The Project Gutenberg eBook of The magic of jewels and charms, by George
Frederick Kunz
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at
www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you
will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before
using this eBook.
Title: The magic of jewels and charms
Author: George Frederick Kunz
Release Date: October 21, 2021 [eBook #66583]
Language: English
Produced by: Richard Tonsing and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team
at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images
generously made available by The Internet Archive)
*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MAGIC OF JEWELS AND CHARMS ***
The Magic of Jewels and Charms
“A Volume of Absorbing Interest.”—_N. Y. Sun._
THE CURIOUS LORE OF PRECIOUS STONES
BY GEORGE FREDERICK KUNZ,
A.M., PH.D., D.SC.
BEING A DESCRIPTION OF THEIR SENTIMENTS AND FOLKLORE, SUPERSTITIONS,
SYMBOLISM, MYSTICISM, USE IN PROTECTION, PREVENTION, RELIGION AND
DIVINATION, CRYSTAL GAZING, BIRTH-STONES, LUCKY STONES AND TALISMANS,
ASTRAL, ZODIACAL, AND PLANETARY
With 86 illustrations in color, doubletone and line. Octavo.
Handsome cloth binding, gilt top, in a box. $5.00 net. Carriage
charges extra.
This work represents the observations and discoveries during twenty-five
years of collecting on the part of Dr. Kunz, and will be found a rarely
interesting galaxy of anecdote, research, and information upon a
fascinating subject.
J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
PUBLISHERS PHILADELPHIA
[Illustration:
By courtesy of W. Griggs and Sons, Ltd., London.
MODEL OF A HINDU LADY, ILLUSTRATING THE MODE OF WEARING JEWELRY IN
NORTH INDIA
From the Journal of Indian Art.
]
[Illustration]
The Magic of Jewels and Charms
BY
GEORGE FREDERICK KUNZ
A.M., PH.D., D.SC.
WITH 90 ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOR, DOUBLETONE AND LINE
[Illustration]
PHILADELPHIA & LONDON
J. B. Lippincott Company
COPYRIGHT, 1915, BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY
PRINTED IN UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
TO THE MEMORY OF
THE LATE
PROFESSOR THOMAS EGLESTON, PH.D., LL. D.
OFFICIER DE LA LÉGION D’HONNEUR AND FOUNDER OF THE SCHOOL OF
MINES, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY, AN ARDENT LOVER OF MINERALS, KEENLY
APPRECIATIVE OF PRECIOUS STONES, AND A KINDLY FRIEND OF THE
AUTHOR, THIS VOLUME IS RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED
Preface
Jewels, gems, stones, superstitions and astrological lore are all so
interwoven in history that to treat of either of them alone would mean
to break the chain of association linking them one with the other.
Beauty of color or lustre in a stone or some quaint form attracts the
eye of the savage, and his choice of material for ornament or adornment
is also conditioned by the toughness of some stones as compared with the
facility with which others can be chipped or polished.
Whereas a gem might be prized for its beauty by a single individual
owner, a stone of curious and suggestive form sometimes claimed the
reverence of an entire tribe, since it was thought to be the abode or
the chosen instrument of some spirit or genius.
Just as the appeal to higher powers for present help in pressing
emergencies preceded the development of a formal religious faith, so
this never-failing need of protectors or healers eventually led to the
attribution of powers of protection to the spirits of men and women who
had led holy lives and about whose history legend had woven a web of
pious imaginations at a time when poetic fancy reigned instead of
historic record. The writer still holds that true sentiment, the
antithesis of superstitious dread, is good for all mankind—sentiment
meaning optimism as truly as superstition stands for pessimism—and that
even the fancies generated by sentiment are helpful to us and make us
happier; and surely happiness often means health, and happiness and
health combined aid to evolve that other member of the triumvirate,
wealth. Do we not often wish for the union of these three supreme
blessings?
At all times and in all periods there have been optimists and
pessimists, the former animated by the life-bringing sentiment of hope,
and the latter oppressed by the death-dealing sense of fear. Let us
always choose a happy medium between a foolish excess of hope and an
unreasonable apprehension of future troubles. The world’s history and
our own experience show us that it is the optimist who has caused the
world to progress, and we should trust and believe that the sentiment of
hope and faith will always animate humanity.
We know that for centuries it has been believed that amber necklaces
protect children from cold. May we not also now add that to pearls the
same qualities are attributed? There must be a reason for this. May not
this belief be ascribed to the circumstance that in the wearing of
either of these gems their virtue consists in the fact that the
necklaces do not cover the neck? In other words, they are worn on the
bare throat and the opinion prevails that an exposed neck means less
liability to cold. For, where the neck is never overheated and then
suddenly chilled, a normal temperature being maintained, there should be
protection from colds and from the many ills resulting from them. As to
pearls, this might serve to illustrate the poetic fancy that these
sea-gems are tears by angels shed to bring mortals joy.
Having collected a large mass of material, ethnological, historical and
legendary, in the course of personal observations and study, it was
decided that the companion volume, the twin sister of “The Curious Lore
of Precious Stones,” need not treat of gems _alone_.
For courtesies, information and illustrations I am indebted to the
following to whom my sincere thanks are due: Prof. T. Wada, of Tokyo,
Japan; Dr. G. O. Clerc, President of the Societe Curalienne des Amis des
Sciences Naturelles, Ekaterineburg, Russia; Dr. Charles Braddock, late
Medical Inspector to the King of Siam; Sir Charles Hercules Reed,
Curator of Archæology, British Museum, London; A. W. Feavearyear,
London; Dr. Peter Jessen, Librarian of the Kunstegewerbe Museum of
Berlin; Miss Belle DaCosta Green; Dr. Berthold Laufer, Oriental
Archæologist, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago; Dr. Oliver P.
Farrington, Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago; Hereward
Carrington, Psychist, New York; Dr. W. Hayes Ward, Archæologist and
Babylonian Scholar; Mrs. Henry Draper, New York; W. W. Blake, Mexico
City, who has done so much to encourage Mexican archæological
investigation; Dr. Edward Forrester Sutton, New York; Dr. W. H. Holmes
of the United States Bureau of Ethnology, Washington; Mr. McNeil M.
Judd, Archæologist, United States National Museum; Dr. Arthur Fairbanks,
Director of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts; Tan Sien Ko, Government
Archæologist of Burma; Dr. Charles C. Abbott, Archæologist, Trenton,
N. J.; Edgar T. Willson, of the Jewelers’ Circular Publishing Co.; Dr.
Edward H. Thompson, Archæologist, of Progreso, Yucatan, Mexico, and
Cambridge, Mass.; Rev. Charles Sadleir of Aurcaria, Chile; Mrs. Nona
Lebour of Corbridge-on-Tyne, England; and Dr. Charles P. Fagnani, Union
Theological Seminary, New York City.
G. F. K.
SEPTEMBER, 1915
Contents
CHAPTER PAGE
I. MAGIC STONES AND ELECTRIC GEMS 1
II. ON METEORITES, OR CELESTIAL STONES 72
III. STONES OF HEALING 118
IV. ON THE VIRTUES OF FABULOUS STONES, CONCRETIONS AND FOSSILS 160
V. SNAKE-STONES AND BEZOARS 201
VI. ANGELS AND MINISTERS OF GRACE 241
VII. ON THE RELIGIOUS USE OF VARIOUS STONES 277
VIII. AMULETS: ANCIENT, MEDIEVAL, AND ORIENTAL 313
IX. AMULETS OF PRIMITIVE PEOPLES AND OF MODERN TIMES 348
X. FACTS AND FANCIES ABOUT PRECIOUS STONES 377
Illustrations
COLOR PLATES
PAGE
MODEL OF A HINDU LADY, ILLUSTRATING THE MODE OF WEARING
JEWELRY IN NORTH INDIA _Frontispiece_.
JADE BELL OF THE K’IEN-LUNG PERIOD (1731–1795) 143
1, 1½. EMERALD THAT BELONGED TO THE DEPOSED SULTAN OF
TURKEY. 2. ALMANDITE GARNET. 3. SARDONYX IDOL-EYE OF
A BABYLONIAN BULL. 4. AQUAMARINE SEAL 159
ILLUSTRATING PRECIOUS STONES AND MINERALS USED FOR
SEALS IN ANCIENT ASSYRIA AND BABYLONIA 242
PERFORATED JADE DISK CALLED _Ts’ang Pi_, A CHINESE
SYMBOL OF THE DEITY HEAVEN (T’IEN) 302
TURQUOISE INCRUSTED OBJECTS, PROBABLY AMULETS, FOUND AT
PUEBLO BONITO, NEW MEXICO 353
HILT OF JEWELLED SWORD GIVEN BY THE GREEKS OF THE
UNITED STATES ON EASTER DAY, 1913, TO THE CROWN
PRINCE OF GREECE, LATER KING CONSTANTINE XII 370
DOUBLETONES
INDIAN MEDICINE-MEN 18
CHALCEDONY AND AGATE PEBBLES FROM PESCADERO BEACH, SAN
MATEO COUNTY, CALIFORNIA 30
PEBBLE BEACH, REDONDO, LOS ANGELES COUNTY, CALIFORNIA 30
HINDU WEARING A COLLECTION OF ANCESTRAL PEBBLES AS
AMULETS 37
KILLING A DRAGON TO EXTRACT ITS PRECIOUS STONE 45
NATURALLY MARKED STONE 45
A SIMPLE APPARATUS FOR ILLUSTRATING THE ELECTRIC
PROPERTIES OF THE TOURMALINE 54
NECKLACE OF FACETED AMBER BEADS 63
VIGNETTE FROM THE “LAPIDARIO DE ALFONSO X, CODICE
ORIGINAL” 69
THE “MADONNA DI FOLIGNO,” BY RAPHAEL 73
THE KAABA AT MECCA 84
“AHNIGHITO,” THE GREAT CAPE YORK METEORITE, WEIGHING
MORE THAN 36½ TONS 96
“THE WOMAN,” CAPE YORK METEORITE 97
“THE DOG,” CAPE YORK METEORITE 98
TWO VIEWS OF THE WILLAMETTE METEORITE NOW IN THE
AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY, NEW YORK CITY 99
FLINT AMULETS OF THE PREDYNASTIC PERIOD, EGYPT 108
THE “ORTUS SANITATIS” OF JOHANNIS DE CUBA, PUBLISHED AT
STRASSBURG IN 1483 122
FAMOUS PEARL NECKLACE OF THE UNFORTUNATE EMPRESS
CARLOTTA, WIDOW OF EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN OF MEXICO 126
JADE TONGUE AMULETS FOR THE DEAD. CHINESE 139
FRONTISPIECE OF MUSEUM WORMIANUM 141
ANCIENT PERSIAN RELIC KNOWN AS THE “CUP OF CHOSROES” 154
BEZOARS OF EMPEROR RUDOLPH II, NOW IN THE HOFMUSEUM,
VIENNA 216
FRONTISPIECE AND TITLE-PAGE OF FRANCESCO REDI’S
“EXPERIMENTA NATURALIA,” AMSTERDAM 1675, AND TWO
SPECIMEN PAGES OF THIS TREATISE 232
FORMS OF TABASHEER 233
SPECIMENS OF TABASHEER 235
ZODIAC MOHURS, COINED BY THE MOGUL SOVEREIGN SHAH
JEHAN, ABOUT 1628 246
THE MEDIEVAL CONCEPTION OF THE COSMOS, THE SUCCESSIVE
SPHERES OF THE PLANETS, INCLUDING THE SUN, AND BEYOND
THESE THE CRYSTALLINE HEAVEN AND THE EMPYREAN 248
THE ANGEL RAPHAEL REFUSING THE GIFTS OFFERED BY TOBIT 250
SANTA BARBARA 258
BLOODSTONE MEDALLION, SHOWING THE SANTA CASA OF LORETO
CARRIED BY ANGELS TO DALMATIA FROM GALILEE 267
CHINESE JADE AMULETS FOR THE DEAD 283
LA MADONNA DELLA SALUTE, BY OTTAVIANO NELLI 287
CEREMONY ANNUALLY OBSERVED IN THE MOGUL EMPIRE OF
WEIGHING THE SOVEREIGN AGAINST PRECIOUS METALS,
JEWELS AND OTHER VALUABLE OBJECTS, WHICH WERE
DISTRIBUTED AS GIFTS 301
THE SACRED WELL OF CHICHEN ITZÁ 307
CARVED AND WORKED STONES FROM THE SACRED WELL AT
CHICHEN ITZÁ, YUCATAN, MEXICO 308
EYE-AGATES 315
TYPES OF EGYPTIAN SEALS AND SCARABS IN THE MURCH
COLLECTION, METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK 316
COLOSSAL SCARAB IN BLACK GRANITE, BRITISH MUSEUM 320
A MEDIEVAL SPELL 328
FROM A PORTRAIT OF QUEEN ELIZABETH 337
COMPLETE VIEW OF THE ANCIENT JADE GIRDLE-PENDANT (FROM
KU YÜ T’U P’U) 341
TIBETAN WOMAN WITH COMPLETE JEWELRY 343
“THE LIGHT OF THE EAST” 345
INDIAN MEDICINE-MAN 354
HEI-TIKI AMULETS OF NEW ZEALAND 362
JEWELLED SWORD GIVEN BY THE GREEKS OF THE UNITED
STATES, ON EASTER DAY, 1913, TO CROWN PRINCE
CONSTANTINE, LATER KING CONSTANTINE XII OF GREECE.
TOP OF SCABBARD, SHOWING DIDRACHM OF ALEXANDER THE
GREAT 373
SIDE VIEW OF HILT 373
“THE LEGEND OF THE MOONSTONE,” AUTOGRAPHED FOR THIS
WORK BY THE AUTHOR OF THE POEM, DR. EDWARD FORRESTER
SUTTON 386
CLEOPATRA DISSOLVING HER PRICELESS PEARL AT THE BANQUET
TO MARK ANTONY 394
LINE CUTS
TITLE-PAGE OF ONE OF THE EARLIEST TREATISES ON
METEORITES 91
TYPES OF CERAUNIA OR “THUNDER-STONES” 111
INTERIOR OF FIFTEENTH CENTURY PHARMACY 122
EXTRACTING TOAD-STONE 162
TOAD-STONES. NATURAL CONCRETIONS OF CLAYSTONE AND
LIMONITE 163
TYPES OF CHELONIÆ (TORTOISE-STONES). NATURAL
CONCRETIONS 171
CHELIDONIUS, OR “SWALLOW-STONES” 172
ÆTITES 175
EXTRACTING AN ALECTORIUS 179
ALECTORIUS 180
LAPIS MANATI 182
LAPIS MALACENSIS, STONE OF THE HEDGEHOG OR PORCUPINE 183
LAPIS JUDAICUS. PENTREMITE HEADS 187
GLOSSOPETRÆ. FOSSIL SHARK’S TEETH 188
BELEMNITES. FOSSILIZED BONY END OF EXTINCT CUTTLE-FISH 191
BRONTIA. FOSSIL SEA-URCHINS 193
TROCHITES } FOSSIL
} CRINOID 194
ENASTROS } STEMS
BUCARDITES TRIPLEX 195
TYPES OF OMBRIA (FOSSIL SEA-URCHINS) 196
CORNU AMMONIS (FOSSIL NAUTILUS) 197
SPECIMENS OF ASTROITES (ASTERIA), OR FOSSIL CORAL 199
APPLICATION OF A BEZOAR TO CURE A VICTIM OF POISONING 202
MONKEY BEZOAR 204
1. HEDGE-HOGSTONE FROM MALACCA. 2, 3. SPURIOUS STONES
OF THIS TYPE MANUFACTURED IN CEYLON. 205
CALCULI TAKEN FROM BLADDER OF POPE PIUS V 220
TYPES OF THE OVUM ANGUINUM. ECHINITES (SEA-URCHINS) 222
COBRA DE CAPELLO 236
CANADIAN INDIAN MEDICINE-MAN 357
THE BIRTH OF THE OPAL 374
EAST INDIAN BAROQUE PEARL 392
The Magic of Jewels and Charms
I
Magic Stones and Electric Gems
While the precious and semi-precious stones were often worn as amulets
or talismans, the belief in the magic quality of mineral substances was
not confined to them, but was also held in regard to large stone masses
of peculiar form, or having strange markings or indentations; moreover,
many small stones, possessing neither worth nor beauty, were thought to
exert a certain magical influence upon natural phenomena. An occult
power of this sort was also attributed by tradition to some mythical
stones, the origin of this fancy being frequently explicable by the
quality really inherent in some known mineral bearing a designation
closely similar to that bestowed upon the imaginary stone.
To certain stones has been attributed the power to produce musical
tones, the most famous example being the so-called “Vocal Memnon” of
Thebes. This colossal statue was said to emit a melodious sound when the
sun rose, and according to Greek legend this sound was a greeting given
by Memnon to his mother, the Dawn. It appears, however, that the statue
was a respecter of persons, for when the Emperor Hadrian presented
himself before it, he is said to have heard the sound three times,
whereas common mortals heard it but once, or at most twice, while
occasionally the statue withheld its greeting altogether. A modern
traveller relates a personal experience that may cast a side-light upon
this matter. His visit to Thebes was made in the evening, but a fellah
who was standing near the statue asked him whether he wished to hear the
musical sound. Of course the reply was in the affirmative. Thereupon the
man climbed up the side of the colossal figure and hid himself behind
the elbow. In a moment sharp metallic sounds became audible; not a
single sound, but several in succession. Knowing from their quality that
they could not proceed from the stone, the traveller asked his
donkey-boy for an explanation and was told that the man was striking an
iron bar. In ancient times the priests probably performed this or a
similar trick in a much more skilful way than did the poor fellah, so
that the mystery of the statue was carefully guarded.[1]
The river Hydaspes was said to furnish a “musical stone.” When the moon
was waxing, this stone gave forth a melodious sound.[2] This should be
understood in the sense that when the stone was struck at that season
the sound was different from what it was at other times—a fanciful idea
based on some supposed sympathy between the stone and the moon. As
moonstones are rarely larger than a silver dollar, they would not emit a
sound upon being struck, and it is probably a rock known as “chinkstone”
(phonolite) that is referred to, an igneous rock, very hard and
resonant, that has been found in elongated and flat pebbles of large
size; they ring with the resonance of bells when struck. A sonorous
stone at Megara is reported by Pausanias[3]; when struck, it emitted the
sound of the chord of a lyre. This was explained by the tale that, while
helping Alcathous to build the walls of his city, the god Apollo had
rested his lyre on the stone.
The term sarcophagus is to us so clear and precise in its significance,
that we do not stop to think that its etymology reveals it as literally
meaning body-devourer. Tradition taught that a stone of this type was to
be found near Assos in Lycia, Asia Minor, and also in some parts of the
Orient. If attached to the body of a living person it would eat away the
flesh. Another type, already noted by Theophrastus in the third century
B.C., had the power of petrifying any object placed within receptacles
made from it. If a dead person were buried in a “sarcophagus” of this
material the body would not be consumed, but would, on the contrary, be
turned to stone, even the shoes of the corpse and any utensils buried
with it, would undergo a like wonderful change. Possibly actual
observations of changes in the bodies of those long buried, their
partial disintegration in some cases, and their hardening in others, may
have given rise to the fancy that the stone receptacle in which they had
reposed was directly the cause of this, whether it implied destruction
or petrifaction.[4]
Of the substance named galactite, Pliny gives some details. He states
that it came from the Nile, was of the color and had the odor of milk,
and when moistened and scraped produced a juice resembling milk. The
liquid derived from the galactite when taken as a potion by nurses was
said to increase the flow of milk. If a galactite were bound to a
child’s arm the effect was to promote the secretion of saliva. To these
favorable effects must be added an unfavorable one, namely, loss of
memory, which was said to befall occasionally those who wore the stone.
A kind of “emerald with white veinings” was sometimes called galactite,
and another variety had alternate red and white stripes or veins.[5]
Perhaps this “emerald” was a variety of jade, or a banded jasper.
This so-called galactite, which enjoyed such an extraordinary reputation
in ancient and medieval times, is not, properly speaking, a stone, but a
nitrate of lime. The strange and famous relics of the Virgin preserved
in many old churches and called “the Virgin’s milk,” were merely
solutions of this nitrate. Possibly pieces of this so-called galactite
were sometimes found by pilgrims in the grotto of Bethlehem, and were
supposed to be petrified milk.[6] As everything in this sacred spot was
regarded as connected in some way with the miraculous birth of Christ,
it is easy to understand why the devout pilgrims came to believe that
the milky-hued substance represented the milk of the Virgin, which had
been preserved for future ages in this extraordinary way.
A kind of galactite, evidently a finely deposited form of carbonate of
lime and perhaps absorbent, is mentioned by Conrad Gesner.[7] This was
found on the Pilatus Mountain, Lake Lucerne, and is described by Gesner
as being a “fungous and friable” substance, white and exceedingly light
in weight. The natives called it _Mondmilch_ (moonmilk) and it was sold
in the pharmacies of Lucerne. The powder was used by physicians in the
treatment of ulcers, and, like all the other galactites, it was supposed
to increase the flow of milk and to develop the breasts. Besides this it
was credited with somniferous virtues.
An old Mohammedan tradition, cited by Ibn Kadho Shobah in his Tarik
al-Jafthi, relates that Noah, after the deluge, on setting out with the
members of his family to settle and populate the regions to the eastward
and northward of Mt. Ararat, confided to their care a miraculous stone
known to the Turks as _jiude-tash_, to the Persians as _senkideh_ and to
the Arabs as _hajer al-mathar_, or the “rain-stone.” On it was impressed
the word Aadhem or Aazem, the great name of God, by virtue of which
whosoever possessed this stone could cause rain to fall whenever he
pleased. In the long lapse of time this particular “precious” stone was
lost, but some of the Turks were said to have certain stones endowed
with a like power, and the more superstitious among these Turks solemnly
asseverated that their “rain-stones” could beget progeny by a mysterious
kind of generation.[8]
Among the many stones or concretions endowed by medieval belief with
wonderful powers, may be reckoned the “rain-making” stones. Some of
these were to be found in Karmania, south of Khorassan. The miraculous
effect was produced by rubbing one against another. The Arabic author
who reports this declares that this rain-making power was a well-known
fact. He adds that similar stones might be secured from near Toledo in
Spain and also in the “land of Kimar,” inhabited by Turkish tribes.[9]
The Oriental rain-stones noted by pseudo-Aristotle and by many other
Arabic writers of medieval times, can be paralleled by similar
rain-making or rain-inducing stones in many other parts of the world and
among many primitive peoples even in modern times. The rain-makers of
the African tribe of Wahumas, dwelling in the region bordering on the
great Albert Nyanza Lake in Central Africa, use a black stone in the
course of their magic rites. This is put into a vessel and water poured
over it; the pulverized roots of certain herbs and some blood drawn from
the veins of a black goat are then mixed with the water, and the
resulting liquid mixture is thrown up into the air by the
rain-maker.[10] The sorcerers among the Dieri in Central Australia place
such trust in the efficacy of these conjurations as to believe that all
rainfalls are produced thereby, generally through the intermediate
action of ancestral spirits. If rain falls in a locality where no
proceedings of the kind have taken place, then it is supposed that they
have been initiated in some contiguous territory, a merely spontaneous
and natural rainfall being out of the question. The clouds indeed
generate the rain, but it will not be brought to the earth except by
magic art. In the complicated magic ceremonies of these Dieri
rain-makers, two large stones are employed; after a ceremonial, in the
course of which the blood drawn from the two chief sorcerers is smeared
over the bodies of the others, the stones are borne away by these two
sorcerers for a distance of about twenty miles, and there put far up on
the highest tree that can be found, the object evidently being to bring
them as near to the clouds as possible.[11]
Rock-crystal as a rain-compeller finds honor among the wizards of the
Ta-ta-thi tribe in New South Wales, Australia. To bring down rain from
the sky one of them will break off a fragment from a crystal and cast it
heavenward, enwrapping the rest of the crystal in feathers. After
immersing these with their enclosure in water, and leaving them to soak
for a while, the whole is removed and buried in the earth, or hidden
away in some safe place.[12] The widely spread fancy that rock-crystal
is simply congealed water may have something to do with the choosing of
this stone as a rain-maker.
Sumatrans of Kota Gadanz use a stone whose form roughly resembles that
of a cat in their invocations of rain, a live black cat being supposed
in some parts of this island to have certain rain-producing virtues.[13]
Perhaps the electric fur of the animal may have suggested a connection
with thunder-storms. Stones of this type, indeed a great many of those
to which magic properties are attributed, are in many cases smeared with
the blood of fowls, or have incense offered to them, this treatment of
such stones being observed by the peasants in Scandinavia and other
parts of Europe as well as in the Far East.
Stone crosses have sometimes been utilized as rain-bringers, as in the
case of one belonging to St. Mary’s Church in the Island of Uist, one of
the outer Hebrides, off the Scottish coast. When drought prevailed here
the peasants would set up this cross which usually lay flat on the
ground, in the confident belief that rain would ensue. Of course, sooner
or later, it was sure to come, and then the cross, having done its duty,
was quietly replaced in its former horizontal position.[14]
A mysterious stone mentioned in Rabbinical legend is called the
_shamir_. This word occurs three times in the Old Testament (Jer. xvii,
1; Ezek. iii, 9; Zech. vii, 12), and in each signifies a material noted
for its hardness. In the first of these passages there is express
indication that the _shamir_ was a pointed object used for engraving,
and the word is translated “diamond” in our Bible; in the two other
cases it is rendered “adamant” and “adamantine stone,” respectively,
thus leaving the determination of the substance an open question.
However, as it is almost certain that the Hebrews were not familiar with
the diamond, _shamir_ most probably signifies one of the varieties of
corundum, the next hardest mineral to the diamond, and extensively used
in classic times for engraving on softer stones.
In the luxuriant growth of legend that sprang up in Rabbinical times,
the _shamir_ is not forgotten. It is said to have been the seventh of
the ten marvels created at the end of the sixth day of creation. In
size, it is described as being not larger than a barley-corn, but it had
the power to split up the hardest substances, if brought in contact with
them, or even in their neighborhood. Some of the legends ascribe to it
even more wonderful magic powers, so that, like Aladdin’s lamp, great
buildings could be constructed by its help, Solomon having used it in
the erection of the temple and other buildings. The etymology of the
word indicates a pointed object, similar to our diamond-point, but in
legend it is almost invariably described as a small worm, probably
because of a fancied connection between this word and another
designating a species of worm. Many have associated the Hebrew _shamir_
with the Greek σμίρις, or emery.
The Hebrew _shamir_ and the Greek ἀδάμας were both used metaphorically
of hardness of heart and implacability. The Hebrew prophet Zechariah
(vii, 12) says of the disobedient Jews that “they made their hearts as
an adamant stone” (_shamir_), and the Greek poet Theocritus (fl. 228
B.C.) calls Pluto, the god of the infernal regions, “the _adamas_ in
Hades.” This clearly shows that invincible hardness was the common
characteristic of the material designated by these words. However, it
appears probable that while _shamir_ signifies a form of corundum, the
word _adamas_, as used by the early Greek writers, denoted a hard,
metallic substance. Possibly, when iron first became known to the
Greeks, the adjective ἀδαμάντινος, “indomitable,” was applied to it, and
later the noun _adamas_ was formed from this adjective and was used by
the poets to signify an imaginary substance even harder than iron;
hence, when the diamond became known in Greek lands, its extreme
hardness suggested the application to it of this name.[15]
An Arab legend concerning the fabled _shamir_ stone is related by
Cazwini in his cosmography. When King Solomon set about building the
temple in Jerusalem, he commanded Satan to dress the stones that were to
be used, but the work was performed with such demoniac energy that the
people round about complained bitterly of the dreadful noise. To remedy
this trouble, Solomon sought the council of the leading scribes and also
that of the evil spirits known as Ifrites and Jinns. None of them,
however, was able to help him in this difficulty, but one of them
advised him to question an apostate named Sahr, who sometimes had
special knowledge of such things. When called upon for his opinion, Sahr
declared that he knew of a stone that would do the work required, but
did not know where it could be found; nevertheless he believed that, by
a stratagem, he could secure possession of it. He thereupon ordered that
an eagle’s nest with its eggs should be brought to him, and also a
bottle-shaped vessel made of very strong glass. Into this he slipped the
eggs, put them back into the nest, and had nest and eggs replaced where
they had been found. When the eagle returned to the nest it encountered
this obstacle. In vain it struck at the vessel with claws and beak;
after repeated efforts it flew away, but came back on the second day
holding a piece of stone in its beak, which it let fall upon the vessel,
breaking the latter into two halves without producing any sound. Upon
this, Solomon, who knew the language of beasts and birds, asked the
eagle where it had secured the stone. The bird answered: “O Prophet of
God, in a mountain in the West called the Samur Mountain.” This was
indication enough to the wise king who, summoning the Jinns to his aid,
soon had in Jerusalem a plentiful supply of these _samûr_, or _shamir_
stones, with which the work of shaping and polishing the blocks for the
temple was noiselessly performed.[16]
Full and precise directions are given by the old authorities as to the
proper way to secure possession of the stone called _corvia_. On the
Calends, or first day of April, eggs are to be taken out of a crow’s
nest and boiled until they are quite hard; they are then to be allowed
to cool off and are replaced in the nest. The female bird notes that the
eggs have been tampered with and flies away in search of the
corvia-stone. When she has found it, she bears it to the nest, and as
soon as it touches the eggs they become fresh and fertile again. This is
the auspicious moment for securing the stone, which must be quickly
taken from the nest else it would lose its virtue.[17] The lucky owner
of the stone is promised increase of wealth and honors, and the power to
read the future.
The fabled gem-bearing dragons of India were said to have sometimes
fallen victims to the enchanter’s art. Certain mystic characters were
woven in thread of gold upon a scarlet cloth, and this cloth was spread
by the hunters before the dragon’s den. When the creature emerged, his
eyes were fascinated by the strange letters in which the enchanter had
infused a wonderful soporific power. Hypnotized by the sight, the dragon
would fall into a deep slumber and the hunters would rush upon him and
sever his head from his body. Within the head were found gems of
brilliant hue, some of these possessing the power of rendering the
wearer invisible.[18]
The “Gem of Sovranty,” or the “Gem of the King of Kings,” may have been
a purely poetic Hindu fancy, or possibly may have been the diamond. Its
surpassing quality is emphasized by the declaration that though the
earth produced the sapphire, the cat’s-eye, the topaz, the ruby, and the
two mystic gems, the favorite of the sun, and the favorite of the moon,
the Gem of the King of Kings was acknowledged to be the chief of all
“for the sheen of that jewel spreads round about for a league on every
side.” To King Milinda the following question was put: “Suppose that on
the disappearance of a sovran overlord, the mystic Gem of Sovranty lay
concealed in a cleft on the mountain peak, and that on another sovran
overlord arriving at the supreme dignity it should appear to him, would
you say, O King, that the gem was produced by him?” “Certainly not,
sir,” replied the monarch, “the gem would be in its original condition.
But it had received, as it were, a new birth through him.”[19]
The Arabian author, Ibn Al-Beithar (b. ca. 1197 A.D.), describes a stone
called in Arabic _hajer al-kelb_, or “dog-stone.” These stones had such
attraction for dogs of a certain breed that when cast before them they
would snap them up, bite them, and hold them in their jaws. The
magicians saw in this a proof that the stones would produce enmity and
ill-will among men. Having selected seven such stones they marked them
with the names of any persons between whom they wished to stir up
strife. The seven stones were then thrown one by one before a dog of the
requisite species, and, after he had bitten them, two were chosen and
were placed in water of which the persons who were to be set at variance
were sure to drink. We are assured that the experiment had the desired
evil result.[20]
In ancient times there was found in the river Meander a stone
satirically named _sophron_, “temperate.” If it were placed upon the
breast of any one, he immediately became enraged and killed one of his
parents; however, after having appeased the Mother of the Gods, he was
cured of his temporary madness.[21]
A most singular stone is described by Thomas de Cantimpré under the name
of “piropholos.” This substance, according to Konrad von Megenberg’s
version, was taken from the heart of a man who had been poisoned,
“because the heart of such a man cannot be burned in fire.” If the heart
were kept for nine years in fire this wonderful stone was produced. It
gave protection from lightning, but its principal virtue was to guard
the wearer from sudden death; indeed, we are told that a man could not
die so long as he held this stone in his hand. However, it did not
preserve him from disease, but only prolonged his life. The stone was
said to be of a light and bright red color.[22]
After enumerating all the well-known precious stones, Volmar, in his
“Steinbuch,” proceeds to relate that there is one which produces
blindness, another that enables the wearer to understand the language of
birds, still another that saves people from drowning, and, finally, one
of such sovereign power that it brings back the dead to life. However,
we are told that because of the miraculous virtues of these stones God
hides them so well that no man can obtain them.[23] About a century
earlier Saint Hildegard of Bingen wrote that “just as a poisonous herb
placed on a man’s skin will produce ulceration,” by an analogous though
contrary effect “certain precious stones will, if placed on the skin,
confer health and sanity by their virtue.”[24]
Persian records tell of a “royal stone” found in the head of the _ouren
bad_, a kind of eagle; this preserved the wearer from the attacks of
venomous reptiles. If a deadly poison had been administered to a person,
he would be immediately cured by taking one drachm’s weight of the
stone. It thus appears that its virtues were those of the far-famed
bezoar.[25] Persia evidently had good store of “wonderworkers” of this
kind, for the Persian romance entitled “Hatim Tai and the Benevolent
Lady,” written about the beginning of the eighteenth century, recites
the marvellous virtue of a stone called the _Shah-muhra_. If this were
fastened on the arm the wearer became endowed with miraculous vision and
all the gold and precious stones beneath the earth’s surface were
revealed to him.[26]
For ten centuries or more, countless thousands, although feeling assured
of spiritual immortality, were none the less eager to have eternal youth
and vigor and the power to peer into the future. Hence Ponce de Leon’s
quest for the “Fountain of Youth” in our Florida. But in addition to
this, there has ever been an intense desire to find something by means
of which gold could be made out of the baser metals, for youth and
vigor, if coupled with poverty, are only half-blessings. The search for
the “Philosopher’s Stone” appears to have been a more or less aimless
pursuit of this end; but there can be no doubt that this search led to
the discovery of many new substances and reactions, and helped to lay
the foundation of our modern chemistry. Whether the conscious aim of the
alchemist was the discovery of an actual stone, or merely the discovery
of some process for turning a valueless substance into one of great
value, is not clearly ascertainable from the purposely vague and obscure
treatises on alchemy.
The “Philosopher’s Stone,” the fond dream of so many who delved into
nature’s mysteries in the past, does not seem so improbable to-day as it
did twenty years ago. The recent discovery of the element radium, which
is produced from the element uranium, and the story of the strange and
protean changes of radium into helium, neon and argon, according to the
environment in which it is placed, have given the death-blow to the old
idea of the immutability of the elements. Still, while we have been
allowed this peep into the storehouse of nature’s secrets, and are
growing to believe that in eons of time the various different elements
may have been evolved, successively, from one another, the power to
provoke this change at will and in a brief space of time is as yet
withheld from us, and may never be given to us, just as little as the
power to send messages to the distant spheres, whose bulk, density and
composition we can estimate with a considerable degree of accuracy.
Numerous specimens still exist of what is alleged to be artificial gold
made by the alchemists of a past age. Of all these the most striking is
a large medallion, bearing in relief the heads of Emperor Leopold and
his ancestors of the House of Hapsburg. It is related that on the name
day of the emperor in 1677, this medallion, originally of silver and
weighing 7250 grains, was transmuted into gold by Wenzel Seiler, a noted
alchemist of that time. This wonder was performed in full view of the
emperor and his courtiers, by dipping the medallion in a solution. As
there are four notches on the edge, it has been conjectured that these
were made to secure material for testing the quality of the transformed
metal. However, the simple test of specific gravity shows that the metal
cannot be gold, for according to Bauer’s calculation made in 1883, the
medallion has a specific gravity of 12.67, between that of silver (10.5)
and that of gold (19.27). This might indicate that in some unexplained
way the alchemist had succeeded in precipitating a coating of gold upon
the face of the object. It seems probable that the deception was soon
discovered, for Seiler, who had been knighted on September 16, 1676, was
exiled by order of Emperor Leopold, not long after the date on which the
supposed transmutation is said to have taken place.
An exceedingly rare medal, and one of great interest to students of
alchemy, was struck in 1647 by order of Emperor Ferdinand III from gold
produced in his presence by Johann Peter Hofmann, a master of the
alchemical art. A specimen of this medal is in the Imperial Cabinet of
Coins in Vienna.[27] On the obverse, around two shields, one bearing
eight fleurs-de-lis and the other the figure of a lion, are two hermetic
inscriptions: LILIA CUM NIVEO COPULANTUR FULVA LEONE (yellow lilies lie
down with the snow-white lion), and SIC LEO MANSUESCET SIC LILIA FULVA
VIRESCENT (thus will the lion be tamed and thus will the yellow lilies
flourish). Around a crown surmounting the two shields appear the initial
letters I. P. H. V. N. F., indicating Latin words the sense of which is
“Johannes Petrus Hofmann a Nurembergian subject made it,” and also the
letters T G V L, intended to signify _tinturæ guttæ v. libram_, or “five
drops of the tincture [transmuted] a pound.” The reverse has Latin words
denoting that iron was the base of this tincture, the symbols used for
lead, tin, copper, mercury, silver and gold being each accompanied by a
cryptic declaration that Mars (iron) had controlled the respective
metal.[28]
Besides the “Philosopher’s Stone,” the chief object of their quest, the
alchemists believed that several other stones possessing magic virtues
could be produced. Among these was the “angelical stone,” which gave
power to see the angels in dreams and visions, and also the “mineral
stone,” a substance by means of which common flints could be transmuted
into diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, etc.[29] Possibly some
alchemists were glass-makers, and fused the quartz with various mineral
salts into imitations of the gems, having the colors, but not the
hardness or other properties.
One of the strangest fancies as to the medicinal efficacy of stones is
that held by the native Australians, who believe that “crystals” are
embedded in the bodies of their medicine-men. This belief is encouraged
by the medicine-men themselves; indeed, they are supposed only to retain
their power so long as these _atnongara_ or _ultunda_ stones remain in
their bodies, and a share of their might can be transmitted by
transferring certain of the stones from their own bodies to that of
another. The ceremony proceeds as follows:[30]
The Nung-gara [medicine-men] then withdrew from their bodies a number
of small clear crystals called Ultunda which were placed one by one,
as they were extracted, in the hollow of a spear-thrower. When a
sufficient number had been withdrawn, the Nung-gara directed the man
who had come with them to clasp the candidate from behind and to hold
him tightly. Then each of them picked up some crystals, and taking
hold of a leg, gripped the stones firmly and pressed them slowly and
strongly along the front of the leg and then up the body as high as
the breast-bone. This was repeated three times, the skin being scored
at intervals with scratches, from which blood flowed. By this means
the magic crystals are supposed to be forced into the body of the
man.... After which each of them pressed a crystal on the head of the
novice and struck it hard, the idea being to drive it into the skull,
the scalp being made to bleed during the process....
One of the Nung-gara then withdrew from his skull just behind his ear
(that is, he told the novice that he kept it there) a thin and sharp
Ultunda, and taking up some dust from the ground, dried the man’s
tongue with it, and then, pulling it out as far as possible, he made
with the stone an incision almost half an inch in length.
The _mesticas_ of the Malays represent a class of stones differing in
important respects from the various types of bezoars. A principal
distinction is that the _mesticas_ are not supposed to owe their origin
to pathological conditions in the organism wherein they occur, but
rather to a superabundance of the normal and healthy constituents of the
animal or plant. It is probably due to this that the virtues of these
particular concretions are rather talismanic than therapeutic, and that
they are believed to endow the finder, or one who receives them by gift,
with courage, immunity from injury, and also with cunning and shrewdness
in the affairs of life. Especially by warriors are these stones highly
valued, for they are supposed to protect the wearer from wounds; indeed,
this belief sometimes went so far as to lead the Malays to think that
absolute invulnerability was conferred on one who carried several of
them bound so closely to the skin that in some cases they even
penetrated the flesh. The typical _mestica_ is described as a hard
stone, brilliant but seldom transparent; it is found in the flesh or
fat, in the heart or on the legs of animals, and also sometimes in
plants.[31]
Rumphius declares that many extraordinary cases were related of warriors
who could not be injured by any weapons until the _mestica_ had been cut
out of their flesh, wherein it had become embedded. Indeed, he states
that Dutch officers of proved veracity had confidently asserted that
they had encountered such men among their native antagonists. While
Rumphius feels himself therefore forced to admit the truth of the
invulnerability of these men, he hastens to add that such powers could
not be inherent in any piece of stone, but must owe their origin to
diabolical agencies.[32] The fact that the Mohammedans had their
_mesticas_ blessed by the priests of their faith, and burned incense
beneath them on Fridays, the Mohammedan equivalent of the Christian
Sunday, did not probably shake the belief of Rumphius that the Devil had
something to do with these substances.
The medicine-men of the Kainugá Indians of Paraguay mutter incantations
over the bodies of the sick, and then, after many struggles and
contortions, proceed to extract stones from their mouths, claiming that
they have taken the patient’s disease into their own bodies, the stones
being regarded as the seat of the ailment. In one case, the medicine-man
produced five of these stones before the patient admitted that his pain
was relieved. After the cure was completed the sorcerer was clever
enough to feign extreme exhaustion, as though his vital forces had been
subjected to a tremendous strain.[33]
[Illustration:
INDIAN MEDICINE-MEN
From “Histoire Générale des Cérémonies Religieuses de tous les Peuples
du Monde,” by Abbé Banier and Abbé Mascrier, Paris, 1741.
]
In British New Guinea similar tactics are resorted to by the native
doctors. A native who was suffering from lumbago fully believed the tale
that his disease was caused by a stone embedded in his flesh. When the
sorcerer made passes over this man’s back and then exhibited a stone
which he pretended to have taken thence, the sufferer was convinced that
the disease had left his body, and he began to feel relief. When
examined, his back showed some superficial cuts at the spot where the
stone was said to have been extracted. In another case, however, when a
child was to be operated upon in a like way, the child’s father became
suspicious and seized the operator’s hands before they came into contact
with the little one’s body; the result being that the disease-laden
stone was found concealed in the operator’s hand.[34]
Pebble-mania or lithomania is an inherent trait in all mankind. From the
most primitive man to the most modern, especially those of optimistic
and investigating tendencies, this trait is present in a greater or
lesser degree. That is, curious people would collect pebbles for their
bright colors, or markings, for their transparency or translucence, and
those of an investigating turn of mind, under the impression that the
find was perhaps a diamond or a gem of some kind. In modern times this
kind of collecting has developed into a regular industry, pebbles found
on the shores of the United States and which are either pure white,
transparent or translucent quartz, being cut and offered for sale. These
pebbles are gathered, and are valuable to those who make a business of
selling them, because the white opaque pebbles become translucent after
cutting, or rather, during the process of cutting, and they are then
passed off for moonstones, which are worth from one-third to one-half
more than the cost of cutting the quartz pebbles, the purchaser being
led to believe that he is getting a moonstone, although this could not
be possible, since moonstones have never been found on either the
eastern or the western coast of the United States. As for the cut
moonstones which are brought back by the tourist, under the impression
that he is getting native material and workmanship, these all come from
Europe.
Pebble-mania is not confined to mankind alone. Birds and animals possess
it. The magpie picks up and hides away bright objects, including odd
pebbles, or carries them to its nest. The stones known as _ætites_ were
said to be found in eagles’ nests, although they may have been swallowed
by the birds for digestive purposes, just as the hen’s crop is full of
stones, many of them being transparent, a proof that the fowl had been
attracted by them, and had swallowed these in preference to other,
duller ones. Notable instances of transparent pebbles are the
_alectorii_, or “cock-stones.”
The great Italian goldsmith and sculptor, Benvenuto Cellini (1500–1574),
relates that when a youth he often shot cranes with his arquebuse, and
that in several instances he found in their entrails not only fine
turquoises, but also fragments of the so-called plasma-emerald and even
occasionally small pearls. This serves to indicate that the pretty
exterior of such objects exerted an influence upon these birds in some
degree analogous to the impressions aroused in mankind on viewing
them.[35]
In seventeenth century Denmark there seems to have been no lack of
“magic stones,” for it is related that one day as King Christian II was
strolling along the beach, he picked up a shining pebble by the aid of
which he could render himself invisible at will. Similar power was said
to exist in stones that could be found in ant-hills if hot water were
thrown onto them on St. Walpurgis Day, or St. Hans’ Day. The Danes of
the time also shared in the belief that the stone from the lapwing
preserved from illness and sorrow as did the “swallow’s-stone” as
well.[36]
It has frequently been maintained that the source of pebbles could be
broadly determined by their form and surface; for example, well-rounded
specimens of fairly uniform size would be classed as marine pebbles,
while river-pebbles would be subangular and usually flat; pebbles of
glacial origin, on the other hand, would have faceted, rounded edges,
their surfaces being polished and striated. However, although these
rules might hold good in many cases, careful observation has
demonstrated that pebbles of all these supposedly distinct types can be
found among those of marine, fluviatile, or lacustrine origin. This is
explicable by the fact that while the constant, unhindered action of sea
or river would probably produce pebbles of distinct type, the local
conditions often interfere with this. For instance, on a low sea-coast,
with weak wave-action, pebbles frequently became buried in the sands,
thus retaining their form practically unchanged, and even where the
waves are stronger, so that the pebbles are more or less constantly
exposed to their force, it must be borne in mind that some of these
coast pebbles have been swept down by rivers, or have already been
affected by glacial action. In these cases the force of the waves will
indeed modify the form, but along the lines of that already produced by
the earlier agencies. Broadly stated, those that were round or oval
would generally remain so, rectangular fragments might have their angles
worn away and become elliptical, while flat fragments would not exhibit
any notable change in shape.[37]
When a group of pebbles have been long exposed to attrition by the
waters of a powerful stream, especially where the current is
intermittent, and where a large quantity of sand has been worked or
blown into the stream by freshet or wind storm, they may become rounded
by the erosive action of the water or by the abrasive power of the sand,
as well as by the attrition consequent upon their sharp contact with one
another. This is exemplified in the case of boulders in a river bed, it
having been noted in certain streams on the Navajo Reservation that
while the upstream sides of the boulders were polished and rounded, and
even sometimes faceted and etched, but little change was observable on
the downstream sides. This has been tested experimentally, holes an inch
in depth having been drilled in opposite sides of sandstone boulders,
and on examination five years later in five different localities where
this had been done, the deepest hole remaining on the upstream sides
measured but four-tenths of an inch, while in one locality the holes had
entirely disappeared, and yet so trifling was the effect of the water on
the downstream side that a blue-pencil mark had not been washed away. Of
course, the erosion of quartzite and limestone boulders tested in this
way proved to be a much slower process, amounting to less than
one-hundredth of an inch annually. Another important consideration in
the shaping of pebbles by river-water is the swiftness of the current,
it having been noted, for instance, that those which have been washed
down the steep slopes of the Navajo Mountain and the edge of the Black
Mesa are somewhat better rounded than those that have been borne along
for a much greater distance by less swift-flowing water.
That striated, faceted, or polished pebbles are always of glacial
origin, or that those of glacial origin usually offer these
characteristics is far from the fact; indeed, it may rather be said that
they are generally missing. The fluvio-glacial drift is much more
widespread than ground moraine, and the pebbles found in the former
rarely present these aspects; indeed, it has been noted that in an
hour’s search through the glacial drift of Connecticut, only a single
such specimen may be met with. On the other hand, many pebbles of this
type have been found under conditions plainly showing that the striation
was due to other causes, in some instances, as with those occurring in
conglomerates, to pressure and differential movement.[38]
The burying of white stones or lumps of quartz with the dead was not
infrequent in early times in Ireland. The peasants of the north of
Ireland call these Godstones. A cist found at Barnasraghy, County Sligo,
was nearly filled with quartz pebbles, and not long since a white stone
was found in a primitive burial place near Larne, County Antrim. That
this was a usage confined to the earlier period of Irish history is
generally admitted, and the discovery of such white stones in a grave is
accepted as an indication that it belongs to an early date.[39]
It has been suggested that these white stones were used for burials
because of the symbolic meaning of the color, which to the minds of many
primitive peoples was that of purity, as indeed it is still among most
modern peoples, although the symbolism may not always be consciously
accepted. White marble seems to most of us the most appropriate and
beautiful stone for monuments, and if to a very considerable degree
granite is now used as a substitute, this is principally because of its
greater resistance to the deteriorating effect of atmospheric changes.
Already in prehistoric times, the cave-dwellers showed a fondness for
gathering quartz crystals and fragments, and specimens of those taken
from the Auvergne Mountains have been found in the cave-dwellings of Les
Eyzies; they may have been used as amulets or talismans.[40]
A legend of the great Irish saint, Columba, gives an instance of the
curative use of white pebbles. After this saint had vainly entreated
Broichan the Druid to free a Christian bond-maiden, as a last resort he
menaced the druid with approaching death. The prediction or curse was
speedily on the way to fulfilment, Broichan sickened unto death, and in
his terror consented to free the maiden. Hereupon St. Columba went to
the river Ness and picked up out of its shallows several white pebbles,
announcing that they would, by the Lord’s power, work the cure of
heathen people. One of the stones was blessed by the saint and placed in
a vessel filled with water, on the surface of which it floated, and as
soon as Broichan had taken a draught of the liquid he was restored to
perfect health.[41]
A famous Scotch amulet was a polished globular mass of white quartz, an
inch and three-quarters in diameter, owned by the chiefs of Clan
Donnachaidh and known as the “Stone of the Banner.” It had been
accidentally found by a chief of this clan, who, on his way to join
Robert Bruce in 1315, before the battle of Bannockburn, noted a
glittering stone embedded in a clod of earth that had become attached to
his flagstaff. It was looked upon as a powerful talisman in battle, and
water in which it had been dipped was said to cure diseases. Tradition
asserted that this white stone of Clan Donnachaidh was identical with
that used long before by St. Columba.[42] As such white stones were
often deposited in graves, sometimes even being placed in the mouth of a
deceased person, it has been suggested that perhaps the sparks emitted
by the quartz on percussion were believed to shed some faint gleams
along the dark pathway of the departed in his journey to the underworld.
In Christian times there can be little doubt in regard to the influence
exercised by the text in Revelation: “To him that overcometh ... I will
give a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man
knoweth save he that receiveth it.”[43]
Crystal balls are not only valued for the visions to be seen, or
supposed to be seen in them, but are sometimes worn as amulets against
illness. In some parts of Japan they are thought to ward off dropsy, and
their wear is also recommended to guard from all wasting diseases.[44]
The likeness of rock-crystal to congealed water may well be credited, in
the doctrine of sympathy, with its putative power of preventing the
watery infiltration from which a dropsical patient suffers. As the
Japanese make many choice crystal balls, these objects are generally
more or less familiar in that land and have thus appealed as well to
those who were superstitious as to those who appreciated things
beautiful in themselves.
In Yucatan quartz crystals were not only used for divining, but also to
ensure the success of the crops. The fact that such crystals have been
found in the Indian mounds of Arkansas, North Carolina, and elsewhere,
may warrant the supposition that they had been worn as talismans and
then interred with the deceased persons as a most intimate part of their
property. The writer’s personal observation in Garland and Montgomery
counties, Arkansas, demonstrated that quartz crystals were to be found
in mounds together with chipped arrow-points of chalcedony, although the
crystals did not appear to have been worked in any way. The region about
Hot Springs, Arkansas, has furnished some of the finest rock-crystal
found in the United States. From North Carolina also have come many
remarkable specimens, the largest of which, found in 1886, was unluckily
broken up by the person who discovered it. In its crystal state it must
have weighed about 300 pounds, and if cut would have furnished a crystal
ball 4½ or 5 inches in diameter. This splendid crystal came from Phœnix
Mountain, Chestnut Hill township, in Ashe County, North Carolina, and
from the largest fragment recovered, weighing 51 pounds, several slabs 8
inches square and from half inch to one inch in thickness were cut.
Nearby a crystal weighing 285 pounds was found, and another weighing 188
pounds. Some of the crystals from this locality had on one side a green
coating of chlorite, and when this was not removed, the effect was as
though one saw a green moss growing beneath a pool of water. The
rock-crystal slabs have an advantage over glass when used for mirrors,
as they more truly reflect the tints of a fine complexion. Brilliant
crystals from Lake George and its neighborhood have been called “Lake
George Diamonds.” In marked contrast with the large examples we have
noted, many crystals of quartz are so small that 200,000 would have an
aggregate weight of but one ounce and yet many are perfect crystals and
doubly terminated.
The presence of white quartz pebbles in some graves of the Indian
Moundbuilders, appears to be indicated to a satisfactory extent in the
case of certain specimens from the Etowah Mound in Georgia; these
pebbles, which form part of the Steiner collections in the United States
National Museum, were not, however, worked or polished in any way, nor
are there any traces of use for ornament or decoration. On the other
hand, white quartz pebbles from the Pueblo region of the Southwest offer
undeniable signs of having been long used and are of frequent
occurrence; some of these have been found in graves. In connection with
the probable reasons determining their presence the designations “fire
stones” or “charms” have been given them; some specimens of this worked
quartz had evidently been worn as pendants, while others had probably
been regarded as fetishes.[45]
It is most interesting to note that the superstitious use of these
objects in burials was so widespread as to prove that it must have been
due to some inherent property or properties in white stones, and
especially in pebbles of white quartz, which appealed very strongly to
the mind of primitive man. That, as has been noted above, the conception
of purity should be associated with whiteness, in its contrast to any
obscure color, is natural enough, and rests upon the association of
spotless cleanliness with moral purity, and very probably the sparkles
of light emitted by a bright piece of quartz, normally or on percussion,
brought this material into some connection with the worship of fire, or
of fire-gods. To another possible conception along the same lines we
have already alluded.
