cupel
Americannoun
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a small, cuplike, porous container, usually made of bone ash, used in assaying, as for separating gold and silver from lead.
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a receptacle or furnace bottom in which silver is refined.
verb (used with object)
noun
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a refractory pot in which gold or silver is refined
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a small porous bowl made of bone ash in which gold and silver are recovered from a lead button during assaying
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cupel
1595–1605; < Medieval Latin cūpella, equivalent to Latin cūp ( a ) tub + -ella diminutive suffix
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The goldsmith not content with the touch-stone and the application of aquafortis, exposed the metal on the cupel with lead and fused it with antimony, but it sustained no loss.
From The Seven Follies of Science [2nd ed.] A popular account of the most famous scientific impossibilities and the attempts which have been made to solve them. by Phin, John
Finally, the stibium with a little lead added, is melted in the cupel, in which, after all the rest has been consumed by the fire, the silver alone remains.
From De Re Metallica, Translated from the First Latin Edition of 1556 by Agricola, Georgius
Finally, in the same way that gold and silver are separated from lead in a cupel, so also are they separated in the cupellation furnace.
From De Re Metallica, Translated from the First Latin Edition of 1556 by Agricola, Georgius
The resulting lead button hammered into shape and carefully cleansed from slag is ready for the cupel.
From Encyclopaedia Britannica, 11th Edition, Volume 2, Slice 7 "Arundel, Thomas" to "Athens" by Various
These metals are heated until the lead and the copper are consumed, and again, the same weight of each is melted in the same manner in another cupel.
From De Re Metallica, Translated from the First Latin Edition of 1556 by Agricola, Georgius
The lead is then folded over, with the help of two pins; and cupelled.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
These concentrates—mostly galena—were smelted in low furnaces and the lead was subsequently cupelled.
From De Re Metallica, Translated from the First Latin Edition of 1556 by Agricola, Georgius
The dish with the dried residue is then scorified and the resulting button of lead is cupelled.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
Effect of Varying Lead.—In each experiment 0.4 gram of silver was taken and cupelled with the lead.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
The lead button is then cupelled on a very fine cupel, as already described.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
Refer to the table on page 105 to find what weight of lead is required for cupelling 1 gram of alloy.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
The cupelling temperature in Dr. Rose's experiment was as much above the melting-point of gold as this is above that of the silver-gold alloy.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
The determination may also be made by cupelling the button of lead got in the dry lead assay.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
Similarly, cupelling 0.1 gram, the resulting button may be 0.098; the absolute loss is only 0.002 gram, but this equals 2 per cent. of the silver present.
From A Text-book of Assaying: For the Use of Those Connected with Mines. by Beringer, Cornelius
The assay depends on first heating the gold ore or alloy with lead in a porous crucible, that is, cupelling it.
From The New Gresham Encyclopedia. Vol. 1 Part 2 Amiel to Atrauli by Various
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
