Abstract
In Renaissance natural philosophy, occult properties – from the Latin occultus meaning “hidden” – referred to properties producing manifest effects such as magnetism and heliotropism that could not be causally linked to normal elemental mixture and their manifest qualities (such as the primary dichotomies of hot, cold, wet, and dry). Often termed “occult qualities” or “occult virtues,” occult properties were typically considered natural but acting in a manner that could not be empirically understood. Because occult properties existed beyond sensory perception, they were likewise considered potentially beyond intellectual comprehension, which ensured their central position in epistemological debates throughout the Renaissance.
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Sumrall, L. (2018). Occult Properties in the Renaissance. In: Sgarbi, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Renaissance Philosophy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02848-4_959-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-02848-4_959-1
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