An instance is reported where a very curious quartz pebble, one-half
white and the other black, was found within the hand bones of the
skeleton of an Indian; the finder carried it about with him for many
years as a “lucky stone,” but it appears that his personal experience of
its effects, if these can be judged from what happened to the bearer of
such a talisman, has been of a kind to shatter the most robust faith in
the protective power of his Indian charm. Possibly the strange relic may
have symbolized night and day for the Indians, and thus have been
believed to guard the wearer or the person with whom it was buried, at
all times and seasons. That pebbles of this sort were sometimes buried
in the ground, disposed in circles and squares, is vouched for by some
who claim to have unearthed them in ploughing, but our informant was not
able to confirm these statements, as the arrangements had always been
effectually disturbed before he reached the spot.[46]
In many graves of the primitive Red-paint People of Maine, small pebbles
have been found. As they were not large enough to have served as
paint-grinders, and as but one such pebble occurs in any single grave,
the presumption is quite strong that they were considered as talismans
for the dead. The fact that the practical laborers of our day who dug
out these graves instinctively named the pebbles “lucky stones” goes to
prove that this supposition is not too far-fetched, although there is no
positive evidence to support it. The pebbles were yellow, bright red, or
gray in color, the graves explored being at Orland, Maine, as well as at
the outlet of Lake Alamoosook, on the south side of this lake and at
Passadumkeag; indeed such graves have been met with all the way from the
Kennebec Valley eastward to Bar Harbor.[47]
The respective symbolic meanings of white and black are illustrated in
the designations “white magic” and “black magic,” the latter denoting
conjurations or spells in which the aid of the powers of darkness, of
the Devil and his demons, was sought by the sorcerer, while “white
magic” was to be performed by harmless and innocent means, sometimes
even by religious rites. In this way it sometimes so closely approached
the domain of religious miracle, that it becomes difficult to
distinguish between these two conceptions of supernatural action in the
material world.
Quartz of a different type with needle-like inclusions is called
“Thetis’s hair stone.” This is a transparent or translucent quartz, but
so completely filled with acicular crystals of green actinolite, or
occasionally altered actinolite of a yellow-brown or brown color, as to
appear almost opaque; seals and charms have been made to a small extent
of this variety. Of other inclusions in quartz we may note those of a
very brilliant stibnite projecting in all directions, some of the
intruded crystals being very curiously bent. Exceedingly beautiful gems
have been cut from this material.[48] When this quartz is cut en
cabochon across the ravalette inclusions, a cat’s-eye effect is
produced. The yellow quartz cat’s-eye of Ceylon and the green of Haff,
Bavaria, are of this type. So densely set were the green actinolite
inclusions in the case of a specimen found at Gibsonville, North
Carolina, that it was believed by the finder to be an emerald.
An extremely beautiful effect in quartz is produced by enclosed,
acicular crystals, or hair-like particles of some other mineral, such as
rutile, for instance, and sometimes even of gold. To specimens of this
latter type may be referred the Greek name “chrysothrix,” used in the
Orphic poem “Lithica” and signifying literally “golden hair”; of this
the verses tell us there were two varieties, that which may be
identified with quartz, having a resemblance to “crystal,” while the
other, said to have the appearance of chrysoberyl, may have been a
yellower variety. To the quartz traversed by filaments of rutile, or the
red oxide of titanium, has been given the taking name of “Venus’s hair
stone”; a pretty French name is _Flèches d’Amour_ or “Cupid’s
Arrows.”[49]
The California beaches have furnished some of the most interesting
ornamental pebbles, the greater number being of chalcedony or agate
weathered from an amygdaloidal rock, while a few are of jasper or fossil
coral. Their variegated color-markings made them very attractive
ornamental objects in themselves, and there is reason to believe that
centuries ago the Indians of this region valued them as talismans or
amulets. At present the finest specimens are gathered from Pescadero
Beach in San Mateo County, about twenty-four miles west of San José,
Redondo Beach, fifteen miles south of Los Angeles, and also from
Crescent City Beach, in the northern part of California. On Moonstone
Beach, Santa Catalina Island, many beautiful quartz and chalcedony
nodules have been picked up, which have weathered out of ryolite rock of
sanidine feldspar and quartz. It has been quite a custom for guests of
the hotels to go down to Redondo Beach and gather these pebbles, and
some of those collected by enterprising natives are placed in a bottle
of water to bring out the beauty of their colors. Sometimes they are
drilled and strung on flexible wire to form long chains or necklaces.
Several pebbles presumably from Redondo Beach were found, in 1901, in an
Indian grave, where they were probably placed as amulets for the
dead.[50]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of California State Mining Bureau.
1. Chalcedony and agate pebbles from Pescadero Beach, San Mateo
County, California.
2. Pebble Beach, Redondo, Los Angeles County, California.
From George Frederick Kunz’s “Semi-precious Stones of California,”
Sacramento, 1905.
Bulletin No. 37 of the State Mining Bureau.
]
The occurrence of fluid cavities in quartz, chalcedony, sapphire, and
other minerals, is due at times to cavernous structures formed during
the growth of these minerals, when the crystalline substances, for some
reason, instead of filling these up solid, will avoid the caverns and
enclose the liquid of crystallization. In agate inclusions this is found
with silicious content, possibly due to the fact that it is to an extent
carbonic acid gas, or water containing salt or some other foreign
substance. In agate chalcedony, whether in pebbles as minute as a
pinhead, or in amygdules several feet across, the liquid is enclosed
because the walls of the gas-pores in the rock, which are frequently
almond-shaped, are gradually becoming smaller, or rather the walls
thicken by the deposition of the silica forming agate, chalcedony, or
any impenetrable layers, or else an impenetrable form of quartz; then
again, frequently toward the centre or when the liquid forms less
rapidly, or through some change, the quartz becomes crystalline, either
colorless, smoky, or amethystine, and this is due to various inclusions.
This gradual thickening of the walls means that the aperture into which
the liquid penetrates becomes smaller and smaller until at last it is
entirely sealed, so that it becomes enclosed in a kind of nature’s
water-bottle, these being sometimes as large as in the chalcedony
specimens from Uruguay; this is also the case with the hydrolites and
the enhydros, when they can be shaken and the water rattles as in a
bottle.
An occasional small Redondo Beach, California, or Medford, Oregon pebble
contains a moving bubble of air in liquid.
Most wonderful specimens of rutilated quartz are the great, rich brown,
possibly titanium-colored masses in the Morgan Collection at the
American Museum of Natural History, that in the Vaux Collection at the
Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences, and a smaller mass in the
British Museum; these were all obtained near Middlesex, Vermont. The
rutile is a rich transparent or translucent red, varying in thinness
from that of an ordinary needle to that of a knitting-needle, and even
to that of a thin lead-pencil. Wonderful specimens are also found in the
Alps of St. Gotthard, in Madagascar, and in Alexander County, North
Carolina, where they are found in quantity as minute crystals of a rich
red or golden yellow.
Other curious and interesting rock-crystals with inclusions are those
showing enclosed drops of water, the kind termed _enhydros_ by Pliny[51]
and many old writers; in some of the rarer specimens the enclosed water
is present in considerable quantity. Quartz with inclusions of this type
was highly appreciated in the Greco-Roman world, and one of the best
poets of the Decadence, Claudian (fl. about 400 A.D.), composed a series
of poetic epigrams upon them, seven of these being in Latin and two in
Greek. An example of the best in each tongue, the first in the former
and the second in the latter, must be of interest, although the literal
prose version cannot have the charm of the original verse.[52]
The Alpine ice, already precious in its frigidity, acquires an intense
hardness through the action of the solar rays, but unable to transform
itself entirely into a gem, it betrays its original source by the
water that still remains within it. This adds at once to the beauty of
this liquid stone and to its value.
In its changeful aspect, this crystal born from snow and fashioned by
the hand of man is an image of the world, of the heavens enclosing
cruel ocean in their wide embrace.
An old superstition among the Laplanders of Sweden is that in order to
avert or cure disease which may be or has been caused by sleeping in the
open air on the exposed moorland, three pebbles should be gathered, one
from the water, one out of the earth, and the third from the surface of
the ground or “from the air.” These are placed on a fire until they
become red-hot, and are then thrown into water; the stone which sizzles
most is that belonging to the element which has caused the illness. The
whole body, or sometimes only the afflicted part, is to be moistened
with the water in which the pebbles have been immersed, and each
separate stone is to be carefully returned to the spot whence it was
taken.[53]
Near Middleville, in Herkimer County, New York, in a calciferous
limestone, gray and brownish-gray in color, there are numerous cavities
varying in size from that of a pinhead to that of a man’s head. In these
cavities are found carbonaceous substances such as asphaltum and other
hard, black hydrocarbons. These cavities also frequently show mud or
sand adhering to the sides, or mud and sand mixed with the petroleum, in
which are often found brilliant and transparent rock-crystals, the
purest of any found in the world. They are unusually perfect hexagonal
prisms with both sets of six pyramid faces; that is, with same slight
modification, eighteen brilliantly polished faces. These are especially
sought after on account of their great purity, and because it is
considered that he who wears one will have fair weather and secure the
blessing of fair sailing on the sea of life. Some of these crystals are
so small, though of absolute perfection, that it would require 250,000
of them to weigh an ounce; others again are sometimes as large as from
one to two inches in length. When not entirely transparent they
frequently contain inclusions of black asphaltum or other hydrocarbons
and also contain hollow cavities which are filled with fluid, sometimes
salt water and sometimes liquid carbonic acid gas. In these are moving
bubbles and occasionally a heavy hydrocarbon; that is, a bubble will
ascend and the hydrocarbon will sink; or else the bubble will rise and
take with it a small speck of hydrocarbon, and another will sink. In a
wonderful specimen now at the American Museum of Natural History there
is an object like a small spider of hydrocarbon which sinks while a
minute water-bubble rises. They are called fair-weather stones.
Tasmanian rain-makers use white stones in their magical rites; however,
the stone by itself is not considered an effective talisman, for it must
be dipped in the blood of a young girl to give it added power. After a
number of white pebbles have been steeped for a time in this blood, the
rain-maker ties them up in strips of bark and sinks them in some deep
water-hole in which a diabolical spirit is supposed to dwell. The
natives confidently assert that this ceremony is soon followed by the
desired rainfall. As the belief prevails here as elsewhere, that these
white stones or pebbles to retain their power must not be looked upon by
a woman, it seems a little strange that the rain-bringing stone is
dipped in a young girl’s blood.[54]
However, white stones have not always and everywhere been regarded as
lucky, for it is stated that among the fishermen of the Isle of Man the
presence of a white stone in a fishing-smack is confidently believed to
portend poor fishing. Indeed it has been reported by a Scotchman, who
went out in a fishing boat for several consecutive days with a party of
Manx fishermen, that after a succession of days marked by poor fishing
they began to nickname him “White Stone.”[55]
An oath taken on sacred stones was regarded by the ancient Scandinavians
as peculiarly binding upon him who took such an oath; in the old Norse
annals it is stated that Gudrun Gjukesdatter offered King Atle that he
would take an oath on the “pure white stone.” The hero Duthmaruno is
said to have sworn by “Loda’s Stone of Power,” which represented the
almighty divinity of the Norsemen.[56]
A sacred well on the north side of Lough Neagh, Ireland, lends peculiar
sanctity to the yellow crystals found in great quantity near by. The
belief in their miraculous quality finds expression in the legend that
they grow up out of the ground on Midsummer Night, and whosoever wishes
to possess them as talismans must pronounce certain magic rhymes in the
act of collecting them. They then become luck-bringers of potent virtue
and ensure the prosperity of the household in which they are
guarded.[57]
The stone, or rather rock, named catlinite, and popularly known as
“pipe-stone,” was regarded by certain tribes as one of their most
valuable materials,[58] and was extensively used for pipe-bowls. In
color it ranges from a deep red to an ashy tint; the chief quarry is
situated some three hundred miles west of the Falls of St. Anthony, on
the dividing ridge between the Saint Peter’s and Missouri rivers. This
region was visited in 1836 by George Catlin, to whom we are indebted for
the preservation of so much regarding Indian folk-lore and customs, and
after whom the substance is named. While it is impossible to determine
with any degree of certainty for how long a time the Indians were
familiar with this material, there are those who believe that the
quarries were worked and the material used for pipe-bowls by native
sculptors long before the earliest notice we have to that effect.[59]
Great skill and patience were displayed by the Indians in the making of
these pipe-bowls, which were sometimes carved with various symbolical
figures. We have an early record of such pipes from the pen of Jacques
Marquette, a Jesuit missionary to the Indians, who saw one when visiting
the Illinois Indians in 1673. He reports it as being of polished red
stone, like marble, so pierced that one orifice served to hold the
tobacco, while the other was fastened on the stem, which was a stick two
feet long, as thick as a common cane and pierced in the middle. The
whole was covered with large feathers of red, green, and other colors.
Catlin states that at the time of his visit the “pipe-stone” quarry was
guarded with a certain religious reverence from the visit of the white
man, the Indians declaring that this red stone was “a part of their
flesh,” and that to take it from them would be to tear out their flesh
and spill their blood. This highly poetic language may or may not have
signified a superstitious reverence for the substance; indeed, it may
simply have voiced the fear of these Indians that they might be
despoiled of what for them was an especially valuable material, which
they asserted had been bestowed upon them by the Great Spirit for the
making of pipes exclusively. In our day an old Ojibway Indian,
especially skilled in the work, has a name signifying “he who makes
pipes,” and carved pipe-bowls of catlinite are usually sold for from $1
to $10 apiece; as much as $20, however, is occasionally paid for a
particularly large and finely carved specimen. This substance is also
worked up into charms and other small ornaments which are sold to
tourists, the annual sales of all descriptions amounting to some $10,000
annually. Catlinite takes a fine polish and is easily worked; a
peculiarly attractive variety is red with white and gray spots.
[Illustration:
HINDU WEARING A COLLECTION OF ANCESTRAL PEBBLES AS AMULETS
]
The popular fancy for the “Fairy Stones” from a peak of the Blue Ridge
Mountains, Patrick County, Virginia, is said to be directly traceable to
the tale, “Trail of the Lonesome Pine,” by John Fox, Jr., who makes one
of these pretty staurolite crystals exercise an important influence over
the destinies of his hero and heroine. This was cleverly utilized by the
manager of a New York theatre, when he gave a souvenir performance of a
dramatized version of the story, by presenting one of these “Fairy
Stones” to each lady in the audience, a gift not only in perfect
_rapport_ with the play, but one highly appreciated by the recipients,
few of whom were not unconsciously influenced by the symbolic
half-religious, half-mythical quality ascribed to this attractive little
gem.
Collections of stones and pebbles, often of little or no intrinsic value
but supposed to possess occult powers, are handed down from father to
son in many Hindu families of the poorer class. The accompanying
illustration shows an aged Hindu, as he appeared to a recent traveller,
decorated with such stones to the number of about three hundred on a
ceremonial occasion. In this case they were all pierced and threaded on
cords, so as to be attached to the person, and the old man proudly
declared that, thousands of years ago, one of his ancestors was a
playmate of the god Krishna, who had bestowed the stones upon him as a
special mark of divine favor.
The presence of erratic boulders was accounted for by popular legend in
a variety of ways. Sometimes it was declared that the Virgin or a saint,
while bearing an enormous stone through the air to be used in the
construction of a church, had learned on the way that the church was
completed and the stone no longer needed, and immediately let it drop to
the earth.[60]
A stone having the rude form of a chair or seat, and known as Canna’s
Stone, enjoyed repute in Wales for its curative powers. It was in a
field in close proximity to the church of Llangan, Carmarthenshire,
which owed its foundation to St. Canna. Near this stone is a well called
Flynon Canna, the waters of which were believed to be a cure for ague.
To make the cure effective, however, the patient, after imbibing the
sacred water, had to sit for a time in Canna’s Stone, and if he dozed
while sitting there this was considered to promise a speedy recovery.
The combined treatment by well and stone was often repeated for several
successive days and was occasionally prolonged for two or three
weeks.[61]
That a child could be cured of disease by being passed through an
aperture in one of the sacred stones that had formed part of a dolmen is
shown in the case of a stone of this kind preserved in the church of
Villers-Saint-Sépulcre, dept. Oise, France. There is another such stone
in the same department, at Trie, used in a like way for the cure of
feeble children or those suffering from rachitis. This reveals in a
striking way the persistence of superstitious beliefs which were already
condemned in 567 A.D. by the council of Tours, which prescribed that the
eucharist should be refused to those who venerated these so-called
sacred stones, and at a still earlier date, in 443 A.D., a council
decree pronounced those bishops guilty of sacrilege who permitted the
making of vows over these stones or the deposition of offerings
thereon.[62]
Some of the stones of the druidic dolmens were called by the French
peasants of a later age _pierres tourniresses_, or “whirling stones,”
for it was solemnly asseverated that at midnight on Christmas Eve these
stones gyrated on their base. A still stranger fancy was that some other
stones of this class became fearfully thirsty at times, once every
hundred days, or perhaps only once in a century, and then rolled off to
the nearest stream to slake their thirst. Under others, again, it was
believed that a hidden treasure reposed, watchfully guarded by a
terrible dragon. However, on one night in the year, while the clock was
striking twelve, he snatched a moment’s sleep, and whoever was clever
enough and quick enough to make use of this chance could acquire untold
riches.[63]
A strange belief prevails in and about Dourges (dept. Aube), France. On
the top of a hill near this place is a chapel built in honor of St.
Estapin, and in close proximity to this chapel are rocks with many
irregular hollows of such varying shapes and forms that almost any part
of the human body can be thrust into the openings. On the 6th of August
in each year, those from the neighborhood suffering from illness or
disability of any kind come hither, and, after having made their way as
best they can nine times around the chapel, proceed to the platform
whereon are the wonder-working stones, and introduce the afflicted part
of their body into the appropriate opening in one of the rocks. The
result is said to be an immediate cure of the trouble, however serious
this may be, one experiment being sufficient.[64]
Stones of peculiar shape or marked color are those to which popular
fancy has most often attributed a certain sanctity or power. Instances
of this may be found in the Scottish isles. Thus, on the island of Arran
in the Firth of Clyde, a green stone of approximately spherical form had
acquired great repute for its healing virtue, especially for those
having pains in the side. When this stone was laid upon the seat of the
trouble, the pain would disappear. This, however, was not the only use
to which it was put, for oaths were taken upon it, proving the presence
of a certain animistic belief in the islanders’ minds, as though some
spirit dwelt in or animated the stone and would take vengeance on a
perjuror. A still better proof of this was the idea that the green stone
of Arran would bring victory to a leader if he bore it with him and cast
it into the enemies’ ranks at the decisive moment of a conflict, as is
said to have been done by the Lord of the Isles. Alongside of this green
stone may be placed a blue stone credited in the Scotch island of Fladda
with the possession of like healing power, and on which also oaths were
taken.[65]
A large, flat stone in St. Andrew’s on the isle of Guernsey is stated to
have borne a somewhat humorously misleading French inscription. This
ran: “Celui qui me tournera, Son temps point ne perdra,” which has been
freely rendered:
To him who turns me up I say
His labor won’t be thrown away.
This tempting promise, interpreted as a sign that some buried treasure
was hidden in the ground beneath the stone, finally induced some one to
devote much toil and time to the difficult task of turning the stone
over. What, however, was his chagrin and disgust when the under side
presented the words: “Tourner je voulais, Car lassée j’étais” (I longed
to turn, because I was so tired). Whether the practical joker who
originated the inscription was present to enjoy the success of his joke
is not revealed.[66]
To a mass of quartz at Jerbourg, Guernsey Island, local fancy has
attached a wild legend, which finds expression in the strange
designation of the stone as “The Devil’s Claw.” The old Chronique de
Normandie, which, although written much earlier, was first printed in
1576 at Rouen, recounts under date of 797 A.D. that Duke Richard, when
on his way from one of his strongholds to a manor where dwelt a damsel
of surpassing beauty, was assailed by the Evil One; but, like a second
St. Michael, Duke Richard overcame his dangerous antagonist. Seeing that
he could not prevail by force, the Devil had recourse to one of his most
perilous wiles, and changed himself into a beautiful, richly attired
maiden. In this disguise he lured Duke Richard to the seashore and
induced him to enter a boat and put out to sea. He thus spirited the
duke away to the lonely isle of Guernsey, and at the landing spot, where
the Devil finally seized his too-confiding prey, stands this mass of
quartz, a deep black splash running right across, indicating in popular
fancy the mark left by the devil’s claws.[67]
A solitary boulder standing on a heath in North Germany is the subject
of a curious legend illustrating the superstitious reverence inspired by
the thunder. Once upon a time a bridal procession was traversing the
heath when a violent thunder-storm broke out. Taking no heed of this,
the musicians who accompanied the procession continued to play their gay
and festive music, and as a punishment for this lack of respect the God
of Thunder changed the whole party into an immense rock.[68]
An erratic boulder lying in midstream in the River Ferse, in West
Prussia, at a bend it makes between Peplin and Eichwald, is known in
legend as the Teuffelsstein (Devil’s Stone). It can only be reached by
swimming to it, the part above the surface of the water measuring 26¼
feet in circumference, the height from the bed of the stream being 8¼
feet. A thick growth of alders on the banks of the Ferse at this point
casts strange and sharp shadows over the gleaming surface of the block
which is a biotitic gneiss. Legend tells that the Devil once tried to
wreck the tower of the church at Peplin by hurling this mass of rock at
it, but just as he had it poised in the air and was about to cast it
forth the church bells began to ring the call for early mass, and he was
forced to let the boulder drop. Another version is that he really threw
it, but that it fell short of its mark.[69]
Near Hasselager in Denmark there is an immense boulder about 150 feet in
circumference and 32 feet in height. Of this stone legend tells that a
witch became so enraged at the fact that the steeple of the church at
Svinninge was used by sailors as a landmark, that she picked up the
stone and hurled it at the church, but missed her aim. As the boulder is
estimated to weigh 1000 tons, this “witch” must have been regarded as a
superhuman personality. The legend seems to indicate that she profited
by the shipwrecks which were only too frequent on this rocky coast, and
grudged the poor sailors the good service rendered them by the prominent
steeple.
A rock in Ardmore Bay, Ireland, is known as the St. Declan Stone, after
the first bishop of Ardmore, who came to Ireland even before the arrival
of the great St. Patrick. This rock is believed by the peasants to be
endowed with great and occult powers, and the legend tells that it was
carried through the air from Rome to its present resting place in the
bay, at the time St. Declan was erecting his church at Ardmore. The fact
that the stone rests upon a number of smaller ones renders it possible
for people to squeeze their way under it at low tide, and those who pass
beneath it three times are believed to have earned the special favor of
St. Declan.[70]
A mass of calcareous stone in a village called Piada de Roland, situated
in the commune of Toufailles (dept. Tarn et Garonne), France, shares
with some other similar stones in this region the curious name of
Roland’s Foot (Piada de Roland). The one preserved in Toufailles
measures 70 cm. × 47 cm. × 50 cm., and bears a natural imprint having
the form of a foot. Legend accounts for this by the tale that the hero
Roland once jumped from this stone to another at Sept Albres and in
taking this tremendous leap thrust his foot down so strongly upon its
support as to leave an imprint on the solid rock. For a time the “Piada
de Roland” was kept in a cow-house—not a remarkably honorable place of
deposit—but after the death of one of the cows a sorcerer advised the
stone should be broken and removed, as a precautionary measure; this is
said to have happened but thirty years ago, showing how deeply rooted
such superstitious ideas are among the peasantry in out-of-the-way parts
of France.[71]
Another rock-imprint, this time simulating that made by the hoof of a
horse, is to be seen toward the edge of the abyss of Padirac (dept.
Lot). Here again a local legend has been evolved to explain the imprint.
We are told that the attention of both Satan and St. Martin had been
powerfully attracted to the region, each strenuously seeking to gain
possession of the souls of those who died, Satan of course wishing to
bear them off with him to the depths of the infernal regions, while St.
Martin cherished the fond hope of bringing them to Heaven. Unhappily the
sins of the inhabitants of the region so much outweighed their merits
that the Devil was almost invariably successful. Once upon a time, when
he was riding off to his lurid realm, bearing with him a sackful of lost
souls, he met St. Martin, who was full of grief at the fact that he
himself had not a single soul to carry heavenward. Knowing, however,
that Satan was passionately fond of gaming, he proposed that they should
play a game the stake of which should be the sackful of souls. Satan
consented, trusting to his powers of trickery, but all his deceptions
proved vain, and the precious souls became the property of the saint.
Enraged at losing the stakes, the Devil stamped on the ground, and an
immense abyss opened up, threatening to engulf St. Martin; however, the
latter put up a prayer to God, and spurred on his steed to a supreme and
successful effort at escape, but one of the hoofs struck the rock with
such force that it made an indentation therein figuring the clear
outlines of a horse’s hoof.[72]
[Illustration:
KILLING A DRAGON TO EXTRACT ITS PRECIOUS STONE
From Johannis de Cuba’s “Ortus Sanitatis,” Strassburg, 1483. See page
16.
]
[Illustration:
NATURALLY MARKED STONE
From Valentini, “Museum museorum,” Frankfurt am Mayn, 1714. Collection
of James I, of England; now in Copenhagen. See page 45.
]
The Kiowa have a sacred stone whose form suggests the head and bust of a
man. This image, called _taimé_, has long been considered a kind of
palladium of the tribe. It is preserved in a box made of stiff dressed
rawhide (_parflèche_) and was only shown once a year, at the annual Sun
Dance. As this sacred dance has not been performed since 1887, the
_taimé_ of the Kiowa has not been viewed by mortal eye since that time,
not even the custodian of the treasure having the privilege of opening
the box, except on the occasion of the ceremonial dance above
mentioned.[73] Whether this stone has been rudely fashioned into its
present shape, or whether its natural form suggested its use as a
simulacrum of some deity, has not been determined; it is evidently not
of meteoric origin as were many of the curiously shaped stones venerated
as images of the gods in ancient times, in both Europe and Asia.
In the rock of St. Gowan’s chapel in Wales was a natural cavity upon
which the name of the Expanding Stone was bestowed by popular tradition,
because the strange fancy prevailed that this stone automatically
adapted itself to the size of anyone who entered the cavity. The legend
ran that once, during the Pagan persecutions, when a fugitive Christian,
hotly pursued, reached this rock it opened up of its own accord so that
he could slip into it, and then closed about him so as to hide him
effectually from his enemies. This Expanding Stone was believed to
manifest its magic power by bringing to pass the wish expressed by
anyone who entered it, provided he did not change his wish while he
turned around within it.[74]
The natives of the French colony of New Caledonia in the southern
Pacific, attach special importance to the fortuitous shape of stones in
using them for talismans or amulets. According to their form such stones
are considered to procure favorable effects against famine, madness, or
death; to induce sunshine or rain, or else to bring good luck in fishing
or in sailing, each special use being suggested by some different form,
the color also being in some cases a determining factor. For the purpose
of securing a better yield from fruit-trees a stone having the
approximate shape of the fruit or with markings similar to those on
fruit or tree is the one indicated by nature as the appropriate
talisman, as in the case of the cocoanut palm, where a stone marked with
black lines is the one chosen. Sometimes two different talismanic stones
are used in this practice, a smaller one figuring the unripe fruit; when
the tree begins to bear, the small stone is buried at its foot, and as
soon as the fruit begins to mature, the small stone is removed and the
larger one, representing the ripe fruit, is buried in its place.[75]
The Scotch of a century or more ago are said to have considered that an
isolated stone or boulder, firmly fixed in the earth, possessed powers
of a peculiar sort, and some such stones were used to cure bruises and
strains and reduce swellings.[76] As it was also thought that a blow
from a stone of this type was especially hurtful, this would be another
case of homœopathic treatment of which so many and various examples are
afforded by the superstitious use of stones and gems, as well as of
other objects to which certain advantageous qualities were attributed.
Small stone boulders have been made use of by ejected peasants in
Fermanagh, Ireland, in a magical incantation designed to draw down a
curse upon a merciless landlord. For this purpose the peasant would
collect a number of such stones, pile them up on his hearth as he would
have piled turf sods, and then put up a petition that all manner of bad
luck and misfortune might befall the landlord and his descendants to
remote generations. Hereupon he would gather up the stones again, and,
carrying them off, would scatter them about in bog-holes, pools or
streams, so that they should never be brought together again.[77] This
was evidently done in the belief that the curse could only be raised if
a counter-invocation were pronounced over the same collection of stones.
An allusion to a custom of turning stones about while reciting a formula
of malediction is contained in the following lines by Dr. Samuel
Ferguson:
They hurled their curse against the King,
They cursed him in his flesh and bones,
And even in the mystic ring,
They turn’d the malediction stones.
Of all “magic stones” none seem better to deserve this designation than
those mysterious and fascinating mineral specimens, veritable _lusus
Naturæ_, bearing imprinted upon them by nature’s hand some likeness of
the human face or form. The grandeur and the overwhelming power of the
material world are probably as much or even more felt in our prosaic age
than they were in the earliest times, but this sentiment is sometimes
coupled with a sense of distrust—happily neither general nor
permanent—as to the presence in this tremendous and inspiring aggregate
of forces of any distinct and definite evidence of the working of an
intelligence closely similar to our own. It seems not unlikely that to
this half-distrust is in great part due the fascination exercised by
these naturally designed stones. We know, indeed, that when examined
critically by the mineralogist, their strange markings become explicable
as the results of fortuitous stratifications and juxtapositions, but to
our instinctive appreciation they offer so close and startling an
analogy to the artistic reproductions consciously made by the hand of
man, guided by his experience and intelligence, that we are almost
invariably impressed with a keener sense of our kinship with nature.
Some very characteristic and interesting specimens of these natural
designs were at one time in the possession of Queen Victoria, many of
them having been formerly among the treasures in the valuable and
extensive collection of pearls and precious stones carefully gathered
together by the famous banker and connoisseur, Henry Philip Hope. Quite
recently (April 20, 21, 1914) these objects, which had passed into the
J. E. Hodgkin Collection, were sold at Christie’s in London. Perhaps the
most remarkable is thus described by B. Hertz in the Hope Catalogue:[78]
No. 62. A very beautiful lusus, in white and brown agate, representing a
miniature face and neck, with light brown hair and white chaplet,
surrounded by a dark brown ground colour.
So singularly natural and artistic is this strange gem, that it is
difficult to banish the conviction that we are not gazing upon a fine
example of a miniature done by an impressionist.[79] Another
interesting, though somewhat less notable example, was a polished flint,
of a brownish-gray hue, bearing a half-front miniature of an aged head
and face marked in a light brownish-white;[80] still another offered the
representation of a human head, the face half turned away; this was also
a flint, the groundwork of a light horn-color, the design being of a
still lighter shade of the same color.[81]
While nearly all these natural designs are in the flat, occasional
examples of relief or intaglio are recorded. As an instance may be noted
a remarkable double gem or medallion said to have been revealed on
splitting open a clump of copper ore from the Bottendorf copper mines.
On each of the two halves was marked the image of a male human head,
dressed with a peruke, but while on one side the representation was in
relief, on the opposite half it was in intaglio.[82]
A remarkable find of three of these naturally marked stones is stated to
have been made in the river Theiss, near the town of Winterhut, in 1556,
“on a Monday after the festival of St. Gall.” On one of these flint
pebbles was depicted a cross, a sword and a rod; the two others bore
respectively a cross and the Burgundian arms, all being as clearly
defined as though the work of the human hand.[83]
These smaller natural pictures were, however, greatly surpassed in
effectiveness by some most extraordinary representations on slabs of
stone, frequently on marble slabs, the strange arrangement of the
veinings constituting veritable pictures of considerable extent and
marvellously deceptive quality. Thus in the church of San Lorenzo in
Florence was to be seen a natural marble on which were depicted two men
bearing a bunch of grapes on a rod.[84] Another marble slab, preserved
in the Danish Collection in Copenhagen and originally owned by James I
of England, presented in most beautiful colors an image of a
crucifix.[85]
To the natural image found in a specimen of copper ore may be added a
much more remarkable picture discovered in a piece of iron ore. This was
found on October 8, 1669, by a miner of the Innesberg mines. The clump
of ore weighed about two pounds and when the miner split it open with a
blow of his hammer, he was startled to see on the upper half a strange
and marvellous design. Calling up a companion, he exclaimed: “Look here!
Here is the Blessed Virgin on this stone!” On examining the other half,
the same design appeared there also. This remarkable find is said to
have been recorded in the book of the mine, the stone itself having been
delivered to the German imperial inspectors.[86]
It is well to bear in mind that the number of these _lusus naturæ_
seemed very much larger in the eyes of writers of a few centuries ago
than to us to-day, for the numerous petrifactions, showing a great
variety of animal and vegetable forms, were for a long period included
in the same category with the stones bearing curiously deceptive
markings or veinings. Much ingenuity was expended by early observers in
the attempt to explain the cause of these phenomena. The learned Jesuit,
Athanasius Kircher, for example, after having proved experimentally that
designs treated with certain chemical agents could be made to impress
figures upon stones, took refuge in the strange hypothesis that pictures
made on wood or some soft material by primitive miners had been left in
the mine and with the lapse of time had slipped down into crevices in
the rock, and, becoming tightly wedged in, had impressed the design on
the contact-rock; or else he suggested that the original material on
which the design had been made might in process of time have, by some
unknown means, been converted into marble.[87] As a striking example of
a picture of this class, Kircher notes and figures an image naturally
designed on a stone slab in St. Peter’s in Rome and bearing a remarkable
likeness to the Blessed Virgin of Loreto.[88]
The electric or magnetic gems, tourmaline, amber, and loadstone, possess
not only great scientific interest, but demonstrate the fact that a
certain energy really does proceed from some of these fair, ornamental
objects, an energy that produces a positive action from without upon the
human body. This may well serve to make us less resolutely sceptical as
to the possible presence in gem-stones of some other forms of emanation
not as yet susceptible of scientific determination.
The supersensitiveness of the innocent child-soul to the most delicate
impressions, and hence to the radiations or emanations from precious
stones, is well brought out in the pretty tale by Saxe Holme (Helen Hunt
Jackson), entitled “My Tourmaline.”[89] The particular specimen here
immortalized was one of the finest from the famous Mount Mica deposits
in the State of Maine. One day, while on a country ramble, the little
heroine’s eye is caught by the color and sparkle of a brilliant crystal
lodged in the gnarled roots of an old tree. In springing forward to
secure this pretty treasure the girl trips on the outstanding roots,
falls, and sprains her leg very seriously, so that she is laid up for
six weeks. However, the beautiful crystal is her great consolation
through the long, dreary weeks, and, strange to say, she comes to feel
that it has a kind of life in it. This is manifested to her and also to
some others, on touching the stone, by a pricking or tingling sensation
in the hand; but to the child the sensations excited by the wonderful
crystal, as perfectly formed as though cut by a lapidary, red at one
end, green at the other, with a separating band of white, are much more
pronounced. When it is placed in the little silken bag that has been
made to hold it, and is laid against her cheek, her feverish
restlessness gradually disappears and gives place to tranquil sleep.
More than this, she is aware of a species of subconscious sympathy with
the tourmaline. So intense is this sympathy that although the child
consented to part with her crystal that it might be offered as a unique
specimen to a foreign museum, and was heart-broken to learn that through
some carelessness it had been lost while being taken thither, she
recognized its presence long years after, when, travelling in Europe as
a young bride, she entered the cabinet of an enthusiastic collector to
view his specimens, and was in no wise surprised when she really found
her “Stonie” there among his prized tourmalines.
In connection with this pretty recital it is interesting to note that
the first chance observation of the attractive qualities of tourmalines
is said to have been made in Amsterdam by a group of Dutch children
whose attention had been attracted by a number of tourmaline crystals
brought from the Orient, and who were puzzled to see bits of ash and
straw attracted to the stones. This came to the knowledge of some Dutch
lapidaries, who for a time called the stone Aschentrekker, or
“Ash-Attractor.”[90] Our name tourmaline is derived from _turmali_, the
name given the stone by the natives of Ceylon.
There seems some little likelihood that certain examples of the gem
called _lychnis_ and noted by Pliny may have been varieties of the
tourmaline. As the first tourmalines brought to modern Europe came to
Holland from Ceylon, we might conjecture that those kinds of _lychnis_
said by Pliny to have been brought from India had a like origin. Of
these Indian specimens, the finest examples of this gem, one kind
resembled the carbuncle or ruby, while another bore the designation
Ionia because its color was like that of the violet (in Greek _ion_).
The most striking peculiarity of the _lychnis_ was its power to attract
straws or bits of paper, when it had been heated by the sun’s rays or by
hand-friction.[91]
Such is the confusion in the statements made by the early Greek and
Latin writers as to the emerald, under which generic name they seem to
have included almost all green stones of any ornamental or other value,
that we cannot absolutely reject the conjecture[92] that Theophrastus
(third century B.C.), the earliest of these writers on precious stones,
_might_ have referred to specimens of green tourmaline, when he states
that the true emerald appeared to have been produced from jasper, as one
of the Cyprian specimens was said to have consisted of one-half jasper
and the other half emerald, the metamorphosis as yet being
incomplete.[93] We admit that if Theophrastus uses the word jasper here
to signify the reddish variety, we would have the combination of green
and red zones in a single crystal sometimes observable in tourmaline.
How this can be reconciled with the previous statement of the same
author that the Cyprian “emeralds” which came from the copper mines of
that island were chiefly used for soldering gold, and hence seem to have
been of the class of mineral called _chrysocolla_ by ancient writers,
is, however, not easy to suggest.[94]
The so-called Brazilian emeralds mentioned by the Dutch mineralogist,
Johann de Laet, as having been found shortly before 1647 in mines near
Spiritus Sanctus, may perhaps have been green tourmalines. These
crystals were described by Gesner as of cylindrical form, striated, and
of a vitreous lustre; their color was like that of the prase and they
were transparent. Although De Laet adds the assertion that the Oriental
emerald (green corundum) was as hard as the sapphire, the Brazilian
emeralds approached more closely to the Oriental in point of hardness
than did emeralds from any other source of supply;[95] and green
sapphires have never been found in Brazil, while green tourmalines have
been.
The earliest published work in which the electric properties of
tourmaline are noted appears to be an anonymous or quasi anonymous
treatise published in 1707, certain initial letters of the quaint title
being italicized to indicate the initials of the author’s name.[96] The
first scientist to derive the action of the so-called _Aschentrekker_ or
“Ash-Attractor” from electric energy is said to have been the great
Linnæus, who bestowed upon the tourmaline the name of the “Electrical
Stone.”[97]
The attractive properties of the tourmaline are said to have been first
brought to scientific notice by M. Louis Lémery, in a report made during
1717 to the French Academy of Sciences; however, Lémery was inclined to
attribute them to magnetic influence. That these phenomena of attraction
and repulsion were really due to the electric properties of the stone
was first clearly brought out by the German physicist, Franz Ulrich
Theodor Aepinus, and his conclusions were communicated to the Berlin
Academy of Sciences in 1756.[98] Aepinus made his experiments upon two
specimens of tourmaline from Ceylon, which had been furnished him by
Lehmann, a fellow-member of the Berlin Academy, who, as Aepinus frankly
admits, first drew his attention to the electric action of the stone.
That not only friction but heat also should develop the electric energy,
both positive and negative, of the tourmaline, serves to differentiate
it from many other potentially electric substances, in the case of which
friction alone is effective.
[Illustration:
A SIMPLE APPARATUS FOR ILLUSTRATING THE ELECTRIC PROPERTIES OF THE
TOURMALINE
The stone is suspended from a hollow rod and will be attracted by the
finger, if the latter be brought within a short distance of the
tourmaline. When the stone has been slightly heated, its positive
electricity will draw toward it the heart-shaped piece of paper,
just as amber attracts paper, or magnetic iron does iron filings.
]
The specimen shown by M. Lémery to the French Academy of Sciences in
1717 is stated to have come from “a river in the Island of Ceylon,” and
is described as being of small size, flat, orbicular, quite thin, of a
brown color, and smooth brilliant surface.[99] Its peculiar property of
attracting and then repelling ashes or iron filings as well as bits of
paper, was duly noted. This specimen had cost M. Lémery 15 livres. After
reciting the constant repulsion and attraction exercised by a magnet
upon the needle, the attraction by the opposite pole, and repulsion by
the same pole, he proceeds to remark that this Cinghalese stone acted
quite differently, since it first attracted and then repulsed the same
object presented in the same way. This intermittent or irregular action
was in his opinion to be explained by the theory that a vortex was
intermittently developed in the substance. As it begins the small bodies
are attracted, when it ceases they remain stationary, but when it is
renewed “and there emanates from the stone a material analogous to the
magnetic emanation” then the bodies are repulsed. Another peculiarity
was that the body which had been repulsed could not again be attracted,
whence the conclusion was arrived at that the stone’s repellent force
was superior to its attractive power. These necessarily somewhat inexact
observations are interesting as marking one of the earliest attempts to
explain these phenomena, even although the explanation is faulty.
The great French crystallographer, Abbé Haüy, relates his experiments on
a tourmaline crystal.[100] He set this crystal in steel clamps, with a
long stem which was inserted in a wooden handle, and then subjected the
tourmaline to the heat of a brasier. As the heat augmented and
penetrated the stone, its natural electric force became decomposed, the
two component fluids being forced to separate from each other. It was
now necessary to cool the tourmaline off a little; when too much heated
the electrical phenomena were interrupted; they were also diminished in
intensity when the stone became cool again. The perfect crystal chosen
for experiment clearly showed the negative and positive electrical
poles; even the smallest pieces showed this, and, indeed, if a very
small piece were broken off the positively electric side of a crystal,
it would preserve this positive electricity and soon develop a negative
electricity also.
We may be somewhat loath to doubt the tale that little Dutch children
were the first to note what to them was the queer action of some bits of
tourmaline, but preference should probably be given to the statement
that the discovery of the electric phenomena induced by heating in these
stones was due to the fact that some Dutch jewellers put specimens of
tourmaline in the fire to test their hardness, and then found that the
stones attracted or repelled the ashes of the fire.[101]
Toward the middle of the eighteenth century Dr. Haberden, of London,
confirmed the deductions of Lémery and the somewhat later experiments of
the German physicist Aepinus, and the gay world of London took up the
idea, causing the new stone to become a great favorite with the
fashionable. One of Hogarth’s inimitable designs depicts a spendthrift
fop who has just been arrested while his attention was riveted on the
strange phenomena shown by the tourmaline.
In view of the important experiments made by Benjamin Franklin in the
then almost unexplored field of electricity, it is easy to understand
that the accounts of the newly-discovered electric properties of the
tourmaline should have possessed considerable interest for him. This is
testified to by a letter he addressed to Dr. William Haberden, June 7,
1759.[102] Herein he expresses his thanks for two tourmalines his
correspondent had sent him, and states that he is returning the smaller
one. Of the electric phenomena he writes that he had heard some
“ingenious gentlemen abroad” had denied the negative electricity
displayed by one side of a tourmaline, but he believes the failure to
observe could be explained by defective cutting of the specimens used,
the positive and negative planes having perhaps been obliquely placed;
to obviate this he suggests that the positive and negative sides should
be accurately determined before the operation of cutting begins. The
larger of the specimens sent by Dr. Haberden was retained by Franklin,
who had it mounted on a pivot in a ring, so that either side could be
turned outward at will. He notes as a curious circumstance that when he
wore this ring, the natural heat of the finger sufficed to charge the
stone, causing it to attract light bodies. Several of his experiments
were made with a cork ball suspended by a thread, and he claims that the
attractive force of the positive face was increased by coating it with
gold-leaf attached to the stone by white of egg. This greater effect he
supposed “to be occasioned by the united force of the different parts of
the face collected and acting together through the metal.”
While the various corundum gems, ruby, sapphire, Oriental topaz,
Oriental amethyst, etc., offer a remarkable instance of the many
varieties of beautiful coloration observable in a practically identical
substance, no single gem-mineral can be said to equal tourmaline in this
respect, more especially, however, in the combination of several colors
sometimes disposed in bands, at other times in concentric circles in the
same crystal. When to this we add its peculiar electric qualities, we
may truly say that a fine tourmaline answers our idea of what a
talismanic gem or a gem-amulet should be better than any other of the
beautiful crystals with which bountiful nature has provided us. These
most attractive stones are to be found in widely separated regions on
the earth’s surface, as fine examples have been discovered in the State
of Minas Geraes, Brazil, and in our own land, in Maine and California
especially. Where the color is homogeneous we may have the splendid red
or rose-colored variety called rubellite, from its resemblance to the
ruby, or the blue tourmaline gem named indicolite.
In times of old there was a belief that stones of various kinds would
guard against the assaults of evil in the form of witchcraft, disease,
and other disagreeable visitations. It was a warlike period in which
peace was an unheard-of doctrine, and now that the idea of peace has
become one of the ideals of present-day conditions, it is interesting to
know that nature has furnished us with a stone at once beautiful,
interesting, and illustrating the great fundamental principle of unity
and peace.
The Peace Stone is formed by the union in one crystal of the green and
the red tourmaline, with an intervening band or zone of white, the
latter strikingly beautiful effect being due to the combination at this
point of the red coloring matter, manganese, and the iron constituent,
the source of the green hue; these two materials, by their union,
neutralize each other, furnishing the transparent, colorless vein or
zone. A slightly different combination of colors appears in a fine
crystal, found some years ago at Mount Mica, Oxford County, Maine; this
even offers a kind of “triple alliance,” as it shows blue in its lower
half, passing through white and pink to a grass-green at the upper
end.[103]
These three hues combined in one body, in indissoluble union in spite of
the differences of quality and color, yet represent one principle. This
action of manganese in neutralizing the iron is well known to
glass-makers; otherwise white glass could not be made. It would all be
greenish in tint were it not for the use of oxide of manganese, or
“glass-maker’s soap,” as it is termed, which neutralizes the production
of a green tint by the iron and makes the white hue.
This beautifully symbolic stone is found in Paris, Maine, in San Diego
County, California, and in Brazil. At times the outer edge of the stone
is green, a transparent white zone surrounding the interior red zone,
the whole looking for all the world like a section of watermelon, and
hence it is sometimes called the “Watermelon Stone.” Then again, the
colors are joined in longitudinal strips, showing them side by side.
This variety of tourmaline, although rare, is not especially costly, and
is one more addition to the stones of sentiment, and more especially to
those appropriate as symbols of our fair ideal, universal peace.
We can see symbolized in them the great and consoling fact that, however
marked may be the differences between any two peoples, they need not be
cause for enmity, but may instead become true and enduring sources of
peace and bonds of union. The characteristic talents of each one will
supplement and complete those of the other, so that working together in
harmony they may accomplish far more for each other and for humanity in
general than either could do singly.
At an early date amber was brought from the Baltic coast to Rome, and
Tacitus states that those who collected it called it _glæsum_, a name
later applied to the glass introduced into that region by Roman traders.
The natives knew nothing of the nature or growth of amber, and had no
use for the material, only collecting it for export to Rome, where it
commanded such a high price as to excite their astonishment. Tacitus
gives in the following words his theory of the origin and character of
amber—his chief error being due to his belief that the substance was of
very recent formation.[104]
Now you must know that amber is a juice of trees, since various
creatures, some of them winged, are often found in it. They have
become entangled in the liquid and then inclosed when the matter
hardened. Therefore I believe that, as incense and balsam are exuded
in the remote East, so in the luxuriant groves and islands of the West
are juices which are forced out by the sun close to them. These flow
into the neighboring sea and are washed up by the tempestuous waves on
the opposite shore. If you test the quality of amber with fire, it may
be lighted like a torch and burns with a small, well-nourished flame;
then it is resolved into a glutinous mass resembling pitch or resin.
Both Juvenal[105] and Martial[106] relate that effeminate Romans used to
hold balls of amber in their hands to cool them during the summer heat.
If any such agreeable sensation was really experienced, it must have
been due to the well-known electric properties of this substance. It is
stated that the Chinese often place pieces of amber on or in their
pillows,[107] a use that may have been suggested by the same
considerations.
As a proof of the extravagant value set upon amber by the Romans of the
first century, Pliny notes that a very diminutive figure of a man, cut
out of this substance, sold for a higher figure than did a healthy,
vigorous slave. The popularity of this material was also attested by the
fact that in the gay world of Rome the term “amber hair” was used to
designate a rare and peculiar shade that became fashionable in this
period.[108] It seems probable that this modish shade was somewhat
lighter than the “Titian hair” once so much favored, although the
difference may not have been very great.
A change of hue in amber was thought to portend a waning of love on the
part of the giver, as is shown by the following not especially melodious
lines from “The Fruits of Jealousy” published by Richard Tofte in
1615:[109]
Thy tokens which to me thou sent
In time may make thee to repent;
Thy gifts do groan (bestow’d on me)
For grief that they thee guilty see.
The amber bracelet thou me gave
(For fear thou shouldst shortly wave[110])
From yellow turned is to pale,
A sign thou shortly will be stale.
Not only for curative purposes and for general use as an amulet was
amber prized, but an amber necklace was sometimes regarded as an
especially auspicious decoration for a bride at her wedding, as is shown
by an exceptionally fine necklace of facetted amber beads from
Brunswick, Germany, made in the eighteenth century.
Our earliest authority on the curative use of amber, the great
encyclopædist Pliny, states that in his day the female peasants of the
valley of the Po, in northern Italy, might be seen wearing amber
necklaces, principally as ornaments, but also because of their remedial
powers; for even at this early period it was generally believed that
amber had most excellent effects in diseases of the throat and tonsils.
The peasants of this region were especially subject to such disorders,
and Pliny conjectures that they were caused by the different sorts of
water in the neighborhood of the Alps.[111] He probably refers not only
to diseases of the throat, properly so called, but also to a swelling of
the glands of the neck, the _goître_ with which so many of the peasants
living on the slopes of the Alps, and in other mountainous regions of
central Europe, are afflicted.
The golden-hued amber was called _chryselectrum_ by Callistratus, as
cited by Pliny. This was said to attract the flame and to ignite if it
came in contact with the fire. If worn on the neck it was a cure for
fevers; if powdered and mixed with honey and oil of roses it was
beneficial for dimness of vision, and its powder, whether taken by
itself or in water with gum mastic, remedied diseases of the
stomach.[112] In ancient and medieval times the fear of poison being
administered in food or drink was very great, and any substance that was
credited with the power to show the presence of poison, by some change
in clearness or color, was highly valued. An amber cup was said to
reveal the admixture of any of the various kinds of poison with the
liquid it contained.[113]
The use of amber as a preventive of erysipelas finds a defender in Rev.
C. W. King, who writes as follows:
[Illustration:
NECKLACE OF FACETED AMBER BEADS
German. Eighteenth century.
]
That the wearing an amber necklace will keep off the attacks of
erysipelas in a person subject to them has been proved by repeated
experiments beyond the possibility of doubt. Its action here cannot be
explained; but its efficacy in defence of the throat against chills is
evidently due to its extreme warmth when in contact with the skin and
the circle of electricity so maintained.[114]
The electrical property of amber was remarked as early as 600 B.C. by
the Ionic philosopher Thales, and from this observation may be dated the
beginnings of the study of electric phenomena.
That faith in the magic powers of amber beads still exists is
illustrated in the case of an old Russian Jewess who recently died in
one of our charitable institutions. This woman is said to have reached
the age of one hundred and six years, and she ascribed her extraordinary
longevity to the possession of a necklace of very large amber beads,
which had been given her by her mother, who also lived more than a
hundred years. The daughter, a few days before her death, bestowed this
treasured heirloom upon _her_ daughter, for it is generally believed
that the virtues of gems largely depend upon their being received as
gifts.
In northern Germany, also, for more than a century a string of amber
beads was looked upon as a favorite and necessary gift. The writer has
seen hundreds of these strings, many of which have been worn for one,
two, and sometimes more generations. The beads are round and usually
facetted; however, they have been abraded against each other for so long
that they are often flat disks, and a string originally fifteen or
sixteen inches long will be twelve, and often only nine inches in
length, so much of the original spheres having worn away.
A well-known physician of the sixteenth century, Johann Meckenbach,
claimed, in 1548, to have discovered the process of producing oil of
amber. Although Meckenbach was not entitled to the credit he claimed, as
the experiment had already been successfully made, he gained great
repute by this means, and when he communicated to Duke Albrecht of
Prussia the secret of his process, the rulers of other lands overwhelmed
the duke with requests for a supply of the precious remedy. Ferdinand,
Archduke of Austria, sent a special messenger the long journey to
Berlin, twice in a year, for a few flasks of the oil, which was regarded
as a cure for many diseases.[115] The oil of amber—_oleum succini_ of
the Pharmacopœia—has maintained its repute as a cure for various
affections up to the present day. In some forms of gout and rheumatism
it relieves the inflammation and pain in the joints; and its
antispasmodic action makes it a valuable remedy in cases of asthma,
whooping-cough, hysteria, bronchitis, and infantile convulsions.[116]
An early version of the strange tale that ships were attracted by masses
of rocks, or even mountains of loadstone, is given by Palladius (c.
367–c. 431 A.D.). He relates that the loadstone was produced on a group
of islands called the Maniolæ, which were on the route to Taprobane
(Ceylon), and continues, “if any ship constructed with iron nails
approached these islands they were drawn by the power of the loadstone
and their course was arrested. For this reason those voyaging to
Taprobane use ships especially put together with wooden pegs.” Probably
the legend arose from the fact that wood was often used in the case of
vessels trading in this region, because iron was scarce and expensive.
This is the view of Procopius, who found the same story still current in
the sixth century.[117]
It has been noted as a curious fact that none of the ancient writers who
treat of the loadstone recognized that the attractive energy exerted by
this substance on iron was also exerted by iron upon the loadstone; on
the contrary, they constructed many ingenious hypotheses to explain why
this was not the case.[118] The strange fancy that in the presence of a
diamond a piece of loadstone was robbed of its attractive force, must
have arisen from an observation of the well-known electric properties of
the first-named stone, and from the idea that the much more valuable
stone should have the greater power. Here, as in many other cases, we
see how little interest was taken in actual experiment by ancient
writers, a pre-conceived idea of the eternal fitness of things being the
main criterion.
Spaniards of the thirteenth century believed that the magnetic power of
the loadstone would depart from it if it were steeped in the juice of
leek or onion for three days; but the virtue would return to the stone
if it were bathed in goat’s blood. This recalls the queer notion that
the diamond could only be broken when moistened with goat’s blood, both
fancies having their origin in the idea that goat’s, or rather ram’s
blood, was endowed with warmth and vitality to a higher degree than
other blood.
An ingenious magnetic oracle is described by De Boot.[119] This
consisted of a round board, about the edge of which were marked the
letters of the alphabet, while in the centre there stood a small wooden
figure, set on a pivot, and holding extended in one hand a little wand.
