Newton's interpretation rested on typical alchemical associations, construing Vulcan as a stand-in for fire, Venus for copper, and Mars for iron; Vulcan, the craftsman of the gods, having made a metal net for the purpose of hanging the adulterous couple from a high ceiling, Newton saw the use of iron to antimony sulfide at high temperature to antimony regulus, and combining it with copper to produce the " network " on the alloy, as fulfilling the real meaning of the story.