King Henry IV, wary of anything that could weaken the crown, signed the Act Against Multipliers into law in an effort to protect the authority of the government by preventing the debasement of currency.
The Act forbade the transmutation of base metals into gold or silver, which one might then use to create counterfeit coins. Later, although the law was meant to outlaw the process, the government charged alchemists expensive licenses to practice. The act remained in effect until it was repealed in 1689. More