One foot of this figure was slightly advanced and within it was
concealed a small iron ball. The experimenter held in his hand a wooden
sceptre, with a powerful loadstone at its top, and as he touched with
his sceptre the lower side of the board, beneath the spot on which any
one of the letters was marked, the attraction exercised by the loadstone
on the iron made the figure revolve on its pivot so that the little wand
pointed toward the letter indicated. In this way any word could be
spelled out and appropriate answers given to any question. The device
would be too obvious at present, but in De Boot’s time it would have
served well enough to mystify the spectators.
That the loadstone was highly esteemed in the sixteenth century was well
versified by Robert Norman in “The Newe Attractive.”
THE MAGNES OR LOADSTONES CHALLENGE
Give place ye glittering sparkes, ye glimmering Diamonds bright,
Ye Rubies red, and Saphires brave, wherein ye most delight.
In breefe yee stones enricht, and burnisht all with gold,
Set forth in Lapidaries shops, for Jewels to be sold.
Give place, give place I say, your beautie, gleame, and glee,
Is all the vertue for the which, accepted so you bee.
Magnes, the Loadstone I, your painted sheaths defie,
Without my helpe, in Indian Seas the best of you might lye.
I guide the Pilots course, his helping hand I am,
The Mariner delights in me, so doth the Marchant man.
My vertue lies unknowne, my secrets hidden are,
By me the Court and Common-weale, are pleasured very farre.
No ship could sayle on seas, her course to runne aright,
Nor compasse shew the ready way, were Magnes not of might.
Blush then, and blemish all, bequeathe to mee thats due,
Your seates in golde, your price in plate, which Jewellers doo rewe.
Its I, its I alone, whom you usurpe upon,
Magnes my name, the Loadstone cald, the prince of stones alone.
If this you can denie, then seeme to make reply,
And let the Painefull sea-man judge, the which of us doth lye.
THE MARINER’S JUDGMENT
The Loadstone is the stone, the only stone alone,
Deserving praise above the rest, whose vertues are unknowne.
THE MARCHANT’S VERDICT
The diamond bright, the Saphire brave, are stones that beare the name,
But flatter not, and tell the troath, Magnes deserves the same.[120]
It was reported in the seventeenth century that ruptures were cured in
Belgium by the help of the loadstone. The patient was first given a dose
of iron filings, reduced to a very fine powder; thereupon a plaster made
of crushed loadstone was applied externally to the affected part. This
was said to produce a cure in the space of eight days.[121] Probably the
plaster was believed to draw the iron filings or some emanation from
them through the affected parts toward the surface.
In medieval Europe this mineral was greatly valued for its therapeutic
virtues. Trotula, the first of the female physicians connected with the
celebrated School of Salerno, the centre of medical culture in Europe in
the Middle Ages, and who wrote a treatise on female diseases,
recommended the use of the loadstone in childbirth. The stone was to be
held in the right hand, and the learned lady asserted that the wearing
of a coral necklace would aid its beneficent effect. Both these
substances are prescribed for this use by the Oxford teacher, John
Gadesden (1300), in his “Rosa Anglica.” Francisco Piemontese, who taught
in Naples about 1340, also recommends the loadstone, but he directs that
it be strewn with the ashes obtained by burning the hoof of an ass or a
horse; according to this last authority, the stone should be held in the
left hand.[122]
That wounds caused by burning could be healed if powdered loadstone were
sprinkled over them was confidently taught even in the seventeenth
century. However, some ill effects were occasionally remarked when the
substance was used medicinally, for it sometimes produced melancholia.
In this case an antidote was found in the emerald, and we are assured
that if a solution made from this stone were taken thrice a day for nine
consecutive days, the melancholia would pass away.[123]
In the sixteenth century in India, it was believed that a small quantity
of loadstone taken internally preserved the vigor of youth, and Garcias
ab Orta relates that a king of Ceylon, when an old man, ordered that
cooking utensils of this material should be made for him, and had all
his food cooked in these. Garcias claims to have this information direct
from a Jew, Isaac of Cairo, who was ordered to make the vessels.[124]
A loadstone amulet for the cure of gout is stated to have been worn by a
native of the English county of Essex. The stone was sewed up in a
flannel covering to which was attached a black ribbon for suspension
from the neck. Of course it was worn beneath the clothing, although the
encasing flannel must have prevented direct contact with the skin. This
piece of magnetic iron ore measured about an inch and a half in width,
and was two-tenths of an inch thick. The patient, a Mr. Pelly, was an
elderly man, who had suffered for some time from annually recurring
attacks of gout which prostrated him for from three to four months.
Learning of the reputed virtues of loadstones, more especially of those
of Golconda, he sent to India for one and he is said to have been
thereby relieved of his disease.[125]
[Illustration:
Vignette from the “Lapidario de Alfonso X, Codice Original” (fol. 12).
Published in Madrid, 1881. This design shows the finding of the
“Stone of Sterility.” Author’s library.
]
In Persia a certain stone received the name of _Shahkevheren_ or “King
of Jewels,” for it was reputed to attract all other precious stones, as
the loadstone did iron. The greatest of the Sassanian monarchs, Khusrau
II (590–628), had occasion to test the power of this wonderful stone. He
had lost a ring of great price in the river Tigris, near the spot where
some time later the Mohammedans founded the city of Bagdad. Taking a
_shahkevheren_ the monarch attached it to a line and literally fished
for his ring, using the magic stone as a bait. We are told that the ring
was recovered, and this must have greatly added to the reputation of the
“King of Jewels.”[126]
In the ninth century Arabic treatise, translated from an earlier Syriac
text and falsely attributed to Aristotle, a number of fabulous stones
are noted. All of these were said to have attractive properties, and as
the loadstone attracted iron, they attracted various substances, each
having its special affinity. First, we are told of the stone that
attracted gold, then, in turn, of stones that attracted silver, copper,
and other metals.[127] Probably the legend of the finding of these
stones is based upon the employment of certain mineral substances in the
purifying of gold, silver, etc. Among other fabulous or almost fabulous
stones was one called _askab_, which, although of mean appearance, was
able to break the diamond just as the diamond broke all other
stones.[128] Have we here an allusion to the polishing of the diamond by
its own dust? It is not improbable that this art, in an incomplete form,
was known to the Hindus long before it was practised and perfected in
Europe.
The stone that attracted hair was the lightest of all stones and very
fragile; a piece as large as a man’s fist weighed but a drachm. It
looked like a piece of fur, but when touched was found to be a stone.
The strange powers of this extraordinary substance could easily be
demonstrated, for if placed on a hairy spot of man or beast the hair was
extracted, while if it were rubbed over a bald spot the hair was made to
grow.[129] Probably the appearance of certain minerals covered with
fine, hair-like spines, suggested the idea that the body of the stone
had attracted hair to itself, and thus gave rise to this strange belief
in the depilatory power of the stone, or it may have been a form of
amber that, owing to its opacity, was not recognized as being the same
as the transparent variety.
The Arabic Aristotle relates many wonderful tales of stones found by
Alexander the Great during his Asiatic campaigns (327–323 B.C.). While
these are all apocryphal, there can be no doubt that it was subsequent
to these campaigns that western Europe was first made familiar with many
of the precious stones of Persia and India. One of the stones reported
by “Aristotle” bore the name _el behacte_ or _baddare_, rendered in a
Hebrew version _dar_ (pearl?). This was the stone that attracted men, as
the loadstone attracted iron. A quantity of these stones were found on
the seashore by the soldiers of Alexander’s army, but the men were so
fascinated by their aspect as to be unable to gather them up. Therefore
Alexander ordered that the soldiers should veil their faces, or close
their eyes, and, after covering the marvellous stones with a cloth,
should take them away without once looking at them. Hereupon Alexander
gave commands that a wall should be built around “a certain city.”[130]
Possibly we have here a distant echo of the pearl gates of the New
Jerusalem.
Two other strange stones are described, one of these appearing on the
surface of the water only during the night, while the other shows itself
during the daytime and sinks beneath the surface as soon as the sun
sets. The “daystones,” according to the legend, were quite useful to
Alexander in his campaigns, for if they were attached to the necks of
horses or beasts of burden, the horses would not neigh, and the other
animals would be equally mute as long as they bore the stones, so that
the passage of the army would not be revealed to the enemy. The
“night-stones,” on the other hand, produced an entirely opposite effect,
for when wearing them the animals uttered their respective cries
unceasingly. We are not told that Alexander ever used them to provide an
animal symphony as martial music for his soldiers.
Referring again to the subject of amber, as the objects placed in Roman
sepulchral urns were always chosen because of some supposed religious or
talismanic quality, there is considerable significance in the fact that
an urn of this type, preserved by Cardinal Farnese, contained a piece of
amber carved into the figure of an elephant. Coming down to modern
times, there is record that the Macdonalds of Glencoe handed down as
heirlooms four amber beads said to cure blindness, and there seems
reason to conjecture that this substance was sometimes credited with
being an antidote for the poison of snake bites, as a small perforated
stone used as late as 1874 in the Island of Lewis for this purpose
appears to be a semi-transparent amber.[131] Indeed, amber set as a
jewel to cure rheumatism is said to be offered for sale in London
to-day, and the writer has learned that the late Rev. Henry Ward Beecher
long carried amber beads with him to ward off this malady.
II
On Meteorites, or Celestial Stones
It is somewhat difficult to obtain trustworthy accounts regarding the
occurrence of meteorites in medieval and ancient times, as there was a
strong tendency to confuse the real meteorites with flint arrow-heads
and hatchets derived from the stone age. A number of interesting facts
bearing on the history of certain real or supposed aerolites were given
in a recent lecture delivered by Prof. Hubert A. Newton in New Haven,
Conn.[132] Some of the more striking instances are here presented.
As an illustration of the way in which meteorites may have come to be
reverenced in former times, we have the modern instance of a stone that
fell in the region north of Zanzibar, on the East African coast, and was
seen and picked up by some shepherd boys. At first all the efforts of
the German missionaries to buy this stone were fruitless, because the
neighboring Wanikas looked upon it as a god, and, after securing
possession of it, proceeded to anoint it with oil, clothe it with
apparel and decorate it with pearls. They also built a temple wherein
the stone received divine honors. This worship endured for some time,
but when, three years later, the nomad tribes of the Masai swooped down
on the Wanikas and burned their villages and massacred many of the
inhabitants, the Wanikas lost all respect for the stone and were glad to
part with it. This conduct was, after all, not entirely unreasonable,
since the fetish had failed to prove its divine power.
[Illustration:
By Courtesy Soule Photo Co.
THE “MADONNA DI FOLIGNO,” BY RAPHAEL
In the Vatican Collection, Rome. The white curve in the middle of the
background shows the passage of the meteor to the earth.
]
This occurrence in the nineteenth century may well be typical of what
must have happened in past times. A case from the fifteenth century,
narrated by Professor Newton, is very interesting, since the treatises
on precious stones of that period and somewhat later contain many
notices of supposed meteorites. We are told that, on November 16, 1492,
a stone weighing 300 pounds fell at Ensisheim, in Alsace. Emperor
Maximilian, who was then in Basel, caused the stone to be brought to the
neighboring castle and summoned a state council to determine the
character of the divine message associated with its fall. The council
decided that the event signified some important occurrence in the
approaching conflict between the French and the Turks, and the stone,
with an appropriate inscription, was suspended in the church, the
strictest injunctions being given that it should not be removed. Conrad
Gesner, in his treatise, “De figuris lapidum,”[133] states that a
fragment of this stone was given to him by a friend and that it
resembled ordinary sandstone.
We are told that nineteen years later a shower of stones fell near
Crema, east of Milan; these stones fell in French territory and at that
time the Pope was engaged in hostilities with the French. During the
following year, the French, who had long threatened the States of the
Church from their possessions in Lombardy, were forced to withdraw from
Italy. In the celebrated painting by Raphael, known as the Madonna di
Foligno, one of the greatest treasures of the Vatican, this Crema
fire-ball is depicted.
Naturally the recitals from ancient times are not as easily controlled
as the more modern accounts and it is always possible that stones other
than meteorites were given a celestial origin by superstitious zeal. The
black stone of the Kaabah, which is probably noted by early Greek
writers and was an object of adoration for the Arabian tribes before the
time of Mohammed, was believed to have dropped from heaven together with
Adam, and in many Greek legends images were said to have fallen from
heaven. Of course in the case of real statues this is simply a vague
superstition, but the stone venerated in Phrygia as an image of Cybele
may possibly have been a genuine meteorite.
The following facts in relation to this stone are presented by Professor
Newton:
It was a conical mass bearing a rude resemblance to a human head, and
was said to have fallen near Pessinus. It was placed in the Temple of
Cybele and worshipped as her image. During the second Punic war, in
205 B.C., because of Hannibal’s prolonged invasion of Italy, the
downfall of the Roman state was feared, and the Romans were terrified
by a shower of stones from the sky. On consulting the Sibylline books,
some verses were found to the effect that a foreign enemy could be
driven from Italy if the Idæan mother (Cybele) was brought from
Pessinus in Phrygia to Rome. An embassy was sent to King Attalus of
Pergamos to request his consent to the transfer of the stone, and
although he even refused obedience to the commands of the Delphic
oracle, which required him to surrender the stone as an act of
hospitality, he at last yielded when a violent earthquake shook the
country, and the voice of the goddess was heard, enunciating these
words: “It is my will. Rome is a worthy place for any god; delay
not.”[134]
Herodian, who relates this story, proceeds to narrate the arrival of the
stone at Rome, where Scipio Africanus was chosen to bear it to the
Temple of Victory. A silver image of the goddess was made, the conical
stone serving as the head. For five hundred years this image, later
transferred to the Temple of the Great Mother of the Gods, was an object
of Roman worship. It has been described very fully by Arnobius (fl. 300
A.D.).[135] He states that it was a small stone which could be easily
and lightly carried in the hand; it was of a black hue and of rough
surface, and had many irregular projecting angles. As it was naturally
marked with the form of a mouth, it was inserted in the face of an image
of the goddess to figure that feature.
As the stone was valueless, modern explorers long hoped that it might
not have been carried off from Rome by the spoilers, but the search for
it has been in vain. In a rare volume describing excavations made in the
Palatine hill in 1730, Professor Lanciani is stated to have found a
stone that had been unearthed at that time in a chapel, lacking any
inscription to indicate the divinity to whom it was dedicated. This
stone was said to be “of a deep brown color, looking very much like a
piece of lava, and ending in a sharp point.” The similarity of this
description to that of Arnobius indicates that the Cybele stone may
really have been found in 1730, but it has since disappeared. It would
have been extremely interesting for mineralogists if they could have
been enabled to examine this supposed meteorite, perhaps the very
earliest regarding which we have such definite information.
To throw it into greater relief it was surrounded by a silver rim. When
first brought to land from the ship on which it had been transported to
Rome, the sacred stone was confided to the care of a company of Roman
matrons who passed it on from one to another as it was solemnly borne to
the Temple of Victory.[136]
Whether this stone was really a meteorite, as tradition taught, or
whether it was a fossil of the type later known as _hysteriolithus_, as
was conjectured by M. Falconnet, in 1770,[137] remains doubtful. Its
light weight, upon which quality Arnobius lays stress, and its peculiar
form seem to favor somewhat the latter supposition. A similar stone to
which divine honors were paid was in a temple on Mount Ida.
In prehistoric times meteorites were quite naturally supposed to possess
a special sanctity, and were indeed regarded as animated by the very
essence of some divinity. The name bætylus, given to these stones by
Greeks and Romans, is derived from the Hebrew בֵּית־אֵל(bethel) or
“house of God,” a term indicating clearly enough the belief held by the
ancient Hebrews in regard to meteorites, or supposed meteorites.
However, long before this designation had reached the Greeks, certain
meteorites had been accorded a peculiar reverence, and even worship. One
of these was a black stone, called the Omphalos of Delphi. This was said
to be the stone given by Rhea to Kronos when she substituted a stone for
her offspring Zeus, to save him from being devoured by his father,
Kronos. Zeus himself (or Kronos) threw it down to the Earth and the spot
where it struck was supposed to be the centre of the Earth, hence the
name Omphalos, or “navel-stone.” Meteorites probably played an important
part in the development of civilization, for it is believed that the
earliest iron tools and weapons were made from meteoric iron, apparently
the only supply available before the art of treating iron ores had been
evolved.[138]
While there is admittedly but scant evidence of the existence of a Stone
Age in China, and still less to indicate that Chinese civilization
passed through such a period, a certain number of stone artefacts, all
polished, have been found within the limits of China. However, curiously
enough in view of this state of things, we find that here, as almost
everywhere else, these objects were popularly regarded as
“thunderbolts.” Thus Chien Tsang-Ki, the author of a Materia Medica,
composed in the first half of the eighth century of our era, states that
objects of this kind “have been found by people who explored a locality
over which a thunder-storm had swept and dug three feet in the ground”;
and he adds that some of these stone implements have two perforations.
They were named _pi-li-chen_, “stones originating from the crash of
thunder,” and a still earlier writer, Chang (232–300 A.D.) applies a
similar designation to stone axes and wedges “frequently seen among the
people.” Several centuries later Shen Kun (1030–1093 A.D.) testifies
that the people of his time found many stone “thunder-wedges,” in all
cases after a thunder-storm; these were unperforated. It is generally
believed that most of these stone implements had been made by a
Tungusian tribe, akin to the Manchus.[139]
This is partly due to the fact that it was natural, after a
thunder-shower, for a search to be made. Then again, as thunder-showers
are usually heavy rains, they were apt to loosen the soil and leave on
the surface heavy objects, more especially such materials as jade, of
the density of 2.9, or jadeite, of the density of 3.3. These are much
heavier than the quartz, feldspar and other ingredients of the soil,
which vary from 2.6 to 2.7 and are washed away. Finally, there is the
natural disinclination on the part of the Chinese to dig, from their
belief that it is wrong to explore the soil, and this disinclination on
their part has done much to prevent a better knowledge of the Stone Age,
and our knowledge of the races which must have preceded the civilization
of China; many facts of mining interest have been neglected, as well, on
account of this prejudice. Perhaps within the next twenty years we may
learn something about a prehistoric race in China, for as traces of the
existence of such races have been found in every other country of the
world, there can be little or no doubt that such a race existed in
China, although as yet we have no distinct evidences of it.
The Babylonian royal astrologers taught that the mere fact of the
passage of a meteor across the heavens, whether its course were from
east to west, or from north to south, was a good omen, portending
victory and the successful issue of the royal projects. Especially
favorable was the augury when the meteor was very brilliant and left
behind it a trail that might be likened to the tail of a scorpion. This
not only foretold joy for the ruler and his house, but for the entire
country; evil would be overcome, righteousness would reign supreme, and
prosperity would prevail. A meteor of this type is recorded as having
appeared at the time Nebuchadnezzar laid waste Elam about 1150 B.C. This
refers to the elder Nebuchadnezzar.[140]
A curious series of cuneiform texts treats of the prognostics to be
drawn from the transformations of stars into various animals, metals,
stones, etc. This is explained as referring to the apparent form or hue
of the meteor itself, or of the trail it left behind. The
transformations into stones concern the dushu-stone, porphyry (or some
other dark red or purple stone) and lapis lazuli. This omen is
invariably a favorable one.[141]
The Old Testament offers abundant testimony of the ancient belief that
certain stones were animated by a divine spirit. In regard to this,
Benzinger writes:[142] “It was not Yahweh who found Jacob at Bethel but
rather Jacob who found Yahweh there. He anoints the stone; that is, he
sacrifices to it, for the divinity residing in the stone has caused his
dream.” According to Benzinger’s opinion the Ark of the Covenant
originally served as receptacle for a stone of this type, and was hence
regarded as sheltering a divinity.
One of the very earliest references to meteorites appears in the Book of
Joshua (chap, x, verse 11), where we read, in the account of the battle
fought by the Israelites against the Amorites and their allies, that
“the Lord cast down great stones from heaven” upon the Amorites, so that
more of the latter were killed by these stones than by the weapons of
the Israelites. Admitting the historical character of the account, this
fall of meteorites probably took place in the twelfth century B.C. In an
Assyrian cuneiform inscription, there is mention of the seven black
stones of the city of Urka in Chaldea. These were _bætyli_ and were
regarded as representations of the seven planets.[143]
The fall of meteors is noted frequently in Chinese records, the first
instance dating from 644 B.C. Of a meteor that fell in 213 B.C., we are
told that it descended as “a star which turned to a stone as it
fell.”[144] A meteorite that fell in China in 211 B.C. is said to have
been the indirect cause of many deaths. The event took place during the
reign of the tyrannical emperor Chi Hoang-ti, who had incurred the
resentment of all the Chinese litterati by his wholesale burning of
books. Some believer in the power of sorcery caused an inscription to be
cut on this stone predicting the death of the hated emperor within a
year, and when news of the fact came to the monarch’s ears he gave
orders to have the stone split up, and to put to death all the
inhabitants of the place where it was found, this being no doubt looked
upon as a most effective conjuration of the spell.[145]
In 405 B.C., Lysander won his great victory over the Athenian fleet at
Ægospotami in Thrace, and Plutarch writes, in his life of Lysander,[146]
that a stone which fell from the heavens a short time before the battle
was regarded by many as a portent predicting the dreadful slaughter that
was to ensue. At the time Plutarch wrote (circa 150 A.D.) this stone
could still be seen at Ægospotami, where it was regarded with great
veneration by the Chersonites. The Greek philosopher Anaxagoras is said
to have predicted the fall of this meteorite, as he had observed certain
perturbations in the movements of the heavenly bodies. As Anaxagoras
died in 428 B.C., his prediction must have long antedated the fall of
the meteorite.
A detail given in one of the early recitals might possibly have
constituted the basis of a prediction by some contemporary physicist. In
the latter part of his account of the phenomenon Plutarch quotes from a
Treatise on Religion, by a certain Daimachus, to the effect that, for
seventy-five days before the fall of the meteorite, a vast fiery body
was seen in the heavens, in appearance “like a flaming cloud.” This well
describes the appearance of a great comet, and might be regarded as
significant when we consider the latest modern theory of the origin of
meteors, according to which these bodies are detached particles of a
cometary aggregation. Of this meteoric mass said to have fallen at
Ægospotami, Pliny states that it was as large as a wagon and of a dusky
hue, adding that a brilliant comet was visible at the time of its fall.
Regarding the assertion that Anaxagoras predicted the occurrence, Pliny
declares that this prediction, if true, was a greater miracle than the
fall of the meteor. A portion of the stone was preserved as a venerated
relic in the town of Potidæa.[147]
The site of the city of Seleucia is said to have been determined by the
fall of an aerolite, and this stone is figured on some of the coins of
the Seleucidæ, a thunderbolt appearing in its stead on other coins.
In the Temple of Diana, at Ephesus, there was a stone partly fashioned
into the conventional form of the Ephesian Diana. This, it was asserted,
had fallen down from the heavens. The stone is mentioned in the Acts of
the Apostles (xix. 35), where we read that the city of the Ephesians was
“a worshipper of the great goddess Diana, and of the _image_ which fell
down from Jupiter.” In this text the word “image” has been supplied by
the translators, a more literal rendering being “that which fell down
from the sky.” This clearly shows that the stone only faintly indicated
the human form.
Tacitus says of the stone sacred to the Astarte (or Aphrodite) of
Paphos, that it was a symbol of the goddess, not a human effigy, since
it was an obscurely formed cone.[148] In his life of Apollonius of
Tyana, Philostratus, also, mentions this stone and tells us that when
Apollonius visited Paphos, he admired there “the famous symbolic figure
of Aphrodite.”[149] These “living stones” λιθοι εμψυχοι were often
covered with ornaments and vestments, and it has been conjectured that
these adornments were, in some cases, changed so as to accord with the
garments appropriate to certain special festivals of the respective
gods.[150]
The colossal emerald of the temple of Melkarth at Tyre is designated in
the fragments of Sanchoniathon as an αεροπετῆ ἀστέρα, or star fallen
from heaven. It was said to have been raised up by Astarte, and this
last myth is represented on the silver coins of Marium in Cyprus. Here
the radiance and splendor of the object suggested a stellar or celestial
origin, and we see the same tendency at work in the application of the
name _ceraunia_ (thunder-stones) to certain brilliant gems by
Pliny.[151]
Virgil[152] seems to confound with thunder the detonation of a bolide,
followed by a train of light, and he seems also to confound the bolide
itself with a lightning flash, for he says that its fall diffused a
sulphurous vapor far and wide. Seneca was more critical, for he regarded
the fact of thunder sometimes accompanying the fall of a meteorite as
merely a coincidence.
Although, in the absence of exact and trustworthy contemporaneous
accounts of the fall of these sacred stones, we cannot be absolutely
certain that they were meteorites, the testimony in several cases is
sufficient to render this almost certain, while in many other cases
there is no reason to doubt the substantial accuracy of the tradition.
The choice of some of the _bætyli_, however, was determined by their
form alone, to which was ascribed a religious significance, not exactly
compatible with our religious ideas of to-day, but quite easily
understood when we remember that the divine creative energy was
concretely represented in ancient times by many symbols offensive to our
sense of propriety.
In the treatise “On Rivers,” attributed to Plutarch, a stone is said to
have been found on Mount Cronius, which bore the name of “cylinder.”
When Jupiter thundered, this stone, terrified by the noise, rolled down
from the top of the mountain.[153] This passage is interesting as
suggesting one of the reasons which caused the name “thunderbolt” to be
given to certain stones, for stones adapted to ornamental use might
easily be exposed by the weathering of the rocks, and then detached by
the concussion produced by heavy thunder. Of course, the cylinder-stone
here mentioned must have more especially signified one of the
prehistoric celts, but it is not unlikely that the name was also given
to other, unworked stones, having a similar form.
Before Galba was chosen emperor, and when he was acting as governor of
the Basque provinces in Spain, a thunderbolt descended upon the shore of
a lake in that region. Search was made for the stones which were
supposed to have fallen, and Suetonius tells us that twelve axes were
found. This was regarded as a sure augury of Galba’s elevation to the
imperial dignity,[154] but for the archaeologist the presence of the
axes merely signifies that this was the site of a lake dwellers’
village.
In some cases, the stone which was held to be a dwelling-place of the
divinity was also regarded as a representation, or epitome, of some
sacred mountain. In the earliest stage of this belief, the god was
supposed to have his abode in the mountain, and later he was thought to
animate the stone which had a fancied likeness in shape to the mountain.
A coin of the Roman emperor Elagabalus (204–222 A.D.)[155] bears on its
reverse a representation of one of the sacred stones of Astarte, namely,
that worshipped at Sidon. This is shown resting upon a car, and it seems
probable that it was transported from place to place, so that large
numbers of people could have the privilege of paying reverence to it.
There seems to be fairly strong reasons for the belief that the Black
Stone of the Kaaba at Mecca is an aerolite.[156] If the conjecture be
correct, this stone occupies a unique place among meteoric masses, for
it was an object of worship for many centuries before the advent of
Mohammed, and is to-day regarded with the highest reverence by one
hundred and twenty millions of Mohammedans. One of the most solemn acts
performed by the pilgrims at Mecca is the kissing of the Black Stone,
and should any one doubt that true religious enthusiasm is aroused by
this act, he should read the following words of Ibn Batoutah:[157]
The eyes perceive in it a wonderful beauty, similar to that of a young
bride; in kissing it one feels a pleasure that delights the mouth, and
whoever kisses it wishes he might never cease to do so; for this is an
inherent quality in it and a divine grace in its favor. Let us only
cite the words of the Prophet in this connection: “Certainly it is the
right hand of God on earth.”
For centuries before Mohammed’s time the Kaaba at Mecca had been a
famous sanctuary and a religious centre for the nomadic Arabs. It is
stated that there were 360 idols in the temple, a number which suggests
a connection with the year of 360 days in use among the Arabs. The most
celebrated of these idols bore the name of Hobal, and was the figure of
a man cut out of red agate. There was a tradition to the effect that
this idol had been brought from Belka in Syria. As one of the hands was
broken off, the Koreish, the Arab tribe having charge of the Kaaba,
repaired this defect by attaching a golden hand, in which were held
seven arrows, plain shafts without heads or feathers, similar to the
arrows used for divination by the Arabs. For some occult reason the
agate was supposed to exercise a certain control over meteorological
phenomena, for in Persia it was believed to ward off tempests, while
prayers for rain in time of drought were made to this agate image of the
Kaaba.[158]
[Illustration:
_LE TEMPLE DE LA MECQUE_
THE KAABA AT MECCA
The letter A indicates the place where the Black Stone is inserted in
the wall of the building. From “Histoire générale des cérémonies
religieuses de tous les peuples du monde,” by Abbé Banier and Abbé
Mascrier, Paris, 1741.
]
Much has been written regarding the Black Stone, but perhaps the most
satisfactory description is that given by Burckhardt, who writes:[159]
At the Northeast corner of the Kaabah, near the door, is the famous
“Black Stone”; it forms part of the sharp angle of the building at
from four to five feet above the ground. It is an irregular oval,
about seven inches in diameter, with an undulated surface, composed of
about a dozen smaller stones of different sizes and shapes, well
joined together with a small quantity of cement, and perfectly smooth;
it looks as if the whole had been broken into many pieces by a violent
blow, and then united again. It is very difficult to determine
accurately the quality of this stone, which has been worn to its
present surface by the millions of touches and kisses it has received.
It appears to me like lava, containing several small extraneous
particles of a whitish and of a yellowish substance. Its color is now
a deep reddish-brown, approaching to black.
This description seems to support the conjecture that the stone is a
meteorite. The injuries it has sustained are attributed to various
accidental or intentional causes. In the early part of the Mohammedan
era the Kaaba was damaged by fire, and the intense heat caused the stone
to break into three pieces. This injury was repaired, but some years
later (926 A.D.) the heretic sect of the Carmates captured and sacked
Mecca. Hoping to divert to another place the tide of pilgrims, and the
riches they brought with them, the leader of the sect caused the stone
to be wrenched from its place and borne away to Hedjez. During the sack
of Mecca, or possibly in its violent removal, the stone was broken into
two pieces,—perhaps along the line of one of the old fractures. At first
an offer of 50,000 dinars ($125,000) was made for the return of the
stone, but before many years had passed the Carmates restored it
voluntarily, having been disappointed in their hope of attracting the
pilgrims. The Black Stone was destined to suffer still greater injury.
In 1022 A.D., Hakem, the ruler of Egypt, who suffered from megalomania
and was disposed to claim divine honors for himself, dispatched an
emissary to Mecca to destroy the stone. Mixing with the crowd of
pilgrims, this man approached the revered relic, and crying out “How
long shall this stone be adored and kissed?” struck it a tremendous blow
with a club. The story runs that only three small pieces were broken
from the stone, but as it is also stated that these pieces were
pulverized and the powder made into a cement to fill up the cracks, the
injury was probably much greater than the pious Mohammedans were willing
to admit.[160]
Mohammedan tradition teaches that the Black Stone was sent from heaven
and was once pure and brilliant; it only grew black because of the sins
of men. Legend relates that Abraham stood on this stone during the
construction of the Kaaba. This edifice was erected in a miraculous way,
for the stones came of themselves, all cut and polished, from the
Mountain of Arafat. However, no place was found for the Black Stone, and
it was afflicted and said to Abraham: “Why have not I also been used for
the House of God?” “Be comforted,” replied the Prophet; “for I will see
that you are more honored than any other stone of the edifice. I will
command all men, in the name of God, that they shall kiss you when they
pass in the procession.”[161]
A fragment of the Black Stone of Mecca was brought to Bagdad in 951 A.D.
by order of the Khalif Moti Lillah, and was inserted in the threshold of
the main entrance to the royal palace there. From a balcony directly
above the entrance was suspended a piece of tapestry taken from that in
the Kaaba, and it was so hung that its lower border was about on a level
with the face of anyone entering the portal. All who passed in were
strictly enjoined to touch their eyes with this tapestry and also to
kiss the piece of the Black Stone, upon which no one was permitted to
tread. These details are given in Khondemir’s life of Abu Jafer Al
Mostasem, the last of the Khalifs, who died in 1258 A.D.[162]
The Kaaba at Mecca offers to the adoration of faithful Mohammedan
pilgrims to the shrine, not only the famous Black Stone, which is set in
the eastern corner of the building, but also another sacred stone
inserted in the southern corner at a height of five feet from the
ground. This is designated as the “Southern Stone.” The Kaaba itself is
a small rectangular structure, built of stone from the surrounding
hills, and having a length of 12 metres (39.4 feet), a width of 10
metres (32.8 feet) and a height of 15 metres (49.2 feet). One of the few
Europeans who have been permitted to enter the sacred enclosure, Dr.
Snouck-Hurgronje, does not believe that the Kaaba owes its origin and
sanctity to the Black Stone, but that its foundation was rather due to
the presence of the well Zemzem, whose waters were already reported to
have a therapeutic quality in the early days of Islam, and which may
have earned its repute on this account. If, however, we admit that the
medical properties (of a purgative nature) are due to contamination or
percolation posterior to the primitive time when the well Zemzem first
attracted the reverence of the Arabs of this region, then the purity of
the water may account for its high place in the esteem of the Arabs. Of
the Black Stone, a native of Mecca who saw the stone when it had been
taken out of the wall of the building, in the course of the latest
restoration of the structure, states that its inner surface is of a
grayish hue.[163]
The Kaaba also contained the Maquam Ibrahim, a sacred stone preserved
from pre-Islamite times, and brought into connection with the history of
Abraham by the Mohammedan legends. This stone, enclosed in a receptacle
of like material, was at one time buried in the ground underneath the
building, but receptacle and enclosed stone are now set within the iron
gratings which partition off a part of the space inside the cupola over
the pulpit of the Mosque of Mecca.[164]
An Oriental poem by Assmai detailing the wonderful exploits of the hero
Antar, describes the way in which he became possessed of a matchless
sword. One day he came upon two knights in desperate encounter; on
seeing him they paused in their strife and to his question as to its
cause one of the combatants told him that they were brothers, sons of a
great Arab emir, recently deceased. Their father had once found a black
stone, in appearance like a common pebble, but possessed of such
penetrative power that when a herdsman threw it at a camel it traversed
the animal’s body, inflicting a gaping wound. The emir immediately
recognized that the stone must be a “thunder-stone,” as meteorites were
called; he therefore secured possession of it and commanded his most
skilful smiths to forge a sword from it. When this task had been
successfully performed the emir clothed the smith in a robe of honor,
and then, drawing the new sword from its sheath, cut off his head with a
single stroke. This served at once as a test of the weapon’s quality and
as an assurance that it would not soon be duplicated. On his death-bed
the emir called to him his youngest son and said to him: “My son, take
the sword and hide it from your brother, and when you shall see that he
has seized my goods and is squandering them in riotous living, and sends
you away, without reverence for the Lord of Heaven and Earth, take the
sword away with you. If you bring it to the court of the Persian King,
Khusrau Nushirwan, he will heap gifts and honors upon you, or if you
elect to go instead to the court of the Byzantine Cæsar, monarch of the
Servants of the Cross, he will give you as much gold and silver as you
may ask for.” This was the tale told by the younger knight, who added
that when, after the father’s death, the brother had sought in vain for
the famous sword, he had resorted to torture to extract from the favored
son the secret of its hiding-place, and had brought the latter to this
spot commanding him to find it and give it up, and when he refused so to
do, had attacked him. The hero Antar, like a veritable knight-errant,
took up the quarrel of the oppressed brother and slew his opponent,
securing as a free-will offering of gratitude the magic sword.[165]
The forging of swords from meteoric iron was, in the opinion of the
Orientalist Hammer-Purgstall, the origin of the characteristic surface
given to the famous Damascus blades. A most interesting modern example
of a meteoric-iron weapon is a dagger made by Von Widmanstädt for
Emperor Francis I of Austria, out of the famous Bohemian siderite long
preserved in the Rathaus at Elbogen and known as the “Verwünschte
Burggraf.” On the surface of this blade, however, the lines were
angular, while on the true Damascus blade the lines are wavy.[166] An
unsuccessful attempt to forge a sword from a piece of meteoric iron is
reported by Avicenna in the case of a siderite that fell at Jurgan in
1009 A.D., from which swords that were ordered to be made by the Sultan
of Khorassan could not be executed.[167]
In an Arabic work bearing the name of Avicenna and entitled “The Cure,”
the writer mentions a meteorite which fell in the Jordan, and of which
Sultan Mohammed Ghazni wished to have a sword made for him, thus proving
that the Sultan believed that meteorites possessed marvellous
properties.[168]
A number of Greek and Roman coins bearing representations of these
sacred meteorites have come down to us, and more than two hundred
specimens may be seen in the section of meteorites in the Natural
History Museum (Königlich-kaiserliches naturhistoriches Hofmuseum) in
Vienna. These coins are of great value in determining the history of
those aerolites which were preserved in the temples of certain
divinities.
The Viennese collection of meteorites is the finest in the world, and
this is largely due to the zeal and intelligence of the late Dr.
Aristides Brezina, while superintendent of the department of mineralogy
and meteorites in the Museum. In regard to the impression made upon the
mind of man in ancient times by the fall of meteorites, Dr. Brezina
writes:[169]
The ancients supposed the stars to be the domiciles of the gods;
falling stars and falling meteorites signified the descending of a god
or the sending of its image to the earth. These envoys were received
with divine honor, embalmed and draped, and worshipped in temples
built for them.
[Illustration:
Title-page of one of the earliest treatises on meteorites.
]
The coins to which we have alluded were usually struck in honor of the
sanctuaries wherein the aerolites were objects of adoration, and the
temple is often rudely figured with the stone set up in the centre. In
many cases the meteorite was preserved in its original form, which, if
conical, was regarded as a phallic symbol; in other cases, the mass was
rudely shaped into the conventional form of some divinity.
It is stated in Spangenberg’s Chron. Saxon. that in 998 A.D. two immense
stones fell at Magdeburg during a thunder-storm. One of these is said to
have fallen in the town itself and the other in the open country, near
the river Elbe. The description of a meteoric fall given in an
eighteenth century treatise on meteors, presents a vivid picture of the
phenomena attending—or believed to have attended—such a fall. We are
told that on June 16, 1794, at about seven o’clock in the evening a
thunder cloud was seen in Tuscany, near the city of Siena and the town
of Radacofani. This cloud came from the north, and shot forth sparks
like rockets, smoke rising from it like a furnace; at the same time a
series of explosions was heard, not so much resembling the sound of
thunder as that produced by the firing of cannon or the discharge of
many muskets. The cloud remained suspended in the air for some time,
during which many stones fell to the earth, some of which were found.
One of them is described as being of irregular form, with a point like a
diamond; it weighed about five pounds and gave out a “vitriolic smell.”
Another weighed three and a half pounds, was very hard, of the color of
iron, and “smelled like brimstone.”[170]
The following passage written in the fourteenth, or perhaps in the
thirteenth century, shows considerable accuracy of observation:[171]
There are some who fancy that the thunder is a stone, for the reason
that a stone often falls when it thunders in stormy weather. This is
not true, for if the thunder were a stone, it would wound the people
and animals it strikes, just as any other falling stone does. However,
this is not the case, for we see that the people who have been struck
by thunder (sic) show no wounds, but they are black from the stroke,
and this is because the hot vapor burns the blood in their hearts.
Therefore, they perish without wounds.
The fall of a siderite twenty miles east of Lahore in India, on April
17, 1621, is reported in contemporary records. From this iron, which
weighed about 3¼ pounds, the Mogul Emperor Jehangir ordered two sabres
to be made, as well as a knife and a dagger, and commanded that the fact
should be properly registered. Here, as in other similar cases, the
weapons were believed to possess a quasi-magic power because of the
celestial origin of the material employed.[172]
Michele Mercato[173] (d. 1593) gives a vivid description of the fall of
a meteor which was observed near Castrovilarii, in Calabria, January 10,
1583. Some men in a meadow observed a black, whirling cloud rushing
through the air, and saw it descend to the earth not far from where they
were standing. The noise accompanying the descent of the meteorite was
so deafening that it was heard far and wide, and the poor men fell to
the ground almost unconscious from terror. People from the neighborhood
hastened to the spot and, after restoring the terrified witnesses of the
phenomena, discovered a mass of iron weighing thirty-three pounds at the
spot where the black cloud had touched the earth.
The startling phenomenon of a rain of stones from the sky which took
place under rather queer circumstances is reported by the Jesuit priest
Alvarus as having occurred in China in 1622. The Taoist priests of that
land enjoyed the repute of being able to bring down rain from the sky by
their magic or religious rites, and when, during the year mentioned,
China was visited by a drought of unexampled severity, the aid of these
rain-makers was invoked. Yielding, perhaps not unwillingly, to the
popular entreaty, a group of priests ascended a hill and proceeded to
pronounce their invocations. To the joy of the onlookers the sky became
darkened and a rushing sound was heard, at first mistaken for an
oncoming rainstorm, but to the dismay of all an immense shower of stones
of all sizes fell upon the earth, destroying what remained of the
parched fruits and grain crops, and killing or maiming many persons. So
terrifying was the sight that the Jesuits who were watching the result
of the affair half-believed that the Last Day had come. When the panic
had finally subsided, the people fell upon the unlucky Taoist priests
and beat them soundly.[174]
In the “Annals of the Ottoman Empire,” by Subhi Mohammed Effendi, there
is an account of the fall of a meteor at Hasergrad, on the banks of the
Danube, on the fourth of Saban, A. H. 1153 (October 25, 1740). The
weather was fine, not a cloud was to be seen in the sky, and not a
breath of air was stirring. Suddenly there arose a whirlwind, the air
became obscured with clouds of dust, rain fell in torrents, and it
became dark as night. While all who were out of doors were hastening to
seek shelter from the storm, three terrific peals of thunder were heard,
as loud as the sound of many cannon. After the storm had passed several
strange masses partly of stone and partly of iron were discovered in a
nearby field. The Vizier bore two of these as great rarities to the
Sultan in Constantinople.[175]
The influence exerted by popular beliefs, even upon the learned, is well
illustrated by the opinion given by some of the leading French
physicists of the eighteenth century as to the character of meteorites.
When a meteoric stone fell at Luce, Dept. Marne, France, September 13,
1768, three French scientists, among them the celebrated Lavoisier, were
sent to investigate the matter. In their report to the Academy of
Sciences, they state that there must have been some error in the
accounts given of the event, for it was an assured fact that no such
things as _pierres de foudre_, or thunder-stones, existed. This was, of
course, perfectly true, but Lavoisier and his companions did not stop to
think that stones might fall to the earth in some other way. The result
of the investigation was summed up as follows:
If the existence of thunder-stones was regarded as doubtful at a time
when physicists had scarcely any idea of the nature of thunder, it is
even less admissible to-day, when modern physicists have discovered
the effects of this natural phenomenon are the same as those of
electricity. There is no record that the fulgarite, the fused sand or
rock struck by the lightning, has ever been used.
The opinion which seems the most probable to us, and that which is
most in accord with the accepted principles of physics as well as with
the facts reported by Abbé Bacheley, and our own investigation, is
that the stone was originally covered with a slight crust of earth and
turf, and was struck by lightning and so made visible.
Chladni reports in a pamphlet published in 1794 that the mass of
meteoric iron discovered by Dr. Pallas in Siberia, and known as the
Pallas or Krasnojarsk iron meteorite, was regarded by the Tartars as a
sacred object which had fallen from heaven.[176] As it is somewhat
unlikely that this belief could be accounted for by an ancient
tradition, we must seek an explanation in the conviction among primitive
peoples that any mass of rock or metal of unusual appearance and
differing notably from the surrounding formations must have come from
the sky. In this way primitive instinct often anticipates the results of
modern scientific investigation. This siderite, of irregular form and
weighing some 1500 pounds, was seen by Dr. Pallas in 1772, and deposited
by him in 1776; he learned that it had been found in 1749 at the summit
of a mountain situated between Krasnojarsk and Abakansk, by a Cossack.
Most of this famous siderite is preserved in the St. Petersburg Museum.
A singular circumstance in regard to the fall of a meteor, and one that
in ancient times would have been explained in a miraculous way, is that
during the desperate and bloody battle of Borodino, won by Napoleon over
the Russians, September 6, 1812, a meteorite is said to have fallen near
the headquarters of the Russian general. This would certainly have been
regarded—after the event—as a manifestation of divine wrath, and hence a
prognostic of the Russian defeat. However, had the French been defeated,
the meteorite would have been looked upon as a sign of divine favor, and
it would have been honored and reverenced. In modern times the natural
phenomenon is taken for what it is worth, and the only interest excited
is a purely scientific one.
Of all the meteorites that have been discovered, the most remarkable are
undoubtedly those found at Melville Bay, about 35 miles east of Cape
York, West Greenland, in 1894, by Admiral, then Lieutenant, Robert E.
Peary, and brought by him to the United States in 1895 and 1897.[177]
They are now to be seen in the American Museum of Natural History, New
York. The first report of the existence of meteoric iron in the vicinity
came from Captain Ross, who in 1818 was given two iron knives, or
lance-heads, by some Eskimo of Regent’s Bay. An analysis of the metal
revealed the presence of nickel and immediately suggested a meteoric
origin of the material; nothing more definite could be learned at the
time from the Eskimo than that the metal had been taken from an “iron
mountain” not far away. In 1840, the King of Denmark, whose interest had
been aroused in the matter, authorized the sending out of an expedition
to seek for the suspected siderites, but the search proved unsuccessful;
a later attempt made by the officers of the _North Star_, a Franklin
relief ship, in 1849–50, also failed. For a time the determination of
the telluric origin of the supposed siderites discovered at Ovifak,
Disko Island, West Greenland, by Baron N. A. E. Nordenskiold in 1870,
cast some doubt upon the true meteoric character of the iron of which
the Cape York knives had been made, and rather discouraged further
searches. It was not until 1894 that these extraordinary masses of
meteoric iron were at last seen and located by a European, one of the
hunters of the Tellikontinah tribe of Smith Sound Eskimos serving as
Lieutenant Peary’s guide. The siderites were three in number, the two
smaller having been named by the Eskimo “The Dog” and “The Woman,”
respectively, while the largest was known as “The Tent.” It now bears
the name of Ahnighito, that of the daughter of the explorer.
[Illustration:
By courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History, New York.
“AHNIGHITO,” THE GREAT CAPE YORK METEORITE, WEIGHING MORE THAN 36½
TONS
In the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. Obtained by
Admiral Peary.
]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History, New York.
“THE WOMAN,” CAPE YORK METEORITE
In the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. Weight 3
tons. Obtained by Admiral Peary.
]
The two smaller ones reposed loosely upon gneissic rocks, but Ahnighito,
found on a small island some six miles away, on a terrace 80 feet above
tide-water and about 100 feet from the shore, lay almost buried in rocks
and sand.
Eskimo legend had woven its web about these enigmatic meteorites and the
natives saw in them an Innuit woman, who with her dog and tent had been
hurled from the sky in a bygone age by Tornarsuk, the Evil One.
Originally the mass called “The Woman” was said to have closely
resembled the figure of a woman, seated and engaged in sewing, but by
the gradual chipping away of fragments of the iron this form had almost
disappeared. Peary was told that not long before, the “head” had fallen
off and that a party of Eskimo had tried to carry it away, lashed to a
sledge; however, as they were passing over the ice, it suddenly broke
up, so that sledge, iron and dogs sank in the water and the Eskimo
themselves barely escaped with their lives.
The dimensions of Ahnighito, the largest siderite ever discovered, are
given as follows: length, 10 feet 11 inches; height, 6 feet 9 inches;
thickness, 5 feet 2 inches. It weighs something over 36½ tons. The
weight of “The Woman” is 3 tons, and that of “The Dog” 1100 pounds. The
chemical compositions of these three siderites, which are regarded as
having originally constituted a single mass, have been determined by J.
E. Whitfield. In addition to small quantities of copper, sulphur,
phosphorus and carbon, the following proportions of the main
constituents were ascertained:[178]
The Dog The Woman Ahnighito
Iron 90.99 91.47 91.48
Nickel 8.27 7.78 7.79
Cobalt .53 .53 .53
Though smaller and less imposing by its mass than the greatest of the
Cape York meteorites, that called “Willamette” from having been found
two miles northwest of the town of that name in Clackamas County,
Oregon, ranks as the fourth, or possibly the third largest iron
meteorite in the world, and is the largest discovered within the
territory of the United States; remarkable peculiarities of form make it
an especially interesting object.[179] It was a chance find, made in
1902 by two prospectors in their search for gold or silver. Noting what
appeared to be a very slight rock projection they tapped this with their
hammers and the sound of the blow revealed the presence of metal;
digging down here and there, they ascertained the existence of a
considerable mass of iron. Although at first no one supposed that it was
a meteorite, before long this fact became known, and the finder, by very
primitive methods and by dint of tireless efforts, succeeded in
transporting the iron to his own land. His courageous attempt to acquire
possession of it was not, however, crowned with success, as the courts
decided that the company owning the land whereon it had been found
possessed the right to reclaim it from the finder.
[Illustration:
By courtesy of the American Museum of Natural History, New York.
“THE DOG,” CAPE YORK METEORITE
In the American Museum of Natural History, New York City. Weight 1100
pounds. Obtained by Admiral Peary.
]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of Rochester (N. Y.) Academy of Sciences.
TWO VIEWS OF THE WILLAMETTE METEORITE NOW IN THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF
NATURAL HISTORY, NEW YORK CITY
Found in Clackamas County, Oregon, near the town of Willamette. Weight
31,107 pounds.
]
When weighed on the railroad scales in Portland, Oregon, the net weight
of this siderite was shown to be 31,107 pounds. The most striking
peculiarity is the abundance of pittings and hollows and their unusual
size. That these resulted in part from the effects of the enormous heat
generated by the swift flight of this weighty mass through the earth’s
atmosphere, is generally admitted; but some of the deepest pits are
believed to owe their origin to the decomposition of spheroidal nodules
of troilite, and the cylindrical holes to the decomposition of rod-like
masses of the same substance. Willamette, which was donated to the
American Museum of Natural History, by Mrs. William E. Dodge, is 10 feet
long, 6 feet 6 inches high, and has a thickness of 4 feet 3 inches.[180]
Chemical analyses have been made by Mr. J. M. Davison of the University
of Rochester and by J. E. Whitfield of Philadelphia. Their respective
determinations are here given:
Davison Whitfield
Iron 91.65 91.46
Nickel 7.88 8.30
Cobalt .21 ?
Phosphorus .09 ?
————— —————
99.83 99.76
The famous Cañon Diablo meteorite possesses a surpassing mineralogical
interest.[181] In 1891, at the Tenth International Geologic Congress,
Washington, D. C., the mineralogist Koenig announced that he had
discovered some microscopic diamonds in this meteorite, and later
investigations by Prof. Henri Moissan confirmed this discovery and
enlarged its scope. A mass of the iron weighing about 400 pounds was
used by Professor Moissan; this was cut by means of a steel ribbon saw.
As had been the case in Koenig’s investigations, the saw soon
encountered excessively hard portions that obstructed its operation, so
that twenty days’ labor was requisite to separate the iron into two
parts, each with a section area of nearly 100 square inches. On close
examination it became evident that the obstacles to the cutting
consisted of round or elliptical nodules, of a dark gray to black hue,
and enclosed in the bright iron. These nodules were mainly composed of
troilite (iron protosulphide). After chemical treatment an insoluble
residue remained, consisting of silica, amorphous carbon, graphite and
diamond. Many of these very minute diamonds were black, but a few were
transparent crystals, octahedrons with rounded edges.[182] The presence
of this diamond material in the interior of the iron mass of the
meteorite indicates their formation from carbon by the combined agencies
of high temperature and great pressure, as in the case of the artificial
diamonds experimentally produced by Moissan in an iron mass first
subjected to intense heat in the electric furnace and then rapidly
contracted in volume by sudden chilling. The fervid imagination of early
writers would certainly have attributed wonderful talismanic powers to
stones like these, probably generated in some lost planet and reaching
our earth through the wastes of celestial space, could they have been
able to observe and distinguish them with the incomplete optical
resources of their time.
The first announcement of the discovery of these diamonds from the Cañon
Diablo meteorite was made by Dr. A. E. Foote, and not long after
Professor Koenig’s determination of their character, the present writer
suggested an experiment that would afford absolute proof that the
material was really diamond. This was to charge a new skaif, or
diamond-polishing wheel, with the supposed diamond dust obtained from
the meteorite; should the material polish a diamond there could be no
doubt as to its character. On September 11, 1893, this experiment was
tried at the Mining Building of the World’s Columbian Exposition. After
the skaif had been charged with the residuum separated from the
meteorite by Dr. O. W. Huntington, it was given a speed of 2500
revolutions to the minute, and in less than fifteen minutes a small flat
surface had been ground down and polished on a cleavage-piece of rough
diamond held against the wheel. The experiment was then repeated several
times on other diamonds and always successfully. This showed
conclusively that the residuum of the meteorite contained many minute
diamond fragments.[183]
A most important group of meteorites were found in 1886 in Brenham
township, Kiowa County, Kansas, by some of the farmers of this district
in the course of their farming operations.[184] Entirely unaware of
their scientific value, the finders used these objects to weight down
haystacks, or for similar uses to which they would put small boulders.
In all some twenty of these specimens have been recovered, varying in
weight all the way from 466 pounds down to a single ounce. Most of them
were taken from an area of about sixty acres, although some were
scattered over a wider tract. The largest piece of the group, that on
which the farmers had bestowed the fanciful name of the “moon
meteorite,” had lain only three inches beneath the surface of the ground
and broke a ploughshare when it was first struck; none of the masses
appear to have been buried deeper down than from five to six inches. The
largest mass measures twenty-four inches across the widest part and
fourteen and a half at the thickest part. These Kiowa meteorites are in
a sense gem-meteorites, for a number of beautiful and brilliant olivine
crystals occur in them; many are in two distinct zones, the inner one
being a bright transparent yellow, while the outer one is of a dark
brown iron olivine, in reality a mixture of troilite and olivine. The
character and composition of the worked iron of meteoric origin found in
some of the Turner group of Indian mounds, in the Little Miami Valley,
Ohio, indicate that the latter may perhaps be brought into connection
with this group of meteorites. For here, as in the Frozen North among
the Esquimo, and in a number of other cases, the iron available for
primitive man was mainly that of meteorite origin.
