adept, born in Lombardy, was an inhabitant of Pola, a seaport
of Istria, where he affirms that he made the much desired
transmuting metal of the sages, in the year 1330. He wrote and
published a complete treatise on the art under the title Margarita
Pretiosa. Lacinius, a monk of Calabria, has printed a faithful
abridgment of it, which appeared at Venice in 1546. An Introductio in
Artem Divinam Alchimiæ, 1602, and De Secreto Omnium
Secretorum, Venet. 1546, are ascribed to this adept.
The first of these works is an exceedingly comprehensive,
conscientious treatise on the history, the theory, and the practice of
alchemy, written after the manner of the scholastics, and naturally
containing much irrelevant matter, but for all this very useful and
even interesting. The difficulties of the art are manfully faced, the
sophistications, deceptions, and contradictions of its professors are
reproved, and the author attempts to show that alchemy is in reality
a short art and a slight practice, though full of truth and nobility. His
other opinions are also of a revolutionary character.
 JOHANNES DE RUPECISSA.
This writer is considered one of the most remarkable of the
Hermetic philosophers. He abounds with prophetic passages, and
denounces the fate of nations, but in his alchemical explanation of
things physical is obscure even for an adept. Nothing is known of his
life,[R] beyond the nobility of his origin and his imprisonment in 1357,
by Pope Innocent VI., whom he had reprehended. The illustrious
Montfauçon was one of his descendants, and he poses as an initiate
of the secret chemistry in the following works:—“The Book of Light,”
“The Five Essences,” Cœlum Philosophorum, and his most
celebrated treatise De Confectione Lapidis. There he declares that
the matter of the philosophical stone is a viscous water which is to
be found everywhere, but if the stone itself should be openly named,
the whole world would be revolutionised. The divine science
possessed by the wise is somewhat poetically celebrated as an
incomparable treasure. Its initiates are enriched with an infinite
wealth beyond all the kings of the earth; they are just before God
and men, and in enjoyment of the special favour of Heaven.

FOOTNOTES:
[R] He is said to have been a French monk of the order of St
Francis.
 BASIL VALENTINE.
One of the most illustrious of the adept philosophers is
unquestionably Basilius Valentinus, born at Mayence, and made
prior of St Peter’s at Erfurt in 1414. His name was supposed to be
fictitious and adopted for the purpose of concealing some
accomplished artist, but the history of the city of Erfurt, published by
J. M. Gudemus assures us of the existence and name of the
philosopher, on the authority of the public records, and shows us that
in 1413 he was an inmate of the monastic house already mentioned,
and that he distinguished himself by a profound knowledge of nature.
[S] As the work of Gudemus was printed in 1675, the veracity of the
Dictionnaire des Sciences Occultes, written in the interests of
religion and for the blackening of the secret sciences, may be judged
by the following passage:—“His life is so mixed up with fables that
some have disbelieved in his existence. He is represented
flourishing in the twelfth, thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth
centuries; it is even added, without the smallest proof, that he was a
benedictine at Erfurt.”
According to Olaus Borrichius, he enclosed his writings in one of
the pillars of the abbey church; they remained for many years in this
hiding-place, but were at length discovered by the fortunate violence
of a thunderbolt. He was the first who introduced antimony into
medicine, and it is said that he originally tried the effects of
antimonial medicines upon the monks of his convent, upon whom
they acted with such undue violence “that he was induced to
distinguish the mineral from which these medicines had been
extracted by the name of antimoine—hostile to monks.” But
Thomson, who relates this anecdote in his “History of Chemistry,”
shows the improbability of it, for the works of Basil Valentine, and in
particular his Currus Triumphalis Antimonii, were written in the
German language. Now the German name for antimony is
speissglas and not antimoine, which is French.
 Basil Valentine denounces the physicians of his time with the fury
of Paracelsus. The most ancient systems of chemical philosophy are
preserved in his experiments. He exalts antimony as an excellent
medicine for those who are acquainted with alchemical secrets. To
others it is a poison of the most powerful nature.
No further particulars of the life of Basil Valentine have descended
to posterity. Numerous works have been printed in his name, and the
authenticity of several is questionable. He wrote in high Dutch, and
comparatively few of his treatises have been translated into other
languages. The best are as follows:—1. De Microcosmo deque
Magno Mundi Mysterio et Medecina Hominis, Marpurg, 1609, 8vo; 2.
