Cupellation - Haifukigin

Japanese: 灰吹銀 - はいふきぎん

This refers to silver produced by the cupellation method. Also known as Yamabuki silver, it was a common method of producing silver bullion in Japan from the 15th to 19th centuries. Cupellation, which can be found in world history as early as the Old Testament, is a method in which gold-bearing silver-lead is blown and melted in a cupellation pan (cupellation furnace), the lead is incinerated and evaporated, and the silver remaining at the bottom of the pan is extracted. Alongside the amalgamation process invented in Greek and Roman times, it was a major technique for refining silver metallurgy and was widely used as a silver metallurgical technique until the adoption of the cyanidation and electrolysis processes at the end of the 19th century.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

灰吹法によって冶金された銀をいう。山吹銀とも呼ばれ，15～19世紀の日本の銀地金（じがね）の一般的なあり方であった。灰吹きは世界史的にはすでに旧約聖書の記述にみられ，含金･銀鉛を灰吹皿(灰吹炉)で送風･溶解し，鉛を灰化･蒸発させ，皿の底に残った銀を採取する方法である。ギリシア･ローマ時代に発明されたアマルガム法(混汞（こんこう）法)と並んで精銀冶金の主要技術として，19世紀末のシアン化法，電解法の採用にいたるまで，ひろく銀冶金技術として行われた。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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