In view of the relatively small number of meteorites that have fallen in
historical times, and of the small part of the earth’s surface actually
occupied by human settlements, we need scarcely be surprised at the
statement that there is but one credibly recorded instance of the
killing of a human being by a meteorite. This unique disaster is said to
have happened at Mhow in India, and fragments of the meteorite which
fell then are to be seen in museum collections. The great weight of some
meteorites would have rendered them very destructive had they not fallen
in the open country; the heaviest single mass actually _known_ to have
fallen, came to the ground at Knyahinya, Hungary, in 1866, and weighed
547 pounds; it buried itself 11 feet in the ground. Of course much
heavier aerolites and siderites, satisfactorily recognizable as such,
have been found, the heaviest being perhaps that at Bacubrit, Mexico, 13
feet in length with a width of 6 feet and a thickness of 5 feet; the
weight of this mass is estimated to be some 50 tons. Of meteorites which
have fallen in more or less close proximity to human beings, may be
noted one at Tourinnes-la-Grosse, which broke the street pavement;
another at Angers, which fell into a garden, near to where a lady was
standing; and still another at Brunau, which passed through a cottage
roof.[185]
Many other accidents caused by meteorites or what were believed to be
meteorites are recorded, the credibility of some of the statements not
being very convincing; others, however, appear to be quite worthy of
credence. Thus the Chronicle of Ibn Alathir relates that several persons
were killed by a rain of stones that fell to the earth in Africa in
August, 1020 A.D.[186] In the middle of the seventeenth century the
tower of a prison building in Warsaw is said to have been destroyed by a
meteorite.[187] A hundred years or so before, on May 19, 1552, there was
a great fall of stones, not far from Eisleben, one of which killed the
favorite steed of Count Schwarzenburg, while another wounded the count’s
body-physician, Dr. Mitthobius, in the foot. This was witnessed by
Spangenberg, who reports it in his Saxon Chronicle; he carried off some
of the stones with him to Eisleben.[188] An eight-pound stone (probably
a siderite) is stated by a certain Olaf Erikson to have fallen on
shipboard and killed two persons, at some time about the middle of the
seventeenth century; this is rather indefinite information.[189] The
most remarkable happening, however, is reported from Milan from the end
of the seventeenth or the beginning of the eighteenth century, when a
very small meteorite, weighing not quite an ounce, fell into the
cloister of Santa Maria della Pace (now a cotton factory) and killed a
Franciscan monk. Such was the velocity of this little stone that it
penetrated deep into the monk’s body, whence it was extracted and
preserved for a long time in the Collection of Count Settála. The
greater part of this collection went later to the Ambrosian Library at
Milan, but Chladni sought in vain there for any trace of the
death-dealing meteorite.[190]
Among the Welsh peasants there is a belief that when a meteor falls to
the earth it becomes reduced to a mass of jelly. This they name _pwdre
ser_. The most plausible explanation offered for this fancy is that the
autumn, the season when the largest number of meteors may be observed,
is also the time of the year when the jelly-like masses of the
plasmodium of Myxomycetes most frequently appear in the fields. A
peasant who, after noting the apparent fall of a meteor, should go in
search of it, might easily come across one of these lumps of plasma, and
might well be induced to think that he had found all that was left of
the meteor after its violent fall to the earth. Of course we have here
to do with the apparent, not with the real, fall of a meteorite. In this
connection it is interesting to note that the _medusa_, or jelly-fish,
has been called a “fallen star” by sailors.[191]
This Welsh fancy that meteors or “falling-stars” turned to a jelly when
they struck the earth appears to have been quite general in Great
Britain, and the jelly-like substance was variously named “star-slough,”
“star-shoot,” “star-gelly” or “jelly,” “star-fall’n.” The Welsh _pwdre
ser_ literally means “star-rot.” As early as 1641 Sir John Suckling
(1609–1642) wrote the following lines which well describe the way in
which these gelatinous substances came to be regarded as the remains of
a “fallen star”:
As he whose quicker eye doth trace
A false star shot to a mark’d place
Do’s run apace,
And, thinking it to catch,
A jelly up do snatch.
Sir Walter Scott also, whose familiarity with superstitions was very
great, has not failed to note this one in his “Talisman,” where the
hermit says: “Seek a fallen star and thou shalt only light on some foul
jelly, which in shooting through the horizon has assumed an appearance
of splendour.” Here the star itself is supposed to have had this
gelatinous form.
An early writer,[192] noting this curious belief that “a white and
gelatinous substance” was all that remained of a fallen star, declares
that he had clearly demonstrated to the Royal Society that the mass was
composed of the intestines of frogs, and had been vomited by crows,
adding that his opinion had been confirmed by the testimony of other
scientific men. Huxley, from a description, conjectured that the
substance was nostoc, a gelatinous vegetable mass, but this seems to be
somewhat doubtful. In 1744 Robert Boyle states that some of this
“star-shoot” was given to a physician of his acquaintance, who “digested
it in a well-stopt glass for a long time,” and then sold the liquor for
a specific in the removal of wens.[193]
A jelly-like mass believed by him to be the remains of a “fallen star”
was found by Mr. Rufus Graves at Amherst, Mass., on August 14, 1819, and
duly reported in the American Journal of Science.[194] As this gentleman
was at one time lecturer on chemistry at Dartmouth College, his
testimony is worth heeding, but there can be no doubt that while he
accurately describes what he found, he was altogether mistaken in
supposing that the meteor fell precisely on the spot where he discovered
the gelatinous substance. As we have noted, it has recently been
suggested that these “jellies” are plasmodia of forms of Myxomycetes
which do not appear to have any connection with the spot whereon they
rest, but seem to have fallen from the air.[195]
Falling stars are explained by the natives of Labrador and of Baffin’s
Bay as being souls of the departed bound on an excursion to Hades in
order to see what is going on there, while the phenomena of thunder and
lightning are caused by a party of old women, who quarrel so violently
over the possession of a seal that they bring the house down over their
heads and shatter the lamps. These “old women” must, of course, be
spirits of the upper air, not human beings.[196]
In some Australian tribes the sorcerers, or “medicine-men,” taking
advantage of the superstitious dread of falling stars common among the
aborigines, pretend to have marked the spot where such a star has fallen
and to have dug it up and preserved it in their medicine-bag. These
supposititious “fallen stars” are sometimes quartz pebbles, and in one
instance the curiosity of a European investigator was satisfied by the
display of a piece of thick glass, which the sorcerer strictly
maintained he had dug out of the ground wherein the star had
fallen.[197]
Arrow-heads encased in silver were looked upon as the solid contents of
the lightning flash, and were not only thought to protect the house in
which they were kept from being struck by lightning, but their
protective power was believed to extend to seven houses in the immediate
neighborhood. An interesting example is a neolithic silex arrow-head
figured by Bellucci. This has been elegantly set in silver in modern
times, and comes from Pesca Costanzo, in the province of Aquila, Italy.
The Italians are convinced that if the arrow-head, or similar object,
come in contact with a piece of iron, the “essence of the lightning”
departs from it, revealing itself in a spark; hence they wrap it up,
carefully, in skin, cloth, or paper so as to guard it from harm.
Sometimes these objects are anointed with oil, a survival of the custom
of making propitiatory offerings of oil. This usage in the case of
sacred stones is very general, and is met with in places as remote from
each other as Sweden, India and the Society Islands.[198]
In an Iroquois myth and legend, He-no, the god of thunder, is an object
of great veneration because of the powerful aid he renders to those whom
he favors. He is believed to direct the rain which shall fertilize the
seed in the earth, and also to give aid to the harvesters when the
fruits of the earth have ripened. While traversing the celestial vault,
in his journeyings hither and thither above the surface of the globe, he
bears with him an enormous basket filled with huge boulders of chert
rock. These he casts at any evil spirit he may encounter, and when on
occasion a spirit succeeds in avoiding such a boulder, it will fall down
to the earth surrounded by fire. We have here another version of the
almost universal myth of thunder-stones.[199]
In treating of the flint arrow-heads of the American Indians, Adair
notes that in form and material they closely resembled the “elf-stones”
with which European peasants were wont to rub any of their cattle
believed to have been “shot” by fairies or elves. A village in which one
of these magic objects existed was considered to be particularly favored
by fortune, as they not only served to protect the cattle from
bewitchment but were equally efficacious in preserving human beings from
the spells of witches.[200]
In East Prussia, when cows are believed to have been bewitched so that
their milk is under a spell, resort is had to the powers of a perforated
“thunder-stone.” Such stones were ancient stone hammers with a central
perforation for a handle. The stone is held beneath the cow at
milking-time, and the milk is allowed to pass through the
perforation.[201] By this means the spell is broken and the milk becomes
harmless.
Such perforated stones are also used to protect a house from being
struck by lightning. When a storm approaches nearer and nearer, the
owner of one of these magic stones will thrust his finger through the
hole, twirl the stone around three times, and then hurl it against the
door of the room. When this has been done, the house is believed to be
proof against lightning.[202]
In Westphalia the stone is laid upon a table alongside of a consecrated
candle, the shrewd peasants thus assuring for their houses the
protection of the church as well as that of the ancient God of
Thunder.[203]
Another phase of the superstition in regard to the stone axes known in
many different parts of the world as thunder-stones, because they are
believed to have fallen during a thunder-storm, is given by Dr. Lund in
a letter written from Logoa Santa in Brazil. He states that the
inhabitants rather look askance at these stones, believing that wherever
they are found the lightning is apt to strike, “in order to seek its
brother!”[204]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of the British Museum, London.
FLINT AMULETS OF THE PREDYNASTIC PERIOD, EGYPT
]
The stone implements of various forms found in the shell-heaps of Brazil
are called by the natives _Curiscos_ or “lightning-stones.” The Guaranis
name them “stars fallen from heaven”; the Cajuas, “stones hurled by the
thunder”; and the Coarados, “axe-stones.” A high price is paid for these
by the gold-seekers in Brazil, who believe that, by attraction, they
show the presence of gold beneath the surface, just as the divining-rod
is supposed to be affected by the presence of water or by hidden
treasures.[205]
The peasants of Slavonic descent in Moravia have great faith in the
virtues of the “thunder-stone.” During Passion Week the stone has the
power to reveal the location of hidden treasures, and it is also
believed that warts on man and horse will disappear if they be rubbed
with such a stone before sunset. However, not only healing virtues are
attributed, for if the stone be hurled at anyone and strikes him, it
inflicts a mortal wound.[206]
A poetic and appropriate name has been applied to the earliest of the
chipped stone artefacts of primitive man by archæologists. They are
called “Dawn Stones” (eoliths), and the name characterizes these
interesting relics, the first steps in the development of sculptural
art, as products of the dawn of human civilization.
A curious survival of the adoration of stones is reported by the Earl of
Roden in his “Progress of the Reformation in Ireland.”[207] A
correspondent informed Lord Roden that in Inniskea, an island off the
coast of Mayo, there was, in 1851, a stone idol called in the Irish
tongue Neevougi. This was said to have been preserved and worshipped
from time immemorial. The stone is described as having been wrapped in
so many folds of homespun flannel that it looked like a mass of that
material. This is explained by the custom of dedicating a dress of this
flannel to the stone whenever its aid was sought, the garment being
sewed on by an old woman who officiated as the priestess of the stone.
Prayers were offered to this strange idol for the cure of diseases, as
it was supposed to be endowed with extraordinary powers. A stranger
petition sometimes made was that a storm might arise and wreck a ship
upon the coast so that the thrifty islanders might profit by its
misfortune; on the other hand, with charming inconsistency, when they
wished to go a-fishing or pay a visit to the mainland, the trusty stone
was expected to assure them fair weather and a calm sea.
In Tavernier’s time (about 1650) many poor families living in the woods
and on the hillsides in India, far from any village where there was a
temple, would take a stone, probably one of a peculiar shape, and would
roughly paint on it a nose and eyes in red or green color. This being
done, the whole family would gather about this stone and reverently
adore it as their idol.[208]
In certain districts in Norway, up to the end of the eighteenth century,
superstitious peasants used to preserve round stones, and set them up in
a conspicuous place in their houses. At Yule-tide these stones were
sprinkled with fresh ale. Some of them were worshipped as divinities,
and every Thursday, or oftener, they were smeared with butter, or some
similar substance, before the fire. This ointment was allowed to dry on
the stone, which was then returned to its place of honor. These
ceremonies were supposed to insure the health and happiness of the
household.[209]
[Illustration:
Types of ceraunia or “Thunder-stones.” From “Museum Wormianum.”
Lugduni Batavorum, 1655.
]
The fact that special ceremonies were performed in connection with these
stones on Thursday, as well as the name “Thor-stones” applied to many of
them, indicates that in early times they were associated with the
worship of the god Thor. The so-called thunderbolts—usually flint
axe-heads—are believed to have been hurled at the trolls or elves by the
thunder, so that these evil-disposed spirits might be subdued and
prevented from fulfilling an old saying, according to which they would
desolate the earth. Originally it was Thor himself who was believed to
hurl the thunderbolt.
These stones were supposed to be endowed with wonder-working powers.
When a woman was in labor, ale was allowed to drip over a stone of this
kind, and was then given to the woman to drink. All through the
Scandinavian countries the peasants believed that if such a stone were
hung up in a house or on cattle, the trolls and other malevolent spirits
would be driven away, and all spells and witchcraft would be rendered
harmless.[210]
In Sir William Brereton’s account of his travels (1634–1635)[211] we
read that he saw in the School of Anatomy at Leyden a stone called
“_Fulminis Sagitta_, or the dart of the thunderbolt, about the size of
your little finger.” This was either a belemnite[212] or a stone
arrow-head of somewhat similar form. It bore a Latin inscription to the
following effect: “Many believe that nursing children can be cured of
rupture if this stone be attached to their thighs, or if they do not
suffer from this complaint, they will be preserved from it.”
On the ridge-beam of an Irish cottage at Portrush was found a neolithic
celt of the kind believed by the peasantry to be “thunderbolts.” This
celt had been placed on the roof of the cottage to protect it from being
struck by lightning, a notion thoroughly in accord with the theory of
sympathetic magic. In Surrey, England, a like belief is held as to the
fossil belemnites, and nodules of iron pyrites such as have been found
in Cretaceous formations near Cragdon are also thought to have fallen
from the sky during a thunder-storm, and to possess peculiar powers in
reference to the lightning.[213]
In Ireland the prehistoric stone arrow-head is believed to have been
shot at man or beast by the fairies. Should an old woman be so lucky as
to find one she will become highly honored in her village, and it is
used as a cure for diseases produced by the wiles of evil spirits. To
effect a cure, the _saigead_ (“arrow”) must be placed in water, which is
then given to the sick person to drink.[214] Cows which have been
wounded by the “fairy-darts” are also made to drink of this water. The
Irish peasants wore the stone arrow-heads, set in silver, as amulets for
protection against injury from like weapons at the hands of the fairies.
Similar superstitions exist in the North of England.[215] Nilsson
believes that the “elf-shots” (the arrow-points or axe-points) of the
Irish peasantry are identical with the “Lap-shots” of the Swedish
peasantry. These stones were thought to have belonged to the Laplanders,
the “black elves” of the Edda, and were therefore used as a protection
against the witcheries of these elves. The idea that the substance or
thing that has caused an injury can effect a cure of this injury,
appears in the Edda.[216]
The shepherds in the French Alps value the “thunder-stones” (_peyros de
tron_) very highly. They are handed down from father to son as precious
heirlooms, and when the flocks are driven to the pasturage, one of these
wonder-working stones is embedded in a tuft of wool on the back of the
bell-wether; this is supposed to serve as a protection for the whole
flock.[217] In Spain the peasants call these stones _piedros del rayo_,
or “lightning-stones.”[218]
The names bestowed on such prehistoric stone implements by the
inhabitants of the Malay Archipelago, of Java and Sumatra, all indicate
that they are believed to have fallen from the sky. In Malacca they are
called _batu gontur_, “lightning-stones,” and in Sumatra we have the
name _anakpitas_, “child of the lightning.” In the island of Nias, near
Sumatra, they are worn as amulets on the head or attached to the sword.
The Watubela islanders denominate them “teeth of the thunder,” a name
which suggests the appellation glossopetra (“stone-tongue”), and like
this is evidently derived from the form of certain of these prehistoric
celts.[219]
The Burmans have given the highly poetic name of “rainbow-disease” to
the disorder known to us as appendicitis, and they use the axe-heads and
other pointed or sharpened arrow-heads of the Stone Age for the cure of
this malady, stroking the region affected with one of these implements.
The natives share in the delusion almost universal among primitive
peoples, that these stone implements have fallen from the sky during
thunder-storms, and that they partake of the nature of thunderbolts;
hence they are supposed to destroy the rainbow-disease, as the approach
of heavy storm clouds, charged with lightning, darken the sun and put an
end to the beautiful natural phenomenon.
In the island of Mindanao, one of the Philippine group, the heathen
Manobos called the thunder the “speech of the lightning,” and regarded
the latter as a kind of wild animal, so that whenever the lightning
struck the earth or a tree they believed that the animal had buried its
teeth in the spot. They therefore looked upon any stone implement found
there as one of these teeth.[220]
The ancient stone hammers found in Japan are called _rai fu seki_,
“thunderbolts,” or _tengu no masakari_, “battle-axes of Tengu,” the
warder of the heavens. Other stone implements bear the name “fox-axes,”
or “fox-planes.” These peculiar designations are employed because the
fox is a symbol of the devil, and the stone axes are regarded as weapons
of the devil. Of course this in no wise prevents their use as amulets or
medicinally; indeed, their powder is thought to be an especially
effective remedy for boils and ulcers. Many such stones may be seen in
the temples, where they are carefully preserved and shown to the
pilgrims who visit the different shrines.[221]
Even at the present day, the superstitious belief in the magic
properties of the prehistoric stone implements still survives among some
of the Scandinavian peasants. They believe that these offer protection
against lightning, and they are very unwilling to part with them. In
some regions the stone axes or arrow-heads are supposed to afford
protection against lightning, and they are occasionally used to relieve
the pangs of childbirth. In the latter case they are placed in the bed
of the suffering woman. Another curious use to which they are put is as
a cure for an eruptive disease of children. Here the flint is struck
sharply with a piece of steel, so that the sparks fall upon the child’s
head.[222] This gives us an added proof of the association of these
stone axes, etc., with fire and with the lightning flash.
The Burmese celts or stone hatchets are frequently of jade and differ
from those usually met with in Europe and India, in that they are
provided with a chisel-edge instead of a double-sloped cutting edge. An
interesting account of the superstitions connected with these implements
is given by Mr. Theobald,[223] from whom we quote the following passage.
It will be noted that the Burmese ideas are in almost exact accord with
those current in Europe.
The Burmese call these implements _mo-jio_, thunder-chain or
thunderbolt, and believe that they descend with the lightning flash,
and, after penetrating the earth, work their way back by degrees to
the surface, where they are found scattered about the fields among the
lower hills, usually after rain, or on removing the crops. The true
_mo-jio_ is supposed to possess many occult virtues, and it is not
common to find one which does not show signs of having been chipped or
scraped for medicinal purposes.
One of the chief virtues of the _mo-jio_ is to render the person of
the wearer invulnerable; and many an unlucky _mo-jio_ has succumbed to
the popular test, which is to wrap it in a cloth and fire a bullet at
it at short range. If the man misses the cloth, the authenticity and
power of the charm is at once established; if the stone is fractured
it is held not to be a real _mo-jio_.
Fire will not consume a house which contains one, though I never heard
of this ordeal being attempted. Last but not least is the known fact
that the owner of a real _mo-jio_ can cut a rainbow in half with it.
Certain recent happenings have suggested that the name “aviator-stone”
would be a peculiarly appropriate designation for meteorites, and indeed
this new name would only serve to emphasize the legendary belief, that
he who bore with him a meteorite when he was in deadly peril would
escape all injury. By a strange coincidence those who are willing to
take great risks and chances are generally more or less superstitious
regarding small things, and a daring aviator recently remarked that on
one occasion, when his machine had suddenly fallen fifty feet, he felt
for his tie and said to himself: “This accident has happened because I
forgot to put on my opal pin, but I have been saved from injury because
I carried a meteorite.” This aviator, having mentioned the incident to
Harmon, a few minutes before the latter made his successful attempt to
win the Doubleday-Page aviation prize, Harmon immediately took the
meteorite which had been shown to him, saying: “Let me have it.” He
accomplished his task, and although both the competing machines were
injured, the aviators themselves were saved.
A meteorite, of course, cannot be claimed to be a preventive of danger
on all occasions, but several who have always carried them have seemed
to escape all sorts of harm. Some years ago a meteorite was given to
Edward Heron Allen, the famous writer on palmistry and the violin, and
this gifted man always wore it about him. One morning he awakened to
find that the entire roof above him had fallen in, except just that
portion over his bed. He told the story to one of the best known ladies
in Boston; one who is known for her public spirit, her love of art and
her faultless manner of entertaining. This lady successfully urged Allen
to give her the meteorite. A few days later, while out driving, a great
truck with two runaway horses attached to it struck her carriage.
Instinctively she raised her muff to protect her face; the muff was
almost cut in two, but the lady was not hurt. A few days later, while
she was walking under some scaffolding, it fell, and the open part where
the hoists went up proved to be just where she stood. Although
surrounded by ruin, she remained unharmed.
III
Stones of Healing
In his commentary on Theophrastus, Sir John Hill touches upon the
question of the medicinal virtues of precious stones. His researches
regarding the causes and conditions determining color in stones, led him
to the conjecture that the active principle, if it really existed, was
to be sought in the coloring matter. As the opinion of a very clever
student in his day, his words will bear quotation:[224]
The greatest part of these [medicinal virtues] cannot but be seen at
first view to be altogether imaginary; and as to the virtues of the
Gems in general, it is now the reigning Opinion, that they are nearly
all so, their greatest Friends allowing them no other than those of
the common alkaline Absorbents. However, whether the metalline
Particles, to which they owe their Colours, are, in either Quantity or
Quality, in Condition to have any effect in the Body, is a Matter
worthy of a strict and regular Tryal; and that would at once decide
the Question between us and the Antients, and shew whether we have
been too rash, or they too superstitious.
The so-called “doctrine of signatures” treated of the marks set by
nature upon certain objects to denote their usefulness in the cure of
diseases affecting different parts of the body, or their power to
neutralize the effects of the bites of certain animals or reptiles. Of
this theory Martius says that the “signatures” are not to be sought in a
fanciful resemblance to the form of the objects with the diseased parts
of the human body, but rather in the color, odor, taste, composition,
etc., of the objects.[225]
Medieval medical literature has no more interesting example than the
treatise entitled “Thesaurus Pauperum,” or the “Poor-man’s Treasury,”
written by Petrus Hispanus, who later reigned for a brief period as pope
under the name of John XXI (1276–1277). The birthplace of the author was
Lisbon in Portugal, and he studied for some time at the University of
Paris, where his learning earned him high praise. Prior to his election
as pope, he served for a time as first physician to Pope Gregory X
(1271–1276). Most of the remedies prescribed in this little treatise are
naturally such as had long been popular among the peasantry, and the
ingredients of which could easily be secured; vegetable growths, plants,
herbs and flowers, and certain parts of the more common animals, served
here, as in Pliny’s day and earlier still, as those most highly favored.
Of the comparatively few mineral substances whose use is recommended may
be noted the red variety of _chelidonius_ or “swallow-stone,” for the
cure of epilepsy; the powder of the “iris” (probably an iridescent
variety of quartz) was also a cure for epileptics. Then we find, strange
to say, a recommendation of such costly remedial agencies as emerald and
sapphire, either of which if touched on the eye would heal diseases of
that organ. Cold stones placed on the temples and tightly bound on were
said to arrest bleeding from the nose, and coral was a great help in
syncope. For stone in the bladder two mineral substances, “humus” and
“songie,” are warmly recommended (the former can scarcely be held to
signify mere “soil”), as are also “stones found in the gizzards of
cocks” (the _alectorius_) and those from the bladders of hogs. All these
were to be reduced to powder, dissolved in liquid, and taken in the form
of potions. The use of stones and coral rather as amulets or talismans
than as remedies is occasionally mentioned. Thus the loadstone, if worn,
is said to remove discord between man and woman; coral, if kept in the
house, destroyed all evil influences, and if a woman wore touching her
skin a concretion taken from the stomach of a she-goat that had not had
young, this woman would never bear a child.[226]
The curious old medical treatise in verse called the “Schola
Salernitana,” was translated into English by Sir James Harington in
1607. The following lines give advice that is as appropriate to the
conditions of our own age as to those of any other:[227]
Use three physitians still, first doctor Quiet,
Next doctor Merry-man and doctor Dyet.
Whether with or without intention, the translator has omitted to render
the qualification given in the original: “Si tibi deficiant medici” (if
other doctors are lacking).
The terrible plague known as the Black Death is said to have claimed
13,000,000 victims in Europe in the years 1347 and 1348. A contemporary,
Olivier de la Haye, in a poem describing this fearful visitation, gives
a number of recipes used, or to be used as remedies. In one of these
there appear as ingredients pearls, jargoons, emeralds and coral,
one-sixth of a drachm of each of these materials entering into the
composition of the prescription.[228] The symptoms of this form of the
plague, as described by the old writers, are said to resemble closely
those of the disease that was prevalent not long ago in some parts of
Asia, especially in northern China and Manchuria.
A famous class of medical remedies used in medieval times bore the
generic name _theriaca_, or theriac, this designation being derived from
the Greek _therion_, signifying a beast, more specifically a poisonous
animal and hence also a serpent. These preparations were primarily
antidotes for poison, but were also freely administered for any form of
“blood-poisoning,” for malarial infection, malignant fevers and the
like. Principal ingredients were the “Armenian stone” (a friable, blue
carbonate of copper), pearls, charred stag’s-horn, and coral. The
Veronese physician, Francesco India, confidently affirms that this
remedy not only cured the plague, but also protected those who had
partaken of it from contracting the disease; this was said to be more
especially true of the _theriaca Andromachi_, or Venice treacle as it
was popularly called, which purported to be the invention of a Roman or
Greek physician, Andromachus, who composed some medical poems dedicated
to Cæsar.[229]
In medieval Bohemia the knowledge of precious stones and their
employment for curative purposes is well attested. There exists a
Bohemian manuscript list of precious stones dated in 1391, in which no
less than 55 different gems are noted. Their medicinal use in Bohemia at
this time is vouched for by the Synonima Apothecariorum where precious
stones are listed among the materials of the apothecaries’ art.[230]
In the testaments of royal and princely personages, medical stones are
often bestowed as precious legacies. Thus in the will of the Hessian
prince, Henry VIII of Fürstenberg, the following stones are mentioned as
especially costly objects: a “crabstone” (Krebstein), a bloodstone, and
a gravel-stone, the latter being a piece of jade or nephrite.[231] The
crabstone, sometimes called crab’s-eye, is a chalky concretion which
forms on either side of the stomach of a crab or other crustacean during
the moulting period, and this was and is still used as an eye-stone for
the removing of foreign bodies that have entered the eye, the eye-stone
being introduced under the eyelid. This results in a rapid flow from the
tear-ducts which often washes away the foreign bodies, the passage of
the stone across the eyeball occasionally aiding in the work by rubbing
off the body.
[Illustration:
Interior of fifteenth century pharmacy. From Johannis de Cuba’s “Ortus
Sanitatis”, Strassburg, 1483.
]
[Illustration:
THE “ORTUS SANITATIS” OF JOHANNIS DE CUBA, PUBLISHED AT STRASSBURG IN
1483.
The woodcut depicts Adam and Eve beneath the “Tree of Knowledge.”
]
In the sixteenth century sapphires, emeralds, rubies, garnets, jacinths,
coral and sardonyxes were used in all tonics prescribed to protect the
heart against the effects of poison and of the plague. As it was noted
that these remedies were frequently ineffectual, an explanation was
sought in the fact that spurious stones were often used, the
apothecaries either not having the knowledge to recognize the genuine
stones, or being moved by a desire to profit by the substitution of some
inferior substance. Hence physicians were warned to be on their guard
against such deceptions, and only to employ thoroughly trustworthy
apothecaries for the compounding of their prescriptions. A substitution
frequently made was that of the so-called yellow chrysoprase (cerogate),
a stained chalcedony, for the jacinth, although the true jacinth of the
ancients was of the color of the amethyst. The grinding of coral in a
brass mortar, instead of in one of marble, was also regarded as a very
dangerous proceeding, which would have the worst possible results for
the unlucky patient who took the powder, for some particles of the brass
might be rubbed away and mix with the coral. This was said to have often
produced very serious illness.[232]
In a price-list of a firm of German druggists, printed in 1757, all the
precious stones still appear. Here the cost of a pound of rock-crystal
is six groschen ($.18); the same quantity of emerald was priced at eight
groschen ($.25), while the pound of sapphire was quoted at sixteen
groschen ($.50), of ruby at one thaler ($.75), and of lapis lazuli at
five thalers ($3.75). This indicates quite clearly the quality of the
emerald, sapphire and ruby offered for sale. A pound of Oriental bezoar
commanded the highest price, sixteen thalers ($12).[233]
Regarding the length of time during which various preparations retained
their strength, Braunfels[234] states that, according to the opinion of
the Arabian physicians, the solution of lapis Armenus lasted for ten
years, while that of lapis lazuli could be preserved only about three
years. A list of the indispensable materials which should be in every
good pharmacy included the following precious stones:
Jacinth
Sapphire
Emerald
Topaz
Margaritha (pearl)
Magnes
Coral
Hematite
Ætites
Jasper
The supposed medicinal properties of precious stones are subjected to a
searching criticism by the Veronese physician, Francesco India, writing
in 1593.[235] After establishing the distinction between alimentary and
medicinal substances, he proceeds to exclude from the latter category
the jacinth, emerald, sapphire, etc., because although they could be
reduced to a powder, they could not be dissolved, so that when taken in
a potion they could be absorbed in the human system.[236] Hence no such
effects could properly be ascribed to them as were to be expected from
the regular and normal medicinal agencies. This writer ascribes the
original use of such stones as remedies for malignant fevers and other
dangerous diseases to the Arabs, adding that “had they not made this
mistake and thus led many physicians into error, they would have been
better worthy of praise.”[234] In fact he does not hesitate to pronounce
the emphatic opinion that these stones are not remedial agents fit to be
administered or used by any rational physician.[237] That powdered
hematite (red oxide of iron) possesses an astringent quality and may
really be looked upon as a medicine, he fully recognizes, more
particularly its efficacy for the cure of diseases of the eye, but
neither these nor similar qualities can be credited to sapphires,
emeralds, or jacinths. At the same time he is not disposed to deny that
these stones may have some subtle effect upon the body when worn, or
when held in the mouth for a time. Thus he agrees with Avicenna (Ben
Sina) that a jacinth worn over the heart may strengthen that organ, for
he knows of the power inherent in jasper to check a hemorrhage. In a
word his argument is principally directed against the internal use of
powders made from these hard and unassimilable stones.[238]
Robert Boyle, writing in 1663, attempts to show that the theory of the
therapeutic action of precious stones is not incompatible with observed
facts. In this connection he says:[239]
I am not altogether of their mind, that absolutely reject the internal
use of Leaf-Gold, Rubies, Saphyrs, Emeralds, and other Gems, as things
that are unconquerable by the heat of the stomach. For as there are
rich Patients that may, without much inconvenience, goe to the price
of the dearest Medicines; so I think the Stomach acts not on Medicines
barely upon the account of its heat, but is endowed with a subtle
dissolvent (whence never it hath it) by which it may perform divers
things not to be done by so languid a heat. And I have, with Liquors
of differing sorts, easily drawn from Vegetable Substances, and
perhaps unrectified, sometimes dissolved, and sometimes drawn
Tinctures from Gems, and that in the cold.... But that which I chiefly
consider on this occasion is, that ’tis one thing to make it
_probable_, that is, _possible_, Gold, Rubies, Saphyrs, etc., may be
wrought upon by humane Stomach; and another thing to shew both that
they _are wont_ to be so, and that they _are_ actually endowed with
those particular and specifick Virtues that are ascribed to them; nay
and (over and above) that these Virtues are such and so eminent, that
they considerably surpass those of cheaper Simples. And I think, that
in Prescriptions made for the poorer sort of Patients, a Physician may
well substitute cheaper Ingredients in the place of these precious
ones, whose Virtues are no half so unquestionable as their Dearnesse.
Whether the somewhat mysterious illness and death of the popes Leo IV
and Paul II could have been caused by the great quantity of pearls and
precious stones they were in the habit of wearing was a question
seriously discussed by Johann Wolff, the supposed lethal effect being
attributed to the coldness of such objects.[240] Indeed, the frigidity
of precious stones was adduced by certain writers as one of the chief
reasons for their remedial use in fevers.[241]
Not only to King Frederick III of Denmark himself, to whom on his
death-bed in 1670, a dose of pulverized bezoar was administered, but to
his queen and their children such remedies were given, there being
record that on September 19, 1663, a prescription containing red coral
and pearl-powder was compounded by the Court Pharmacy for the queen,
while a few years earlier the inevitable bezoar and also a tonic
pearl-milk were administered to some of the royal offspring.[242]
[Illustration:
FAMOUS PEARL NECKLACE OF THE UNFORTUNATE EMPRESS CARLOTTA, WIDOW OF
EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN OF MEXICO.
]
Some interesting details as to the use of precious stone remedies for
the cure of illness appear in the manuscript notes of lectures given at
the Leyden Hospital by the seventeenth century physician, Lucas Schacht,
in 1674 and 1675.[243] This shows that these remedial agents were there
and at that time only used as a last resort, when the patient’s
condition had become desperate, and the physician is usually obliged to
record the fact that death ensued shortly afterwards. Thus we are told
of the case of a certain Ludovicus Carels who was suffering from
difficulty of breathing and purulent expectoration; his body was so
distended that he could scarcely move his limbs, and he also had a
severe diarrhœa. This was his condition on November 12, 1674, and the
symptoms steadily grew worse under a treatment of herb decoctions, until
a few days later, on November 21, it is noted that “he only thinks of
death.” Still the doctors waited until November 24 before they decided
to administer a compound remedy consisting in part of the elixirs of
jacinth and pearl; three days later the patient died. In general the
chief symptoms which justified the use of such remedies were those of
high fever or great weakness.
Although by the middle of the eighteenth century the belief in the
special curative powers of precious-stone material had almost entirely
disappeared, giving place to a more scientific conception of the
chemical composition of these bodies, still, we find, even in so capable
a writer as the German mineralogist, U. F. B. Brückmann, a lingering
trace of the old idea, for while he declares that all intelligent
physicians have abandoned their use, he adds, “if, however, any stone of
this kind has more effect than an ordinary earthy substance, it is the
lapis lazuli, but we have a hundred other remedies equally efficacious
and much cheaper.” He also testifies to the fact that very little
genuine material was to be had from the apothecaries, he himself having
often seen a yellow feldspar offered instead of a jacinth, and poor
garnets as substitutes for rubies.[244]
Toward the end of the eighteenth century, a famous cordial medicine,
called “Gascoign’s Powder,” after the physician who compounded it, had
an immense vogue in England. This man is said to have got more than
£50,000 ($250,000) from the sale of this single remedy. It is stated to
have contained Oriental bezoar (the most important ingredient), white
amber, red coral, crab’s eyes, powdered hartshorn, pearl and black
crab’s claws; certainly a most incongruous mixture and one well
calculated to test the resisting powers of the person to whom it was
administered.[245]
A modern writer finds in the homeopathic theory of medicine an
explanation of the apparent therapeutic effects of precious stones.[246]
For if the smaller the dose the greater the effect, then such
super-subtle emanations as are thought to proceed from precious stones
must have effects still more powerful than those of the most highly
diluted tinctures administered by homeopathists of the old school.
Christian Science, however, with its bold denial of the existence of
disease, and with its purely spiritual treatment of the “mental error”
that is supposed to be at the root of all morbid symptoms, could even
more easily account for the apparent cures wrought by merely wearing
precious stones. The belief in their remedial virtue would serve to
remove the morbid impression, and would restore the mind to its normal
and healthy state.
An instance from our own day of the application of a mineral substance
externally for the cure of disease, appears in the use of the uranium
pitchblende occurring in Joachimsthal, Bohemia. This is enclosed in
leather bags and applied to the head for the cure of headache. The most
violent pains are said to be relieved in a short time by this treatment,
the effect being produced by the radium contained in the
pitchblende.[247]
Agate
Treating of the medicinal virtues of agates, Pliny distinguishes between
the Indian agates, which were a remedy for diseases of the eyes, and
those from Egypt and Crete, which were especially adapted for curing the
bites of spiders or scorpions.[248] This latter quality was probably
attributed to the agate because it was believed to have a cooling
influence upon the body. Damigeron directs that when used to cure the
bites of venomous creatures the stone should be reduced to a powder,
which was to be strewn over the wound; sometimes, however, this powder
was dissolved in wine and administered internally.[249] As an agate, if
held in the mouth, was supposed to quench thirst, it was recommended at
an early period for the cure of fevers and inflammatory diseases.[250]
In Byzantine times the use of agate for inflamed eyes and for headaches
is still advised by Psellus (eleventh century), who adds that it checks
menstruation and prevents the accumulation of water in cases of dropsy.
This he attributes to the wonderful absorbent power of the stone.[251]
It seems most probable that here some kind of hydrophane has been
confounded with the agate. The other use, that of checking hemorrhages,
presupposes the use of a red variety of agate.
Beryl
Thomas de Cantimpré[252] tells us that the beryl cures quinsy and
swollen glands in the neck if the affected part be rubbed with the
stone. It is also useful as a remedy for diseases of the eye, and if
water in which it has been steeped be given to anyone suffering from an
attack of hiccoughs, relief will be afforded.
The beryl was warmly recommended as a cure for injuries to the eyeball,
even of the most serious kind. For use in such cases the stone was to be
pulverized in a mortar, and this powder then passed through a fine
sieve. Of the minute particles thus secured, a small quantity was to be
introduced each morning into the injured eye, the patient being in a
recumbent posture. He was then to keep properly quiet with his eyes shut
for a considerable length of time after this operation. Although it was
not indeed claimed that where the power of sight had been destroyed it
could thus be restored, still even in case of such severe injury the
eyeball was healed sooner and assumed a better appearance. In less
serious cases a cure was considered to be assured.[253]
Carbuncle
Many virtues are attributed to carbuncles. It is related that those who
wear them can resist poisons and are preserved from the pest. They
dissipate sadness, control incontinence, avert evil thoughts and dreams,
exhilarate the soul and foretell misfortunes to man by losing their
native splendor.[254]
Chalcedony
Perforated, spherical beads of milky white chalcedony are worn at the
present day by Italian peasant women to increase the supply of milk.
Hence the Italian name for such a bead, _pietra lattea_. Perforated
beads of white steatite, belonging to the early Iron Age, have been
found near Perugia, where the chalcedony beads are worn, and it is
believed that these steatite beads were borne for the same purpose.[255]
Coral
Coral and safran, if wrapped in the skin of a cat, were believed to have
marvellous powers; and when emeralds were added to the coral the
talisman would drive off a mortal fever. To have the proper effect,
however, it must be attached to the neck of the patient.[256] As a cure
for hydrophobia, dog-collars set with flint and Maltese coral were
recommended in Roman times; “sacred shells” and herbs over which magic
incantations had been pronounced were also attached to, or enclosed in
these collars. The use of coral in this case appears to have been due to
the belief in its power to dissolve the spell cast by the Evil Eye, for
Gratius, who flourished in the first century A.D. and was a contemporary
of the poet Ovid, asserts that if such collars were put on dogs
suffering from hydrophobia, the gods were appeased, and the charm cast
by “an envious eye” was broken.[257]
The Hindu physicians found that coral tasted both sweet and sour, and
they asserted that its principal action was on the secretions of the
mucous membrane, on the bile and on certain morbid secretions.[258]
Although the chemical constituents of coral have but slight medicinal
value, it is quite possible that some effects upon the secretions may
have been observed experimentally after the administration of a dose of
powdered coral.
An old pharmacopœia gives elaborate directions for the preparation of
the “Tincture of Coral.” A branch of very red coral was to be buried in
melted wax, and allowed to remain over a fire for the space of two days,
“after which time you will see that the coral has become white, while
the wax has assumed a red hue.” A fresh branch of coral is then to be
put into the partially colored wax, and the above operation repeated;
the wax will then be “redder than before.” It is now to be broken into
crusts, which are to be steeped in alcohol until the liquid has
extracted the coloring matter from the wax and has become reddish. In
this way, after the removal of the wax by filtration, etc., a tincture
was obtained which is represented to have been an excellent tonic, and
to have had the power to expel “bad humors,” by inducing perspiration,
or by its diuretic action.[259] We strongly suspect that in this, as in
many modern “tonics,” the contents of spirit was the active principle.
An apparent confirmation of the widespread belief of former centuries
that red coral changed its hue in sympathy with the state of the
wearer’s health, caused perhaps by the exudations or sweats arising from
fevers or other ailments, is given from personal experience by the
German physician, Johann Wittich. Writing toward the end of the
sixteenth century, this author relates that he was called in to attend a
youth named Bernard Erasmus, son of the burgomaster of Arnstadt. As the
youth sickened unto death a red coral which he was wearing turned first
whitish, then of a dirty yellow, and finally became covered with black
spots. To the anxious questions of the youth’s sister, Wittich could
only give a mournful answer, telling her to take away the coral, for
death was surely approaching, and this prognostication proved to be only
too true, as in a few hours young Erasmus was dead.[260]
A rosary of coral beads was sometimes called in France a _pater de
sang_, or “blood-rosary,” since it was believed to check hemorrhages. An
anonymous author of an eighteenth century treatise on superstitions,
assuming that this effect could be produced only by thickening the
blood, asserts that such a rosary might do more harm than good, for if
it possessed this power at one time, it must possess it constantly, and
its action would be very injurious.[261] Pearls and corals were still
freely used as therapeutic agents in the last half of the seventeenth
century, for we are told that Louis XIV (1638–1715), in 1655, took
tablets containing gold and pearls, which had been prescribed for him by
his physician Vallot, and, in 1664, a remedy composed of pearls and
corals was recommended by the same authority.[262]
Corundum
A stone, which from the description seems to have been an almost
colorless variety of corundum with a faint reddish tint, is recommended
in the Syrian Aristotle for the alleviation of diseases of the breast.
To have the proper effect this stone was to be worn on the region
affected by the malady.[263]
Diamond
The Hindu physicians claimed that they had found that the diamond had
six flavors; it was sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and acrid.
Since the stone united all these apparently contradictory qualities, we
have no reason to be surprised that it should be supposed to cure all
diseases and lessen all ills. An elixir of great potency, stimulating
and strengthening all the bodily functions, was made from the
diamond.[264]
The author of the Jawâhir-nâmeh (Book of Jewels), written about a
century ago, gives some of the prevalent Hindu ideas regarding the
diamond. He asserts that the similarity of this stone and rock-crystal
led to the belief that the latter was only an incomplete or “unripe”
form of the diamond. For this reason rock-crystal was called _kacha_,
“unripe,” and the diamond, _pakka_, “ripe.” The same writer, after
noting the general belief that if a diamond were put in the mouth it
caused the teeth to fall out, states that some were not disposed to
admit this, as diamond dust had been used as a tooth-powder without any
bad effects.[265] It might certainly serve to whiten the teeth, but any
one who trusted to this very drastic dentifrice would soon be sadly in
need of the dentist’s help.
As a proof that the diamond was not much prized as an ornamental stone
in the Middle Ages, although some of the praise bestowed upon it by
Pliny and other classical writers was copied and recopied in a more or
less perfunctory way, we may cite the few lines devoted to the stone by
Psellus, who lived in Constantinople in the eleventh century A.D. This
writer simply remarks of the diamond that it is hard and difficult to
pierce, adding, as its chief virtue, that it would quench the heat of
the “semi-tertian” fever.[266] The belief in this cooling quality of the
diamond was suggested by its lack of color coupled with its extreme
hardness, the latter quality being thought to augment the refrigerant
power supposed to be inherent in colorless crystals which resembled ice.
Emerald
The emerald is especially commended for amulets to be suspended from the
necks of children; it is believed to preserve them from epileptic
convulsions and to prevent the falling sickness; but if the violence of
the disease is such that it cannot be overcome by the stone, the latter
breaks up. Bound to a woman’s thigh it is said to hasten parturition;
hanging from the neck it drives off vain fears and evil spirits. It
strengthens the memory, restores the sight, reveals adultery and gives a
knowledge of the future, produces eloquence and increases wealth.[267]
Besides the usual designation _marakata_ which Garbe believes to be
derived from the Greek σμάραγδος, the Sanskrit has several
distinguishing names for the emerald. One of these, _açmagarbhaja_,
signifies “sprung from the rock,” and well describes the emerald in its
matrix. Another name is _garalari_, “enemy of poison,” indicating the
great repute enjoyed by this stone in India as an antidote for all
animal, mineral and vegetable poisons.[268] In Mexico the emerald[269]
bore the name Quetzalitzli, “stone of the quetzal,” because its color
resembled the brilliant green of the plumes of the bird called in the
Mexican tongue _quetzal_. These plumes were worn as insignia of royalty
by the sovereigns of Mexico and Central America, and hence the emerald
was regarded as an essentially regal gem, although its use was not
confined to royalty.
The tincture of emerald is recommended by the Arab physician Abenzoar as
an internal remedy for the cure of dysentery, the dose prescribed being
six grains. He also claims to have cured one of his patients suffering
from this disease by making him wear an emerald.[270] This illustrates
the use of the stone in Moorish Spain in the early part of the eleventh
century, the period of the highest development of Moorish civilization,
for Abenzoar, or Abû Meruân, as he is sometimes called, was born in
Seville about 1091 A.D. and died in 1161 or 1162.
Hematite
The curative properties of the hematite were generally recognized by the
early writers, and in this case they were not so much at fault, as this
substance possesses considerable astringent properties. Galen recommends
its use for inflamed eyelids, following in this the teachings of the
Egyptian schools of medicine. If there were tumors on the eyelids, the
hematite was to be dissolved in white of egg, and if the tumors were
very large it was to be boiled with fenugreek (fœnum græcum); if,
however, there were no tumors, but simply a general inflammation of the
eyelids, a solution in water sufficed. At the outset a few drops of a
weak solution were to be poured into the eye through a glass tube;
should this treatment not prove effective, the solution was to be made
thicker and thicker, until at last it had to be dipped out on the point
of the tube. If ground to a fine powder in a mortar, hematite cured
spitting of blood and all ulcers. Galen advises great care in judging of
the quality and strength of the powder, which was to be poured on or
spread over the sore, but in his own case he admits that he trusted to
his sense of taste to determine its quality.[271]
Sotacus as quoted by Pliny distinguishes five kinds of hematite, each
one of which possessed special medicinal virtues. The best was the
Ethiopic, which was a valuable ingredient in lotions for the eyes, and
for burns. The second kind was called androdamus and came from Africa;
this was very black, and was exceedingly hard and heavy, whence its name
“conqueror of man”; it was reputed to attract silver, brass and iron. If
rubbed with a moistened whetstone it gave forth a red juice, and was
considered to be a specific for bilious disorders. The third kind was
brought by the Arabs; this gave scarcely any juice when rubbed with the
whetstone, but occasionally a little of a yellowish hue, and was useful
for burns and for all bilious disorders. The fourth kind was called
elatite in its natural state and melitite when burned; and the fifth
appears to have contained an admixture of schist. These shared in the
general virtues of the hematite, three grains of whose powder, when
taken in oil, would cure all blood diseases.[272]
That the cause of the friendship between Hector and Dolon was the
latter’s ownership of a hematite is asserted in the Greek Orphic poem
“Lithica.” This statement must be derived from some annotation to the
Iliad made in the Alexandrine schools, for Homer himself knows nothing
of it. In the fateful encounter of Hector with Achilles, the form and
aspect of Dolon are assumed by Athena to deceive Hector into the belief
that his friend was at his side to aid him in the unequal struggle. The
blood of Uranus when wounded by Kronos is stated in “Lithica” as the
generating cause of hematite, and the stone is recommended as a cure for
eye-diseases.[273]
Jacinth
A peculiarly stimulant and tonic effect exercised by the jacinth was
noted by Ben Sina (Avicenna), and to this is attributed its value as an
antidote for poisons. Not, however, to the material composition of the
stone was this effect to be attributed, for it proceeded from the mass
in the same way as did the virtue of the magnet. Hence Ben Sina is
opposed to the theory that the natural warmth of the body acted upon the
jacinth, when taken internally, producing a transmutation, dissolution
and mingling of its substance with the volatile spiritual essence.[274]
In Constantinople, at a time when the plague was exceptionally
prevalent, the citizens used to wear jacinths, because of the special
virtues these stones were supposed to possess as guardians against the
plague. That jacinth amulets intended for therapeutic use were
occasionally to be found in pharmacies, is attested by Ambrosianus, who
states that a jacinth the size of a human nail, and set in silver, was
kept in a “pharmacy in Poland.” This stone, if held to a wound, was said
to prevent mortification.[275]
[Illustration:
JADE TONGUE AMULETS FOR THE DEAD. CHINESE
Figs. 1–4, plain types; Fig. 5, carved in shape of realistic cicada
(a. upper, b. lower face); Figs. 6–9, conventionalized forms of
cicada. From “Jade,” by Berthold Laufer.
By courtesy of the author and Field Museum of National History,
Chicago.
]
Jade
The first mention of this material is made by Monardes, who says:[276]
The so-called nephritic stone is a species of stone, the finest of
which resemble the emerald crystal, and are green with a milky hue. It
is worn in various forms, made in ancient times, such as the Indians
had; some like fish, some like the heads of birds, others like the
beaks of parrots and others again round as balls; all, however, are
perforated, since the Indians used to wear them attached for nephritic
or gastric pains, for they had marvellous efficacy in both these
infirmities. Their principal virtue regards the nephritic pain, and
the passing of gravel and stone, in such sort that a gentleman who
owns one, the best I have ever seen, wearing it bound on his arm,
passed so much gravel that he often takes it off, thinking that it may
be injurious for him to pass such a quantity; and, indeed, when he
removes the stone he passes much less.... This stone has an occult
property, by means of which it exercises a wonderful prophylactic
effect, preventing the occurrence of nephritic pain, and should it
nevertheless ensue, removing or alleviating it. The duchess my lady,
having suffered three attacks of this malady during a short period,
had one of these stones set in a bracelet and wore it on her arm, and
from the time she put it on, she has never felt any pain, although ten
years have past. In the same way it has served many, who have realized
the same benefit. Therefore, it is highly prized and it cannot now be
worn so easily as in former times, as only caciques and noblemen own
it, and rightly, since it has such wonderful effects.
The Chinese Taoist adept T’ao Hung Ching, who flourished A.D. 500,
directs that when powdered jade is prescribed by a physician, carved
jade must not be used, nor unwrought jade that has been buried in tombs.
While sometimes a very fine powder was recommended, the usual plan was
to reduce the jade by pounding it into pieces the size of small pulse.
When administered in this form the Chinese physicians asserted that the
powder passed unchanged through the system, but that the essential
principle, the innate virtue, was absorbed by the patient. It relieved
heart-burn and asthma and stilled thirst. Taken regularly for a long
period it acted as a powerful general tonic, and had the special effects
of strengthening the voice and rendering the hair glossy; but all these
good effects could only be secured by the use of unwrought jade.[277]
The _lapis nephriticus_ (jade) was held to be a remedy for œdematous
affections of the feet. As this stone was so highly in favor in Europe
for a century or two after it had first been brought from America by the
Spaniards, many were of the opinion that it should be constantly worn to
exert its full curative power. There were some, however, who argued that
with this as with other remedies, constant and unremitting use weakened
the effect, so that when the wearer was suddenly attacked by some
disorder for which jade was a cure, his system would have become so
habituated to its action that it would no longer work as a remedy.[278]
Of the _lapis nephriticus_ the old Danish writer, Caspar Bertholin,
relates in 1628 that four prominent citizens of Copenhagen, whom he had
recommended to wear it to break up the calculi with which they were
afflicted, could testify to its worth, adding, somewhat naïvely, “at
least two of them can, for the two others are dead—but not of the
stone.” He himself, however, although he had sent for specimens at great
expense, to Venice, Nuremberg and Batavia, could not gain any relief
from his trouble, but nevertheless, firm in his conviction of the
special curative power of jade, he asserts that the calculi which
tormented him must have been exceptionally hard and flint-like, so that
they could not be broken up. The vogue enjoyed by this supposed remedy
in the Denmark of the time is illustrated in the case of the reigning
sovereign, Christian IV, who wore on his person a green nephrite until
the day of his death. This stone is still preserved in the Rosenborg
Museum collection among the relics of this king.[279]
[Illustration:
FRONTISPIECE OF MUSEUM WORMIANUM
Printed in Leyden in 1655, showing a part of the remarkable collection
of specimens illustrating natural history owned
by Olaus Wormius of Copenhagen.
]
Johannes de Laet was much impressed with the virtues of the _lapis
nephriticus_ as were most of his learned contemporaries, since he
assures his readers that an oblong, smooth, moderately thick stone in
his possession, having the color of honey and a very oily surface, had
given his wife great relief from the severe pains caused by renal
calculus, when the stone was bound upon her wrist. This particular
specimen he sent a few years later to his Danish friend, Ole Worms, for
the latter’s cabinet of natural history. De Laet writes that all the
virtues claimed for nephrite by Monardes in 1574, were observable in his
specimen.[280]
As late as 1726, there were some who retained faith in the curative
power of jade, for a record of that date informs us that the traveller
Paul Lucas had just come back to Paris from the Orient, and had brought
with him a specimen of the lapis nephriticus which he intended to have
cut up into thin slabs to bestow upon such of his friends as were
suffering from gravel or calculus, or similar troubles.[281]
After relating that a specimen of American jadeite had been sent to him
prior to 1602, Cleandro Arnobio states that when he showed it to a
Signor Michele Mercato, “a man well versed in medicine and in the
knowledge of minerals and herbs,” the latter immediately recognized it
and called it “nephite,” from its virtues, saying also that he had found
it useful in aiding parturition. A pharmacist, to whom it was shown in
turn, declared that he had used the stone in this way but did not know
its name. This is perhaps the earliest use of the name nephrite, the
form occurring in the Italian text being either due to a typographical
error, or to Arnobio’s ignorance of the correct spelling.
