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I get in a reference to alchemy whenever I can.
I've noticed a couple, James!
In this case though I must point out that iron wasn't a commonly used metal by the old-timers of European alchemy..
Lead, cinnabar, mercury, antimony were some of the more usual ones - all of them extremely toxic..
Between the fumes and the wayward explosions - gunpowder was a product of Chinese alchemy [which concerned itself far more with health and longevity than with gold] the alchemist's life was not always an easy one nor often a long one.
Interestingly lead, which was probably overall the MOST popular, is adjacent to gold on the periodic table - something of which there was no knowledge at the time.
Curious..
And the more closely you examine it the curiouser it gets.
The best information about alchemy on the web - by far - is at www.levity.com/alchemy
Dan Levy is a scholar and a gentleman who lives in NYC and has sponsored this site for over 15 years.
Adam McLean, whose site this is, has a heroic commitment to alchemy.