The Seven Planetary Metals

Each of these elements is a metal, and they are each connected to a celestial object, as well as a day of the week and an organ in the body. Astronomy was a major part of early alchemy, and during the classical era, each planet was thought to “rule” over its associated metal, with its position in the sky and proximity to other planets affecting the metal’s properties.

You might notice that Uranus and Neptune aren’t included; that’s because these symbols were created before telescopes were invented, and thus only planets visible to the naked eye were known to exist.

1. Lead

   Lead (known as plumbum in classical times) has a symbol known as a “crescent below the cross,” and it looks similar to a scythe or a stylized “h” with a cross on top.

   
   

2. Tin

   Tin’s symbol is known as a “crescent below the cross,” and it looks like a stylized “4”.

   
   

3. Iron

   The “male” symbol often used to represent the planet Mars is the alchemy symbol for iron.

   
   

4. Gold

   Gold represented perfection, and it was one of the most prominent symbols in alchemy. A key (and unfulfilled) goal of many alchemists was to learn how to turn lead into gold. Two symbols can represent the gold alchemy symbol. The first looks like a stylized sun with rays emitted from it, and the second is a circle with a dot in its center.

   
   

5. Copper

   The symbol for copper can be either the “female” symbol (also used to represent the planet Venus) or a set of crossed and horizontal lines.

   
   

6. Mercury

   ercury has the same symbol it has when it’s part of the Three Primes: the “cosmic womb.”

   
   

7. Silver

   ilver’s alchemy symbol looks like a crescent moon, the same way gold’s symbol looks like a small sun. The crescent can be drawn facing either the right or the left.