Proceeding to dilate upon the many virtues of this stone, Cleandro
quotes Aldobrando, “a physician, physicist and philosopher of Bologna,”
who described it as having usually a purple shade, almost like porphyry,
with various figures of herbs, flowers, knots and Arabic characters in a
yellow color. There were, however, according to the same authority, some
of a darker hue, with protuberances and bands of yellow and also black
spots, as though the stone were a section of the spleen. This kind was
recommended and used in diseases of the spleen. In another variety, in
the midst of the purple color might be seen a yellow stain with pittings
and hollows; this was thought to figure a section of the liver,
spattered with bile, and such stones were employed with good effect to
cure those suffering from bilious disorders. To discharge the bile a
dose of four grains was administered, the powdered stone being
thoroughly dissolved in wine. Still another kind, of a reddish hue,
“like coagulated blood,” full of pittings and veinings, was thought to
be more especially valuable as a remedy for disorders of the blood and
for checking hemorrhages.[282]
The learned Ko Kei asserts that the body of a man who had taken nearly
five pounds of jade did not change color after his death and states that
the body having been exhumed several years later did not show the
slightest alteration. Besides this, it was observed that there were gold
and jade around the tomb. Since then (in China), in the Kan period, the
custom was followed of embalming the dead bodies of the emperors, and of
preserving them in a garment ornamented with pearls and enclosed in a
case of jade.[283]
[Illustration:
JADE BELL OF THE KIEN-LUNG PERIOD: 1731–1795.
Carved out of a single piece of jade. Dimensions: height, 20 cm.;
width 14.6 cm.; thickness, from 1 cm. to
3.8 cm. From Berthold Lauter, “Jade, a Study in Chinese Archæology and
Religion,” Chicago, 1912.
By courtesy of the author and Field Museum of Natural History,
Chicago.
]
The Indians of Brazil prize the so-called Amazon stones (jade) more
highly than any other of the ornaments they wear. This is not chiefly
because of their ornamental quality, but rather because these _ita
ybymbae_ (green stones) have in many cases been handed down from
generation to generation for many centuries. They are of cylindrical,
tabular or other regular form and polished, and are believed to be
amulets affording protection against many diseases as well as against
snake bites. They are worn suspended from the neck and are regarded as
valuable aids in difficult parturition. Because of their remedial
virtues they are sometimes called _ita poçanga_, or “medicine stones.”
They are also found with the natives of the Caribbean islands and are
there called “the smooth stones from the far-off continent.”[284]
As in all superstitions, so in those concerning jade in China, the fact
that ill luck instead of good luck fortuitously resulted from the use of
the material was explained in a way that did not do violence to the
fundamental idea. We are told that on the road near Kneha, in Turkestan,
there lies a block of jade from the quarries of Raskam-Darya, in Eastern
Turkestan. This block was on its way to Peking, when orders came from
the imperial court not to forward any more jade from this quarry. The
reason was that the heir apparent had been taken ill after having slept
on a couch made of Raskam jade.[285]
Jasper
In the collection of the Biblioteca di Ravenna there is a red jasper
amulet engraved with a device representing Hercules strangling the
Nemæan Lion. Amulets of this type are recommended for the cure of the
colic by the Greek physician Alexander Trallianus, who flourished in the
first half of the sixth century A.D. He directs that this design be
engraved on a “Median stone,” which is then to be set in a gold ring and
worn by the patient.[286] The fact that the constellation Leo was
believed to rule over the stomach, and possibly over the liver also,
probably determined the selection of the design. On the reverse of the
Ravenna amulet are inscribed the letters K K K, which are believed to
stand for Κωλική, “colic.”[287]
After noting the power of the jasper (probably the red variety) to check
hemorrhages from any part, and its general effect upon the circulation
of the blood in reducing the pulse, thus calming desire and quieting the
restless mind, Cardano turns to another of the reputed virtues of this
stone, that of rendering the wearer victorious in battle. The true
reason for this he finds in the stone’s tendency to diminish passion,
and hence to render the wearer timid and cautious, for “the timid
usually conquer, since they avoid a doubtful contest if possible.”
Gesner states that he saw “in the possession of a writer of Lausanne,” a
green jasper, bearing the image of a dragon with rays, similar to the
gem described by Galen.[288]
Of the jasper, De Boot relates,[289] from his own experience, that for
checking hemorrhages the red variety is the most effective, and, in this
connection, he describes the case of a young woman in Prague, who had
suffered for six years from hemorrhages. Many different remedies had
been tried without avail, and when De Boot was called in to attend the
case, he advised the woman to wear a red jasper. As soon as this stone
was attached to her person the hemorrhage ceased. After wearing the
jasper for some time, the woman thought she could safely lay it aside,
but whenever she did so the hemorrhage returned after a longer or
shorter interval, while it always ceased immediately she resumed wearing
the stone. This seemed to prove conclusively that it checked the flow of
blood. Eventually the woman was so effectively cured that she was able
to give up wearing the stone. Green jasper, if worn attached to the neck
so as to touch the gastric region, was, according to De Boot, a cure for
all diseases of the stomach. The same writer alludes to the belief that
the virtue of this stone was enhanced if it were engraved with the image
of a scorpion while the sun was entering the constellation Scorpio, but
he rejects this belief as entirely superstitious and futile, while
admitting that, to obtain the best results, the jasper should always be
set in silver.
Pear-shaped pieces of red jasper seem to have been more especially
favored for use as amulets. Italian amulets of to-day show this, and
Bellucci finds that the form is chosen as representing a drop of blood,
and thus aiding, by sympathetic magic, in the cure of hemorrhages or
wounds, and preventing the infliction of the latter. Sometimes such
amulets of red jasper are attached to the bed-post by a red ribbon. In
the case of a particularly valued amulet of this type, Bellucci was
informed by the peasant owner that it owed its great virtue to having
been blessed by the parish priest. Thus the traditional power of a pagan
amulet received the sanction of the church and the object was associated
with purely Christian amulets.[290]
Jet
Jet, the _gagates_ of the ancients, was said to have been first found in
the river Gagates in Lycia, whence its name was derived. Galen, the
greatest physician of ancient times, reports, however, that he searched
in vain for this river, although he sailed in a small vessel along the
whole coast of Lycia, so that he might closely observe it. Still, he did
not give up his search for the material, even when he failed to find its
reputed source, and in Cælo-Syria, on a hill on the eastern shore of the
Dead Sea, he came across certain black, crustaceous stones, which
emitted a slender flame when placed in the fire. These must have been
small masses of bitumen, and, according to Galen, they were used for
chronic swellings of the knee-joint “which are difficult to cure.”[291]
The fumes of jet are mentioned as a remedy for the pest in one of the
earliest Greek medical treatises, written by Nicander, who flourished in
the second century B.C. He declares that the most virulent pestilence
could be driven away if the bedrooms were fumigated with the smoke of
the slow-burning jet.[292] The plague was called the black plague and
naturally the aid of a black substance was sought to cure it.
For Pliny, jet was endowed with many medicinal virtues. Its fumes were a
cure for hysteria and were said to reveal the presence of a latent
tendency to epilepsy; connected with this in some way was the curious
belief, repeated by later authors with certain variations, that these
fumes could also be used as a test of virginity. When powdered and mixed
with wine, jet relieved the pains of those suffering from toothache, and
if the powder were combined with wax, a salve was produced that gave
very beneficial results in cases of scrofula.[293] Even as a toilet
preparation jet was recommended for use, and a most excellent dentifrice
is said to have been made from it. In this connection jet was credited
with tonic as well as cleansing properties, as is shown by the words of
Bartholomæus Anglicus, who declares that this material was especially
beneficial for “feeble teeth and waggyng,” since it strengthened them
and made them firm.[294]
The delusions and hallucinations of melancholic subjects were believed
to be put to flight by the power of jet, either in its solid form or
when reduced to a solution. The fact that this material was often used
for the beads of rosaries was thought to have some connection with its
supposed virtues, since the bad dreams or dreadful hallucinations
sometimes accompanying melancholia were designated as “demons,” and thus
the prayers counted off on jet beads might be supposed to have the
greater power to banish the devil and his black angels. The old writer
who cites these particulars about jet, adds that there was to be found
in the river Nile a black stone the size of a bean, at sight of which
dogs would stop barking, and which also drove away evil spirits. Here we
have another among many instances of the curious blending of the
doctrines of sympathy and antipathy, the black stone repelling the imps
of darkness and nullifying the spells of the Black Art.[295]
Lapis Armenus
The _lapis Armenus_ was well known to the Arabs under the name _hajer
Armeny_, and their medical writers describe it quite accurately and
distinguish it from the somewhat similar lapis lazuli, with which it was
often confused in ancient times. Ibn Beithar states that if properly
prepared it would not provoke nausea, as was otherwise the case. It was
said to cause a very abundant evacuation of bile and must have been
regarded as an efficient remedy for the bilious disorders so general in
warm climates.[296]
A “blue amulet” against vertigo, melancholia and epilepsy could be made
up of the following ingredients: shavings from an elk’s horn and from a
human skull, to be reduced to a fine powder, the excrement of a peacock,
white agate, lapis lazuli or _lapis Armenus_, of which enough was to be
used to give the required sky-blue tint. The whole mass was then to be
softened by the addition of gum tragacanth, and formed into heart-shaped
tablets, which were to be dried out in the air, and then smoothed on a
turning-lathe. These amulets were to be worn attached to the neck or the
arm, sometimes they were enclosed in a little receptacle of silver or of
red sandal-wood and suspended from the neck.[297]
Lapis Lazuli
In Papyrus 3027 of the Berlin Museum, a record that dates from about the
fifteenth century B.C., and appears to be contemporaneous with the
celebrated Papyrus Ebers, we have directions for the curative use of
three stones as amulets; namely, lapis lazuli, malachite (Amazon stone?)
and, probably, red jasper. The interpretation of the text offers
considerable difficulty, but it seems that the stones were worked into
the form of beads and then strung on a cord and suspended from a sick
child’s neck. Thereupon a formula was recited, calling upon the disease
to pass through the beads and disperse itself through water and air, or,
more literally, to attach itself to the denizens of water and air. The
translation of Dr. Adolph Erman is as follows:[298]
[A red bead? of lapis lazuli thereon.]
... a green bead? of malachite is thereon.
a red bead of jasper? is thereon
O, ye beads! fall upon the haunches [of the ...] in the flood; on the
scales? of the fish in the stream; on the feathers of the birds in the
heavens. Hasten forth! _nšw_, fall upon the earth
Let this text be recited over the beads?, one of lapis lazuli, the
other of jasper?, the other malachite, which are drawn on a string
of ... and hung upon the neck of a child.
Erman does not venture to translate the name of the disease (nšw), but
says that another word derived from the same root signifies a discharge
from the nose. Possibly we have to do with croup or some similar disease
of the respiratory organs.
A curious prescription for the cure of cataract is given in the Ebers
Papyrus,[299] dating from about 1600 B.C. The six ingredients are as
follows: genuine lapis lazuli, verdigris salve, a resinous substance
perhaps similar to what is to-day called tabasheer, milk, stibium, and
“crocodile-earth,” the slime of the Nile. It is possible that the word
_chesbet_, which usually signifies lapis lazuli, was understood in this
case as indicating some other stone, such as that known by the name of
_lapis Armenus_—this latter is a carbonate of copper and really
possesses astringent properties.
For remedial use a lapis lazuli (_cyanus_) of deep hue is recommended by
Dioscorides. This stone was to be burned thoroughly and the resultant
powder moistened so that a kind of paste was obtained. This was claimed
to have an astringent and caustic effect, and was freely used as a
counter-irritant.[300] Probably here as in other cases a sulphate of
copper has been confused with the lapis lazuli. The ancients did not
favor the administration of lapis lazuli internally, and Braunfels[301]
therefore regarded the free use of pills of lapis lazuli which was
common in his time as a source of grave danger. The _lapis Armenus_,
however, if well prepared and properly washed, was less to be feared;
but, unfortunately, the genuine stone was rarely to be found in the
apothecaries’ shops.
Malachite
Many medicinal virtues were ascribed to malachite. Worn as an amulet, it
averted attacks of faintness, prevented hernia, and saved the wearer
from danger in falling. In this latter respect similar powers seem to
have been admitted in the case of the green malachite as were attributed
to the light blue or greenish-blue turquoise. If malachite were reduced
to a powder, dissolved in milk and taken as a potion, it cured cardiac
pains and colic; mixed with honey, and applied with a linen cloth to a
wound, it stanched the flow of blood, and cramps were relieved if this
solution were applied to the affected part; lastly, if mixed with wine,
it was a cure for virulent ulcers.[302]
Powdered malachite was sometimes administered medicinally, with what
results we have little definite information; certainly, if not very
carefully used, the effect would have been anything but favorable. A
friend of De Boot once told the latter that a dose of six grains of
powdered malachite acted as a purgative, but the wary doctor confesses
that he never ventured to test the efficacy of this prescription.[303]
In Bavaria, at the present time, mothers and midwives are fond of
wearing pieces of malachite set in rings or strung for use as necklaces.
These are believed to help the dentition of children and are also
thought to bring more clients to the midwives. Amulets of this and other
kinds were sold in Bavaria, in the seventeenth century, by wandering
students and by gypsies.[304]
Median Stone
Of the so-called Median stone we read, in Konrad von Megenberg’s “Buch
der Natur,”[305] that it had powers of good and evil; “for when
dissolved in the milk of a woman who has borne a son, it restores sight
to the blind.” It also cured gout and insanity. If, however, anyone were
so ill-advised as to dissolve the stone in water and partake of the
solution, he would die of hasty consumption; or if he simply bathed his
forehead with the liquid, he would be robbed of his sight.
Onyx
A famous medicinal stone was at one time in the Abbey of St. Alban,
founded in 793 A.D. by Offa, King of Mercia, in honor of the British
protomartyr. In 1010, under Abbot Geoffrey de Gorham, a sumptuous shrine
was erected to receive St. Alban’s body; this shrine was principally of
silver, and was richly adorned with precious stones, chosen from among
those in the treasury of the monastery. The records state that one of
these stones “was so large that a man could not grasp it in his hand.”
It was believed to give great help to women in childbirth. Hence, it was
not set in the shrine, but was left free, so that it might be taken from
house to house as required. The size of this stone and the fact that it
was not used for ornamentation might have induced the belief that it was
one of the singular “eagle-stones,” so celebrated in ancient and
medieval times, but it is expressly described as an onyx-gem, the gift
of King Ethelred II (968–1016) to the monastery. From the description we
learn that on one side of this onyx was cut an image of Esculapius, the
god of healing, and on the other that of “a boy bearing a buckler.” As
the art of gem-cutting was practically unknown in Europe in the tenth
century, this must have been an antique gem, and may have served as a
pagan amulet many centuries before it was placed upon the shrine of a
Christian saint and used as a Christian amulet.[306]
An old manuscript of Matthew Paris[307] gives a sketch of the gem from
this author’s own hand. As the special power exerted by this talisman
was to aid women in their confinements, it was loaned out from time to
time to such as were considered worthy of the honor. In one case,
however, it came into untrustworthy hands, for the favored lady failed
to return the gem when her immediate need of its help had passed,
retaining it in her possession until her death, when she bequeathed it
to her daughter. During her lifetime the latter appears to have had no
prickings of conscience, but on her death-bed, possibly through the
exhortations of her confessor, she made provision that the long-lost
sardonyx should be returned to the Abbey. It is said to have borne the
name Kaadman, which Mr. Thomas Wright regarded as a corruption of
_cadmeus_ or _cameus_, early forms of our “cameo.”[308]
Pyrite
In Geneva and in the neighboring regions great virtues are ascribed to a
cut and facetted iron (pyrite), very hard, susceptible of a high polish
and of resplendent lustre. This is cut to resemble the rose or brilliant
form of diamond, and is set in rings, buckles, and other ornaments. In
appearance it resembles polished steel and is called _pierre de santé_,
or “health-stone,” for it is believed to grow pale when the health of
the wearer is about to fail.[309] This substance is known as marcasite
and is a bisulphide of iron. In the time of Louis XVI it was largely
used for ornamental purposes; at present steel has almost entirely taken
its place, although it is still utilized to a limited extent. Many
believe that this is the material to which Victor Hugo alludes in his
great romance, “Les Miserables,” as having been manufactured by Jean
Valjean.
Rock-crystal
Medical men in Rome, in the first century, attested that no better
cautery for the human body could be used than a crystal ball acted upon
by the sun’s rays,[310] and this use of the material seems to have been
very general at that time.
In his commentary on Andrea Bacci’s gem-treatise, Wolfgang Gabelchover,
the German translator, says that a German name of rock-crystal in his
time, the early sixteenth century, was _Schwindelstein_
(“vertigo-stone”), because it was believed to preserve the wearer from
attacks of dizziness. Other remedial or physical effects of rock-crystal
are also noted. Taken as a powder in dry wine, it was a cure for
dysentery, and the physician, Christopher Barzizius, taught that if its
powder were mixed with honey and administered to mothers, they would be
the better able to nurse their offspring.[311]
The following lines by Robert Wilson (d. 1600), a popular
sixteenth-century comedy writer, credit amber and rock-crystal with
qualities not commonly ascribed to them, although the fancied growth of
rock-crystal from a piece of ice probably explains its supposed styptic
virtue:[312]
LUCRE: And if they demand wherefore your
wares and merchandise agree,
You must say, jet will take up a straw;
amber will make one fat;
Coral will look pale when you be sick,
and crystal stanch blood.
That a remedial tincture of rock-crystal could be made was firmly
believed by the Danish chemist, Ole Borch (Olaus Borrichius, 1626–1690),
and in his chemical lectures he gives the following directions as to the
processes to be employed. A rock-crystal was to be heated to a high
temperature and then cast, while still warm, into cold water; it would
thereupon break up into small fragments. By heating these particles
together with tartaric salts, the whole mass would be reduced to a
liquid solution. Half of the quantity, after cooling off, was to be put
into a distilling glass with the best “spirit of wine” and was to be
digested in a bath of lukewarm water. It would then be seen that the
solution became red. This process is repeated several times, and finally
the tincture is concentrated by distilling off the spirit of wine,
leaving the pure rock-crystal tincture. Its remedial quality is stated
to have been applicable to dropsy, scrofula, or hypochondriac
melancholia, if it were taken in doses up to forty drops in a proper
medium.[313]
[Illustration:
ANCIENT PERSIAN RELIC KNOWN AS THE “CUP OF CHOSROES”
The engraved rock-crystal medallion in the centre depicts Khusrau II,
Parwiz (A. D. 591–628), in the peculiar and characteristic garb of
the Sassanian monarchs. The strange wing-like adornments rising from
each shoulder, and the moon crescent and sun-disk above the head,
are especially noteworthy. In the Royal Museum, Bucharest, Roumania.
]
To make the _magisterium_ of rock-crystal, a pound of the substance was
to be heated to a high temperature and then dipped into spirits of
vitriol. After this operation had been repeated ten times, the
rock-crystal was to be ground, on a marble slab, to a very fine powder,
which was a sure remedy for gout and for calculi formed in any of the
bodily organs. The spirits of vitriol in which the rock-crystal had been
dipped was sometimes filtered through blotting-paper and sold as crystal
spirits of vitriol; this was asserted to be a powerful diuretic, from
seven to ten drops being given at a dose in a cup of meat broth.[314]
As late as the last half of the eighteenth century a Dr. Bourgeois
recommended the use of rock-crystal, calcined and ground, as a very
excellent astringent in the most obstinate cases of diarrhœa. In
reporting this, Valmont de Bomare (1731–1807) adds that it would be
desirable to know the nature of the acid in rock-crystal and its state
of combination.[315] Here, as in all cases where some of the
constituents of precious stones may really possess certain curative
powers, a better result can be attained by using these constituents in
other forms or combinations.
The wonderful therapeutic virtues of a Scotch lake named Loch-mo-naire
are explained by a local legend as having arisen from certain magic
crystals which had been cast into its waters. These crystals, if placed
in water, rendered the liquid a potion of great curative power. They
were the property of a woman who had gained by their possession a great
reputation as a healer, but her success attracted the envy of a neighbor
who determined to secure for himself the woman’s wonder-working stones.
In pursuance of this design he came to her, feigning illness. She saw
through his deception and sought safety in flight, but he pursued her
and was gaining rapidly on her, when she threw the stones into the
waters of the lake, crying out the Gaelic word _noire_, “shame,” and
uttering the wish that its waters should be rendered powerful to cure
the sick, all except those of the clan Gordon to which the would-be
thief belonged. As the correct translation of the name of the lake is
said to be not “Lake of Shame” but “Serpent Lake,” the legend appears to
have no good foundation, but is perhaps as true as any of the popular
tales purporting to explain the origin of the virtues of healing springs
or waters.[316]
To many stones was attributed the power of transmitting a certain
remedial virtue to water or other liquid in which they were immersed.
This, as we have related, was the case with the white stone that St.
Columba sent to King Brude at Inverness when the king’s druid priest
Broichan was suffering from disease. A peculiarity of this stone was
that if it were required in the case of a person about to die, it would
disappear from view. Thus its remedial powers could never be put to test
unless success were assured.[317]
There can be no reasonable doubt that some remarkable cures have been
effected by means of relics, or by drinking the waters of a spring
believed to have been pointed out by some divine vision. From a purely
scientific standpoint this can be explained as the result of an
extraordinary stimulation of the nerve-centres, caused by the rapt
enthusiasm of religious faith. The relics, or the pure water, simply
serve as an object about which this faith crystallizes, so to speak, and
gains a concrete and external form, which in turn reacts upon the mind
of the believer. It is a well-known fact that a great shock, or imminent
peril, has sometimes suddenly restored the power of motion to those who
have long been paralyzed. This view does not, however, necessarily
exclude a religious interpretation of these phenomena when they are
produced by religious impressions, for the divine will manifests itself
by natural means, and a true understanding of the regular and normal
working of these means should give us a deeper, truer, and purer faith.
Sapphire
As a substance for medicinal use, the Hindus declared the sapphire to be
bitter to the taste and lukewarm. It had a remedial action against
phlegm, bile and flatulence.[318] A similar action is ascribed to
several other precious stones, the medicinal qualities attributed to
them being less differentiated among the Hindus than they were with the
Greeks and Romans, or in medieval times.
To drink of a potion made from the sapphire was said to be helpful for
those who had been bitten by a scorpion, and for those suffering from
intestinal ulcerations, or from growths in the eye; it also prevented
boils and pustules, and healed ruptured membranes.[319] Here we see that
the sapphire shared with the emerald the power of strengthening the
sight, and one authority asserts that if anyone looked long and intently
at a sapphire, his eyes would be protected from all injury, and nothing
harmful could befall them.[320]
A medieval test of the antitoxin quality of the sapphire was to place a
spider in a vessel to whose mouth a sapphire was so suspended that it
would swing backwards and forwards just above the spider. The supposedly
venomous insect was not long able to resist the power of the stone and
fell a victim to its virtues. Wolfgang Gabelchover gravely asserts that
this experiment had often been successful.[321]
The removal of particles of sand or dust from the eye was said to be
successfully accomplished by “warming” a sapphire over the eye, the
virtue of the stone thus passing into the eye and giving the organ the
strength necessary for the ejection of the troublesome foreign
body.[322] This attribution of a chemical action to the sapphire in
eye-trouble may be added to the many statements of its general curative
powers in eye-diseases.
Topaz
The thirteenth century Hindu physician Naharari states that the topaz
tastes sour and is cold. It is a remedy for flatulence and is a most
excellent appetizer. Any man who wears this stone will be assured of
long life, beauty and intelligence.[323] Many a curious legend has been
woven about the old belief that the topaz quenched thirst. However,
popular fancy does not endow any and every topaz with this power. One of
these thirst-removing topazes is said to have been in the possession of
a celebrated Hindu necromancer, whose services had been sought by one of
the petty rajahs of India on the day of a decisive battle. Either this
necromancer’s art must have failed him at the critical moment, or else a
more powerful enchanter guided the fortunes of the enemy, for the latter
prevailed and the owner of the potent topaz was left dying upon the
field of battle. Alongside him was a poor wounded soldier who was
clamoring for a drop of water to quench his burning thirst. Hearkening
to this prayer, the dying necromancer threw his topaz to the soldier,
telling him to place it upon his heart. No sooner did he do so than his
thirst passed away, and we must suppose that his wounds were also
healed, for we are told that on the morrow he sought everywhere on the
battle-field for the corpse of his benefactor but could find no trace of
it.
[Illustration:
1. Emerald that belonged to the deposed Sultan of Turkey, Abdul Hamid;
weight 45.33 carats. Auctioned December 11, 1911, Paris.
1½. Side view of the emerald.
2. Almandite garnet (transparent) fashioned into a knuckle bone; on
the upper surface is engraved an eagle with outspread wings, above
which are the Greek characters κακγ. Charm seal of some early
knuckle-bone player.
3. Sardonyx idol-eye of a Babylonian bull, pierced for suspension.
Engraved at a later period with the head of a Parthian king.
4. Aquamarine seal (transparent). Sassanian Pahlavi. Found in ruins of
Babylonia.
]
Tavernier, the great French Seventeenth Century jeweler-traveler, the
first European to visit the ruby mines, took with him a number of
emeralds, generally large. These were often cut from the top of the
crystal, usually darker in color, and simply domed off, preserving the
original hexagonal shape. Remarkable specimens are in the Indian Museum
and the South Kensington Museum, part of the jewels of Thebaud, King of
Burma. The finest emeralds of this type belonged to the late Sultan of
Turkey; one of the finest, a remarkable gem, cut rounded en cabochon,
was with the Bijoux du Sultan, S. M. Abd-Ul-Hamid II, sold at the
Galerie Georges Petit, November 28, 1914. It weighed 44³⁄₁₆ carats (old
system) or 45.29 carats (metric system). (See color plate.)
A remarkable charm is a hemispherical, transparent aquamarine, with
figure of hump bull, found in ancient Babylonia. (See color plate.)
A quaint, ancient amulet is carved out of fine knuckle bone, an eagle
with spread wings engraved on one side; portrait of a Parthian King.
(See color plate.)
A Babylonian idol’s eye, of sardonyx, was pierced and worn as charm
against the Evil Eye; later engraved with portrait of a Parthian King.
(See color plate.)
IV
On the Virtues of Fabulous Stones, Concretions and Fossils
Not only precious or semi-precious stones were used as charms or
talismans and for curative purposes; a large number of animal
concretions also were and are still somewhat in favor. These
concretions, variously composed but usually containing a quantity of
carbonate of lime, are found in different parts of animals’ bodies, and
they were believed to contain a sort of quintessence of the nature of
the animal in which they occurred. For this reason the _alectorius_,
from the body of the cock, one of the most widely known of the animal
stones in ancient times, was thought to confer valor upon the wearer,
and is said to have been worn by athletes in their contests.
In the case of venomous, or supposedly venomous, creatures, such as the
toad and certain snakes, the stone was used as an antidote for poisons.
This virtue was thought to be notably present in the so-called bezoar
stone, taken from the stomach of a species of goat, as well as from some
other animals. As we shall see, legend sought to account for the
peculiar qualities of the bezoar by the tale that the animals in whose
bodies the stones were formed had been bitten by serpents. Indeed, it
seems not unlikely that the belief in the curative properties of the
bezoar stone originally owed its existence to the finding of some such
concretion in the body of an animal that had died from the effects of
snake-bite.
As is well known, certain pathological conditions induce the formation
of stones of various kinds and shapes in the human body also. Here the
tendency has been to use these stones to counteract the disease which
produced them. Renal or vesical calculi, for instance, were recommended
for diseases of the kidneys and bladder, a treatment quite in accord
with the popular idea of the homeopathic theory.
Another class of animal substances, namely, the fossil teeth of the
shark, enjoyed a tremendous vogue at one time, and were known by the
name of _glossopetræ_. These were usually regarded as stones, and
because of their peculiar form were frequently assimilated to the
belemnites and even to the flint arrow-heads and other prehistoric flint
instruments, which were dug up in many places. All these flint artefacts
were believed to have been precipitated to the earth by the discharge of
electricity during a thunder-storm; in other words, they were
“thunderbolts.”[324] The same idea was frequently held as to the origin
of the _glossopetræ_, and those found on the island of Malta were
brought into connection with an incident of St. Paul’s visit to that
island.
In many different countries, especially in the north of Europe, these
flint arrow-heads and the fossil remains of similar form, were called
fairy-darts or elf-shots, and were believed to be the enchanted weapons
of the elves and fairies, who, in the old folk-lore, are represented as
beings of a very different quality from the fairies and elves of the
tales of our childhood. In some parts of Europe at the present day, for
example in Ireland, the peasantry talk with bated breath of the doings
of the “good people,” for they shrink from using the word “fairy” lest
it might offend these mysterious and generally malevolent beings. The
designation “good people” is therefore used to placate and flatter them.
[Illustration:
Extracting toad-stone. From Johannis de Cuba’s “Ortus Sanitatis,”
Strassburg, 1483.
]
Various shell fossils were also used as talismans. Here the form
generally determined the virtues they were supposed to possess. Some of
these strange forms lent themselves to an interpretation in line with
the primitive adoration of the life-giving forces of nature, and
suggested the use of such fossils to cure certain special diseases.
Other of these petrifactions retaining the form of the enclosing shell,
especially those of circular shape, and with concentric rings, were
believed to be of meteoric origin and to have fallen during thunder or
rain; hence the names of _brontia_ and _ombria_. A certain class of
these fossils, with convolutions on the surface resembling the form of a
snake, were called snake-eggs (_ova anguina_), and, very naturally,
enjoyed the repute of preserving the wearer from poisons. All these
varieties will be described in this and the following chapters.
While some believed that the toad-stone was vomited by the animal,
others held that it constituted a part of the toad’s head. That this was
the popular belief in Shakespeare’s time is shown by the well-known
lines in his “As You Like It” (Act II, sc. 1):
Which like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head.
De Boot, whose treatise was published about the time that Shakespeare
wrote these lines, gives the following account of the result of his
efforts to obtain a toad-stone according to the prescribed method:[325]
I remember that, when a boy, I took an old toad and set it upon a red
cloth that I might secure a toad-stone; for they say that it will not
give up its stone unless it sits upon a red cloth. However, although I
watched the toad for a whole night, it did not eject anything, and
from this time I became convinced all the tales concerning this stone
were merely fond imaginings.
A stone called simply the “Indian Stone,” and said to be light and
porous, is noted by pseudo-Aristotle, and to it is attributed the power
to relieve those suffering from dropsy, by drawing the water to itself.
If weighed after having been applied to the patient, the stone was found
to have increased in weight in proportion to the amount of water
absorbed, and when it was placed in the sun, water of a yellowish hue
exuded, until, finally, the stone resumed its original appearance and
weight.[326] Another and perhaps earlier authority gives the name
“toad-stone” to this material.[327]
[Illustration:
BVFONITES
Toad-stones. Natural concretions of claystone and limonite. From
Mercati’s “Metallotheca
Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719.
]
The toad-stone was not only an antidote for poisons, but was also
thought to give warning of their presence by becoming very hot. To fully
profit by this strange quality, the wearer of such a stone was advised
to have it so set in a ring that it would touch the skin; in this way he
would be sure to have timely notice, if any poisoned food or drink were
offered to him.[328] The writer who mentions this adds the following
tale of the discovery of a toad-stone:
A clerk once found a toad which had a round knob on its head,
wherefore he thought that there must be a toad-stone. So he took up
the toad and tied it firmly in the sleeve of his coat. When he
returned from the fields and searched for the toad he found it not,
although the sleeve of his coat was tightly bound below and he could
not discover any opening through which the creature could have passed.
This shows us that it is a great help to prisoners in jail.
Another early authority, Thomas de Cantimpré, says of the toad-stone:
If one take the stone from a living and still quivering toad a little
eye can be seen in the substance; but if it be taken from a toad that
has been some time dead, the poison of the creature will have already
destroyed this little eye and spoiled the stone.
If the toad-stone be swallowed at meal-time it passes through the system
and carries off all impurities.[329] Here the substance may have been
one of many concretionary materials,—bauxite, impure pearls,
concretionary limestone, stalagmite, or even the eye-stones from the
crawfish; indeed, any material, white or gray, that had a semblance to a
toad color, and was then sold by the vendor of charm stones as coming
from a toad’s head.
The great Erasmus (1465–1536) made a pilgrimage to the famous shrine of
the Virgin in the church at Walsingham, in Kent. In his description of
what he saw there he expressly notes a wonderful toad-stone:
At the feet of the Virgin is a gem for which there is as yet no Latin
or Greek name. The French have named it after the toad [crapaudine],
because it represents so perfectly the figure of a toad that no art
could do this so well. The miracle is all the greater that the stone
is so small, and that the exterior surface has not the form of a toad,
the image showing through it as though inclosed within.[330]
As we see, the stone of Erasmus contained the form or image of a toad.
This was not usually the case with the concretions that bore this name,
and it appears probable that the “crapaudine” of the shrine at
Walsingham owed its peculiarity rather to art than to nature. A rather
far-fetched explanation of the origin of these substances is given by
Ambrosianus, who relates that, in order to investigate the quality and
character of toad-stones, he killed a number of toads and took out their
brains. Although these were not hard when extracted, they became, in
time, as hard as stones.[331]
A toad-stone which appeared to represent the form of this animal was
preserved as an heirloom in the Lemnian family. It exceeded the size of
a walnut and was often seen to dissipate the swelling caused by the bite
of a venomous creature in any part of the body, if it were rubbed
quickly over the swelling. It, therefore, seemed to possess the same
quality as was attributed to the animal from which it was taken, namely,
to draw out and annul all poisons. If any neighbor of the Lemnian family
were bitten by a mouse, a spider, a dormouse, a wasp, a beetle, or any
such creature, he soon sought the aid of this stone.[332]
We have noted De Boot’s unsuccessful attempt to secure a toad-stone, but
he does not seem to have used the orthodox method for obtaining it.
According to one authority,[333] the creature should be placed in a cage
covered with a red cloth and then set in the hot sunshine for several
days, until thirst forced the poor toad to eject his precious stone,
which was to be removed as soon as possible lest it should be swallowed
again. Another method proposed is so cruel that it is a comfort to know
that the whole matter is little more than a fanciful conceit. In this
case, the toad was to be enclosed in a pot with many perforations, and
the vessel with its unlucky inmate was then to be placed in an ant-hill
and left there until nothing remained of the toad except his bones and
the coveted stone. It is quite probable that any stone found in an
ant-hill after this procedure would be termed a “toad-stone,” since the
toad was put away in order to find one. In some instances they may have
been bony concretions from the head of the toad, or even pebbles that
the toad had swallowed.
While it is quite possible that some of the so-called toad-stones may
really have been concretions found in the head of the toad, by far the
greater part were probably small pebbles sold as “toad-stones” to those
who believed in the magic virtues of such a stone and were ready to pay
a good price for one. Where there is a demand there will always be a
supply, and the rarer the genuine article is, the greater is the
incentive to imitation or substitution. In the case of some of these
“toad-stones” set in rings to serve as amulets, the material has been
found to be the fossil palatal tooth of the ray, a species of fish.[334]
The small share of material prosperity that fell to the lot of wits and
literary men in the England of the sixteenth century, even in the age of
Elizabeth, induced Thomas Nash (1567–1601) to liken the fate of the wit
to that of the toad-stone, or, as he writes, of “the pearl,” which was
said to be in the head of the toad, this “being of exceeding virtue, is
enclosed with poison; the other, of no less value, compassed about with
poverty.”[335] A writer of the same period affirms that if the
toad-stone were touched to any part, “envenomed, hurt, or stung with
rat, spider, wasp, or any other venomous beast,” the swelling and pain
were diminished.[336]
The bones of the lizard were supposed to have medicinal virtues similar
to those attributed to various “stones” found in animals. The following
directions are given by Encelius for securing these bones: “Put a green
lizard, while still alive, in a closed vessel filled with the best
quality of salt. In a few days the salt will have consumed the flesh and
the intestines, and you can easily gather up the bones.”[337] These were
used as remedies for epilepsy and were considered to be as efficacious
as the hoofs of the elk, a recommendation which seems to have been
regarded as sufficient to convince the most sceptical of the remedial
virtues of the lizard’s bones.
The crab furnished the stone called the crab’s-eye, because in form it
resembled an eye. Like almost all the animal concretions, it was
principally used as a remedy for those suffering from vesical calculi,
and no other concretion was believed to be so efficacious in breaking up
or dissolving the calculi in the case of those who had long been
afflicted with them. Those referred to by Encelius were from the
crawfish and are often used as eye-stones.[338]
In the last joint of a crab’s claw was sometimes found a small
concretion closely resembling in size and appearance a grain of
millet-seed; it was in no wise like the “lapillus” found in crab’s eyes.
We have the testimony of Cardanus that he had preserved two such
concretions, one of which he had himself come across, while the other
had been found by a colleague. They were smooth and light, and of a
reddish-white color. Because they were very rarely met with, the
circumstance was regarded as of good augury for the finder.[339]
A round concretion (a calculus) from the liver of the ox is described by
Ibn Al-Beithar as being of a yellowish color and composed of successive
superimposed layers. If secured at the time of the full moon it was
believed to promote _embonpoint_, and was much prized by the Egyptian
women for this virtue. The effect was to be attained by taking two
grains of the pulverized concretion, either with the bath or directly
after bathing, and thereupon a “fat hen” was to be eaten.[340] The
latter prescription, if regularly and frequently administered, might be
thought to suffice without the powdered calculus.
From the second stomach of heifers was sometimes obtained a dark brown
or blackish concretion of very light weight and as round as a ball. This
was credited with great remedial virtues provided it had not fallen to
the ground.[341] There seems to have been a belief that the curative or
talismanic properties of animal concretions, or of the teeth of animals,
were weakened, or destroyed, if these objects came in contact with the
earth. This belief was perhaps due to the idea that the mysterious power
of the substance was originally derived from earth currents, or
emanations, and that the active principle would return to the earth if
the object came in contact with it.
The _lapis carpionis_ or carp-stone, a triangular mass, was taken from
the jaws of the carp. It was smaller or larger according to the size of
the fish. The principal remedial use was against calculi, or for the
cure of bilious diseases and colic.[342] These are bony plates from the
upper part of the mouth of the carp. Such so-called “stones” were also
said to check bleeding of the nose, a quality they owed to their
astringent properties, quite noticeable if anyone tasted the powder made
from them.[343]
The _cinædias_, a white and oblong concretion, had in Pliny’s time the
reputation of possessing extraordinary powers, announcing beforehand
whether the sea would be clear or stormy.[344] In what way this weather
prediction was manifested we are not told; perhaps the surface of the
concretion may have become dull or grayish when there was much humidity
in the air. The cinædia were said to be found in pairs in the fish of
that name; one pair being taken from the head of the fish and another
pair from the two dorsal fins. Power to cure diseases of the eye was
conferred upon these concretions by putting nine of them, duly numbered,
in an earthen jar together with a green lizard. Each day one of the
“stones” was taken from the vessel in the numerical order, and on the
ninth day the lizard was liberated. Evidently it was thought that to
kill the animal would interfere with the transmission of its virtue to
the concretions.[345]
The eye of the hyena was supposed to furnish a stone called _hyænia_ and
Pliny writes that these animals were hunted to secure possession of it.
Like rock-crystal and many other decorative stones, this _hyænia_ was
thought to give the power to foretell the future, if it were placed
beneath the tongue.[346] Because of the hyena’s uncanny habit of feeding
on carrion, and unearthing dead bodies from graves, it has often been
associated with necromancy and with evil spirits.
The _lacrima cervi_, or “stag’s tear,” is not to be confounded with the
bezoar stone according to Scaliger, who maintains that it was a bony
concretion that formed in the corner of a stag’s eye only after the
animal had passed its hundredth year; as the stag never attains this age
he might as well have said that the existence of this “tear” was a
fable. However, he describes it as though he had carefully inspected a
specimen, saying that it was so smooth and light that it would almost
slip through the fingers of anyone who held it in his hand. It had
similar powers to those of the bezoar, being a powerful antidote to
poisons and a cure for the plague if powdered and given with wine; these
good effects resulting from the excessively profuse perspiration that
followed the administration of the dose.[347]
These fabled stag’s tears, though often praised as substitutes for the
bezoar, were not believed in by all the early writers, one of them,
Rollenhagen, giving expression to a caustic opinion that might do credit
to a writer of our own day. Alluding to the many reports of the
existence of such “tears,” shed by the animals because of the pains they
suffered after indulging in a diet of serpents, he notes that all those
who make these statements are careful to place the habitat of these
eccentric stags as far away from their own land as possible, always
“somewhere in the Orient,” probably at “Nowheretown,” as he adds.[348]
[Illustration:
Types of _cheloniæ_ (tortoise-stones). Natural concretions. From
Aldrovandi’s “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648.
]
The _chelonia_ is said by Pliny to have been the eye of the Indian
tortoise. The magicians asserted that this was the most marvellous of
all “stones”; for if bathed in honey and then placed in the mouth, when
the moon was either full or new, it conferred the power of divination,
and this power lasted for one entire day.[349] This virtue was not,
however, altogether peculiar to the _chelonia_, for it was shared by
several other substances; in each case the stone was to be placed in the
mouth, thus coming into more immediate contact with the organs of
speech, and stimulating to prophetic utterance. A later writer states
that it was the uterine stone from the tortoise that gave the gift of
prophecy. That from the head cured headaches and averted lightning,
while the stone taken from the liver, if administered in solution, was a
remedy for ague.[350]
The wild ass was another of the animals that furnished concretions
prized for their talismanic and medicinal powers. That taken from the
animal’s head cured headache and epilepsy; that from the jaw made the
owner indefatigable, so that he yielded to none in battle. It was also a
remedy for ague and for the bites of venomous creatures, as well as a
marvellously efficacious vermifuge for children.[351] Very likely the
story of Samson, who wrought such slaughter among the Philistines when
armed with the jawbone of an ass, may have suggested the fancy that the
concretion from the ass’s jaw would give victory to the wearer.
[Illustration:
Chelidonius, or “Swallow-stones.” From “Museum Wormianum,” Lugduni
Batavorum, 1655.
]
Pliny notes the opinion that a stone taken from the body of a young
swallow, if worn attached to the human body, helps to strengthen the
brain, and he adds that the stone is said to be found in the young bird
even when it has just broken the shell.[352] According to Thomas de
Cantimpré the swallow-stone is a talisman for merchants and
tradesmen.[353] The merits of the _chelidonius_, as this stone was
called, were fully recognized in Saxon England and are given due
prominence in an Anglo-Saxon medical treatise, dating from the first
half of the tenth century. When these “swallow-stones” had been obtained
they were to be carefully protected from contact with water, earth, or
other stones. To secure the best results _three_ of them were to be
applied to the person who stood in need of their remedial effects. Not
only did they cure headache and eye-smart, but they banished the dreaded
nightmare, rendered futile the wiles of goblin visitors, and dissolved
all fascinations and enchantments. The seekers after these wonderful
stones are stoutly assured that they can only be found in “big
nestlings.”[354]
The _ætites_ (eagle-stone) is first mentioned by Pliny who states that
it was found in the nests of eagles of a certain species, and adds that
some called this stone _gangites_. Fire had no power over it and it was
a useful remedy for many diseases. Its special virtue, however, was to
prevent abortion, this use being suggested by the character of the stone
itself, which “was as though pregnant, for when it was shaken another
stone rattled within it, as though in a womb.” The curative virtues of
the _ætites_, like that of the swallow-stone, only existed when the
stone was taken from the bird’s nest. This was probably a story told by
the vendors of such geodes to enhance the value of their wares, although
there may have been some foundation for it in folk-lore.
They are really hollow concretions of an iron stone, containing a piece
of loose iron or hardened sand, or a concretion of some kind that
rattles, and is called by the Italians _bambino_ or “babe.” Such
concretions are found at many places on every continent, many fine ones
having been found in Delaware. They vary in size from one to six inches
across. The small ones of a hard, smooth exterior that have become
polished from wear, are especially valued as charms.[355]
A passage in the treatise on stones by Theophrastus, pupil of Aristotle,
might seem to indicate that the _ætites_ was already known in the third
century B.C. The words he employs are as follows: “The most astounding
and greatest power of stones (if indeed this be true) is that of bearing
progeny.” As both Pliny and Dioscorides name this stone or geode and
fully describe its character, laying especial stress upon the loose,
rattling material enclosed in its hollow interior, this fact giving rise
in later time to the half-poetic name of “the pregnant stone,” there is
every reason to believe that it was already known of three or four, or
even more centuries before their time.[356]
Marbodus of Rennes calls this stone “the guardian and defender of
nests.”[357] Enclosing as it did one or more smaller stones, it was
thought to be symbolically designated as an aid to parturition.
According as it was attached to the left arm or to the left thigh, it
either retarded or accelerated the natural processes. This, however, by
no means exhausted the virtues of the stone, for when worn on the left
arm of man or woman, it conferred sobriety, increased riches, and moved
the wearer to love; it also brought victory and popularity, and
preserved children from harm. In addition to all its other powers this
stone seems to have possessed a certain detective quality, to judge from
the following words of Ætius, who wrote in the sixth century A.D.:[358]
The ætites serves to discover thieves, if anyone places it in the
bread which they eat; for whoever has committed a theft is unable to
consume the bread. It has also been stated that, if cooked with any
kind of food, the ætites unmasks thieves, since they cannot eat such
food. If taken with wax from Cyprus, with fresh olive oil, or with any
other calefacient, this stone greatly helps those suffering from
rheumatism and paralysis.
[Illustration:
Ætites. From Johannis de Cuba’s “Ortus Sanitatis,” Strassburg, 1483.
]
The loose, enclosed concretion was named in Latin _callimus_, and we
have a detailed description from the sixteenth century of one of these,
which belonged to Georgius Fabricius. Because of its curious markings he
had it set on a pivot in a ring, so that both sides of the stone could
be easily seen. The material was in part as clear as a rock-crystal,
evidently a very translucent chalcedony, but the chief interest centred
in the images or figures traced by nature upon the stone. These showed
what seemed to be two forms, one of a cowled monk, and the other that of
a tall, beardless man; there was also a third, showing an undefined
form. On the under side of this _callimus_ was marked the outline of a
crescent moon.[359]
A seventeenth century writer, not otherwise uncritical, does not
hesitate to declare that he had himself witnessed, in the case of a
fig-tree, an instance of the special power exercised by the _ætites_.
One of these stones having been attached to this tree, all the fruit
dropped off in, the space of ten hours, although tree had apparently
lost nothing of its vigor, its foliage remaining as luxuriant as
before.[360]
An old treatise on the _ætites_ gives the following names as applied to
it in various languages:[361]
Italian: Aquilina, pietra d’aquila, pietra aquilina, ethite.
French: Pierre de l’aigle.
Spanish: Piedra de l’aguila.
Polish: Orlovi Kamyen.
Swedish: Oernarsteen.
English: Eagle-stone.
German: Adlerstein.
Flemish: Adelersteen, arensteen.
Arabic: Hager achtamach.
Syriac: Abno dneshre.
Chaldaic: Abno dineshar, or abno denishra.
Hebrew: ’Eben ha-nosher.
Some said that this stone might be found not only in the eagle’s nest,
but also in that of the stork. This idea was, however, entirely
erroneous in Bausch’s opinion, for though he had caused diligent search
to be made by all those who encountered such nests, no “eagle-stone”
could ever be found. To the supposed “stork-stones” had been given the
name _lychnites_, as they were believed to be luminous, their light
serving to frighten off any snakes which might be seeking the new-laid
eggs.[362]
Bausch enumerates and rejects a number of explanations to account for
the supposed presence of the _ætites_ in the nests of eagles. One theory
was that these stones served to give stability to the nest, and enabled
it better to resist the assaults of the wind; others asserted that the
coolness of the stones lowered the unduly high temperature of the eggs
and of the parent bird’s body; others again were inclined to attribute
to them a mysterious formative and vivifying power exerted on the eggs,
or else a talismanic power protecting these from injury. While rejecting
all these notions, as we have stated, and indeed denying the truth of
the assertion that such stones were ever found in eagles’ nests, Bausch
cites the authority of St. Jerome, in his commentary on Isaiah, chap.
lxvi, that the amethyst had been found with the young of the eagle,
being placed with them in the nest to protect them from venomous
creatures.[363]
That the “eagle-stones” were not always hollow is shown by a specimen
owned in the eighteenth century by the English family Postlethwayte.
This was solid, and had been cut into the shape of a heart, a hole being
pierced at the upper end so that the stone could be worn suspended. In a
curious letter written April 25, 1742, by Martha Postlethwayte, sister
of Sir Thomas Gooch, who successively presided over the episcopal sees
of Bristol, Norwich and Ely, to her daughter Barbara Kerrick, the writer
advises her correspondent, in order to avoid a repetition of former
misadventures, to “wear the eagle-stone and take Mrs. Stone’s receit,”
and adds: “I hope it may have good effect and make me a good
grandmother.” The result was favorable, and must naturally have affirmed
the faith in the powers of the stone.[364]
An inventory of the furniture, plate, jewels, etc., of Charles V of
France, made in 1379,[365] describes two stones preserved in a case of
cypress-wood which the king always carried about with him. One of these
was called the “holy stone” and aided women in childbirth. This was
probably an “eagle-stone.” It was set in gold and the setting was
adorned with four pearls, six emeralds and two balas-rubies. The other
stone, which cured the gout, was an engraved gem bearing the figure of a
king and an inscription in Hebrew characters. This description suggests
one of the Gnostic gems so common in the early Christian centuries. The
gem was suspended from a silver cord, so that it could be worn on the
neck, or perhaps attached to some other part of the body. We find in the
_comptes royaux_ of 1420 an electuary composed of powdered precious
stones, for the cure of the infirmities of Isabel of Bavaria, who was
fifty years old and had been for several years obese and a
valetudinarian.[366]
In some parts of the Orient the superstitious notion exists that the
_ætites_ occasionally emits a wailing sound during the night, and this
is said to be either an expression of the birth-pangs of the mother
stone, or else the cry of its new-born offspring, the small stones
enclosed within the geode, for the story goes that each night some of
these are generated.[367]
These “eagle-stones” still retain their repute in Italy, where they are
called _pietre gravide_, or “pregnant stones,” and are considered by
many of the peasants as almost indispensable aids to parturition. They
are in such demand that the lucky owners rent them for the nine months
during which they are worn. As soon as one case has been happily
concluded, the amulet is passed on to some other woman who is in need of
it. A fee of five lire, or one dollar, is paid in each case, and a
pledge worth a hundred lire ($20) is required before the stone is handed
over. Some amulets of this class bear Christian symbols.[368]
Geodes of this description consisting of limonite are to be found in
many places. Some of them are of relatively recent formation, and one of
these shows curiously enough that in addition to its other virtues the
_ætites_ can on occasion perform the functions of a savings-bank. This
strange specimen was found in 1846, at Périgueux, department Dordogne,
France. On opening the geode there appeared within some 200 silver coins
dated in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries; all of these were
encrusted with the material forming the enclosing mass.[369]
Long, white, rough stones, calcareous shell growths, were sometimes
taken from snails and cockles. These were believed to have a marked
diuretic action, and were therefore strongly recommended for certain
diseases of the kidneys and the bladder. They were also believed to be
helpful in cases of difficult parturition. Although no details are
given, it seems most probable that the stones were reduced to a powder
from which some sort of potion was concocted,[370] this having no more
action than so much ground shell or marble dust.
[Illustration:
Extracting an alectorius. From Johannis de Cuba’s “Ortus Sanitatis,”
Strassburg, 1483.
]
The _alectorius_ or “cock-stone” is one of the most famous of those real
or supposed animal concretions that were known in ancient times. From
the age of Pliny—and unquestionably long before his time—there was a
popular belief that this stone was only to be found in the gizzard of a
cock which had been caponed when three years old, and had lived seven
years longer. This was believed to allow the substance to acquire its
boasted virtue, for the longer it remained in the body of the capon, the
greater its power. Such a “cock-stone” never exceeded the size of a
bean. From its association with the pugnacious fowl, the _alectorius_
became a favorite stone with wrestlers, and the great and invincible
Milo of Croton is said to have owed many of his victories to the
possession of one, for if held in the mouth, it quenched the thirst and
thus refreshed the combatant.
Many other virtues of this stone are recorded; it rendered wives
agreeable to their husbands, dissolved enchantments, brought new honors
and powers in addition to those already enjoyed, and helped kings to
acquire new dominions. How persistent was the faith in the virtue of the
_alectorius_ is shown by the fact that the great astronomer Tycho Brahe
greatly valued a stone of this kind, not larger than a bean, and
believed that it brought him luck in gambling and in love. Thomas de
Cantimpré[371] says that the name signifies an allurer or enticer,
because the stone excites the love of husbands for their wives.[372] In
order to secure the due effect it should be held in the mouth, possibly
because this would render the wife less eloquent.
[Illustration:
ALECTORIVS
Alectorius. From Mercati’s “Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719.
]
A specimen of the _alectorius_ is listed in the inventories of Jean Duc
de Berry (1401–1416). It is called there a “capon-stone” and is
described as having red and white spots. Several other objects to which
talismanic virtues were ascribed are also noted, such, for instance, as
the “molar of a giant,” set in leather; probably the tooth of a
hippopotamus, or the fossil tooth of some antediluvian creature. There
is also what is termed a “tester,” composed of several “serpent’s teeth”
(_glossopetræ?_), horns of the “unicorn” (narwhal’s teeth) and stones
regarded as antidotes to poison. These were all suspended by golden
chains, and were valued at seventy-five livres tournois.[373]
As a companion piece to the “cock-stone,” the hen furnished a concretion
possessing special virtues. This came from the fowl’s gizzard and was of
a sky-blue color; its Arabic name was _hajar al-ḥattaf_. If it were worn
by an epileptic, the attacks of his malady would cease; it favored
procreation and also nullified the effects of the Evil Eye, and it kept
children from having bad dreams if placed beneath their heads when they
were sleeping. Thus the effects it was fancied to produce differed from
those ascribed to the _alectorius_.[374]
In medieval times bunches of dried “serpent’s tongues” were sometimes
hung around salt-cellars or attached to spits; but frequently, for royal
or princely use, such tongues, or the jawbones of snakes, were set with
valuable precious stones and constituted a peculiar jewel termed in old
French a _languier_, or _épreuve_ (tester); for these utensils, often
very rich and tasteful specimens of the goldsmith’s art, were believed
to show in some way the presence of the much-dreaded poison in any
viands with which they were brought in contact.[375]
The Indians and Spaniards in South America made remedial use of a stone
said to be obtained from the cayman or alligator, at Nombre de Dios,
Cartagena, etc. This was employed as a cure for various intermittent
fevers. Monardes writes that he applied two of these _lapides caymanum_
to the temples of a young girl suffering from an attack of fever, and
found that the fever was alleviated thereby; but he doubts that fevers
could be entirely cured by this treatment.[376]
From New Spain was also brought the _lapis manati_, taken from the
manatee, or sea-cow. This does not appear to have been a stone, but
rather the cochleæ of the animal, the small bones in the head which
transmit the auditory vibrations to the sensorium. They were highly
valued by the Indians for their remedial action in cramps and colic, and
the Spaniards collected them and brought them to Spain to enrich their
very miscellaneous pharmacopœia. Sometimes they were taken internally,
but often they were set in rings or worn suspended from the neck as
amulets. This stone, or bone, is described as oval in shape and of a hue
resembling that of ivory. When pulverized and dissolved, the solution
was odorless and tasteless. They are in size often as large as a woman’s
clinched fist.[377]
[Illustration:
Lapis manati. From Valentini’s “Museum Museorum, oder Vollständige
Schau-Bühne,” Frankfurt am Main, 1714.