Azoth, sive Aurelia Philosophorum, Francfurt, 1613, 4to; 3. Practica,
unà cum duodecim Clavibus et Appendice, Francfurt, 1611, 4to; 4.
Apocalypsis Chymica, Erfurt, 1624, 8vo; 5. Manifestatio Artificiorum,
Erfurt, 1624, 8vo; 6. Currus Triumphalis Antimonii, Lipsiæ, 1624,
8vo; 7. Tractatus Chimico-Philosophicus de Rebus Naturalibus et
Prœternaturalibus metallorum et mineralium, Francfurt, 1676, 8vo; 8.
Haliographia, de præparatione, usu, ac virtutibus omnium Salium
Mineralium, Animalium, ac Vegetabilium, ex manuscriptis Basilii
Valentini collecta ab Ant. Salmincio, Bologna, 1644, 8vo.
Every letter and syllable of the “Triumphal Chariot of Antimony” is
declared to have its special significance. “Even to the pointes and
prickes” it bristles with divine meanings and mysteries. The metrical
treatise on the first matter of the philosophers declares that this
stone is composed of white and red, that it is a stone, and yet
scarcely a stone; one nature operates therein. Those who desire to
attain it, Basil elsewhere informs us, must labour in much prayer,
confess their sins, and do good. Many are called, but few chosen to
this supreme knowledge. The study of the works of the philosophers
and practical experiment are both recommended. There is much in
the writings of Basil, in his suggestive if impenetrable allegories, in
his curious Kabbalistical symbols, and in his earnest spirituality, to
suggest a psychic interpretation of his aims and his principles. This
is particularly noticeable in the “Triumphal Chariot of Antimony,” and
yet it is clear from this remarkable work, which is the masterpiece of
its author, that Basil Valentine was one of the most illustrious
physical chemists of his age. He was the first to describe the
extraction of antimony from the sulphuret, though it does not appear
that he was the inventor of this process. Previous to his
investigations the properties of antimony were almost unknown. He
was also acquainted with the method of obtaining chlorohydric acid
from sea-salt and sulphuric acid, with the method of obtaining brandy
by the distillation of beer and wine, and the rectification of the result
by means of carbonate of potassium, and with many other
operations which eminently assisted the progress of chemistry.

FOOTNOTES:
[S] Eadem ætate (scilicet anno 1413) Basilius Valentinus in divi
Patri monasteris vixit arte medica et naturale indagatione
admirabilis.
 ISAAC OF HOLLAND.
Contemporary with Basilius Valentinus were Isaac the Hollander
and his son, who are supposed to have worked with success. They
were the first alchemists of Holland, and their operations were highly
esteemed by Paracelsus, Boyle, and Kunckel. In practical chemistry
they followed the traditions of Geber, and their alchemical
experiments are the most plain and explicit in the whole range of
Hermetic literature. They worked principally in metals, describing
minutely the particulars of every process. Their lives are almost
unknown. “Buried in the obscurity necessary to adepts, they were
occupied in the practice of the Hermetic science, and their study or
laboratory was the daily scene of their industrious existence.”[T]
They are placed in the fifteenth century by conjecture, from the
fact that they do not cite any philosophers subsequent to that period.
They speak of Geber, Dastin, Morien, and Arnold, but not of more
modern authorities, while, on the other hand, their references to
aquafortis and aqua-regiæ, which were discovered in the fourteenth
century, prevent us from assigning their labours to an anterior epoch.
The two Isaacs were particularly skilful in the manufacture of
enamels and of artificial gem-stones. They taught that the Grand
Magisterium could convert a million times its own weight into gold,
and declared that any person taking weekly a small portion of the
philosophical stone will be ever preserved in perfect health, and his
life will be prolonged to the very last hour which God has assigned to
him.
The Opera Mineralia Joannis Isaaci Hollandi, sive de Lapide
Philosophico is a long and elaborate treatise on the one method of
exalting the dead and impure metals into true Sol and Luna. The first
matter is said to be Saturn, or lead, and the vessels in which it is to
be calcined and otherwise adapted to the purposes of aurific art, are
plainly figured in illustrations introduced into the text.
 FOOTNOTES:
[T] “Lives of Alchemysticall Philosophers.” Ed. of 1815.