cupel

[ kyoo-puhl, kyoo-pel ]

noun

1. a small, cuplike, porous container, usually made of bone ash, used in assaying, as for separating gold and silver from lead.
2. a receptacle or furnace bottom in which silver is refined.

verb (used with object)

, cu·peled, cu·pel·ing or (especially British) cu·pelled, cu·pel·ling.

1. to heat or refine in a cupel.

cupel

/ kjʊˈpɛl; ˈkjuːpəl /

noun

1. a refractory pot in which gold or silver is refined
2. a small porous bowl made of bone ash in which gold and silver are recovered from a lead button during assaying

verb

1. tr to refine (gold or silver) by means of cupellation

Derived Forms

• ˈcupeller, noun

Other Words From

• cu·pel·er [kyoo, -p, uh, -ler], cu·pel·ler [kyoo-, pel, -er], noun
• cupel·lation noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of cupel¹

1595–1605; < Medieval Latin cūpella, equivalent to Latin cūp ( a ) tub + -ella diminutive suffix

Word History and Origins

Origin of cupel¹

C17: from French coupelle, diminutive of coupe cup

Example Sentences

To enable cupels of the best quality to be made, all the impurities must be removed from the ashes.

From Project Gutenberg

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 Project Gutenberg

These he placed in the little porous vessels made of compressed bone ash, called cupels, which had been slowly heating in the furnace.

From Project Gutenberg

The resulting alloy, which is called the lead button, is then submitted to fusion on a very porous support, made of bone-ash, and called a cupel.

From Project Gutenberg

The cupel has the remarkable power of absorbing the oxides of metal, and so in an hour or so there is nothing left in it save a little bead of silver and gold.

From Project Gutenberg