]
The ear-bones of fish, almost invariably in pairs, are still used as
amulets in Spain and Italy. One of their chief virtues is to protect
children from the Evil Eye, as well as from accidents of any kind. They
are also believed to preserve the wearer from deafness or diseases of
the ear.[378] This is quite in accord with the primitive fancy that the
different parts of the animal body had prophylactic or curative powers
in relation to any disease of that portion of the human body.
[Illustration:
Lapis malacensis, stone of the hedgehog or porcupine. From Mercati’s
“Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719.
]
Even the spider was supposed to produce a stone having remedial power,
especially that variety called by the Germans Kreuzspinne
(“cross-spider”). The belief was general in Germany, in the sixteenth
century, that it was very unlucky to injure one of these spiders;
indeed, Encelius writes that although he had never seen a
“spider-stone,” he had never dared to dissect one of the spiders to seek
for the stone. He also remarks that it was in no wise strange this
should have such power, since spider-webs were used as remedies for many
diseases. Naturally enough the “spider-stone” was an antidote against
poisons, and a belief was current that in a year when the plague was
raging no Kreuzspinne was to be seen.[379]
An attempt to induce one of these spiders to secrete or produce its
stone or calculus is told by Simon Paulli. On his return from France in
1630, he stopped for the summer with his revered master, Sennart, at
Wittenberg, in order to pursue his studies. One day they found by chance
that an enormous spider had wandered into the rain-water holder, and the
extraordinary size of the creature—it was as big as a muscat
nut—suggested the idea of making it the subject of experiment. It was
therefore put into a glass jar with a quantity of powdered valerian
root, this material (or salt) being reputed to have a favorable
influence in the production of the stone. However, the experimenters
were doomed to disappointment, for the poor spider was unable to live up
to its reputation. Tired of waiting for nothing, recourse was finally
had to the drastic measure of dissection, but no stone of any kind could
be found. This convinced the observers that all the talk about spiders’
stones was mere foolishness or deception. In a note in the Miscellanea
Curiosa, under date of 1686, the statement is made that such stones
could indeed be found, but only in the autumn season and in no other
part of the year.[380]
A small golden amulet, having the form of a heart and set with various
stones, was strongly recommended to ward off the plague by Oswald Croll,
a writer of the early part of the seventeenth century. On the upper side
of the heart-amulet should be set a fair blue sapphire; above, beneath,
and at either side of this should be put a toad-stone, or a
“spider-stone,” so as to give a cross effect. The “spider-stones” were
asserted to be powerful enemies of the plague. On the under side of the
heart a good-sized jacinth was to be set, the jacinth also being
credited with great virtue against plague or pestilence. The gold heart
was to be hollow within. To give a finishing touch to the efficacy of
the amulet it was necessary to take a living toad and keep the creature
suspended by its hind-legs until it died and dried up so that the body
could be reduced to a powder. This powder was then to be kneaded into a
sort of paste with a little very sharp vinegar and introduced into the
hollow interior of the gold heart.[381]
The “fretful porcupine” also contributed its stone to the series of
concretions; this was usually found in the animal’s head, and was
considered to be even superior to the bezoar as an antidote against
poison. If steeped in water for a quarter of an hour, the water became
so bitter that “there was nothing in the world more bitter.” Another
stone supposed to be found in the animal’s entrails possessed like
properties, but was said to lose none of its weight when placed in
water, while the first-mentioned stone became lighter. Tavernier bought
three of these stones, paying as much as five hundred crowns for one of
them.[382]
A jewel made of ambergris, in the J. Pierpont Morgan collection, is said
to be the only specimen of its kind that has been preserved for us from
medieval times. The perfumed material has been skilfully carved into the
symbolic figures of a woman and three children. At one time believed to
symbolize Charity, the later theory is that these figures have a less
pure significance and rather denote the reproductive energies, for
ornaments of this material were credited with aphrodisiac powers;
however, they were also believed to cure stomachic disorders. The
delicate perfume they exhaled was one of their chief titles to
admiration, and after the lapse of more than three centuries, this
particular jewel still emits a fragrant aromatic odor when it has been
held for some time in a warm hand. The style of the workmanship
indicates that this is a piece of cinquecento Italian work. It was at
one time in the Wencke Collection, in Hamburg, and later formed part of
the Spitzer Collection, until the sale of the latter in 1893.[383]
While many of the reports of the finding of immense masses of ambergris
(in one the weight of the mass is given as three thousand pounds) may be
classed as at least highly improbable, still there is abundant
unmistakable evidence that very large pieces have really occasionally
been found. In Rome and in the Santa Casa of Loreto costly and
artistically shaped pieces of ambergris were to be seen, which clearly
indicated that the weight of the original unworked mass must have
greatly exceeded that of the ornamental object. There can be no doubt of
the authenticity of the details regarding a great piece of ambergris
weighing 182 pounds bought in the year 1693 from King Fidori by the
Dutch East India Company for 11,000 rigsdalers or nearly $12,000 at the
current valuation of the coin of that time. In form it resembled a
tortoise-shell, was 5 feet 8 inches thick, and 2 feet 2 inches long.
After being long kept in Amsterdam as a curiosity, and having been
viewed there by thousands of persons, it was finally broken up and sold
at auction.[384] A lump extracted from a whale in the Windward Islands
weighed 130 pounds and was sold for $3500, or nearly $27 a pound.
The livers of certain animals provided concretions called haraczi by the
Arabs; these were much used as remedies for epilepsy. The Turkish
butchers, when slaughtering animals, always examined the livers
carefully so as to secure these stones. As the Jews were said to suffer
much from melancholia and epileptic disorders they valued the
liver-stones very highly.[385]
The use of fossils as talismans and for the cure of diseases was mainly
due to their strange and various forms. As color played the most
important part in the case of precious stones, each color being looked
upon as possessing a certain symbolic significance fitting the stone for
some special use or uses, so in the case of fossils the form was the
determining factor. Sometimes it was as the form of some creature held
by the superstitious to be particularly endowed with mysterious
qualities beneficial to mankind, at other times the fossil form
suggested some part of the human body, and was therefore believed to
afford protection to this part, or to cure any disease affecting it.
This will be made clearer by a brief notice of some of the principal
fossils which were favored in ancient and medieval times, either by
popular superstition or by those who from interested motives made use of
these superstitions for the purpose of gain, although they may have only
half believed in the real virtue of the objects they sold.
[Illustration:
Lapis Judaicus. Pentremite heads. From “Museum Wormianum,” Lugduni
Batavorum, 1655.
]
The remedial quality of fossils, which were believed to have been formed
from shells and marine animals deposited during the deluge, is ascribed
by Mentzel to the fact that they had been produced by the action of
fire, and hence had the same quality as though prepared and calcined by
the chemist’s art. They were therefore believed to have great medicinal
virtues in the cure of diseases.[386]
The lapis Judaicus[387] is described as of oval form, in shape like an
olive, and sometimes provided with a stem at the upper part as though it
had grown on a tree. The stone was soft and friable and in color either
white or grayish. The “male” variety had several rows of equidistant
spines, while the “female” was quite smooth. The description and the
figured representations of the lapis Judaicus show that it was a form of
pentremite—that is, a form of crinoid. This fossil, which was said to
come from Syria and Palestine, was taken in solution as a remedy for
calculus. The larger, male stones, were regarded as the better for renal
calculus and the smaller, female stones, for vesical calculus. Hence
this fossil was sometimes called tecolithos, from τήκειν, to dissolve,
and λίθος, stone.[388] Pliny also states that this name was applied to
certain concretions found in sponges and supposed to possess similar
virtues.[389] Of the remedial use of this stone, or fossil, Galen states
that when prescribed for vesical calculi, it was pulverized in a mortar,
and the powder being mixed with water, three glasses of the solution
were given. He adds, however: “I must say that as far as I have seen
they have no effect, but they are efficient in the case of renal
calculi.”[390]
[Illustration:
Glossopetræ. Fossil shark’s teeth. From “Museum Wormianum,” Lugduni
Batavorum, 1655.
]
No fossils were more prized than the so-called _glossopetræ_ or
“tongue-stones.” Although these were really the fossilized or petrified
teeth of a species of shark, Pliny and his sources believed them to be
meteorites, which “fell from the sky when the moon was waning.” This
was, indeed, a prevalent fancy regarding all dart-shaped, pointed or
sharpened fossils, or flints. Because of this celestial origin, the
_glossopetræ_ were said to control the winds and even to affect the
motions of the moon. At a later time the chief source of supply for
these petrified teeth was the island of Malta, and they were therefore
sometimes called _lingues Melitenses_, or Maltese tongues; the Germans
named them _Steinzungen_, or “stone-tongues.” According to popular
belief these so-called Maltese tongues were petrified snakes’ tongues
and they were brought into connection with the miraculous adventure of
St. Paul on the island of Malta, when he shook off a viper that had
fastened on his hand, and sustained no injury from the bite (Acts,
xxviii, 3–5). This was taken to signify that the poison had been taken
from all the snakes on the island.[391]
The material called “St. Paul’s Earth,” said to be derived from “St.
Paul’s Cave,” in the island of Malta, was reduced to a fine powder and
made into tablets. These were stamped with the Maltese cross; sometimes
on the opposite side some other figure was impressed. As there was
temptation to sell other material for the genuine, the purchaser was
warned to be on his guard. The virtues of this powder—which was
dissolved in wine or water—were numerous, and were the same as those
ascribed to the “tongues” (_glossopetræ_) and to the “eyes”; for it was
believed to be an antidote for poisons, cured the bites of venomous
creatures, and remedied many other ills. The “eyes” were set in rings so
that the material touched the wearer’s skin; the “tongues” were worn
attached to the arm or suspended from the neck. Sometimes vessels were
made from the earth. These were filled with wine or water, the liquid
being allowed to stand until it had absorbed the virtues of the earth;
it was then taken as a potion with good effects. The “tongues” and
“eyes” were often dipped in wine or water and were supposed to transmit
their curative powers to the liquid.[392]
In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries a strange belief was prevalent
among the ignorant to the effect that the fossil sharks’-teeth, the
“tongue-stones,” were the teeth of witches who sucked the blood of
infants; these “vampires” were called _lamiæ_ in ancient times.[393]
Probably the fact that a certain species of shark bore the name _lamiæ_
gave rise to this idea, which was therefore merely due to a confusion of
names. Nevertheless we can easily understand that this popular belief
added to the repute of the _glossopetræ_, for the more dreaded the
object the greater the power it was credited with possessing. In the
seventeenth century De Laet (d. 1649), the Dutch naturalist and
geographer, received in Leyden certain _glossopetræ_ sent him by a
friend in Bordeaux, who wrote that they would cure any one suffering
from soreness of the mouth, whether this were the result of having eaten
impure food, or were produced by some derangement of the secretions. The
“tongues” were to be dipped in spring water and would cause bubbles to
form therein; as soon as these disappeared, the water was to be used as
a gargle, and the mouth was to be washed with it two or three times. De
Laet’s friend assured him that this treatment would cure the disorder in
twenty-four hours.[394]
A seventeenth century amulet of a fossil shark’s tooth, mounted in
silver and found in an excavation at Salzburg, Austria, was among the
objects exhibited by the writer for the New York branch of the American
Folk-Lore Society, in the Department of Ethnology of the Columbian
Exposition held in Chicago, in 1893. They are frequently found at Lake
Constance but are from the ancient fossiliferous formations and not from
the lake. They are often sold as amulets.
[Illustration:
Belemnites. Fossilized bony end of extinct cuttlefish. From
Aldrovandi’s “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648.
]
Fossils whose form suggested that of a more or less acutely pointed
shaft, were thought to possess special powers, sometimes offensive as
against enemies, and again defensive for the protection of the wearer.
Thus the belemnites,[395] considered to represent the form of a dart,
when dissolved and taken as a potion, were said to prevent nightmare and
to guard against enchantments. They are often either ash-colored or
whitish, and sometimes reddish-black. All these varieties were
frequently found during the sixteenth century in Hildesheim, and in the
marble grotto near the castle of Marienburg, called the “Dwarf’s
Grotto.”[396]
The umbilicus marinus, a fossil shell, which in form bore a great
likeness to the human navel, was called “sea-bean” by sailors. Usually
of a pale saffron hue, some specimens have a reddish or blackish tinge.
In the sixteenth century it was believed to have astringent properties.
We are also told that women used it as one of the ingredients of a
cosmetic for whitening the complexion.[397]
Certain echinites (fossil sea-urchins) found on the Baltic coast are
called by the peasants _Adlersteine_ and _Krallensteine_ (“eagle-stones”
and “claw-stones”), since they believe that while the substance was soft
eagles had seized them with their talons, thus producing the peculiar
forms and markings. Whoever had a fossil of this description on his
table while a thunder-storm was raging ran no risk of being struck by
lightning.[398]
Reich describes another variety of echinite, which was popularly known
as a “toad-stone,” the specimen he figures having been given him by a
certain Johannis Krauss. In this appeared some large cavities, whose
presence Reich found it very difficult to explain, until Krauss informed
him that they had been made by a former owner of the fossil who had
scraped out a few grains of the substance each year for medicinal use.
He was persuaded that his long life—he attained the age of eighty—was
entirely owing to his employment of this remedy.[399]
The _trochites_ and _entrochus_, named Räderstein, or “wheel-stone,” by
the Germans, are other fossils to which remedial or talismanic virtue
was accorded in popular fancy. These “wheel-stones,” while detachable,
fitted as closely together in the original formation as though they had
been skilfully adjusted by a clever artisan.[400] De Laet states that
when immersed in oil they gave forth bubbles and moved about
spontaneously. Still another of these fossils believed to be amulets was
the _enastros_, which De Boot terms the _asteria vera_, or genuine
asteria, since it not merely showed a star-shaped marking as did the
fossil coral bearing the name astroites, but was shaped like a
five-pointed star. As with the _trochites_, chains of these little stars
were found, closely joined together but separable from one another. Some
called them “star-seals,” because the stellar imprint was sharp and
clearly defined as though the work of an engraver or gem-cutter.[401]
These fossils are types of encrinites.
[Illustration:
Brontia. Fossil sea-urchins. From Mercati’s “Metallotheca Vaticana,”
Romæ, 1719.
]
[Illustration: TROCHITES]
[Illustration: ENASTROS]
Trochites│Fossil
│Crinoid From Mercati, “Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719.
Enastros │Stems.
The sections of the stem-like fossils called _entrochus_ by the older
writers have been named St. Cuthbert’s beads in later times, while the
fossil called _lapis Judaicus_ has borne the name of “stone-lily,”
because in form it resembles the lily. Ages ago the stem and flower-like
head united constituted a crinoid (a marine zoophyte). These aquatic
creatures—half-plant and half-animal—usually twine their roots about
some shell in the depths of the waters, but sometimes they become
detached and then, moving their delicate tentacles, they creep along the
bottom of the sea.
[Illustration:
Bucardites triplex. From Aldrovandi’s “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ,
1648.
]
In olden times parts, or segments, of an animal were worn as a
protection against harm from that particular creature, or else to endow
the wearer with some of its real or fancied qualities. In modern times
this tendency finds expression in the wearing of jewels of animal form,
wherein precious stones are grouped and arranged so as to constitute
different parts of the creature’s body. Such jewels are often looked
upon as “mascots.”
A peculiar fossil was known to the Germans by the name of Mutterstein,
and is called _hysterolithus_ in the Latin treatises of Agricola, De
Boot, etc., a word of Greek derivation signifying the resemblance of the
object to an organ of the body. These fossils are formed from the
contents of certain shells, and retain the shape of the enclosing shell,
which has broken away. Some of these formations were called _enorchi_
from a fancied resemblance to another organ and were regarded as phallic
emblems, while others were thought to figure the heart, especially large
specimens being named _bucardites_, or “ox-hearts.” This name is already
employed by Pliny. The _hysterolithus_ was used to cure various female
diseases, and to the _bucardites_ was accorded among other virtues that
of increasing the wearer’s courage.[402] The _hysterolithus_ is believed
to be the same as the _autoglyphus_ mentioned by pseudo-Plutarch as
having been found in the river Sagaris, in Asia Minor. Its peculiar
shape was regarded as symbolizing Cybele, the mother of the gods, and
the story ran that if one of the unfortunate male victims of Eastern
jealousy should obtain a stone of this kind he would become reconciled
to his sad lot and would cease to regret his lost manhood.
[Illustration:
Types of Ombria (Fossil Sea Urchins). From Mercati’s “Metallotheca
Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719.
]
If we were inclined to accord the title of precious stones to stones
greatly esteemed for their talismanic virtues, a high place in this
category would be assigned to the sâlagrâma-stone of the Hindus.[403]
Among the aboriginal inhabitants of India this was regarded as a symbol
of the female principle in nature, and of its representative the goddess
Prakrti, and in the later Hindu belief the stone was looked upon as the
special emblem of the god Vishnu, the “Preserver,” the second personage
of the Hindu Trimurti. It is therefore ardently revered by those who are
more especially devoted to the worship of Vishnu. These stones are
fossil formations, either of ammonites or univalve mollusks of a spiral
order, and consist of a number of spirals surrounding a circular,
central perforation. They are generally the hardened filling of the
shell itself, which has entirely weathered away. For the stone to be an
effectual talisman, the diameter of the perforation should not exceed
one-eighth of the total diameter of the sâlagrâma. The best specimens
are said to be found in Nepal, on the upper course of the Gandakî, which
flows into the Ganges from the north, and is called the Salagrama River,
because the sacred stone is found in it.
[Illustration:
Cornu ammonis (Fossil Nautilus.) From “Museum Wormianum,” Lugduni
Batavorum, 1655.
]
There can be little doubt that we have here a substance similar to the
fossils described by Pliny and his successors under the names _brontia_,
_ombria_, _ovum anguinum_, and _cornu ammonis_, and it is most probable
that in India, as in Europe, these fossils were believed to have fallen
from heaven, and were associated with the thunderbolt. Hence they would
be regarded by the Hindus as more especially sacred to Vishnu, who was
originally a divinity representing the various forms of light, one of
his manifestations being the lightning.
The sâlagrâmas must be carefully chosen, for not all of them are
luck-bringing, some being bearers of ill-fortune. A black sâlagrâma
brings fame to the owner, and a red one, a crown; but one with an unduly
large perforation would cause dissension and strife in a family, one
with irregularly formed spirals portends misfortune, and a brown one
would bring to pass the death of its owner’s wife. Each faithful
worshipper of Vishnu has one of these stones, but two may not be in the
same house. To give away a sâlagrâma would be equivalent to casting away
every prospect of good fortune. However, only one who belongs to the
three highest castes is entitled to become an owner of the sacred stone,
in which the very spirit of Vishnu is supposed to dwell; neither a Sudra
nor a Pariah enjoys this privilege, which is also denied to women.
The sâlagrâma is carefully wrapped in linen cloths, and must be often
washed and perfumed. The water with which it has been washed becomes a
consecrated drink. The master of the house must adore the stone once
each day, either in the morning or in the evening. As the sâlagrâma not
only brings happiness in this world but also insures felicity in the
future world, it is held over the dying Hindu while water is allowed to
trickle through the orifice. This ceremony appears to have a certain
analogy to the rite of extreme unction administered in the Catholic
Church.
It is stated by Finn Magnusen that in Iceland, toward the beginning of
the last century, he saw superstitious peasants carefully guard small
stones of peculiar appearance in pretty bags filled with fine flour.
They treated these stones with great reverence and either wore them on
their persons or placed them in their beds or other furniture.[404]
The fossils known as _brontiæ_, _ombriæ_ and _chelonites_ were all
believed to be antidotes for poison and also to make the wearer
victorious over his enemies. Hence they were sometimes set in the
pommels of swords. That these objects were equally potent in peace, is
shown by the fact that Danish peasant women placed them in their milk
pails to ward off the effects of any spell that might have been cast
over the cow’s milk by a malevolent witch.[405]
David Reich notes the four kinds of astroites, or “victory stones,”
given by De Boot; the first, marked with small stars; the second, with
rose-like figures; the third, with wavy lines, like the convolutions of
a worm; the fourth, with obscure and indefinite markings. To these
varieties Reich adds a fifth, the convex side of which was marked with
black crosses, while the other, flat side, showed larger crosses
surrounded by circles; all these markings were so perfect that an artist
could scarcely imitate them; this specimen he had set, with other
precious gems, in a silver cross, the flat side of the fossil, at the
back of the cross, being covered by a heart-shaped topaz.[406] These
were all specimens of fossil coral.
[Illustration:
_.ASTROITES._
Specimens of Astroites (asteria), or fossil coral. From Mercati’s
“Metallotheca Vaticana,”
Romæ, 1719.
]
The saga of Dietrich of Bern relates of King Nidung that on the eve of a
battle in which his forces were much inferior to those of the enemy, he
was filled with despair to find that he had left his “victory stone” in
his castle, miles away from where he had pitched his tent. Overmastered
by his desire to regain possession of his stone at this critical time,
Nidung offered a large sum of money and his daughter’s hand to anyone
who would bring it to him before the battle began. The distance was so
great and the time so short that the task seemed utterly impossible, and
a young esquire, Velint by name, was the only one willing to risk the
enterprise. He was favored in his quest by having a horse of wonderful
strength and endurance, by whose help he barely succeeded in making the
long journey to the castle and returning in time. King Nidung, wearing
his invincible stone, was the victor in the battle, and he did not fail
to carry out his rather rash promise.[407]
Amulets of fossil coral are freely used in Italy, especially in the
province of Aquila, and are called “witch-stones” (_pietre stregonie_).
These are similar to one type of the “asterias” worn as amulets in
ancient and medieval times. Many of the Italian amulets are incised or
engraved with Christian subjects, one figured by Bellucci bearing the
head of Christ on the obverse, and Christ on the cross on the reverse
side; on others appears the image of the Virgin Mary.[408]
Crystalline quartz will sometimes show a star either at base or apex, if
cut _en cabochon_. This is due to the presence of acicular crystals of
rutile or to air spaces. Those specimens from Albany, Maine and other
places present this phenomenon, and Starolite and Astrolite or “star
stone” has been suggested as an appropriate name for this variety.
V
Snake-Stones and Bezoars
The bezoar stone, according to the usual belief, was taken from the
intestines or the liver either of the goat or of the deer. The Arabs
told a strange tale as to the generation of this stone.[409] They said
that at certain seasons the deer were wont to devour snakes and other
venomous creatures, whereupon they would straightway hasten to the
nearest pool and plunge into it until only their nostrils were above the
water. Here they remained until the feverish heat caused by the poison
they had swallowed was alleviated. During this time stones were formed
in the corners of their eyes; these dropped as the deer left the pool,
and were found on its banks. The stones were a sovereign antidote for
poisons of all kinds. When reduced to a powder and taken internally, or
when simply bound to the injured part, they effected a cure by inducing
a profuse perspiration. It is curious to note that this tale
foreshadows, in a fanciful way, the latest progress of medical science;
namely, the use of a substance generated in the body of a diseased
animal as an antidote for the disease from which the animal suffered.
We are also told that Abdallah Narach narrates the case of the Moorish
king of Cordoba, Miramamolin, as Monardes gives the name, to whom a
violent poison had been administered and who was cured by means of a
bezoar stone. The king, overcome with gratitude for the preservation of
his life, gave his royal palace to the man who had brought him the
stone. Monardes remarks: “This certainly was a royal gift, since we see
that at this day the castle of Cordova is something rare and of great
value and the stone must have been highly prized when such a price was
paid for it.”[410]
[Illustration:
Application of a besoar to cure a victim of poisoning. From Johannis
de Cuba’s “Ortus Sanitatis,” Strassburg, 1483.
]
The first mention of the bezoar stone is by the Arabic and Persian
writers. In the Arabic work attributed to Aristotle, and which was
certainly written as early as the ninth and possibly in the seventh
century, it is even described among the precious stones. The same is
true of the oldest Persian work on medicine, namely, that of Abu Mansur
Muwaffak, composed about the middle of the tenth century. A valuable
monograph on the bezoar was written in 1625 by Caspar Bauhin, a learned
professor and physician of Basel; this work contains all that was then
known of the various qualities ascribed to this substance by the older
authors.
The bezoar does not appear to have been used medicinally in Europe
before the twelfth century, when the so-called pestilential fevers
became very prevalent. In their distress people turned to the lapis
bezoar, which was so highly recommended by the Arabic physicians whose
works were, at that time, becoming more widely known through the
intercourse between the Spaniards and the Moors. Caspar Bauhin
writes:[411] “Even to-day princes and nobles prize it very highly and
guard it in their treasures among their most precious gems; so that the
physicians are forced, sometimes against their better judgment, to
employ it as a remedy. So great are its virtues that many imitations are
made.”
The name bezoar, derived from the Persian _padzahr_ (_pad_, expelling;
_zahr_, poison), or some of its many variants, was often used to
designate any antidote for poison, so that the Arabs would say that such
or such a substance was the bezoar for a particular poison. This should
be understood to signify that the stone received its name because it was
regarded as a specially powerful antidote.
The various authors give many different sources for the bezoar. We have
already cited Monardes and repeated his account; other writers asserted
that this concretion came from the heads of certain animals, others
again said that it was taken from their livers, and still others stated
that it was formed in the eye of the stag. Naturally, concretions of a
similar form and quality may well have been obtained from any of these
sources. Indeed, one of the most potent bezoars was that taken from the
monkey. A specimen of this kind is described and figured in the Museum
Brittanicum[412] with the following description:
A Monkey’s Bezoar, very much resembling one from the goat, of an
oblong shape broke in two, with a long straw, or some such like
substance in its centre; its colour brown, pink, or deep yellow. I
found it set as generally they are for preservation in a little chest,
or case, of what is called _Lignum Læevisiunum_; the pith or medula of
which appears to resemble the common elder, and may, for what I know,
be as curious as the stone itself.
Toll quotes[413] Jacob Bontius to the effect that these monkey bezoars,
which were rounded and a little longer than the finger, were considered
the best of all.
As the chief quality claimed for the bezoar was that it induced a
profuse perspiration, we might understand that it could have a
beneficial effect in some cases. It was also remarked that the solution
of the stone blackened the teeth and those who used it were therefore
obliged to take great care that the medicine should not touch their
teeth.
[Illustration:
Monkey bezoar. From Valentini’s “Museum Museorum oder Vollständige
Schau-Bühne,” Frankfurt am Main, 1714.
]
We learn that a genuine stone was valued at 50 gold crowns (about $125)
in Calcutta; another is said to have brought 130 crowns ($325). De Boot
states that a drachm of the powdered stone was worth two ducats ($5) in
Lower Germany and four ($10) in Upper Germany; why, he does not say.
Garcias ab Horto, a Portuguese physician of Goa, in India, describes a
variety of the bezoar called the Lapis Malacensis, used as an antidote
for poisons in Malacca. This was found in the liver of the hedgehog, and
the substance was held in such esteem that of two found in the fifteenth
Century, one was sent as a very valuable gift to the Portuguese Viceroy
at Goa. Garcias describes this as being of a light purple hue, bitter to
the taste and smooth as the skin of a toad. The custom was to steep the
stone in water for some time and then to give this water to the patient
as a medicinal draught. A specimen was brought to Rome from Portugal by
Cardinal Alexandrinus, and Mercato states that he had seen a test of its
virtues as an antidote for poisons. In the opinion of De Boot: “As an
antidote for any poison which may have been administered, nothing more
excellent than the bezoar stone can be had.”[414] It was even asserted
that if a bezoar set in a ring were frequently placed in the mouth and
sucked, this would afford a cure for poison by inducing a profuse
perspiration.[415] Besides its exceptional quality as an antidote for
poisons, this stone was regarded as a panacea for all chronic and
painful diseases, especially if taken each morning for several days,
after the use of a cathartic.
[Illustration:
1. Hedge-hogstone from Malacca. 2, 3. Spurious stones of this type
manufactured in Ceylon. From Kaempfer’s “Amœnitatum exoticarum
fasciculi V,” Lemgoviæ, 1712.
]
Besides this use as a remedy or antidote, the bezoar was credited with
the powers of an elixir of life, for some of the Hindus employed it as a
preservative of youth and vigor. Twice a year, after dosing themselves
with a strong cathartic medicine, they would take ten grains of powdered
bezoar daily for fifteen days, and they are said to have derived great
benefit from this treatment.[416]
The celebrated practical test of the bezoar’s power as an antidote to
poison, recorded by the famous French surgeon, Ambroise Paré
(1510–1590), was performed in Paris with one which had been brought from
Spain to Charles IX of France. Clearly the only perfectly satisfactory
means of ascertaining whether the reputed virtues of this curious
concretion were really present was to make an experiment therewith upon
a living human being. Now it chanced that just at this time there was in
the royal prison a cook who had stolen two silver dishes from his
master, and who, in accord with the pitiless laws of that period, had
been condemned to death for this offence. Here was an excellent
opportunity, therefore, to make a trial of the bezoar, but as the
adjudged legal penalty could not well be arbitrarily changed to some
other form of death, the matter was first laid before the condemned man
himself, with the promise that should he not succumb to the poison he
would be given his liberty. As at the worst this was taking a chance of
life in exchange for certain death, the cook readily consented. The
necessary preparations having been made, the poison was administered and
immediately thereafter the man was given a dose composed of a part of
the bezoar reduced to powder and dissolved in liquid. The effects of the
poison were soon manifested by violent retching and purging, and when
Paré was called in an hour later, he found the man in great agony, with
blood issuing from his nose, ears and mouth, and from the other bodily
apertures. He piteously complained that he felt as though consumed by an
inward flame, and before another hour had passed he expired, crying out
that it would have been much better to have died by hanging. From his
report, Paré seems not to have been present when the poison was given
and not to have been informed of its character, as he merely states that
from the results of his autopsy and from the symptoms he had observed,
he concluded that it was corrosive sublimate. Probably, conscientious
and truly religious as he was, he was unwilling to take an active part
in such an affair. The king ordered that his discredited bezoar should
be cast into the fire and destroyed. As an illustration of Ambroise
Paré’s humility and piety we may cite his remark on the recovery of one
of his patients: “I treated him and God cured him.”[417] It was Paré who
operated upon Admiral Coligny after the unsuccessful attempt on the
latter’s life made a few days before his assassination on St.
Bartholomew’s Day, August 24, 1572, at the outset of the dreadful
massacre.
Alluding to the ill-success attending the experiment performed by
Ambroise Paré, in order to test effectively the supposed virtues of the
substance as an antidote for poisons, Engelbert Kaempfer remarks that
Paré’s bezoar may have been of inferior quality, and, moreover, bezoars
could not be successfully used to counteract mineral poisons, but were
only useful when vegetable poisons had been taken. This opinion was
probably due to the fact that the bezoar itself is largely or in the
main a vegetable substance. That the interior layers of a specimen
should be inferior in quality to the external layers was not for
Kaempfer a proof of its spurious character, but might easily be
accounted for by a change of pasturage in the case of the creature in
whose body the concretion had formed.
This writer asserts that he considered those bezoars to be genuine which
were of a partly resinous and partly mineral composition, so that when
pulverized they could be dissolved in nitric acid, the solution having a
reddish hue. The Persians not only attributed to bezoars the same
virtues as did the Europeans, but also recommended the administration of
the bezoar elixir to persons in health, that they might avoid
contracting disease and prolong their lives, more especially if the dose
were taken at the beginning of the year. In general, however, he found
that where Europeans used the bezoar as a remedy, the Persians gave a
dose of pearl tincture instead; but as rarities, or perhaps as
talismans, bezoars were even more highly prized in Persia than in
Europe, for there was hardly a Persian of note who did not preserve one
of these concretions among his treasures. The price depended upon
perfection of form and color, as well as upon size, one weighing a
mishkel (about 75 grains Troy) was commonly valued at one toman, the
equivalent of 15 ounces of silver (about $20), according to Kaempfer’s
computation, but the price rose rapidly with the size of the bezoar in a
proportion similar to that observable in the case of pearls. As Persian
bezoars were so costly in Persia, and the home demand for them so great,
those sold by this name in Europe must have had another origin.[418]
Of several experiments made with criminals to whom poison was
administered and then a dose of bezoar to test its virtues as an
antidote, one of the most interesting has to do with a criminal
incarcerated in the prison at Prague, in the reign of Emperor Rudolph
II. To this man a drachm of the deadly poison _aconitum napellus_ was
administered. Five hours were allowed to elapse before the bezoar was
given, so that the poison should have full time to be absorbed by the
system. During this time the effects were fully manifested, oppression
at the chest, pain in the gastric region, dimness of vision and
dizziness. When the five hours had expired five grains of bezoar were
given to the man in a little wine. After taking the dose he felt some
relief and vomited, but the bad symptoms soon returned and even became
aggravated, as though a supreme conflict for the mastery between poison
and antidote were in progress. There was delirium, extreme tension of
the abdomen, repeated vomiting, and an irregular, feverish pulse;
finally an acute inflammation of the eyes supervened, causing such
intense pain that the man declared he would rather die than endure it
longer. However, at the end of eight hours’ time from the administration
of the poison—three hours after the dose of bezoar had been given—all
the morbid conditions passed off, the patient was able to eat food with
relish and he slept quietly. In the morning he was perfectly well, and
never realized any subsequent bad effects. The emperor released him from
prison and even bestowed a handsome reward upon him.[419]
A strange experiment to determine the character and quality of bezoars
is related by Kaempfer on the authority of Jager. The latter asserted
that while in Golconda he had the opportunity of examining recently
captured gazelles for the presence of bezoars, and that by compressing
their abdomens he could distinctly feel two such concretions in the case
of one of the animals and five or six in the case of the other. They
were kept some days for further observation, but as they absolutely
refused all food, it was decided to kill them rather than have them
starve to death. This was done, but when the bodies were opened no trace
of any bezoar could be found, and Jager conjectures that the substance
of these concretions had been absorbed into the system of the animal for
lack of any other nourishment.[420]
In his memoirs, Jehangir Shah relates that an Afghan once brought from
the Carnetic two goats said to have bezoar stones [pâzahar] in their
bodies. Jehangir was much surprised to note that these animals were fat
and healthy looking, as he had always been told that those having
bezoars were invariably thin and wretched in appearance. However, the
Afghan was shown to be correct in his conjecture, for when one of the
goats was killed and the body opened four fine bezoars were brought to
light.[421]
About the beginning of the eighteenth century, Charles Jacques Poncet, a
French physician, was called to the court of the Abyssinian monarch of
that time. One of the favorite remedies of this Frenchman was a kind of
artificial bezoar, which he claims to have used with great success in
cases of intermittent fever. This so-called bezoar he administered to
the sovereign and to two of his children, and he also revealed to the
Abyssinian king the secret of its composition. He tells us that this
“Emperor of Ethiopia,” as he terms him, showed great interest in medical
science, and listened eagerly to explanations of the character and
operation of the various remedies.[422]
The Indians of Peru had their own theory as to the genesis of the bezoar
stone. In relation to this Joseph de Acosta writes:[423]
The Indians relate from the traditions and teachings of their
ancestors, that in the province of Xaura, and in other provinces of
Peru there are various poisonous herbs and animals which empoison the
waters and pastures where they [the vicuñas, etc.] drink and eat. Of
these poisonous herbs, one is right well known by a natural instinct
to the vicuña and to the other animals which engender the bezoar, and
they eat of this herb and thus preserve themselves from the poison of
the waters and pastures. The Indians also say that the stone is formed
in the stomachs of these animals from this herb, whence comes the
virtue it possesses as an antidote for poisons, as well as its other
marvellous properties.
Of the mineral bezoar, which was also regarded as an antidote against
poisons, Mohammed ben Mançur relates that various ornamental figures
were formed from it, such as small images of the Shah or little female
figures; these were perhaps regarded as talismans. Knife-handles were
also made of this material,[424] and here the use may have been
connected with the belief in the curative power of the bezoar, if
brought into direct contact with the skin, as would be the case when the
knife-handle was grasped in the hand.
A mineral bezoar bearing a close likeness to the animal concretion was
found in Sicily. This stone was usually round, sometimes oblong like an
egg, and sometimes compressed; its usual size was about that of a
pigeon’s egg, the largest stone not surpassing the size of a hen’s egg.
It was commonly white, occasionally of a somewhat ashy hue, and the
surface was generally smooth, though now and then it was rough with
small protuberances. Its taste resembled that of the white _bolus
armenus_. The composition of this stone was similar to that of the
Oriental bezoar of animal origin, having the same layers, and in the
centre a small mass of sand over which nature had imposed from eight to
ten layers, just as in the animal bezoar.[425]
A peculiar bezoar is reported from Indrapura, India. This was said to
have been found in the skull of a rhinoceros, and was of light weight
and of a black hue, varying to pale red when held against the light; it
was hard enough to cut glass. The owner believed it to be a panacea for
all ills. For blood-spitting it was held in the mouth; for rheumatism,
bruises, or burns, it was rubbed over the affected part; and for the
bites of venomous creatures it was simply laid upon the wound; even
those at the point of death were revived by it.[426]
An amulet set with a bezoar stone is said to have possessed such a power
to prevent bleeding that when a Malacca prince was killed in a battle
with his rebellious subjects, no blood was flowing from any of his
numerous wounds. On stripping the body a golden armlet set with a bezoar
came to view, and the moment this was removed blood began to flow freely
from the wounds.[427]
Mercato writes of a marvellous Occidental bezoar, sent from Peru to Rome
in 1534, as a gift to Pope Gregory XIII. It weighed no less than
fifty-six ounces, although it was defective, since a large portion of
the exterior crust was missing, the second layer was partly broken away,
and even the third layer was damaged in some places. This wonderful
concretion had been dedicated to one of the Peruvian gods, as a rare and
precious object, and it was taken away by the Spaniards when they
spoiled the temple. Mercato says that this bezoar was “of a truly
monstrous size, unheard of in all previous centuries, and it is still
the largest in the whole realm of nature.”[428]
The bezoars of the New World seem to have differed considerably from
those of India. They had a rough surface, were usually of a gray color,
of various sizes and forms, and composed of a number of superimposed,
coalescing layers, much thicker than those of the Oriental, or Indian,
bezoar. They were usually of considerable size, either hollow within or
containing seeds, needles and similar substances. They came from the
West Indies, especially from Peru, and were brought thence by the
Spaniards and Portuguese. The greater number were found in a kind of
chamois; however, we are told that the bezoar was not found in all these
animals, “but only in the old ones.”[429]
A letter written in the sixteenth century by one who had travelled
extensively in India and in Peru, illustrates the ideas of that time
regarding both Oriental and Occidental bezoars:
A gentleman living about twenty-eight years in these Countries, writes
to his Friend, that he saw those Animals out of which comes the
Bezoar, and saith, they are very like _Goats_, only they have no
Horns; and are so swift, that they are forc’d to shoot them with guns.
He tells us, that he and some Friends, on the 10th of _June_ 1568,
hunted some of these Creatures, and in five Days kill’d many of them;
and that in one of the oldest of them, they made diligent Search for
the stone, but found it not, neither in the Ventricle, nor in any
other Part of the Animal. They ask’d the Indians that attended upon
them, where the Stones lay; they denied they knew anything of them,
being very envious and unwilling to disclose such a Secret. At length
(he saith) a Boy about twelve years old perceiving us to be very
inquisitive, and to be very desirous of Satisfaction in that
Particular, shew’d us a certain Receptacle and (as it were) a _Purse_,
into which they receive their eaten herbs, which afterwards when
churned, they convey into the Ventricle.[430]
The same circumstances were observed by this informant in regard to the
Peruvian bezoars, and from the “pouch” of one of these animals were
taken no less than nine stones, “which, by the help of nature, seemed to
be made of the Juice of those salutiferous Herbs, which were crammed up
into this little Pouch.”[431]
While the Occidental bezoar from South America enjoyed a special repute
in Europe in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when bezoars were
so freely used as poison-antidotes, and for the cure of fevers and other
diseases, it has been doubted whether the aborigines of South America
ever valued them in any way before the time of the Spanish Conquest.
What seems, however, to be a proof that they sometimes did so, is
afforded by the discovery of a bezoar, probably taken from the body of a
llama, in a tomb at Cojitambo, in the Cañari region of Ecuador. In spite
of the contrary opinion expressed by Garcilasso de la Vega, there is
reason to believe that such animal concretions were used by these
Indians in magic practices. The Quichua name is _illa_, and Holquin in
his Quichua dictionary says that the natives believed that bezoars were
luck-bringing stones. Another name, _quicu_, is vouched for by Arriaga,
who states that the Spaniards found some bezoars stained with the blood
of sacrificial victims, thus showing that they were thought to possess a
certain religious or mystic significance. Another author, Don Vasco de
Contreros y Vievedo, writing in 1650, states that the most highly valued
of these concretions among the natives of South America were those taken
from the American tapir, which they called _danta_.[432]
The comparative value of Oriental and Occidental bezoars was still an
open question toward the end of the sixteenth century. In a letter
written by Sir George Carew to Sir Robert Cecil, on October 10, 1594,
the former states that he had submitted a bezoar from the West Indies to
a London jeweler named Josepho, who had told him that had the substance
come from the East Indies he would value it as high as £100, but that
never having made trial of West Indian bezoars, he would not venture on
an estimate, although he did not doubt but that they were quite as good.
Nevertheless he would not care to buy this one before having tested its
virtues experimentally.[433]
That good Queen Bess shared the beliefs of her age as to the virtues of
stones is well known, and she appears to have regarded her bezoars as
worthy of a place among the treasures of the Crown, for in the inventory
of the jewels made at the accession of James I we read:
Also one greate Bezar stone, sett in goulde that was Queene
Elizabeth’s, with some Unicorne’s Horne, in a paper; and one other
large Bezar stone, broken in peeces, delivered to our owne handes, by
the Lord Brooke, the two and twentith day of Januarie, one thousand
sixe hundred and twenty and two.[434]
After the death of Rudolph II, in 1612, the Venetian envoy, Girolamo
Soranzo, wrote to the Doge, “No other monarch has ever accumulated so
many jewels.” He also communicates the fact that some at least of these
gems were to follow him to the grave, for when interred, his head was
covered with a cap adorned with many valuable precious stones. However,
Rudolph’s fondness for the more splendid gems and jewels was accompanied
by a very particular taste for the collection of Oriental bezoars, of
which a large number are noted as in his possession at the time of his
death. These ranged in weight from 1 loth (½ oz. Troy) to 25½ loth (a
little more than one pound Troy); most of them were provided with a rich
gold setting, and one especially prized bezoar, weighing about 8 ounces,
reposed in a silver box decorated with 32 diamonds and 26 rubies.
Another of very singular shape, resembling “four toes,” is also entered
on the list. Besides these the imperial collection included several
other curious animal concretions, probably regarded as having
therapeutic virtues, such, for instance, as a “stone” from the body of a
doe; this had been found by a certain Helmhardt Jörger and by him
presented to the emperor; another of these treasured concretions came
from the stomach of a stag. A specimen of the famed “eagle-stone” is
also listed; this had a double gold setting, and on it were inscribed
the words “Piedra Geodas,” showing that the real character of this stone
as a geode was then well understood.[435]
Some of the gold mounted bezoars of Rudolph II are still to be seen in
the Hofmuseum, at Vienna. One is surrounded by a gold band with a scroll
pattern; another has a capping of gold and stands upon a golden base,
and still another, capped and belted with gold, is attached by a chain
to a golden bowl. This was probably to be used as a test of the freedom
from poison of any beverage in the vessel. A bezoar of the eighteenth
century is mounted upon a tree of gold, against the trunk of which a
wild boar is leaning. This may be only a decorative adjunct, or it might
be an indication of the particular animal source of this special
bezoar.[436]
The bezoars of Borneo are taken either from monkeys or porcupines. For
medicinal use, the gratings are dissolved in water and the solution is
administered as required. Skeats relates that he was once asked $200 by
a native for a small stone, erroneously asserted to be a bezoar. This
stone was carefully wrapped up in cotton and preserved in a tin box with
some grains of rice, the owner firmly believing that the stone fed on
the rice. A red monkey (semnopithecus) furnishes many of these bezoars,
but those from the porcupine are supposed to be so much the more
efficacious that the Sultan of Saik claims all bezoars of this kind
found in his dominions as his personal property; nevertheless, many are
said to be surreptitiously taken out of the country by Malayan or
Chinese traders. A remarkably fine specimen in the possession of the
Sultan is valued at $900; small ones may be worth no more than $40, but
the value increases very rapidly with the size of the concretion. Though
it is confidently believed that the bezoars work wonderful cures in
diseases of the bowels and of the respiratory organs, the natives value
them chiefly as aphrodisiacs, this action being secured either by
wearing them or by taking them in solution.[437]
[Illustration:
BEZOARS OF EMPEROR RUDOLPH II, NOW IN THE HOFMUSEUM, VIENNA
]
The Chinese work entitled P’ing-chou-k’o-t’an, by Chu Yü, written in the
first quarter of the twelfth century, mentions the _mo-so_ stone (the
bezoar) and states that it was worn in finger rings. Should anyone have
reason to suppose that he had taken poison, all he had to do in order to
escape any bad effects was to lick the bezoar stone set in his ring. The
Chinese writer adds that it might thus be justly called “a life
preserver.”[438]
The Dayaks of Borneo have a method for producing bezoars which they call
_guligas_. This is to shoot an animal with an unpoisoned arrow. When the
wound heals, there is often a hardening of the skin, which finally
results in the formation of a _guliga_. In some of these concretions the
point of the arrow still remains. The _guligas_ of natural formation are
frequently found between the flesh and the skin of apes and
porcupines.[439]
In the eighteenth century Valmont de Bomare reports that the bezoars of
the hedgehog commanded the highest price. These were greasy and soapy,
both to the eye and to the touch, and of a greenish or yellowish color;
a few were reddish or blackish. They were so highly valued in Holland
that a Jew in Amsterdam asked 6000 livres ($1200) for a specimen in his
possession as large as a pigeon’s egg; and such bezoars were even rented
in Holland and Portugal, at the rate of one ducat ($2.50) a day, to
those who were exposed to contagion, and believed that the bezoars, if
worn as amulets, would protect them from the danger.[440]
In a letter to the Macon, Georgia, _Journal and Messenger_ of August,
1854, Major J. D. Wilkes, of Dooley County, relates that while hunting
he shot down a fine buck. He states that on cutting up the animal he
found a stone of a dark greenish color, about where the windpipe joins
the lights. It was from an inch and a half to two inches long, and quite
heavy for its size, although it appeared to be porous. Major Wilkes says
that he had heard of similar stones from old hunters, and had been told
that they possessed the power of extracting poison, but that they were
rarely found. The communication proceeds to relate a case where this
stone was successfully applied to a dog which had been bitten by a
rattlesnake. We have here one of the few notices extant regarding an
American bezoar stone.[441]
An American bezoar taken from the stomach of a deer killed in the
Chilhowee Mountains, in Tennessee, was reported in 1866 by Prof. David
Christy. In extracting this concretion the hunter had damaged the outer
layer, but when this was removed there remained a perfectly smooth,
round body, about the size and shape of a hen’s egg, and of a light
brown color. When Professor Christy obtained it, this bezoar had already
acquired the reputation of possessing great though somewhat undefined
virtues; he presented it to Professor Wood of the Ohio Medical College
in Cincinnati.[442]
Writing of bezoars in the year 1876, Dr. Learned states that Signor
Korkos, of Morocco, showed him one for which he had paid twelve dollars.
It was as large as a small walnut, the surface being smooth and
cream-colored; a section revealed the presence of the concentric
circular layers characterizing the formation of this concretion. For
remedial use it was rubbed on a stone until a sufficient quantity of its
powder was obtained, which was then diluted in liquid and administered
as a potion. Strict dieting and absolute rest in the house for seven
days were an essential part of the treatment, the bezoar powder being
more especially recommended in diseases of the heart, liver or other
internal organs, but for sore eyes and for rheumatism its virtues were
praised. This illustrates a modern employment of the concretion in
Mohammedan Morocco.[443]
Some medical authorities of the sixteenth century were disposed to
regard the calculus produced by the human subject as superior in
medicinal efficacy to the far-famed bezoar. One of their arguments was
that as man was the highest type of organized being a human product must
exceed in value one from an animal source; then again, his food was of
the best, superior in quality to that taken by the animals furnishing
the bezoars. For every theory a proof can be found if one is on the
lookout for it, and therefore we need not be surprised if the virtues of
calculi or gravel were also supported by evidence. In 1624 or 1625 the
Dutch city of Leyden was visited by the plague, and to the great regret
of the physicians there was no supply of bezoars on hand. Hereupon they
were driven to make use of human gravel, and found to their astonishment
that this was an even more excellent sudorific than the bezoar
itself.[444]
[Illustration:
Calculi taken from the bladder of Pope Pius V. From Mercati’s
“Metallotheca Vaticana.” Romæ, 1719.
]
Although there is no direct relation between bezoars and the hair-balls
sometimes found in the stomach or intestines of human beings, there is
some slight analogy, as the animal bezoar concretions seem to have been
formed about a nucleus consisting of some indigestible material that has
been swallowed by an animal. From the report of hospital surgeons, it
appears that these hair-balls, which result from a long-continued habit
of swallowing hair, are almost exclusively found in the bodies of women,
generally of very young girls. The large size which they sometimes
attain is very surprising; in several instances they have so filled up
the stomach that they are moulded by it into its exact shape. Although
when a hair-ball has reached this size, and indeed long before, the most
alarming symptoms set in, frequently recurrent vomiting being the most
characteristic, we cannot but wonder how it is possible for _any_ food
to enter and pass through the stomach under such conditions, the only
explanation being the great power of dilation this organ possesses. Its
disposition to patiently tolerate foreign bodies where it cannot expel
them, renders it often a poor guide in a diagnosis based upon the
patient’s personal experience. These hair-balls accumulate and lodge not
only in the stomach but also in the intestines, and in either case the
eventual result is almost certain to be fatal unless the obstacle is
removed by operation. Very occasionally only does nature react
sufficiently to expel the impediment without surgical aid. Of course all
treatment is vain unless the morbid habit of hair-swallowing can be
overcome. This does not seem to be an accompaniment of a distinctly
diseased mental condition, although that is sometimes coincident, but
must assuredly result from some derangement or abnormality of the
nervous centres, inducing a morbid and unnatural craving.[445]
[Illustration:
Types of the Ovum Anguinum. Echinites (sea-urchins). From Aldrovandi’s
“Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648.
]
The serpent-stone, called by Pliny _ovum anguinum_, or “serpent’s egg,”
is said to have been worn by the Druid priests as a badge of
distinction. Pliny relates that he had seen one of them which was as
large as a moderate-sized apple, its shell being a cartilaginous
substance. It was supposed to be generated in midsummer out of the
saliva and slime exuding from a knot of intertwined serpents. When the
moisture had coagulated and formed into a sphere, this was tossed in the
air by the hissing snakes, and, in order to preserve its efficacy as a
talisman, the finder had to catch it in a linen cloth before it fell to
the ground. Such “serpent’s eggs” were in high favor with the Romans,
who believed they procured for the wearers success in all disputes and
the protection of kings. So great was the faith reposed in their magical
virtues that Claudius is said to have condemned to death a Roman knight,
one of the Vecontii, simply because he had an _ovum anguinum_ concealed
in his bosom when he appeared in court during the trial of a lawsuit in
which he was involved. In order to enhance the value of this amulet, the
story was circulated that great dangers were incurred in securing it;
for the snakes pursued any one who seized the egg and he could only
escape by fording a river, across which they could not swim.[446] In
later accounts of this amulet it is described as a ring, sometimes
composed of a blue stone with an undulating streak or stripe of yellow,
thought to represent a snake.
Certain so-called floating-stones have been found in a branch of Mann
Creek, a tributary of the Weiser River, which flows into the latter near
its confluence with the Snake River in Idaho.[447] These are hollow
quartz globes, with a shell so thin that the air in the cavity more than
makes up for the specific gravity of the quartz. Some formation similar
to this may possibly have been intended by Pliny in his description of
the _ovum anguinum_ or serpent’s egg of the Druids, which floated if
thrown into a stream, although it is perhaps more probable that these
“serpent’s eggs” were shells of the sea-urchin, as they are figured by
De Boot and other writers.
