Alchemy, I Ching and Ancient Number Symbols
Alchemical symbols for the classical elements and metals, the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching, and the counting rod numerals once used across East Asia all have their own Unicode block, preserving historical notation systems as typeable text rather than images.
These exist for scholarship and reference rather than everyday typing, and none of them have a Windows Alt code.
Questions
What is a hexagram in this context?
One of the 64 six-line figures used in the I Ching, an ancient Chinese text. Each hexagram is its own Unicode character.
Is there an Alt code for an alchemical symbol?
No. Copy the character directly, or use its HTML entity or Unicode value.
What are counting rod numerals?
A historical East Asian number notation using arrangements of rods, encoded in Unicode as individual characters for reference and typesetting use.
Why does the alchemical set include symbols for metals as well as elements?
Historical alchemy linked each classical metal, gold, silver, iron, to a corresponding planet, so Unicodeโs alchemical symbols preserve both sets together as they were originally used.
Are counting rod numerals still used anywhere today?
Rarely in daily use, but they still appear in historical scholarship and in typesetting that reproduces older East Asian mathematical texts.