The snake-stone, legends regarding which are met with in so many
different parts of the world, is known to the Lapps of northern Europe,
and strange to say, some of the elements of Pliny’s old recital touching
the “serpent’s egg” come out in the account given of it by this
primitive race, in general so far removed from any notion of classical
tradition. Anyone in search of this stone must resort, according to the
Lapps, to the pairing place of snakes, for here they throw the stone,
which is small and white, back and forth to one another; he must steal
along quietly until he is quite near to the snakes and then snatch the
stone as it flies through the air, and run away with it as fast as he
can to the nearest piece of water. Should he reach the water before the
snake does—for the reptile pursues him—he gains the ownership of the
stone; if, however, the snake first reaches the water, this is very
dangerous for the man. Hence he should carefully search out the nearest
water before snatching the stone, and as the snake will not immediately
know what has become of it, and will hunt for it awhile before starting
in pursuit of the thief, the latter will have time to come first to the
water.[448]
Tertullian writes that the wearing of stones taken from the head of a
dragon or of a serpent was especially reprehensible in the case of a
Christian; for how could a Christian be said to “bruise the head” of the
Old Serpent (Gen. iii, 15) while wearing such a stone about his neck or
on his head, and thus testifying to a kind of serpent worship![449]
The Greek poem “Lithica,” belonging to the fourth century B.C., also
celebrates the virtues of a “snake-stone,” which is to be pressed
closely on the bitten spot; but besides this application, the drinking
of undiluted wine in which the stone _ostrites_ had been pulverized, is
recommended. This shows that the therapeutic value of alcohol as a
stimulant to revive the nerve-centres, paralyzed by the animal poison,
was recognized at this time. An unusually precise description is given
of the _ostrites_; it was round, hard, black and rough, and was marked
by many wavy lines or veins. Some one of the many varieties of banded
agate seems to answer best to this description.[450]
The legend that St. Patrick drove out all snakes from Ireland sometimes
took the form that the saint had transformed them into stones. This
belief is noted by Andrew Borde, physician and ecclesiastic, who,
writing in 1542, mentions some strange stones he had been shown on that
island:
I have sene stones the whiche have had the forme and shape of a snake
and other venimous wormes. And the people of the countrie sayth that
such stones were wormes, and they were turned into stones by the power
of God and the prayers of saynt Patrick. And English merchauntes of
England do fetch of the erth of Irlonde to caste in their garden’s, to
keepe out and to kyll venimous wormes.[451]
The legendary serpent-stone is usually one taken from the reptile’s
head, but Welsh tradition tells of one extracted from the tail of a
serpent by the hero Peredur, and having the magic property that anyone
holding it in one hand would grasp a handful of gold in the other. This
stone was generously bestowed upon Etlym by the finder, who only secured
it after vanquishing the serpent in a dangerous conflict.[452]
The snake-stone (or “madstone”), in Arabic _ḥajar alḥayyat_, is
described by the Arab writer Kazwini, as being of the size of a small
nut. It was found in the heads of certain snakes. To cure the bite of a
venomous creature the injured part was to be immersed in sour milk, or
in hot water, and when the stone was thrown into the liquid it would
immediately attract itself to the bitten part and draw out the
poison.[453] The homeopathic idea plays a considerable rôle in the
superstitions of the Arabs of northern Africa. To cure the bite or sting
of the scorpion, the creature is to be crushed over the wound it has
inflicted. If anyone is bitten by a dog, he should cut off some of the
animal’s hair and lay this on the bitten part; if, however, the dog was
mad, it must be killed, its body opened and the heart removed. This is
then to be broiled and eaten by the person who has been bitten.[454]
Many beautiful glass beads of Roman, or perhaps of British fabrication,
have been found in Great Britain and Ireland. Upon some of these are
bosses composed of white spirals, the body of the bead being blue, red,
yellow, or some other brilliant color. These have been called “holy
snake beads.” Probably most of them are merely ornamental productions
and were not intended to represent serpent-stones. The curious test of
the genuineness of an _ovum anguinum_ mentioned by Pliny, namely, that
even if set in gold, it would float up a stream against the current,
indicates a very porous structure; perhaps some of these serpent’s eggs
were hollow, vitrified clay balls with wavy lines on the surface.
De Boot, in his treatise on stones and gems,[455] figures the _ovum
anguinum_, and says that its form was either hemispherical or
lenticular. In his opinion the name “serpent’s egg” was given to the
stone because on its surface there appeared five ridges, starting from
the base and tapering off toward the top. These bore a certain
resemblance to a serpent’s or adder’s tail. The stone was believed to
protect the wearer from pestilential vapors and from poisons.
The so-called “snake-stones,” many specimens of which have been found in
British barrows, bear in the Scottish Lowlands the designation “Adder
Stanes.” They are also sometimes called adder-beads or serpent-stones.
For the Welsh they were _gleini na droedh_ and for the Irish _glaine nan
druidhe_, the meaning being the same, “Druid’s glass.” Many interesting
examples were added to the collection of the Museum of Scotch
Antiquaries, one of these being of red glass, spotted with white;
another of blue glass, streaked with yellow; other types were of pale
green and blue glass, some of these being ribbed while others again were
of smooth and plain surface. That the glass “snake-stones” were objects
of considerable care and attention is indicated by the mending of a
broken specimen shown by Lord Landesborough at a meeting of the Society
of Antiquaries in 1850. This broken bead had been repaired and
strengthened by the application of a bronze hoop.[456]
The supposed snake-stones are also to be found among the Cornishmen, who
sometimes call these objects _milprey_ or “thousand worms,” and they
even lay claim to the power of forcing a snake to fabricate the “stone”
by thrusting a hazel-wand into the spirals of a sleeping reptile. In
another version it is not a bead that is formed but a ring which grows
around a hazel-wand when a snake breathes on it. If water in which this
ring has been dipped be given to a human being or an animal that has
been bitten by a venomous creature, all ill effects of the bite will be
warded off, the water acting as a powerful antidote to the poison.[457]
The belief that the snake-stone of Welsh legend—in reality either a
fossil or a bead—was evolved from the venom or saliva ejected by a
concourse of hissing snakes, gave rise to a peculiar popular saying
among the Welsh to the effect that people who are whispering together
mysteriously, and apparently gossiping, or perhaps hatching some
mischief, are “blowing the gem.”[458]
Many of the glass beads known as “snake-stones” or “Druid’s glass” are
perforated, and this is fancifully explained as being the work of one of
the group of snakes which forms the bead. This particular snake thrusts
its tail through the viscous mass before it has become hardened into a
glass sphere. In various parts of Scotland such beads are treasured up
by the peasants; according to the testimony of an English visitor of
1699, who reports that they were hung on children’s necks as protection
from whooping-cough and other children’s diseases, and were also valued
as talismans productive of good fortune and protective against the
onslaught of malevolent spirits. To guard one of these precious beads
from the depredations of the dreaded fairies the peasant would keep it
enclosed in an iron box, this metal being much feared by the
fairies.[459]
A type of snake-stone used in Asia Minor is described as being of a
pearly white hue, rounded on one side, and flat on the other. Toward the
edge of the flat side runs a fine, wavy, bluish line, the undulations of
which are fancied to figure a serpent. The victim of a snake-bite first
had the spot rubbed with some kind of sirup; then the stone was applied
to the bitten spot, and it would adhere to the inflamed surface for
eight days; at the expiration of this time it would fall off. The bite
would be entirely healed and would not be followed by ill effects of any
kind.[460]
A novel theory in regard to the formation of a type of snake-stones is
given by an old Chinese writer. This is that snakes, before they begin
to hibernate, swallow some yellow earth and retain this in the gullet
until they come forth again in the springtime, when they cast it forth.
By this time the earth has acquired the consistency of a stone, the
surface remaining yellow, while the interior is black. If picked up
during the second phase of the moon this concretion was thought to be a
cure for children’s convulsions, and for gravel, and was powdered and
given in infusion. The infusion could also be applied with advantage
externally to envenomed swellings.[461]
An old manuscript found in a manor house in Essex, England, contains a
translation, made in 1732 by an Oxford student, E. Swinton, of some
details on the snake-stone, taken from a work published in the same year
at Bologna by Nicolo Campitelli. After noting that these stones came
from the province of Kwang-shi in China and from different places in
India, their appearance and qualities are described. In color they were
almost black, some having pale gray or ash-color spots. The test of the
genuineness of such a stone was to apply it to the lips; if not a
spurious one, it would cling so closely to the membrane that
considerable force must be exerted to separate it therefrom. The usual
directions are given for its employment in the cure of snake bites, but
its usefulness by no means ended here; its curative power was also
exhibited in the case of “Scrophulous Eruptions and Pestilential Bubos,”
and it could be used in the treatment of malignant tremors, venereal
disorders, etc. With the manuscript was found a specimen snake-stone.
This was described as being a thin oval body, about an inch in length
and three-quarters of an inch broad; the color was gray with light
streaks, and the surface was bright and polished. It was of the
consistency of horn, and the writer of the note in the “Lancet” believes
that it was part of a stag’s antler or some similar substance, from
which the animal matter had been removed by the action of heat; many of
the Oriental snake-stones are of this type, but, as we have already
seen, a great variety of more or less porous materials have been and are
still used in this way in different parts of the world. A practical
experiment was made in 1867 by Dr. John Schrott, who excited six cobras
to bite a number of pariah dogs. Without delay the snake-stones were
applied to the wounds, but they proved absolute failures, death
resulting as speedily as though nothing had been done.[462]
Jean Baptiste Tavernier, the great Oriental traveller of the seventeenth
century, gives the following description of the “snake-stones” found in
India:[463]
Finally, I will mention the snake-stone, which is about the size of a
doubloon, some approximating to an oval form, being thicker in the
middle and tapering toward the edges. The Indians say that it forms on
the head of certain snakes, but I rather believe that the priests of
these idolators make them think this, and that this stone is a
composition of certain drugs. However this may be, it has great virtue
to draw out all the poison, when anyone has been bitten by a venomous
creature. If the part that has been bitten has not been punctured, an
incision must be made, so that the blood can flow out, and when the
stone has been applied, it does not fall off until it has absorbed all
the poison which gathers about it. To clean it, woman’s milk is used,
or should this be lacking, cow’s milk, and after ten or twelve hours
steeping, the milk which has drawn out all the poison takes on the
color of pus. Having dined one day with the Archbishop of Goa, he took
me into his museum, where he had several curious objects. Among other
things he showed me one of these stones, and having told me of its
properties, he assured me that but three days before he had seen them
tested, and presented the stone to me. As he was traversing a marsh on
the Island of Salsate, whereon Goa is situated, to go to a country
house, one of those who bore his palanquin, and who was almost
entirely naked, was bitten by a snake and was immediately cured by
this stone. I have bought several of them, and they are sold only by
the brahmins, which makes me think the brahmins themselves make the
stones. There are two methods of testing whether the stone is good or
the product of some deception. The first of these tests is to place it
in one’s mouth, for then, if it be good, it springs up and cleaves to
the palate; the second test is to place it in a glass full of water;
if it is not sophisticated, the water begins to seethe, small bubbles
rising from the stone at the bottom to the surface of the water.
Thevenot, a French traveller who visited India in 1666, about the time
Tavernier was there, asserts that the famous “Stones of the Cobra” were
manufactured in the town of Diu, in Guzerat, and that they were made “of
the ashes of burnt roots, mingled with a kind of Earth they have, and
were again burnt with that Earth, which afterwards is made up into a
Paste, of which these Stones are formed.” After describing the process
employed for cleaning the stones after they had been used, Thevenot adds
that if not freed from the absorbed venom the stones would burst.[464]
Dr. J. Davy examined and analyzed some of these “stones,” and found one
of them to be a piece of bone partially calcined. When applied to the
tongue or to any other moist surface it adhered firmly. Another, which
lacked all absorbent or adhesive power, was said to have saved the life
of four men. It therefore appears that while some of the “snake-stones”
really possessed some possible curative virtues, others were esteemed
only because of a superstitious belief in their magical properties.
Kaempfer, writing in 1712, informs us that these stones should always be
used in pairs, and applied successively to the wound.[465] The belief in
the efficacy of such stones is still general in India, and one of the
varieties is supposed to be found in the head of the adjutant bird.[466]
Francisco Redi[467] describes the extraordinary healing power attributed
to stones obtained from the heads of certain serpents, called by the
Portuguese “_cobras de capello_,” found throughout Hindostan and Farther
India. These stones are claimed to be an infallible remedy for the bites
and stings of all kinds of venomous reptiles or animals, and likewise
for wounds made by poisoned arrows, etc. He repeats the usual tales of
their adhering powerfully when applied to the bite or wound, and
clinging to it like a cupping-glass until they had absorbed all the
poison, when they would fall off spontaneously, leaving the man or
animal sound and free. Then follows the account of steeping the stones
in milk to remove the poison, the milk assuming a color between yellow
and green. These wonderful stones and the narrations concerning them had
been brought to Italy by Catholic missionaries, who seemed to have
entire faith in their powers; so that Redi says they offered to prove
the accounts by any number of experiments, such as would satisfy the
most incredulous, and prove to medical men that Galen was correct when
he wrote (Chapter XIV, Book I) that certain medicines attract poison as
the magnet does iron. For this purpose a search for vipers, etc., was
recommended; but, owing to the season being later and colder than usual,
none could at that time be obtained, as they had not emerged from their
winter quarters. An experiment was therefore substituted, after much
consultation among the learned men of the Academy of Pisa, whereby oil
of tobacco was introduced into the leg of a rooster. This was regarded
as one of the most fatal of such substances, and was administered by
impregnating a thread with it to the width of four fingers and drawing
it through the punctured wound. One of the monks forthwith applied the
stone, which behaved in the regular manner described. The bird did not
recover, but it survived eight hours, to the admiration of the monks and
other spectators of the experiment.
[Illustration:
Frontispiece and title-page of Francesco Redi’s “Experimenta
naturalia,” Amsterdam, 1675, and two specimen pages of this
treatise, referring to the snake-stones believed to be taken from
the Indian _Cobras de Capello_, or hooded snakes.
]
[Illustration:
FORMS OF TABASHEER
Bought at Fair at Calcutta, 1888, by Dr. Valentine Ball.
]
Redi states that he himself possessed some of these stones, as did also
Vincent Sandrinus, one of the most learned herbalists of Pisa. Redi
describes them as “always lenticular in form, varying somewhat in size,
but in general about as large as a farthing, more or less. In color some
are black, others white, others black, with an ashy hue on one side or
both,” etc.
Up to the present time no one has apparently identified what Tavernier
referred to in speaking of snake-stones. It, however, occurred to the
writer, after receiving a quantity of tabasheer from Dr. F. H. Mallet of
the Geological Survey of India, who obtained it at the bazaar of the
Calcutta Fair in November of 1888, that many, if not most of the Hindu
snake-stones must have been tabasheer. Tabasheer is a variety of opal
that is found in the joints of certain species of bamboo in Hindostan,
Burma, and South America; it is originally a juice, which by evaporation
changes into a mucilaginous state, then becomes a solid substance. It
ranges from translucent to opaque in color, and is either white or
bluish-white by reflected light, and pale yellow or slight sherry red by
transmitted light. Upon fracture it breaks into irregular pieces like
starch. As in Tavernier’s account of its clinging to the palate and
causing water to boil when immersed, it actually has the property of
strongly adhering to the tongue, and when put into water emits rapid
streams of minute bubbles of air. It has a strong siliceous odor, but
after absorbing an equal bulk of water becomes transparent like a
Colorado hydrophane described by the writer several years ago before the
New York Academy of Sciences.
Although tabasheer is mentioned in nearly all the textbooks, very little
of it has reached the United States. It is highly interesting, since we
have here an organic product scarcely to be distinguished from a similar
opal-like body found by Mr. Arnold Hague in the geysers of the
Yellowstone Park. Both tabasheer and the hydrophane were probably what
was called “Oculus Beli,” “Oculus Mundi,” and “Lapis mutabilis” by
Thomas Nicol, Robert Boyle, and other writers of the seventeenth
century, and “Weltauge” by the Germans.
The great capacity of this substance for absorbing a fluid would
undoubtedly render it as efficacious for the purpose of absorbing poison
as any other known stone, providing the wound were open enough; and its
internal use to-day as a medicine is possibly also due to this property.
Tabasheer, as known among mineralogists, is a corruption of the word
tabixir, a name which was used even in the time of Avicenna, the Grand
Vizier and body surgeon of the Sultan of Persia in the tenth century. It
played a very important part in medicine during the Middle Ages. As to
its origin, Sir David Brewster[468] says that tabasheer is only formed
in diseased or injured bamboo joints or stalks.
[Illustration:
SPECIMENS OF TABASHEER
At the upper right-hand corner is figured a hydrophane, or “Magic
Stone,” at the upper left-hand corner is a floating stone from
Oregon. The tabasheer was bought at the Fair held in Calcutta in
1888.
]
Guibourt[469] differs from Brewster, inasmuch as he attributes the
different rates of growth to the fact that when there is a
superabundance of sap the tabasheer is formed from the residuum. More
recently, Henry Cecil[470] says, “In the onrush of tropical growth in
the young shoot, nature, after flooring the knot, has poured in, as it
were, sap and silica sufficient for a normal length and width of stem to
the knot next above it. But by some check to the impulse, or by
irregularity of conditions, the portion of stem thus provided for is
shorter or narrower than intended, and the unused silica is left behind
as a sediment, compacted by the drying residuum sap.”
This latter view is sustained by Dr. Ernst Huth, who discusses the name,
history, origin, and reputed virtues of this substance with much
fulness.[471] In regard to its use in medicine during the Middle Ages,
he quotes a remarkable list of applications to the ills that flesh is
heir to.
Here it is cited as a remedy for affections of the eyes, the chest, and
of the stomach, for coughs, fevers, and biliary complaints, and
especially for melancholia arising from solitude, dread of the past, and
fears for the future. Other writers speak of its use in bilious fevers
and dysentery, internal and external heat, and injuries and maladies.
The writer has examined a large number of so-called madstones, and they
have all proved to be an aluminous shale or other absorptive substance.
But tabasheer possesses absorptive properties to a greater degree than
any other of the mineral substances examined, and it is strange that it
has never been mentioned as being used as an antidote. It may be
confidently recommended to the credence of any person who may desire to
believe in a madstone.
[Illustration:
Cobra de Capello. From Tavernier’s Travels, English translation by
John Philips, London, 1684.
]
The writer believes that Tavernier’s snake-stones may all have been
tabasheer, or again, while some of them were of this substance, others
may have been artificially compounded by the authorized dealers of the
Brahmin caste. The instance he gives of the successful use of such a
stone is not altogether incredible, as, should one of the less active
poisons be sucked out of a wound shortly after this were inflicted, a
cure might well be effected. In view of the great difference in the
virulence of poisons and the varying degrees of the sensibility to toxic
effects, it is not strange that the snake-stones should sometimes seem
to give good results. Tavernier states that these stones were brought to
India by Portuguese soldiers returning from service in Mozambique.[472]
For successful use a pair of them were needed, so that, when applied to
a snake-bite, as soon as one became saturated with the venom the other
could be immediately substituted. To have them always at hand, those
natives fortunate enough to own a pair of _pedras de cobra_ carried them
about in a little bag.[473]
A curious traditional belief is current in some parts of India, notably
in Ceylon, to the effect that the male cobra, during the night, uses a
certain luminous stone to lure its prey and to attract the female. This
is probably the chlorophane, a variety of fluorite, a substance which
shines with a phosphorescent light in the darkness, and this quality,
quite mysterious in the eyes of the natives, may have induced them to
associate the stone with the snake, the epitome of all subtlety and
cunning. Serpent-stones were supposed to exist in both ancient and
medieval times, and the belief in their existence is widespread among
many races of mankind.
A chlorophane is also found in the microlite localities of Amelia
Court House, Virginia. The writer made a series of experiments and
noted that some of these specimens emit a phosphorescent light at a
low temperature. The material occurs in Siberia, and Pallas
describes a specimen from this locality. When subjected to the heat
of the hand, it gave out a white light, in boiling water a green
light, and when placed on a burning coal a brilliant emerald-green
light, visible at a considerable distance. Similar phenomena have
been observed by the writer, who has found that very slight
attrition, even the rubbing of one specimen against another in the
dark, will produce phosphorescence.[474]
The real or supposed virtues of the “snake-stones” of Ceylon are
detailed at considerable length by the great Dutch naturalist, Rumphius.
After noting the old tale that the “natural” snake-stones came from the
_cobra de capello_ (_Serpens pilosus_), he proceeds to relate the
information he had been able to gather regarding the “spurious” stones
of this type. These were fabricated by the Brahmins, the process being
kept a profound secret; indeed, there were those who asserted that the
Brahmins themselves had lost the art, as this had been possessed by but
a single family which had died out, leaving the secret unrevealed.
Rumphius describes these artificial stones as usually round and flat,
the size varying from that of a half-shilling piece to that of a
two-shilling piece. Some were of lenticular form and a few were oblong;
all had a white spot in the middle. In making the application, the
bitten spot was first pricked until it bled, whereupon the stone was
immediately laid on and allowed to remain until it dropped off of itself
“just as a leech would do.” So intense was its absorbent activity that
it would sometimes break, in which case a substitute had to be quickly
applied. The saturated stone was placed in milk and the absorbed venom
was thus drawn out, turning the milk blue.[475]
One of the tales of the Gesta Romanorum treats of a serpent-stone of
singular medicinal virtue. According to the story—which is, of course, a
mere legend—a certain Theodosius, who “reigned in a Roman city,” was a
most prudent ruler, but was afflicted with blindness. In his care for
the welfare of his subjects he had decreed that when anyone who desired
justice rang the bell at the palace gate, a judge must forthwith appear
and try his case. Now it happened that a serpent had its nest near the
bell-rope, and one day, while the reptile was absent, a toad took
possession of the nest. Returning and finding the nest occupied, the
serpent,—evidently a worthy descendant of the original serpent of
Paradise, “more subtle than any beast of the field,”—wound its tail
about the bell-rope and pulled the bell. When the judge appeared, as in
duty bound, he was struck by this strange spectacle, and reported it to
the emperor, who told him to right the wrong which had been done,
directing him to expel and kill the toad. Not long after, the serpent
made its way into the palace and entered the emperor’s room, bearing in
its mouth a small stone. Proceeding to the emperor’s couch, it crawled
up, raised its head above the emperor’s face and dropped the stone upon
his eyes. As soon as the stone touched the eyes, the emperor’s sight was
restored. The serpent disappeared and was never seen again.[476]
A representative type of “madstone” is a concretionary calculus
occasionally, but very rarely, found in the gullet of male deer. In form
it bears a resemblance to a water-worn pebble and is usually of oblong
shape, the largest specimens being 3 inches in length and 1½ inches in
width. The chemical analysis of Dr. H. C. White showed that the chief
component was tricalcic phosphate. His experiments demonstrated that
while such a concretion would absorb water to the amount of 5 per cent.
of its own weight, the quantity of blood or other fluid it was able to
absorb only amounted to 2.3 per cent. of its weight. When immersed in
water, after having been placed on a wound caused by the bite of a
venomous creature, the liquid absorbed was given out so as to discolor
the water, and the material exuded was found to be of toxic quality.
However, experiments with animals that had been bitten by snakes or
other reptiles, failed to show that the stone exercised any curative
effect. Dr. White states that he has in his possession a “madstone”
dating from 1654, but this is of a different type, being a porous
sandstone.[477]
Even in South Africa snake-stones are known, but it appears that the few
specimens reported had been brought thither from the Dutch East Indies;
one such stone had been handed down for generations in a Dutch settler’s
family. From their appearance some of these snake-stones were judged to
be pieces of burnt hartshorn. A Boer farmer owned an amulet of this kind
that he would loan from time to time to neighbors who might have need of
it. On one occasion, when the daughter of an English hunter had been
bitten by a snake, the father sent off a man on horseback to borrow this
snake-stone. Owing to the unavoidable delay, some hours elapsed before
it could be applied to the wound. The girl recovered after its use but
the wound did not heal satisfactorily, and this was attributed to the
length of time that had intervened between the attack of the snake and
the use of the remedial stone.[478]
In December, 1887,[479] the writer described a white opaque variety of
hydrophane with a white, chalky or glazed coating, which had recently
been brought from a Colorado locality. The absorbent quality of this
stone is quite remarkable, and when water is allowed to drop on it, it
first becomes very white and chalky, and then gradually perfectly
transparent. This property is developed so strikingly that the finder
proposed the name “Magic Stone” for the mineral and suggested its use in
rings, lockets, charms, etc., to conceal photographs, hair, and other
objects, which the wearer wishes to reveal only as caprice dictates.
VI
Angels and Ministers of Grace
The veneration of angels and the attribution to them of especial days or
months, as well as the idea that they were guardians of those born on
those days or during those months, was the result of many factors. The
belief in the existence of angels is present in all parts of the Bible,
but in the earlier portions they are not individualized in any way. The
angel of God, or of the Lord (_malach Elohim_ or _malach Yahveh_) was
simply a messenger of God, employed to communicate his will or else to
accomplish some act of divine justice.
It is quite possible that the greater prominence given to angels among
the Jews after the Babylonian Captivity was not solely dependent upon
Babylonian or Persian influence. We learn from the historical and
prophetical books of the Old Testament that the Jews had, from the
earliest times, worshipped other gods besides the God of Israel, and
were ever ready to assimilate the religious superstitions of the heathen
world. Several of the divinities that were worshipped in Babylonia and
Assyria were also objects of adoration in Israel, not indeed by the
chosen spirits of the nation from whom we receive our records, but by
the masses of the people. This very fact, however, served in a certain
sense to maintain the purity of the national religion. As the
superstitious inclinations of the populace were so fully satisfied from
without, there was no necessity to develop or distort the national
religion in this direction. The Babylonian Captivity changed all this.
It was the élite of the Jewish nation that was deported, and the
sufferings and humiliations to which they were subjected in a foreign
land only served to strengthen their faith in Yahveh and in his Law.
Hence it is, that when this tried and purified remnant returned to
Judæa, rebuilt the fallen temple and reorganized the state, the latter
became a theocracy in a much stricter sense than ever before, and from
this time we can really speak of Judaism as the religion of the whole
people.
But the inevitable tendency to split up the unity of the divine force, a
tendency that makes itself felt in all religions and among all peoples,
soon asserted itself anew and in a different direction. As the people
were no longer allowed, we may even say were no longer inclined, to go
after foreign gods, they proceeded to develop the idea of divine
messengers or intermediaries which had always formed part of the
national faith, but had never been fully evolved. While Isaiah and
Ezekiel both knew of a division of the angels into certain categories
as, for example, cherubim, seraphim, hayyot (living creatures), ofanim
(wheels) and arelim, there is no attempt at individualization, and the
first mention of an angel’s name occurs in the Book of Daniel, which
later critics are disposed to assign to the second century B.C. It is
most natural to suppose that such names were known and were familiar to
the people long before that time. When we read in the Book of Daniel,
xii, 1: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which
standeth for the children of Israel,” it is easy to see that the idea
that certain special qualities were attributed to this angel was deeply
rooted in the popular mind. In a previous verse, x, 13, we read:
“Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me,”—a conclusive proof
that a hierarchy of angels had already been thought out.
[Illustration]
Fossil Amethystine Lapis Anhydrite Banded Hematite
Coral of Quartz Lazuli About 2500 Agate About About 2000
the About 2500 About 2000 B.C. 2800 B.C. B.C.
Devonian B.C. B.C.
Period 1000
B.C.
Amethystine Lapis Lazuli Aragonite-banded Amazon Stone Black
Quartz 2000 B.C. or 3000 B.C. About 1500 Serpentine,
Probably earlier B.C. hard and
Assyrian of compact.
700 B.C. Seals of this
type are
generally as
old as 2500
B.C.
Marble, Jaspery Agate Aragonite Rock-Crystal Serpentine
discolored by As late as Probably as old About 1200 (banded)
fire About 800 B.C. as 3000 B.C. B.C. Probably as
2500 B.C. early as 2500
B.C.
Ferruginous Shell 3000 Jasper, banded Chalcedony, Agate
Agate About B.C. or red and black Blue (banded)
800 B.C. earlier About 1200 B.C. Saphirine Assyrian of
About 700 about 700
B.C. B.C.
ILLUSTRATIONS OF ACTUAL PRECIOUS STONES AND MINERALS USED FOR SEALS IN
ANCIENT ASSYRIA AND BABYLONIA
Mostly from the collection in the American Museum of Natural History,
New York City.
The great source of information in regard to angelology is the
Rabbinical literature which had its rise about the first century B.C.
and culminated in the Talmuds of Babylon and Jerusalem in the fifth
century A.D. As these compilations, although nominally commentaries on
the books of the Old Testament, are almost encyclopedic in their
character, they throw much light on this subject. In a monograph of
Kohut, entitled “Jüdische Angelologie,”[480] many extracts, belonging to
an early period, are given. Seven princes of heaven were recognized and
among these four were especially favored. They occupied a place near to
the Throne of Light and were bathed in its radiance. We are told that
“God surrounded his Throne of Light with four angels: Michael, ‘Who is
like God?’ at the right; Gabriel, ‘Might of God,’ at the left; Uriel,
‘Splendor of God,’ before it; and Raphael, ‘Salvation of God,’ at the
west” (Numeri Rabba, c. 2).[481] They represented various attributes of
the divine: Michael, goodness and mercy; Gabriel, punitive justice;
Uriel, the majesty of God, and Raphael, his providence. Michael and
Gabriel are particularly prominent and are called Royal Angels (מלכיהון
דמלאכיא); they have especial care of Israel. As we have seen, Michael
was singled out by Daniel and he was commonly regarded as chief prince.
Gabriel was looked upon as the avenger and the executor of divine
judgments and occupied the next place, while Uriel and Raphael are less
frequently alluded to, although the latter appears prominently in the
Book of Tobit.
In the New Testament, also, Michael and Gabriel are evidently regarded
as the chief angels, and Revelation places Michael at the head of the
hosts of the good angels in their conflict with Satan and his followers.
We can see in the Gospels how widespread was the belief in demoniacal
possession, and in the existence of evil spirits; it was almost
inevitable that the aid of good spirits should be invoked to counteract
them, and although both Christianity and Judaism sternly rebuked any
direct worship of angels, they were regarded as ministering spirits, and
it was only natural that the masses should be led to use their names on
amulets and talismans, and little by little to arrive at the belief that
a particular angel was entrusted with the welfare of each individual.
The same tendencies were at work in both religions, but a new
development was initiated for the Christian church by the growing
veneration of the early martyrs and of their relics. When this became
more pronounced, the saints to a great extent took the place of the
angels; a passage from the writings of St. Ambrose composed in 377 A.D.
shows us that this transformation of belief had already begun to make
itself felt at that time. St. Ambrose writes: “We should address our
supplications to the angels who are appointed to guard us; we should
also address them to the martyrs, whose patronage seems assured to us by
a physical pledge” (their relics).
The danger that the worshipping of angels might lead Christians away
from the Church into magic practices and beliefs was clearly recognized
in the early centuries, and at the Council of Laodicea, in 363 A.D., it
was proclaimed that Christians should not render worship to angels
outside the church, or in private assemblies or associations. Whoever
was found guilty of such practices (of such idolatry, as it was called)
was pronounced anathema, as he was considered to have turned away from
the Lord Jesus Christ and worshipped idols. The first Council of Rome,
held in 492 A.D., expressly forbids the wearing of talismans inscribed
with the names “not of angels as they pretend, but rather with those of
demons.” Indeed, there is abundant evidence that in this age, and even
earlier, those addicted to angelolatry were not satisfied with the few
angels named in the Holy Scriptures, but addressed their petitions to a
multitude of angels evolved from the fervid imagination of the
superstitious among the Jews. Of these angels not recognized by the
Church, the following prayer of a certain Aldebert, condemned by the
second Council of Rome, 745 A.D., gives us a few names: “I pray and
supplicate the angel Uriel, angel Raguel, angel Michael, angel Adimis,
angel Tubuas, angel Sabaoth and angel Simihel.” In the judgment of the
Church fathers, all these names, with the exception of Michael,
designated demons.[482]
A manuscript of the ninth or tenth century in the Library of Cologne
gives the following “nomina angelorum”, and instructs the reader as to
their special virtues:
If when it thunders you think of the Archangel Gabriel, no harm will
befall you. If on awakening you think of Michael you will have a happy
day. Have Orihel (Uriel) in mind against your adversary and you will
prevail. When eating and drinking think of Raphael and abundance will
be yours. On a journey think of Raguhel and everything will prosper.
Should you have to lay your case before a judge, think of Barachahel
and all will be explained. When you take part in a banquet, think of
Pantasaron and all the guests will delight in you.[483]
On some medieval gems appear angel figures, one very curious specimen of
this class being an onyx, engraved in intaglio. On this gem, which is in
the British Museum, the engraver depicts the Annunciation, but the
figure of the Angel Gabriel is precisely that of a nude Cupid; hand and
foot are raised as though the little god (or angel) were dancing. It has
been conjectured that this strange attempt at adapting a classic form is
due to the fact that the gem was cut in Constantinople during one of the
violent iconoclastic persecutions, and that the engraver thus sought to
veil the true significance of his work. In this case, however, we must
believe that the accompanying inscription was added at a later date, for
it expressly names the Annunciation, the Angel Gabriel, and the Virgin
(“Mother of God”).[484]
Another interesting gem, from about the same period, is a square
amethyst, measuring about 3 cm. in each direction. This bears, engraved
in intaglio, a standing figure of Christ, without a halo; behind his
head is the monogram [Symbol] and in his left hand he holds a scroll
with the words (in Greek): “In the beginning was the Word”; his right
hand is stretched forth in benediction, and alongside the figure are the
following angels’ names in Greek characters: Raphaêl, Penel, Ouriêl,
Ichthys, Michaêl, Gabriêl, Azaêl. The fourth and middle name, Ichthys
(fish) is the well-known anagram of the Greek words signifying “Jesus
Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour,” and the use of this as the name of
an angel is thought to have been suggested by a passage in Isaiah (ix,
6).[485]
A “prime émeraude” among the Gorlæus gems is engraved with a design
showing two souls brought before God by the two guardian angels.[486]
Somewhat the same belief in the guiding or conducting of souls after
death is found in Plato’s “Phædon,” where it is said that the _daimon_
which had guided a person during life led his spirit to the place in
Hades where judgment was to be rendered.
The following list from Lodge’s “Wit’s Miserie,” printed in 1596, gives
the seven good angels and sets over against them the seven bad angels,
each of whom represents one of the seven deadly sins:
[Illustration:
By courtesy of the American Numismatic Society, New York.
ZODIAC MOHURS, COINED BY THE MOGUL SOVEREIGN SHAH JEHAN, ABOUT 1628.
]
Good Angels Bad Angels
Michael Leviathan, pride
Gabriel Mammon, avarice
Raphael Asmodeus, lechery
Uriel Beelzebub, envy
Euchudiel Baalberith, ire
Barchiel Belphagor, gluttony
Salathiel Ashtaroth, sloth
The curious book called in Hebrew “Sepher de-Adam Kadmah” and attributed
to the angel Raziel, is supposed to belong to the twelfth or the
thirteenth century, or at the earliest to the eleventh century,[487]
although the redactor may have used some earlier materials. Legend
states that it was engraved upon a sapphire and was given by the angel
Raziel to Adam when the latter was driven from Paradise. Handed down
from generation to generation, it finally came into the possession of
Solomon. The name Raziel signifies “secret of God,” in allusion to the
revelations contained in the book, which was supposed to protect the
house wherein it was from all danger of fire.
In this book there is an interesting list of angels, denominated the
twelve princes, set over the twelve months of the year. The text of the
first printed edition appears to be corrupt in some places, but the
names may be transliterated as follows:[488]
Sh’efiel, “Balm of God” Presiding over Nisan (April)
Ragael, “Balance of God” Presiding over Ayyar (May)
Didanor, “Our Light” Presiding over Sivan (June)
Ta’anbanu, “Answer for us” Presiding over Tammuz (July)
Tohargar, “Whirlwind” Presiding over Ab (August)
Morael, “Fear of God” Presiding over Elul (September)
Hahedan, “The Brilliant” Presiding over Tishri (October)
Uleranen, “To chant, celebrate” Presiding over Marchesvan (November)
Anatganor, “Thou art the Guardian” Presiding over Kislev (December)
Mephniel, “Before God” Presiding over Tebah (January)
Tashnadernis, “Saturnus” Presiding over Shebat (February)
Abarchiel, “Fire of God” Presiding over Adar (March)
The following list, while probably of later date than the one we have
just given, is more frequently cited as authoritative:[489]
Orders Angels Tribes Signs
Seraphim Malchidiel Dan Aries
Cherubim Asmodel Reuben Taurus
Thrones Ambriel Judah Gemini
Dominations Muriel Manasseh Cancer
Powers Verchiel Asher Leo
Virtues Hamaliel Simeon Virgo
Principalities Zuriel Issachar Libra
Archangels Barbiel Benjamin Scorpio
Angels Adnachiel Naphtali Sagittarius
Innocents Hanael Gad Capricornus
Martyrs Gabriel Zabulun Aquarius
Confessors Borichiel Ephraim Pisces
In Rabbinical writings we are told that if a man fulfilled one of the
commandments, one angel was bestowed upon him; if he fulfilled two
commandments, he received two angels; if, however, he fulfilled all the
commandments, many angels were given him. This was a literal
construction of the text Ps. xci, 11: “For he shall give his _angels_
charge over thee.” These angels were believed to shield the believer
from the attacks of evil spirits.[490]
[Illustration:
The medieval conception of the cosmos, the successive spheres of the
planets, including the sun, and beyond these the crystalline heaven
and the empyrean. In an outermost circle are named the great
celestial powers, as recapitulated above the spheres. From a XIV
century Italian MS. in the author’s library.
]
The Mohammedan Atlas, the angel appointed by God to bear the earth on
his shoulders, was given a rock of ruby to stand upon. Beneath this
ruby-rock, were, successively a huge bull, an immense fish, a mass of
water, and lastly darkness.[491] Thus the grand vision of “the face of
the deep” over which hovered the Spirit of God, before the creative
words were spoken, giving form to the earth, is not altogether lost
sight of in this Mohammedan fancy.
Luther was a firm believer in the existence of guardian angels, and he
even goes so far as to assert that the angels assigned to men differed
in rank and ability as did the men themselves. Of this he says:
Just as among men, one is large and another small, and one is strong
and another weak, so one angel is larger, stronger, and wiser than
another. Therefore, a prince has a much larger and stronger angel, one
who is also shrewder and wiser, than that of a count, and the angel of
a count is larger and stronger than that of a common man. The higher
the rank and the more important the vocation of a man, the larger and
stronger is the angel who guards him and holds the Devil aloof.[492]
Our idea of a guardian angel is so spiritual and so pure that it is
difficult for us to understand the curious results this belief has
occasionally produced among the primitive peoples. A weird tale is told
of a Congo negro who killed his mother so as to gain an especially
powerful guardian spirit.[493] The dreadful deed was perpetrated in the
full conviction that the mother’s love would remain unshaken, while her
power for good would be increased. Such ferocious egoism does not find
an exact parallel among civilized peoples, but the underlying principle
is unfortunately too often illustrated in our midst at the present day.
The belief in guardian angels has the best of Scripture warrant as
offered by the text Matthew, chapter xviii, v. 10, where Christ speaking
of little children says: “Their angels do always behold the face of my
Father who is in Heaven.” Another New Testament passage testifying
distinctly to the existence of this belief in the Apostolic Age, is in
the Acts of the Apostles (xii, 15), where we read that after the
miraculous rescue of Peter from his imprisonment, his friends could not
believe the report that he had been seen standing at the door of their
dwelling, and exclaimed: “It is his angel.”
That not only individuals but nations also had special guardian angels
was, as we have already noted, a belief held to a certain extent among
the Jews after the Babylonian Captivity. To the trace of this in the
tenth chapter of Daniel (vs. 13, 21), where Michael stands for Israel,
may be added the evidence afforded by the Greek Septuagint version of
Deuteronomy xxxii, 8, part of the “Song of Moses.” Here the Revised
version based on our Hebrew text reads:
He set the bounds of the peoples,
According to the number of the children of Israel.
The Septuagint translators, however, must have had a slightly different
text before them for they render the last words: “According to the
number of God’s angels.” It therefore seems probable that they read in
Hebrew _benê Elohim_ instead of _benê Yisrael_. Of the _benê Elohim_ or
“Sons of God” we read in Genesis, chapter vi, verse 2, that they wedded
with the “Daughters of Men.” This has been given a poetic form by Thomas
Moore in his “Loves of the Angels.” The Book of Job also, in its
Prologue in Heaven (i, 6–12), introduces the “Sons of God” among whom
appeared Satan, the “Adversary.” Of angel names, as has been noted,
there is Biblical warrant only for Gabriel, Michael, and Raphael, the
last-mentioned, in the Apocryphal Book of Tobit; to these IV Esdras (not
a canonical book) adds Jeremiel and Uriel, names not admitted by the
Church.
[Illustration:
THE ANGEL RAPHAEL REFUSING THE GIFTS OFFERED BY TOBIT
By Giovanni Biliverti. Pitti Palace, Florence.
]
There has been preserved for us a most interesting calendar for the city
of Rome, written by Furius Dionysius Filocalus in 354 A.D., and
containing a series of drawings by his hand showing the symbolical
figures of the months of the year. Though the original manuscript is
lost, several apparently faithful copies exist, one of which is in the
Imperial Library in Vienna. Much of this work deals with matters
referring to the Roman calendar, but perhaps its most valuable part is a
list of the early Christian saints and martyrs. As this is the earliest
list of the kind, of even earlier date than the rest of the work, we
give it here unabridged, as a most interesting documentary proof of the
veneration in which the saints were held in the fourth, or, we should
probably say, in the third century.
ITEM DEPOSITIO MARTIRUM[494]
VIII kal. Jan. natus Christum in Betleem Judeæ. mense Januario.
XIII kal. Feb. Fabiani in Callisti et Sebastiani in Catacumbas.
XII kal. Feb. Agnetis in Nomentana. mense Februario.
VIII kal. Martias natale Petri de cathedra. mense Martio. non.
Martias. Perpetuæ et Felicitatis, Africæ. mense Maio.
XIIII kal. Jun. Partheni et Caloceri in Callisti, Diocletiano VIIII
et Maximiano VIII [304]. mense Junio.
III kal. Jul. Petri in Catacumbas et Pauli Ostense, Tusco et Basso
cons. [258]. mense Julio.
VI idus Felicis et Filippi in Priscillæ et in Jordanorum,
Martialis Vitalis Alexandri et in Maximi Silani. hunc
Silanum martirem Nouati furati sunt. et in Praetextatæ,
Januari.
III kal. Aug. Abdos et Semnes in Pontiani, quod est ad ursum
piliatum. mense Augusto.
VIII idus Aug. Xysti in Callisti et in Praetextati Agapiti et
Felicissimi.
VI idus Aug. Secundi Carpofori Victorini, et Seueriani Albano. et
Ostense VII ballisteria Cyriaci Largi Crescentiani Memmiæ
Julianetis et Ixmaracdi.
IIII idus Aug. Laurenti in Tiburtina.
idus Aug. Ypoliti in Tiburtina. et Pontiani in Callisti.
XI kal. Septemb. Timotei, Ostense
V kal. Sept. Hermetis in Basillæ Salaria uetere. mense Septembre.
non. Sept. Aconti, in Porto, et Nonni et Herculani et Taurini.
V idus Sept. Gorgoni in Lauicana.
III idus Sept. Proti et Jacinti, in Basillæ.
XVIII kal. Octob. Cypriani, Africæ. Romæ celebratur in Callisti.
X kal. Octob. Basillæ, Salaria uetere, Diocletiano IX et Maximiano
VIII consul. (304) mense Octobre.
pri. idus Octob. Callisti in via Aurelia. miliario III. mense
Nouembre.
V idus Nou. Clementis Semproniani Claui Nicostrati in comitatum.
III kal. Dec. Saturnini in Trasonis. mense Decembre.
idus Decem. Ariston in pontum.
This list, which begins with the great Christian festival of Christmas,
enumerates the days on which Roman martyrs died and were buried. The
months are given in their order and below their names appears a very
brief record, giving the day and place of burial and the name of each of
the martyrs. The first entry, for instance, reads: “January 20,
interment of Fabianus in the cemetery of Callistus.” The earliest
martyrs mentioned are SS. Perpetua and Felicitas who died in 202 A.D.;
thus all definite memory of the many martyrs of the first and second
centuries seems to have been lost. Even heretics do not appear to have
been excluded, for as it is stated that the Novatians carried away the
body of Silanus, it seems more than probable that he himself belonged to
this heretical sect. As martyrs, all are regarded as equally entitled to
the highest veneration, regardless of what they may have passed through
on earth. Other communities than the Roman one possessed similar lists,
as is clearly indicated by the words of Cyprian, in his thirty-ninth
epistle, where he says: “As you remember, we offered the sacrifice for
them, just as we celebrated a commemoration of the sufferings of the
martyrs and of their anniversary days.”
To many of the saints curative powers are attributed, and these powers
are usually specialized so that each of these saints is invoked for aid
against a different disease or defect. With very few exceptions it will
be found that some circumstance in the history or legend of the saint is
the origin of these beliefs. An exception may perhaps be made in the
case of the two saints to whom recourse is most frequent at the present
day, namely, St. Anthony of Padua (June 13) and St. Anne, the mother of
the Virgin Mary (July 26). Relics of the latter saint, preserved in many
parts of Europe and also in America, are regarded as endowed with
wonderful therapeutic powers. Recently, in New York City, at the church
of St. Jean Baptiste, a relic of St. Anne was shown to many thousands of
the faithful, and some wonderful cures are said to have been
accomplished by its aid. Sceptics will be inclined to attribute such
cures to the influence of suggestion, while Catholics will see in them a
proof of the power of the saint’s intercession on behalf of those who
repose their trust in her. St. Anthony is usually appealed to for
success in difficult enterprises, and more particularly for the
discovery of lost articles. Here the belief in the successful
intervention of the respective saints is more generalized and appears to
have grown up independently of any event chronicled in the legends, but
these instances are quite exceptional.
An exceedingly beautiful jewelled medallion said to have been given by
Pope Paul V, in 1614, to the Archbishop of Lisbon, Don Miguel de Castro,
shows in the centre the figures of the Virgin and Child, surrounded by a
setting of old Indian, table-cut diamonds. The archbishop donated this
to the Church of St. Antonia da Se, sometimes called the “Royal House of
St. Antonio,” for this church was built on the site of the house in
which dwelt the parents of St. Anthony, Don Martin de Bulhoes and Dona
Teresa de Azavedo, and in which the saint was born on February 6, 1195.
At his baptism he was given the name Fernando, but later he changed this
to Antonio. The great Lisbon earthquake of 1755 completely wrecked this
church, but the high altar wherein the medallion had been placed escaped
comparatively unharmed, and the jewel was found by some peasants, who
later sold it to the family of Machados e Silvas, in whose private
chapel it reposed until within a few years.
The shrine of St. Anne de Beaupré may be seen in the Basilica of
Beaupré, about 20 miles distant from Quebec. It stands on the site of a
small wooden sanctuary erected about the middle of the seventeenth
century by some Breton mariners who, when in imminent danger of
shipwreck while navigating the St. Lawrence, made a vow to build a
chapel to St. Anne, the dearly-loved patron saint of their native
province, at the spot where they should first come to land. St. Anne was
regarded in French Canada as the patroness of seafarers and hence a
large number of those who frequented her shrine were seafaring people.
However, even more were attracted by the report of the marvellous cures
of all kinds of diseases which were said to have taken place there.
Pilgrimages to this shrine continue to be made at the present time;
indeed, the number of those who thus testify to their belief in the
power of the saint has increased rapidly during the past thirty years.
In 1880 the pilgrims numbered 36,000; in 1900 the record showed 135,000,
and in 1910 the number had increased to 188,266, a proof that the
devotees are more and more convinced that St. Anne’s relics are the
sources of great healing virtue.
All of the numerous relics of St. Anne exhibited in Canada and elsewhere
are said to have come originally from the town of Apt in France, where,
according to Catholic tradition, her body was found by the Emperor
Charlemagne in 792, and it is related that when the reliquary covering
the holy body was opened a fragrance as of balsam emanated from the
interior. How the body was transferred to Apt from its resting place in
Palestine is a mystery not solved even in tradition, although some
believe that it was brought thither by St. Auspicius, known as the
Apostle of Apt. The Basilica of Beaupré contains five of these precious
relics; one of them was brought to Canada from the Cathedral of
Carcasonne, in France, about the year 1662, at the instance of
Monseigneur de Laval, first bishop of Quebec, and founder of Laval
University. This is the first joint of the middle finger of the saint.
The devotees at the shrine first saw this precious gift March 12, 1670;
it is adorned with two intersecting rows of pearls, forming a cross.
Another relic of peculiar importance is that given in 1892 by the late
Cardinal Taschereau. This is a bone from St. Anne’s wrist measuring four
inches in length. It is enclosed in a reliquary made of massive gold and
studded with precious stones, the gifts of those whose prayers to the
saint had been answered. In the ornamentation appear eight diamonds,
four amethysts, a fire opal, etc. At the bottom of the reliquary there
is a gold plate with the inscription: “Ex brachio S. Annae,” and a gold
ring set with twenty-eight diamonds. This jealously-guarded treasure is
exhibited in the shrine but once a year, from July 26 to August 2, a
period comprising St. Anne’s Day and the week following it; at other
times the reliquary is kept in the Sacristy, but may be seen on special
request.
A remarkable jewel in the treasury of the Basilica is the seal of Santa
Anna, elected president of Mexico in 1832. A golden eagle, with eyes
formed of two rubies, stands on a rock of lapis lazuli and bears the
stamp of the seal; resting on his spread wings is a sphere of lapis
lazuli in which the words “Diaz, Mexico,” are inlaid in letters of gold.
The seal is engraved with the initials of the president’s name,
surrounded by a design embodying the insignia of his office.
At the feast of St. Blaise, Bishop of Sebaste, in Armenia (d. circa
316), which occurs on February 3d in the Roman Church, the wick of a
candle is sometimes dipped in a vessel containing consecrated oil, the
throats of the faithful being then touched with this wick, to preserve
them from diseases of the throat. At other times the ceremony is
performed in a different way. The priest holds two candles, adjusted so
as to form a cross, above the heads of those who come to seek the
saint’s aid, and the following prayer is recited: “Through the
intercession of St. Blaise may God free thee from diseases of the
throat, and from every other disease. (Per intercessionem S. Blasii
liberet te Deus a malo gutteris et a quovis alio malo.)”
It is related that this saint in his travels, once meeting a poor woman
whose only child had swallowed a fish-bone, relieved the child of its
trouble by offering up a prayer and laying his hand upon its throat. In
the prayer he adjures all who may suffer from a like trouble to seek his
intercession with God.
St. Apollonia of Alexandria (February 9) is said to cure toothache and
all diseases of the teeth, the reason for this being that at her
martyrdom all her beautiful teeth were pulled out. In a similar way St.
Agatha, of Catania or Palermo, in Sicily, is endowed with the power to
cure diseases of the breast, because it is related that before her
martyrdom her breasts were cruelly torn and mutilated.
To recite the formula of St. Apollonia was considered by the Spaniards
of three centuries ago to be a cure for toothache. This fact is brought
out by a passage in Don Quixote, when the knight’s housekeeper is urged
to recite it for her master’s benefit when he is ailing. To this request
the woman quickly answers: “That might do something if my master’s
distemper lay in his teeth, but, alas! it lies in his brain.” This
formula was probably used before the age of Cervantes, and has persisted
to our own time. It is in verse and has been literally translated into
English as follows:[495]
Apollonia was at the gate of Heaven and the Virgin Mary passed that
way. “Say, Apollonia, what are you about?” “My Lady, I neither sleep
nor watch, I am dying with a pain in my teeth.” “By the star of Venus
and the setting sun, by the Most Holy Sacrament, which I bore in my
womb, may no pain in your tooth, neither front nor back, afflict you
from this time henceforward.”
Of Santa Lucia (December 13), born in Syracuse on the island of Sicily,
a strange legend is told. A young man fell passionately in love with
her, and wrote to her that her wonderful eyes pursued him even in his
dreams. Moved by the Scripture text, “If thine eye offend thee, pluck it
out,” and longing to save the youth from sensual passion, Lucia cut out
her beautiful eyes, placed them on a dish, and sent them to her lover
with the following message: “Here thou hast what thou so ardently
desirest; I beseech thee leave me in peace.” Very naturally, this saint
is believed to cure all diseases of the eye.
For protection against highway robbers and thieves, St. Nicholas
(December 6), Bishop of Myra, in Lycia, was invoked. Legend relates of
this saint that he restored to life three boys who had been murdered at
an inn by the wicked innkeeper, a wretch who was in the habit of making
away with his guests and then utilizing their bodies to enrich his menu.
This tale accounts for the fact that, under the familiar name of Santa
Claus, St. Nicholas is the patron saint of children.
St. Barbara (December 4), born in Heliopolis, is appealed to for
protection against lightning and injury by firearms. For this reason the
gun-room on a ship is called in French the _sainte-barbe_. The legend,
as usual, gives us the origin of the belief in the saint’s special
powers, for her heathen father is said to have been killed by a stroke
of lightning, because of his having denounced his daughter, as a
Christian, to the Roman authorities, and then executed judgment upon her
with his own hands. Of St. Barbara the legend says: “She was a fair
fruit from an evil tree.”[496]
Beneath portraits or images of St. Christopher (July 25) there often
appears a Latin verse to the effect that whoever gazes on the image will
not suffer from faintness or exhaustion on that day. As the saint is
said to have been of great size and strength, the worshipper at his
shrine was believed to acquire some of his physical power.
[Illustration:
SANTA BARBARA
French school, 1520. Leaf of a triptych in the Museum of Budapest.
]
The cure of diseases of the tongue was the province of St. Catherine of
Alexandria (November 25), who was famed for her eloquence as well as for
her devotion to the study of the Scriptures.
St. Roch, who was born in Montpelier toward the end of the thirteenth
century (d. August 16, 1327), is regarded as the special guardian of
those afflicted with plague or pestilence. In his lifetime he went from
place to place ministering to those who suffered from the plague until
finally he himself succumbed to this malady. So great was the repute of
St. Roch’s curative powers that the Venetians are said to have stolen
his body from Montpelier, where it was interred, and transported it to
Venice, that they might have ever-present help in the numerous
pestilences from which this city suffered, because of the constant
commercial intercourse with the East.
Another saint who was invoked for help in plague and pestilence was St.
Sebastian (January 20), born in Narbonne in Gaul. In this case the story
of the saint’s martyrdom gave rise to the belief in his curative powers,
for the legend tells us that he was transfixed with arrows, and these
missiles were regarded as symbols of the plague. We have an illustration
of this old belief in the first book of Homer’s Iliad, where the
pestilence that visited the army of the Greeks is represented as due to
the shafts sped from Apollo’s silver bow.
Although no curative powers are attributed to them, no one of English
speech should forget SS. Crispin and Crispian, on whose day the battle
of Agincourt was fought, in 1415. The old feud between France and
England has been long forgotten, the rivalry between these nations has
given place to a close friendship, and there is no trace of animosity in
the glow that warms an Englishman’s heart when he reads the ringing
words put by Shakespeare into the mouth of Henry V:
And Crispin Crispian shall ne’er go by
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remembered.
It is related by Metaphrastus that when St. George was condemned to
death by burning, his executioners (fearing that the flames of the pyre
might be extinguished because of his virtue) covered his body with a
garment of amiantos (asbestos); for it was believed that when this
material began to burn the flame could not be extinguished. But all
precautions were vain, for as soon as the saint was placed in the flames
the fire went out, contrary to the laws of nature, and not a hair of his
head was injured. This tale illustrates a curious but not unnatural
misunderstanding of the name asbestos, which really signifies
inextinguishable, but was intended to mean that the substance would not
burn, and hence that no flame could be extinguished in it.[497]
In an unpublished manuscript written by Aubrey are quoted the following
curious lines on the legend of St. George and the Dragon:[498]
To save a mayd, St. George the Dragon slew,
A pretty tale if all is told be true;
Most say there are no Dragons, and ’tis sayd,
There was no George; pray God there was a mayd.
The St. George thalers, coined by the counts of Mansfeld (Thüringen),
enjoyed in bygone times a reputation as amulets for soldiers. This
belief is said to have originated from the actual preservation of a
soldier’s life by one of these coins, which he had sewed up in the
lining of his coat just over his heart for safe-keeping. A bullet which
struck him here and would otherwise have killed him, was diverted by
coming in contact with the thaler. Hungarian St. George thalers were
regarded as amulets for sailors as well as soldiers. These coins derived
their name from bearing the design of St. George and the Dragon.
Among the wonder-working saints none enjoyed greater repute in medieval
times than Sainte Foy, the virgin martyr whose remains were taken from
Agen to the abbey-church at Conques, a village on the hills of Aveyron.
Pilgrims came from far and near to the shrine of Sainte Foy, for she
worked marvellous cures upon those who appealed to her for help, even
giving sight to the blind. Her grace appears to have been bestowed upon
animals as well as upon human beings, a fantastic legend relating that
she had raised donkeys from the grave! Naturally the pilgrims must bring
rich gifts, as otherwise the saint might turn a deaf ear to their
prayers.
Many of these treasures may still be seen in this out-of-the-way church,
wherein no one would suspect the existence of the rich specimens of
early goldsmiths’ work that are carefully preserved in the treasury. The
most interesting of these treasures is a statuette supposed to represent
the saint. This is a seated figure, about 33 inches high and encrusted
with an immense number of precious stones, uncut emeralds, sapphires and
amethysts, as well as with many cameos and pearls; all these having been
offered at various times to the saint.
The figure—probably the representation of some ecclesiastic—is seated
on an elaborate chair, originally surmounted by two golden doves. The
saint is said to have appeared in a vision to the Bishop of Beaulieu
and expressly directed this adornment; these doves have disappeared
and have been replaced by crystal balls. The execution of the
statuette—constructed of wood covered with gold plates—is stiff and
conventional, but it is not unimpressive and gives evidence of
considerable skill on the part of the artist. Nevertheless, it
certainly has nothing of the youthful grace we would associate with a
virgin martyr.[499]
The offering of precious stones to attract the favor of gods or saints
is really a talismanic use of such gems and is intimately connected with
the wearing of gems for their talismanic or therapeutic effect. The gift
established a sort of relation between the being whose help was desired
and the petitioner, and the gem was the medium through which the favor
was bestowed.
The legend of the royal princess who was canonized by the Church as St.
Enimie (d. 628 or 630 A.D.) contains an account of a miraculous spring
and also enshrines the popular view of the cause of the strange outlines
of an extensive mass of heaped-up boulders. This saint was a daughter of
the French king Clotaire II (d. 628). Her most ardent wish was to devote
herself exclusively to the service of Christ, but her royal parent
insisted upon a marriage with one of the great nobles. The princess, who
was the fairest of the fair, put up an earnest prayer that the Lord
would destroy her beauty, even at the expense of some dreadful malady,
so that she might cease to be an object of desire for men. Her prayer
was heard and she was stricken with leprosy which entirely blotted out
her charms. Not long after this an angel appeared to her in a dream and
directed her to bathe in the Fountain of Boule, in the region of
Gévaudan. On doing so she was immediately cured of her leprosy, but as
soon as she went away from the spring to return to the royal residence,
the malady returned. A second attempt had the same favorable and
unfavorable results, and she now recognized that she must remain near
the spring. So after bathing there a third time and being again
completely cured, she erected a monastery on the spot and became the
prioress. The institution flourished, but a few years later the saintly
prioress was horrified to see that the Devil was busy with her nuns.
Once more she sought for divine aid, and she was given authority to
imprison the Evil One should she catch him in the monastery. This she
did, but the Devil was crafty enough to make his escape. Near the spot
where the monastery stood was a mass of heaped-up boulders, through
which led a way called the Chasm Road which led to a rocky aperture of
unknown depth. This was fabled to afford egress and ingress to the Devil
in his passage out of and back to the infernal regions. Along this road
he fled when he escaped from the monastery; St. Enimie fearlessly
pursued, but the agile demon was on the point of slipping back again
into his own realm, when the saint made a supreme appeal and called upon
the rocks to help her. As she raised her arms in supplication, one of
the largest boulders, called “La Sourde,” moved of its own accord and
fell upon the Devil, pinning him fast to the ground beneath its
ponderous weight. In his rage and despair he made frantic efforts to
free himself and his bloody claws left an imprint on the rock. This
mark, still observable a half-century ago, though it has now
disappeared, was prosaically explained by scientists as a stain of
iron-oxide. The other boulders were in motion to assist in the good
work, but when the Devil had been caught they stopped short in their
downward course, and this is supposed to account for the strange angles
at which they stand.[500] It would be pleasant to fancy that His Satanic
Majesty eventually failed to make his escape, but unfortunately the
ever-recurring instances of his activity from the age of St. Enimie down
to our own time preclude this belief.
An heirloom in the family of Dom Pedro of Brazil is said to have been
loaned to one of the pioneer aviators, Santos-Dumont, by Dom Pedro’s
daughter, the Comtesse d’Eu. This was a medal of St. Benedict and had
been long regarded as a powerful talisman in the Braganza family. One of
its princely members had a striking proof of this virtue in 1705, when,
after having worn the medal but two weeks, he was saved from deadly
peril by the timely discovery and consequent defeat of a plot.
Santos-Dumont had just experienced a terrible fall while experimenting
with his new airship in the Rothschild park near Paris, and this it was
that induced the Comtesse d’Eu to loan him the talismanic medal, with
the injunction that he should always wear it on his person, and the
assurance that if he did so no further harm could befall him. The
talisman seemed to do its work well, for although the aviator had many
narrow escapes, he was always saved from serious injury. Unfortunately,
however, a thief picked it from the pocket of his coat while he was
busily engaged in work on an airship in a Paris machine-shop.[501]
While it was customary to close the shops of the goldsmiths on Sundays
and feast-days, a special exception permitted the “Confrérie de St.
Eloi,” the goldsmiths’ guild, to open a single shop (not always the same
one) on each Sunday and feast-day, the profits of the sales being
devoted to providing a dinner on Easter Day for the poor of the Hôtel
Dieu.[502] This combination of commercialism and philanthropy has
illustrations in our own day, and, whatever may be the ulterior motives,
some good results are certainly attained.
The Well of St. Cuthbert, near Cranstock, Newquay, England, long enjoyed
the repute of miraculously curing the ailments of infants. Not only were
curative powers attributed to the waters of the well, but also to a
perforated stone alongside of it. As recently as 1868 a puny infant is
said to have been passed through the orifice of this stone with the firm
expectation that this act would strengthen the infant and bring good
luck to it.[503]
In the region of the Abruzzi, in Italy, more especially in the province
of Teramo, wonderful virtues are attributed to the intercession of St.
Donato. So great is thought to be his power to cure those afflicted with
epilepsy that in this region the disease is called the malady of St.
Donato. This saint, however, is credited with much more extensive
powers, for he is believed to cure hydrophobia, to prevent the ill
effects of the Evil Eye, and in general to bring to naught the
enchantments of witches. Such being his powers, it is not surprising
that his image was added to many amulets, those figuring the lunar
crescent being frequently surmounted with the bust of the saint. This
type of amulet owes its supposed efficacy to the horn-like shape of the
crescent, horns or substances having a likeness to a horn, like certain
branches of coral, being regarded as a sure protection against the Evil
Eye. A curious amulet bears the bust of St. Donato surmounting a
crescent moon within which is the dreaded number thirteen. This fateful
number is considered to be a source of misfortune for those who do not
wear it inscribed on an amulet; but it becomes a source of good fortune
and a happy life for those who possess such an amulet.[504]
A notable instance of the use of a saint’s name to facilitate the
perpetration of a crime is afforded in the case of the poison known as
Aqua Tofana. This appears to have been a preparation of arsenic and was
concocted by a woman named Tofana, a native of Palermo, in Sicily, who
eventually took up her abode in Naples and devoted herself to the
preparation and sale of her poison in Naples, Rome and elsewhere. To
divert suspicion she used vials marked “Manna of St. Nicholas of Bari,”
and bearing the image of this saint. Most of her clients are said to
have been women who were anxious to rid themselves of their husbands,
and she must have had a large practice in this specialty, for so many
husbands died in Rome in a mysterious manner that in 1659 the
authorities finally took cognizance of the matter and instituted a
searching investigation. This revealed the fact that there existed in
Rome a secret society entirely composed of women who wished to “remove”
their husbands by poison. The leader of this society and many of the
members were duly executed, but Tofana does not seem to have been
molested.
Many strange superstitions as to the saints prevail among the
Spanish-speaking inhabitants of New Mexico. If a saint whose aid has
been invoked fails to respond to the appeal, his image is shut up in
some receptacle until he vouchsafes to render the service desired. On
the other hand, if the image of a saint falls to the ground, this is
interpreted as a sign that the saint has performed a miracle. One means
of forcing a saint to perform a miracle was to hang the image head
downward; this was especially recommended in the case of St. Anthony.
All strangers who presented themselves on St. Anthony’s day or St.
Joseph’s day were to be hospitably received and entertained, for one of
them might be the saint himself. Those who wished to read the future
were instructed to put the white of an egg in a glass of water on the
eve of St. John’s day; on examining the contents of the glass the next
morning they would see written in black characters on the white
background a prophecy of what was to happen. On this saint’s day women
were assured that if they cut the tip of their hair with an axe, or
merely washed it, they would be blessed with an abundant growth of hair.
[Illustration:
BLOODSTONE MEDALLION, SHOWING THE SANTA CASA OF LORETO CARRIED BY
ANGELS TO DALMATIA FROM GALILEE
]
A strange legend of angelic activity is that touching the miraculous
transportation through the air (from Galilee to Dalmatia) of the “Santa
Casa,” the house wherein the Virgin Mary dwelt. This event is placed in
1295, and the reverse of an Italian medallion engraved in 1508, during
the pontificate of Julius II, gives a representation of the journey to
Dalmatia, two angels sufficing to bear the little edifice. The sea, over
which the house is being borne, is conventionally indicated by waves,
but the fact that the medallist has seen fit to show a relatively large
figure of the Virgin seated on the roof of the little structure and
holding the Infant Jesus in her arms, scarcely adds to the realism of
the effect.
Quite naturally Catholicism could not be satisfied with the pagan idea
that the constellations held sway over the different parts of the human
body, and the saints were substituted for the stars.
The saints of the Romanists have usurped the place of the zodiacal
constellations in their government of the parts of man’s body, and so
for every limbe they have a saint. Thus, St. Otilia keepes the head
instead of Aries; St. Blasius is appointed to govern the necke instead
of Taurus; St. Lawrence keepes the backe and shoulders instead of
Gemini, Cancer and Leo; St. Erasmus rules the belly with the entrayls,
in the place of Libra and Scorpius; in the stead of Sagittarius,
Capricornus, Aquarius and Pisces, the holy church of Rome hath elected
St. Burgarde, St. Rochus, St. Quirinius, St. John, and many others,
which govern the thighes, feet, shinnes and knees.[505]
When we consider how many beautiful and symbolic rites and observances
have marked the celebration of saint’s days and holidays in the Old
World, and how few of these have been preserved by the inhabitants of
our own country, we must find this most regrettable. Of late years there
has been a marked tendency to increase the number of holidays, and in a
few cases to revive the celebration of old holidays, but the popular
idea of the best way to celebrate these occasions seems to be confined
to making them carnivals of noise and disorder. This is largely owing to
a lack of intelligent guidance, for it is too much to expect that any
people, above all those so practical as our American people, can
spontaneously evolve, at short notice, an emblematic expression of the
idea underlying the festival. If, however, a beautiful and adequate
symbolism were presented in a concrete form, the masses of the people
would grasp its significance quickly enough, and would thus gain a
higher and better conception of the historic anniversary or the
time-honored festival they were called upon to celebrate.
The saint’s days on which the summer and winter solstices fell were
memorized by distichs. For instance:
St. Barnaby bright! St. Barnaby bright!
The longest day and the shortest night.
St. Thomas gray! St. Thomas gray!
The longest night and the shortest day.
The former of the verses is probably the earlier, as St. Barnabas’ Day
is June 11, the day on which the summer solstice fell in England for
some time before the reform of the “Old Style” calendar, in 1752,
replaced this date; while St. Thomas’ Day is December 21, the date of
the winter solstice in our modern calendar.[506]
Writing of the origin of the rural superstitions in regard to the
weather on certain saint’s days, Wehrenfels quotes the distich:
If Paul’s Day be fair and clear
It foreshows an happy Year.
and continues:
The contrary has happened a thousand Times, but however this cannot
destroy the Rule. It once happened; certainly, say they, these Rules
of the Husbandmen are not to be despised; see how exactly they are
made good by Experience. Thus a great Part of Mankind reasons; which
if one consider, he will neither depend much upon the Content of the
common People in these Things, nor wonder at so great a Number of most
silly Opinions.[507]
VERSES ON SAINTS’ DAYS AT VARIOUS SEASONS OF THE YEAR.[508]
January 25. Saint Paul’s Day:
If the clouds make dark the sky,
Great store of people then will die;
If there be either snow or rain,
Then will be dear all kinds of grain.
(Robin Forby, “Vocabulary of East Anglia,” London, 1830.)
Somewhat different in a Latin form:
Clara dies Pauli multas segetes nitant amni,
Si fuerint nebulæ, aut venti, erunt proelia genti.
February 2. Candlemas Day:
If Candlemas day be fair and bright,
Winter will have another flight;
If on Candlemas day it be shower and rain,
Winter is gone and will not come again.
(John Ray, “A Collection of English Proverbs,” 2d ed., Cambridge,
1678.)
February 12. St. Eulalia’s Day:
If the sun shines on St. Eulalie’s day,
It is good for apples and cider they say.
February 14. St. Valentine’s Day:
On St. Valentine’s day
Cast beans in clay
But on St. Chad
Sow good or bad.
(Seed time of this Lenten crop limited between February 14 and March
2.)
February 24. St. Matthias’ Day:
Saint Matthew (Sept. 21)
Get candlesticks new;
St. Mattheg
Lay candlesticks by.
March 1. St. David’s Day:
Quoth Saint David, “I’ll have a flood.”
Saith our Lady [Mch. 25] “I’ll have as good.”
(Referring to spring tides in Wales, from Poor Robin’s Almanack,
1684.)
June 15. St. Vitus’ Day:
If Saint Vitus’ day be rainy weather,
It will rain for thirty days together.
(M. A. Denham, “Proverbs and Popular Sayings Relating to the
Seasons,” Percy Soc., 1846.)
July 15. St. Swithin’s Day:
St. Swithin’s day, if thou dost rain,
For forty days it will remain;
St. Swithin’s day, if thou be fair,
For forty days t’will rain nae mair.
(M. A. Denham, “Proverbs and Popular Sayings Relating to the
Seasons,” Percy Soc., 1846.)
July 15: All the tears that St. Swithin can cry
Aug. 24: Saint Bartholomew’s dusty mantle wipes dry.
(R. Inwards, “Weather Lore,” London, 1893.)
July 20. St. Margaret’s Day:
“Margaret’s floods” (heavy rains).
July 25. St. James’ Day:
“Whoever eats oysters on St. James’ day will never want money.”
(M. A. Denham, “Proverbs and Popular Sayings Relating to the
Seasons,” Percy Soc., 1846.)
August 24. St. Bartholomew’s Day:
St. Bartholomew
Brings cold dew.
(John Ray, “A Collection of English Proverbs,” 2d ed., Cambridge,
1678.)
October 28. St. Simon and St. Jude:
Simon and Jude
All the ships on the sea home they do crowd.
Dost thou know her then?
Trap. As well as I know ’twill rain upon
Simon and Jude’s day next.
(Middleton, “The Roaring Girl,” Act 5, Sc. 1.)
Now a continual Simon and Jude’s rain beat all your feathers as flat
down as pancakes!
(Idem, Act II, Sc. 1.)
November 11. St. Martin’s Day:
Expect St. Martin’s summer, halcyon days.
(Shakespeare, “I Henry VI,” Act 1, Sc. 2.)
December 13. St. Lucy’s Day:
Lucy [bright] light
The shortest day and the longest night
(For a long time, before the change of the calendar, St. Lucy’s Day
corresponded to our 21st of December.)
December 21. St. Thomas’ Day:
St. Thomas gray, St. Thomas gray
The longest night and the shortest day.
December 27. St. John the Evangelist’s Day:
Never rued the man
That lead in his fuel before St. John.
(Robin Forby, “Vocabulary of East Anglia,” London, 1830.)
Additional verses on Candlemas Day (Purification of the Blessed
Virgin):
If the sun shines bright on Candlemas Day,
The half of the winter’s not yet away.
In Latin:
Si sol splendescat Maria purificante,
Major erit glacies post festum quam ante.
SAINTS’ DAYS
ADRIAN. September 8. As also of his wife, Natalia. Anniversary of
translation of his relics to Rome; anciently his festival on day
of his martyrdom, March 4, 306. Patron of soldiers in Flanders,
Germany, and northern France; also against the plague. Relics in
Abbey of St. Adrian, Gearsburg, Belgium; and elsewhere.
AFRA. August 5. Especially celebrated in Augsburg, of which city (her
native one) she is patroness. Martyred Aug. 7, 304.
AGATHA. February 5. Patroness of Malta, and Catania, Sicily. Died
February 5, 251.
AGNES. January 21. Supposed anniversary of martyrdom in 304.
ALBAN. June 22. First English saint and martyr, died June 22, 303.
Present town of St. Albans upon site of martyrdom.
AMABLE. June 11. Patron of Riom, France. Died 475.
AMBROSE. December 7. Patron of Milan. Died April 4, 397. Founder of
church, now Sant’ Ambrogio basilica Maggiore, Milan, in 387. One
of four Latin Fathers.
ANDREW. November 30. Apostle, patron of Scotland and Russia.
ANNE. July 26. Supposed anniversary of her death. Mother of the Virgin
Mary. Patroness of Canada.
ANSELM. April 21. Archbishop of Canterbury (1033–1109).
ANTHONY. January 17. Hermit (251–356).
ANTHONY OF PADUA. June 13. Died June 13, 1231.
APOLLONIA. February 9. Martyred February 9, 250. Patroness of those
suffering from toothache.
ATHANASIUS. May 2. One of four Greek Fathers. Died May 2, 373.
AUGUSTINE. August 28. Died 430. Patron of theologians and learning.
Bishop of Hippo in Africa. One of four Latin Fathers.
AUGUSTINE. May 26. Apostle to England in 596. Died May 26, 604.
BABYLAS. September 1 (14) in Eastern Church; January 24 in Western
Church (237–250). Bishop of Antioch. Relics said to have silenced
the revived oracle of Apollo at Delphi, during reign of Julian the
Apostate.
BARBARA. December 4. Patroness of Ferrara, Mantua and Guastalla,
Italy, and of armourers and gunsmiths. Died December 4, 235 (?).
BARNABAS. June 11. His birthday. One of the patrons of Milan. Apostle.
BARTHOLOMEW. August 24. Apostle.
BASIL THE GREAT. January 1, Eastern Church; June 14, Western Church
(328–380).
BATHILDA. January 30 in France; January 26 in Roman Martyrology (died
ca. 680).
BAYO OR BAVON. October 1. Patron of Ghent (589–653).
BENEDICT. March 21. Founder of Benedictine Order (480–543).
BERNARD OF CLAIRVAUX. August 20. Founder of Abbey of Clairvaux, one of
the Fathers of the Church (1091–1153).
BERNARD OF MENTHON. June 15. Founder of hospices in the Alps, “Great
St. Bernard” and “Little St. Bernard” (923–1008?).
BLAISE. February 3. Patron of Ragusa, and of those afflicted with
throat diseases. Bishop of Sebaste, Cappadocia (died 316).
BONIFACE. June 5. Apostle of Germany (680–755).
BRIDGET OR BRIDE. February 1. Patroness of Ireland (450–521).
BRUNO. October 6. Founder of Carthusian Order (1035–1101).
CATHERINE. November 25. Patroness of Venice and appealed to against
diseases of the tongue.
CATHERINE OF SIENA. Patroness of Siena; lived in fourteenth century.
CECILIA. November 22. Patroness of sacred music (died 100).
CLEMENT. November 23. Patron of farriers and blacksmiths (died 100).
COLUMBAN. November 21. Irish saint (543–615).
CRISPIN AND CRISPINIAN. October 25. Patrons of shoemakers (died 284).
CUTHBERT. March 20. Patron saint of Durham, England (died 687).
DAVID. March 1. Patron saint of Wales (446–549).
DECLAN. July 24. First bishop of Ardmore, Ireland.
DENIS. October 9. Patron of France. Living in 250.
DOMENIC. August 4. Founder of Dominican Order (1170–1221).
EDMUND. November 20. King of East Anglia and martyr (died 870).
EDWARD. March 18. King of England and martyr (962–978).
EDWARD THE CONFESSOR. October 13. King of England (1004–1066).
ELIZABETH OF HUNGARY. November 19. Daughter of Alexander II, King of
Hungary (1207–1231).
ELMO (ERASMUS). June 2 (died 304).
ELOY (ELIGIUS). December 1. Patron of goldsmiths (588–659).
EMERIC. November 4. Eldest son of St. Stephen of Hungary.
ENGRACIA.
ERIC (OR HENRY). May 18. Patron of Sweden (died 1151).
ETHELREDA (AUDREY). October 17. Princess of East Anglia (died 679).
EUPHEMIA. September 16. Patroness of Chalcedon (died ca. 307).
FELICITAS. November 23. Patroness of male heirs (died 173).
FILLAN. January 9. Scotch saint (died ca. 649).
FILOMENA (FILUMINA, PHILOMENA). August 10. Supposititious saint.
FRANCIS OF ASSISI. October 4. Founder of Franciscan Order (1182–1226).
FRANCIS XAVIER. December 3. Patron and Apostle of India (1506–1552).
FRIDESWIDE. October 19. Patroness of city and university of Oxford,
daughter of Sidan, Prince of Oxford (died ca. 740).
GENEVIEVE. January 3. Patroness of Paris.
GEORGE. April 23. Patron of England, of Germany and Venice, of
soldiers and armourers (born third century).
GILES. September 1. Patron of Edinburgh (ca. 640–).
GREGORY THE GREAT. March 12 (born 540).
GUDULA. January 8. Patron of Brussels (born middle of seventh
century).
HELENA. August 18. Wife of Constantius, mother of Constantine the
Great (died 328).
HENRY OF BAVARIA. July 15. Patron of Bavaria. Emperor (Henry II) of
Germany (972–1024).
HILARY. January 14 (died 368).
HONORATUS. Bishop of Arles. Died January 6, 429.
HONORATUS (HONORÉ). May 16. Patron of bakers. Bishop of Amiens. (Died
690.)
HUBERT OF LIEGE. November 3. Patron of the chase and of dogs (died
727).
IGNATIUS LOYOLA. July 3. Founder of Jesuit Order (1491–1556).
ISIDORE THE PLOUGHMAN (Isidro el Labrador). May 15. Patron of Madrid
and of farmers (born ca. 1110–1170).
JAMES THE GREAT. July 25. Apostle; patron of Spain and of pilgrims to
Jerusalem (died 42).
JANUARIUS. September 19. Patron of Naples (died 305).
JEROME. September 30. Patron of scholars. One of the four Latin
Fathers (342–420).
JOHN THE BAPTIST. June 24, or Midsummer Day.
JOHN THE EVANGELIST. December 27 (died 101).
JOSEPH. March 19.
JULIAN HOSPITATOR. January 9. Patron of hospitals (died 313).
JUSTINA OF PADUA. October 7. One of the patrons of Padua and Venice
(died 303).
KENELM. December 13 and July 17. Son of Kenulph, King of Murcia
(812–820).
KEYNE (KEYNA). Cornish saint (died 689).
KILIAN. July 8. Irish saint (died 689).
LAWRENCE. August 10. Patron of Nuremberg, Genoa, and of the Escorial.
LEONHARDT. November 6. Patron of prisoners and slaves; in Bavaria, of
cattle (died ca. 560).
LUCY (LUCIA). December 13. Patron of Syracuse, and against
eye-diseases.
LUDMILLA. September 16. Patron of Bohemia. Queen of that country (died
ca. 920).
LUKE. October 18. Patron of painters.
MACAIRE THE ELDER. January 15. (Fourth century.)
MACAIRE THE YOUNGER. January 2. (Fourth century.)
MALO (MACLOU). November 15. Patron of St. Malo, France (died 627).
MARGARET. July 20. One of the patrons of Cremona and of women in
childbirth (died fourth century).
MARK. April 25. Evangelist (died 68).
MARTHA OF BETHANY. July 29. Patroness of cooks and housewives (died
84).
MARTIN OF TOURS. November 11, Martinmas. Patron of Tours and of
beggars, tavern-keepers and wine-growers (316–397).
MARY MAGDALENE. July 22. Patroness of Provence and of Marseilles as
well as of penitent fallen women.
MATTHIAS. February 24.
MAURICE. September 22. Patron of Austria, Savoy, Mantua, and of
foot-soldiers (fourth century).
MICHAEL. September 29. Archangel.
NICHOLAS. December 6. Archbishop of Myra in Lycia, patron of Russia,
and especially of serfs and serfdom (died 342).
OLAF. July 29. Patron of Norway. Not canonized but informally
accepted.
OUEN (OUINE). August 24. Patron of Rouen (595–683).
PANTALEONE. June 27. Patron of physicians (fourth century).
PATRICK. March 17. Patron of Ireland (born ca. 386).
PAUL. June 29 (with St. Peter), and January 25.
PETER. June 29; also August 1, St. Peter’s Chains, and January 18,
Chair of St. Peter.
PHILIP. May 1. Patron of Brabant and Luxemburg.
PHILIP NERI. May 26. Founder of Oratorian Order (1515–1595).
POLYCARP. January 26. Bishop of Smyrna (died 167).
QUIETUS. (No day.) Bones in church of Our Lady of Grau, Hoboken,
enshrined June 1, 1856, Archbishop Bailey officiating.
ROCHE (ROCH, ROQUE). August 16. Patron of prisoners and the sick,
especially the plague-stricken (born ca. 1280–1327).
ROMAIN. October 23. Patron of Rouen (died 639).
ROMUALD. February 7 (956–1027).
ROSALIA. September 4. Patroness of Palermo (died 1160).
RUMALD (RUMBALD). November 3. Patron of Brackley and Buckingham,
England. Son of King of Northumbria.
SCHOLASTICA. February 10. Sister of St. Benedict (died ca. 543).
SEBALD. Son of a Danish king (eighth century).
SEBASTIAN. January 20. Patron of Chiemsee, Mannheim, Oetting, Palma,
Rome, Soissons, and of archers (fourth century).
SECUNDUS. March 30. Patron of Asti (died 119).
STEPHEN. December 26. Patron of horses.
SWITHIN (SWITHUN). July 15. Patron of Winchester (died 862).
SYMPHOROSA. July 18. Only in Greek Church. A Jewish martyr, the mother
of the Maccabees (second century B.C.).
THERESA. October 15. Patron of Spain (1515–1582).
THOMAS À BECKET. July 7 (1117–1170).
THOMAS DIDYMUS. December 21. Apostle, patron of Portugal and Palma.
URBAN. May 25. Pope and martyr (died 236).
URSULA. October 21. Patroness of young girls, and of educational
institutions (died 383).
VALENTINE. February 14 (first century).
VERONICA. Shrove Tuesday (first century).
VICTOR. Patron of Marseilles (fourth century).
VINCENT. January 22. Patron of Lisbon, Valencia, Saragossa, Milan, and
Châlons.
VINCENT DE PAUL. July 19. Founder of Order of the Sisters of Charity.
VITUS. June 15. Patron of Bohemia, Saxony, Sicily, and of dancers and
actors (third century).
WALBURGA. February 25 (died ca. 778).
WILLIAM. January 10. Patron of Bruges (died 1209).
WINIFRED. November 3. British maiden of seventh century.
VII
On the Religious Use of Various Stones
The precious stone mentioned in the earliest biblical reference, Gen.
ii, 12, and there translated onyx, is rendered chrysoprase in the
Septuagint version, and is by others referred to the emerald on the
ground that the land of Havilah, where it is there said to occur, is
thought to have been a part of what was later called Scythia, and as
such would include the emerald region of the Urals. But the ancient
emeralds are now known to have come largely from Upper Egypt, and such
vague conjectures are of little use in determining what stone was really
meant in this most ancient allusion. Professor Haupt has even suggested
that we might translate the Hebrew word _shoham_ used in this passage by
“pearl,” since he conjectures that one of the four “rivers” surrounding
the land of Havilah was the Persian Gulf.
For all attempted identifications of the stones mentioned in the Old
Testament, we are principally dependent upon the Greek version of the
Seventy. As this was made in the Alexandrian period, not far from the
time of Theophrastus, whose work on gems we shall presently mention, the
names at that time adopted by the Greek translators may be regarded as
fairly correct equivalents of the Hebrew. The difficulty lies more in
the translation of the classical names into the English, and arises
largely from the unscientific nomenclature of the ancients; the same
name being employed for stones that resemble each other to the eye, but
which are now well distinguished by chemical and physical differences
formerly unknown.
There are some traces in the Bible of the use of precious stones as
amulets. In Proverbs xvii, 8, we read that “a gift is like a precious
stone in the eyes of the owner; whithersoever he turneth he prospereth.”
This passage is rendered somewhat differently in the Authorized Version,
but the above translation is evidently more correct. The stones of the
breastplate were of course amulets in a certain sense, and possibly
oracles also, and it is therefore quite probable that the Hebrews shared
in the belief common to all the peoples around them, although opposition
of the orthodox to all magical practices prevented them from going into
particulars in regard to such superstitious fancies.
In support of his theory that the Urim and Thummim of the Hebrew
high-priest signified the stones of the breastplate worn on the sacred
ephod, and should be rendered “perfectly brilliant,” Bellermann cites
the passage in Ezekiel (chap, xxviii, verse 14), where he writes of
“fiery stones” in treating of the royal splendors of the ruler of the
great commercial city of Tyre. As to the oracular utterances of the
high-priest when, clad in the ephod and wearing the glittering
breastplate, he sought for the counsel of the Almighty, this author
rejects the idea that the divine will was revealed by changes in the
brilliancy of the stones, by casting of lots, or by a mysterious use of
the ineffable name, the Tetragrammaton, J h w h (Jahweh), but believes
that the answer to the questions was communicated to the high-priest by
an inner voice, an inspiration similar to that vouchsafed to the great
prophets of Israel.[509]
A curious analogy to the use by Christians of fragments supposed to have
come from the True Cross as amulets, was the employment by the Talmudic
Jews of chips from an idol or from something that had been offered to an
idol, for the same purpose. It is needless to say that this was severely
condemned by the Rabbis.
It is interesting to note the statements of Arab historians that the
mummy of Cheops, the Pharaoh of the Great Pyramid, was decorated with a
pectoral of precious stones. As the regal and priestly functions were
united in the monarch, we may have here the first form of the
high-priest’s breastplate.
The Arab historian Abd er-Rahmân, writing in 829 A.D., states that Al
Mamoun(813–833), son of Haroun-al-Raschid, entered the great pyramid and
found the body of Cheops:
In a stone sarcophagus was a green stone statue of a man, like an
emerald, containing a human body, covered with a sheet of fine gold
ornamented with a great quantity of precious stones; on the breast was
a priceless sword, on the head a ruby as large as a hen’s egg,
brilliant as a flame. I have seen the statue which contained the body;
it was near the palace of Fôstat.
Essentially the same account is given by Ebub Abd el-Holem, another
Arab, who says:
One saw beneath the summit of the pyramid a chamber with a hollow
prison, in which was a statue of stone enclosing the body of a man,
who had on the breast a pectoral of gold enriched by fine stones, and
a sword of inestimable price, on the head a carbuncle the size of an
egg, brilliant as the sun, on which were characters no man could read.
In the opinion of Mariette Bey these details are so circumstantial as to
leave little doubt that the mummy of Cheops was found by Mamoun, but he
believes that the body was covered with a gilt wrapper and that the
stones were paste imitations. The ruby was probably the “uræus,” the
sacred asp, emblem of royalty, and the wonderful sword may have been a
sceptre or a poniard similar to those found in tombs of the eleventh
dynasty and in that of Queen Aah-Hotep; the statue of green serpentine
often occurs in later tombs. Should this view be correct, precious
stones were imitated in glass at a very remote period.[510]
An exceedingly fine specimen of ancient Egyptian goldsmith’s work, now
in the Louvre Museum, Paris, is a pendant terminating in a bull’s head,
each of the horns being tipped with a little ball. Above the double
reins are four rondelles, one of gold, two of a material still
undetermined, and one of lapis lazuli; the different parts of the
pendant are connected by gold wire. Its most interesting and attractive
feature, however, is a polished hexagonal amethyst, engraved on both
faces. In each case the form of a priest is figured; in one he appears
with his official staff or wand, and in the other he is represented as
bearing an incense-burner and offering the mineral and vegetable
sacrifices; an Oriental pearl is set above the engraved amethyst. The
religious and sacrificial significance of this ornament, coupled with
the costliness of the materials and the superior excellence of the
workmanship, make it likely that we have here an amulet or talisman made
for some Egyptian of very high rank.[511]
St. Jerome (346?–420 A.D.), in his commentary on Isaiah (liv, 11, 12),
alludes to the verses of Ezekiel describing the glories of the King of
Tyre and the precious stones with which he was adorned. Evidently Jerome
believed that this passage was to be taken symbolically, for he asks:
Who could have so little judgment and intelligence as to think that
any Prince of Tyre whatever should be set in the Paradise of God, and
have his place among the Cherubim, or could fancy that he dwelt with
the glowing stones, which we should without doubt understand as the
angels and the celestial virtues.[512]
It would be both curious and interesting if we could trace a connection
between the significance of the names of the Hebrew tribes and those of
the breastplate gems assigned to the tribes. In ancient times names were
much more significant than they are to-day, and the tribal names in
particular possessed for the Hebrews a symbolic meaning, but this does
not appear to have induced any marked tendency to connect the colors or
the symbolic meanings of the different stones with the fame, or with the
characteristics or fortunes of the several tribes. On the other hand,
the foundation stones, as symbols of the Apostles, became a favorite
theme with the early Christian writers. Possibly the neglect of ancient
Hebrew writers to perform a similar task in connection with the
breastplate stones might still be made good, even at this late date, and
an effort in this direction might result in giving a wider range to the
symbolic value of certain well-known gems.
The name Reuben signifies “Behold a Son,” and this has been given a
Messianic meaning by some commentators. In Jacob’s enigmatic blessing,
“excellency of dignity” and “excellency of power” are attributed to
Reuben, but this birthright is taken from him because of a heinous sin
he has committed. Still we might see in the carnelian, the gem of
Reuben, a symbol of “dignity” and “power.”
Simeon has been variously rendered “Hearing” or “Hearkener.” The
blessing accuses him of an act of cruelty in which he was aided by his
brother Levi. To the peridot, or chrysolite, dedicated to Simeon, could
be appropriately assigned the meaning “good tidings.”
The priestly functions of the tribe of Levi are expressed by the name
itself which means “attached” or “joined,” that is, to the altar. Hence
in the emerald we should see the symbol of “dedication” or
“ministration,” in addition to its other and better known meanings, such
as “hope,” “faith,” and “resurrection.”
For the tribe of Judah we have the ruby, and here the meaning of the
name, “praised,” fits in well with the dignity of the rare and glowing
ruby. This noble gem has always been a favorite adornment for royal
crowns and from Judah sprang the royalty of Israel. The blessing given
to this tribe declares that “the sceptre shall not depart from Judah,
nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come.” This is often
taken to signify the consummation of the Kingdom of Israel in the
Kingdom of Heaven.
Issachar, signifying “reward,” or “the rewarded,” suggests as symbolic
meanings of the tribal stone lapis lazuli, “success” and “fruition.”
This stone, the sapphire of the ancients, was typical of heaven,
probably owing to the appearance of the specimens most highly valued in
olden times, those in which a number of golden spots are scattered over
the blue surface of the stone, which thus figure both the blue of heaven
and the hosts of the stars.
The tribal name Zebulon signifies “exaltation,” and to this tribe is
assigned a dwelling-place by the sea bordering on the domains of the
rich Phenician seaport, Sidon. We could thus see in the gem of Zebulon,
the onyx, a symbol of dominion and authority. This could serve to offset
some of the old superstitions regarding the onyx, which was sometimes
charged with bringing discord and dissension.
Of the tribe Joseph, we are told that it was to be increased, and this
meaning is contained in the name itself, which is rendered: “May God
add.” To Joseph were promised “blessings of heaven above,” and
“blessings of the deep that lieth under.” The sapphire, probably the
tribal stone of Joseph, was known in ancient times by the name hyacinth
and was a stone of good omen, bringing increase of health and wealth;
therefore its significance as a tribal gem does not differ essentially
from the traditional one.
[Illustration:
CHINESE JADE AMULETS FOR THE DEAD
Figs. 1_a_ and _b_, pair of eye-protecting amulets; Fig. 2, presumably
eye-amulets; Fig. 3, eye-amulet with design of fish; Figs 4–7, lip
amulets, 4 and 7 in shape of fish; Figs. 8–9, amulets in the shape
of monsters. From “Jade,” by Berthold Laufer.
By courtesy of the author and Field Museum of Natural History,
Chicago.
]
Benjamin signifies “son of the right hand,” hence this name denotes
strength and power. This meaning accords well with what is said in
Jacob’s blessing: “Benjamin shall raven as a wolf; in the morning he
shall devour the prey and at night he shall divide the spoil.” The
banded agate symbolizing this tribe would have the meaning “strength”
and “mastery”; indeed, according to other sources the agate was reputed
to bring victory to the wearer.
Dan is the “judge” among the tribes, according to the meaning of the
name. In Jacob’s blessing Dan is said to be “a serpent by the way,” and
“an adder in the path.” These metaphors, which may not strike us as
commendatory of the tribe, probably indicated the craft and courage of
the tribesmen in attacking and defeating their foes, and enriching
themselves with the spoils of war. The amethyst, as the tribal stone of
Dan, could thus signify both “judgment” and “craft.”
To the tribe of Gad was given the beryl, and the fact that spheres made
from this stone were believed to be best adapted for use in
crystal-gazing makes it an especially appropriate gem for the tribe of
“good fortune,” this being the most probable signification of the name
“Gad,” although in the Bible the interpretation “a troop,” is given. The
beryl would therefore signify “good luck” and perhaps also
“coöperation.”
The twelfth and last tribe, Asher, has the jasper for its gem. This
would also gain an auspicious significance from its association with
Asher, which means “happy.” To the other meanings assigned to jasper
might be added that of “happiness.” As we have elsewhere remarked, there
seems good reason to suppose that jade was frequently designated jasper
in ancient times, and this stone was everywhere believed to possess
wonderful magic powers.
The jasper[513] as an emblem of strength and fortitude is noted by St.
Jerome in his commentary on Isaiah (liv, 11, 12), where he writes that
the bulwarks or walls of the Holy City were strengthened by jasper.
These bulwarks served “to overthrow and refute every proud attack
against the knowledge of God, and to subject falsehood to truth.
Whoever, therefore, is most convincing in debate and best fortified with
texts of Holy Scripture is a bulwark of the Church.”[514] Jerome also
alludes to the variety of jasper called _grammatias_, because of the
peculiar markings, suggesting letters of the alphabet. This was believed
to possess great talismanic virtue, especially in putting to flight
phantoms and apparitions, since the markings were thought to signify
some potent spell, written on the stone by nature’s hand. Of another
kind of jasper, “white as snow or sea-foam,”[515] and having reddish
stains, we are told that it symbolizes the spiritual graces, which
preserve those endowed with them from vain terrors; and the learned
Father quotes as descriptive of this stone the words of Solomon’s Song
(v, 10): “My beloved is white and ruddy.”[516]
Writing of the sapphire (lapis lazuli), one of the foundation stones of
the Holy City, St. Jerome likens it to heaven and to the air above us,
adding, somewhat fancifully, that we might apply to the sapphire the
words of Socrates in the “Clouds” of Aristophanes: “I walk upon air and
look down upon the Sun.” Turning then to Holy Scripture, Jerome notes
the well-known passage in Ezekiel (i, 26) where the Throne of God is
said to have “the appearance of a sapphire stone,” and finds in this
text a proof that blue denoted the glory of God.[517] The ingenuity of
the ancient commentators in finding hidden meanings in the simplest
things is well shown by the assertion of Thomas de Cantimpré that St.
John placed the emerald fourth in the list of foundation stones, because
the _four_ evangelists are constant in their praise of chastity.[518]
Certain gems and stones have a definite relation and appropriateness to
the various religious holidays and festivals. Notable among these is the
rhodonite, a silicate of magnesia, named from the Greek word _rhodon_,
“a rose,” because of its beautiful rose-pink hue. This is found more
especially in the Ural Mountains, and in Massachusetts, but in a number
of other places as well. In the Ural Mountains one single mass was so
immense that ninety horses were needed to move the 22–ton weight a
distance of thirty miles to the Imperial Lapidary Works at
Ekaterineburg; here the material was cut up into smaller masses to be
finally worked up in the Imperial Lapidary Works at Peterhof into a
sarcophagus and tomb for the Emperor Nicholas I.
This stone is a great favorite in Russia, and is frequently cut into
egg-shaped ornaments, either in the form of a simple egg, or of one with
a halo and a moonstone effect at one end. It may well be termed the
“Easter Stone.” For those unable to afford such an egg-shaped piece of
rhodonite, a yellow fibrous gypsum or satinspar cut into a similar form
may be substituted. Jade cut in the same way is also sometimes favored,
as well as many varieties of rock-crystal.
In marked contrast with the joyful festival of Easter stands the most
solemn day of the Christian year, Good Friday, and for this day also we
have a singularly appropriate stone, the variety of jasper known as the
bloodstone. Here the red markings can be regarded as symbolical of the
blood of Our Lord, shed for the salvation of mankind in the supreme
sacrifice of the Passion. When the head of the Christ is cut in this
stone it is often possible to utilize the red spots to figure the drops
of blood flowing from the wounds inflicted by the Crown of Thorns.
With the glad tidings of Christmas Day is intimately associated the
memory of the Star of Bethlehem, which served as a beacon light to guide
the three wise men of the East to the humble manger wherein reposed the
newly-born Saviour of the World. Hence for this great Christian festival
no gem can equal the star-sapphire, combining as it does the pure
sapphire-hue, always looked upon as symbolic of the highest moral,
spiritual, and religious sentiments, and the mysterious moving star,
which, shifting its apparent place with the slightest movement of the
stone, seems endowed with a wonderful independent life, just as the
phenomenal star of Bethlehem, unlike the fixed and changeless stars of
the firmament, glided through the heavenly expanse, by a miraculous
motion, due indeed to some supernatural law, but differing in kind and
degree from all the usual, every-day aspects of nature.
The symbolism of precious stones presented in so many different ways by
the early ecclesiastical writers appears in the prayer offered by the
Archbishop of Canterbury at the coronation of the kings and queens of
England. While the king kneels upon a footstool, the archbishop takes
St. Edward’s Crown and lays it upon the altar; whereupon he pronounces
the following words:
[Illustration:
LA MADONNA DELLA SALUTE, BY OTTAVIANO NELLI
In the Basilica of S. Francesco at Assisi.
]
O, God, the crown of the faithful, who on the heads of Thy saints
placed crowns of glory, bless and sanctify this crown, that as the
same is adorned with divers precious stones, so this Thy servant,
wearing it, may be replenished of Thy grace, with the manifold gifts
of all precious virtues, through the King eternal, Thy Son our Lord.
Amen.”[519]
In a tractate “Of the Crown of the Virgin,” ascribed to Saint Ildefonso
(607–669), the writer describes this wondrous gold crown as adorned with
twelve precious stones, six splendid stars, and six beautiful and
fragrant flowers, thus uniting the fairest treasures of earth and sky in
honor of the Queen of Heaven.[520]
The gems, stars and flowers are given in the following order: Topaz,
Sirius, sard, lily, chalcedony, Arcturus, sapphire, crocus, agate, the
evening star, jasper, the rose, carbuncle, the Sun, emerald, the violet,
amethyst, the Moon, chrysolite, sun-flower, chrysoprase, Orion, beryl,
camomile. “That thus,” the writer concludes, “with precious stones,
radiant luminaries, and fair flowers, a splendid crown may be ennobled,
beautified and adorned, and may be the more willingly and gladly
accepted by Our Lady.”
In a private collection in Smyrna there is a black hematite engraved
somewhat in the style of an Abraxas gem; and certainly not Christian. On
it is represented a galloping horseman, beneath whose steed is a
crouching man; above the rider’s head appears a star. The reverse bears
the inscription: σφραγίς θεοῦ, “seal of God.” In contrast with this is
an intaglio carnelian of the Munich Royal Collection, with the figures
of the Virgin Mary and the Infant Jesus, and the Greek words ἡ ἐικὼν τῆς
ἁγίας Μαρίας, “the image of the Holy Mary.” This is one of the best
examples of Byzantine work in gem-cutting.[521]
One of the very curious cases of the employment of a purely secular
Roman gem for ecclesiastical uses is offered by the exceedingly
beautiful convex blue aquamarine engraved with the head of Julia,
daughter of Titus, a fine work of the Augustan Age, now in the French
Cabinet des Médailles in Paris. This was donated in the ninth century by
the Carolingian emperor, Charles the Bald, to the Treasury of St. Denis,
after it had been given a setting of pearls and precious stones. In St.
Denis it was placed at the apex of a reliquary, which became known as
the Oratorium of Charlemagne, and the head of the vain and worldly
princess is said to have been venerated by the pious monks and priests
as that of the Virgin Mary. As a work of portrait art this gem is one of
the finest examples from classic times.[522]
The strange decadence and the conventionalized but profoundly earnest
quality of Early Christian art is shown in an intaglio gem of the Royal
Numismatic Museum in Munich. This is a dark-hued sardonyx of two layers,
and the engraving depicts a bearded Christ, enthroned and accompanied by
the twelve apostles, six on either side, four of them beardless while
the remainder are represented with beards; they are all gazing
reverently upon the central figure, behind whose head appear the arms of
the cross and above them the letters _I̅C̅_ _X̅C̅_ Ἰησοῦς Χριστός.[523]
Another somewhat similar Early Christian gem is a cameo cut in a
sardonyx of three layers, the groundwork being a brownish-black, and the
figures of a light-bluish hue, the upper parts yellowish-brown. Here
also we have an enshrined Christ; above his head two angels hold a
diadem. This is of superior workmanship to the intaglio gem just
described.[524] There is a sardonyx cameo showing a rude figure of the
Prophet Daniel, a lion on either side of him, and inscribed with his
name in Greek letters. This is of Byzantine workmanship.[525]
The reliquarium of Wittekind, now in the Kunstgewerbe Museum at Berlin,
is considered to be probably the most important specimen of early
Frankish goldsmith-work that has been preserved, and is richly set with
precious stones, some of these being ancient gems. This is one of a
number of cases where engraved stones of Pagan times were used in the
adornment of ornamental objects destined for Christian religious use.
The upper edge shows a row of entwined animal figures, and the front
side has medallions with primitive bird forms in cloisonné enamel; on
the reverse side are very rudely executed repoussé figures of saints.
This work is assigned to the latter part of the eighth century A.D., and
is conjectured to have been a gift from Charlemagne to the Saxon King
Wittekind, on the occasion of the latter’s conversion to Christianity in
the year 807. It was long preserved in Wittekind’s foundation at Enger
near Herford, to which he had bequeathed his treasures; in 1414 it was
removed for safe-keeping to the Johanniskirche at Herford, where it
remained until 1888, when it came into the possession of the Berlin
Kunstgewerbe Museum. This precious example of the earliest German work
has the form of a small portable satchel, in which could be placed those
sacred relics the owner might wish to bear around with him because of
the protection they were assumed to afford.[526]
One of the most notable and valuable objects in the famous Guelph
treasure that has recently been brought back to the city of Brunswick as
a result of the marriage of the Duke of Cumberland’s son, Ernest
Augustus, with the daughter of Emperor William II, is an elaborately
designed cross, a very fine specimen of the goldsmith’s art of the
twelfth century. This with the other treasures was taken by the Duke of
Cumberland to Vienna for safe-keeping, at the time he gave up, in 1884,
his title as Duke of Brunswick, rather than acknowledge Prussian
supremacy. The cross, which has the form of a so-called “crutch-cross,”
with rectangular projecting plates at the ends of the arms, was designed
to serve as a reliquary, the relic shrine being in a cruciform capsule
behind a small, round-edged golden cross set in the midst of the cross
proper. The precious relics reposing here were said to be bones of John
the Baptist, St. Peter, St. Mark the Evangelist, and St. Sebastian. On
the reverse side of the cross are set four large and beautiful sapphires
and in the centre is a remarkably brilliant topaz.
While nothing definite is known as to the goldsmith who executed this
work, its style and general character suggest the conjecture that it may
have been produced by the artist who made the “Crown of Charlemagne” in
Vienna, really a crown executed for Conrad III, King of the Germans
(1093–1152), the first Hohenstaufen, and also several regal ornaments
for the latter’s consort, Queen Gisela. In addition to the jewelled
decoration of its reverse, the front of the cross is set with many
pearls, and the form of these settings is one of the chief arguments
adduced in favor of attributing it to the maker of the so-called “Crown
of Charlemagne.”[527]
An ecclesiastical jewel of great beauty and remarkable historic interest
is known as the Cross of Zaccaria. It was secured in 1308 by Ticino
Zaccaria at the capture of the ancient Greek colonial city Phocæa, in
Asia Minor, and was donated to the Cathedral of San Lorenzo in Genoa.
This cross is of silver gilt, measuring 64 cm. in height and 40 cm. in
width, and within it behind a crystal is set a piece of the Holy Cross.
It is profusely adorned with precious and semi-precious stones, there
being 57 good-sized rubies, emeralds, sapphires, carnelians, malachites
and amethysts, besides 44 smaller stones and 299 of still lesser size.
The jewel is now preserved in the Palazzo Bianco, Genoa.
The greatest treasure in the Cathedral of Chartres was the “Sacred
Shrine.” It was made of cedar-wood covered with gold plates and was
adorned with an immense number of precious stones including diamonds,
rubies, emeralds, sapphires, jacinths, agates, turquoises, opals,
topazes, onyxes, chrysolites, amethysts, garnets, girasols, sardonyxes,
asterias, chalcedonies, heliotropes, etc. These had been presented by
many different donors during a long period of time. In front of this
shrine was a cross composed entirely of precious stones, comprising 56
rubies and garnets, 18 sapphires, 22 pearls, 8 emeralds, 8 onyxes and 4
jacinths. When this was first placed in the cathedral is not known, but
it was there in 1353, as it is noted in an inventory made at that time.
An uncut diamond weighing about 45 carats, and constituting one of the
adornments of the shrine in 1682, was said to have been the gift of a
marshal of France; another ornament, an oval agate engraved with the
Virgin and Child, may now be seen in the Louvre where it forms part of
the Sauvageot Collection.[528]
That all trace has been lost of an emerald engraved with the head of
Christ and given to Pope Innocent VIII by Sultan Bajazet II about the
year 1488, is greatly to be deplored, even though there be no truth in
the legend or report that it had been engraved in the time of Christ by
the order of Tiberius Cæsar. The evidence of two medals with Latin
legends and of certain old paintings with English inscriptions of the
sixteenth century seems to prove the existence of the gem in the Vatican
treasury about the time specified, and it has been conjectured, with
some probability, that the emerald had been engraved by a Byzantine
artist at some time before 1453, when Constantinople fell into the hands
of the Turks, and that this gem formed part of the booty they then
secured. A print, often copied photographically and otherwise,
purporting to be a representation of this emerald portrait of Christ,
has no evidential value, and has either been freely worked up from the
details of the spurious letter of Lentulus to Tiberius, giving a
personal description of the Saviour, or still more probably from a
Rafaelesque type of Christ’s head.[529]
The beads of rosaries, when blessed by the Supreme Pontiff, or by one of
the dignitaries of the Church, are considered to be endowed with a
certain special virtue in favor of the individual for whom the blessing
is imparted. However, should this person loan the beads to another with
the intention of making him a partaker of this special blessing, or
indulgencing, they lose their virtue. It is prescribed that these beads
should be made of stone, glass, or some other durable material not
easily broken, in order that the effects of the blessing should not be
lost, or perhaps that the object so blessed should be less liable to
injury. Various precious stones as well as pearls are used for this
purpose, there being generally groups of ten small spheres, each group
separated from the other by a larger sphere, the ten smaller beads
serving to numerate the paternosters while the large bead is passed
through the fingers when a credo has been recited.
A legend very popular in the Middle Ages has been conjectured to be the
source of the word “rosary” as applied to a chaplet of beads for
counting prayers. This legend tells of a pious youth, who on each and
every day wove a garland of roses for the statue of the Virgin in the
parish church. His religious zeal soon induced him to become a monk, and
as the restrictions and duties of monastic life forced him to
discontinue his floral offerings, he was much troubled in conscience,
and was only relieved when the abbot told him that by reciting 150 aves
at the close of each day, he would please the Virgin as much as by the
gift of flowers. The prayers were faithfully said and they eventually
became the occasion of a miracle. One evening, as the young monk was
traversing a dense forest, it suddenly occurred to him that he had
forgotten to recite his aves. He knelt down quickly and began to pray;
all at once he saw a radiant and beautiful figure standing before him,
and he immediately recognized in it the Blessed Virgin. Graciously she
bent over him and drew from his lips one rose after the other, until
fifty roses of supernatural beauty lay upon the ground. Of these she
then made a garland and placed it upon the head of her faithful
servant.[530]
The first literary allusion to rosaries in India is in a Jain treatise
written about the beginning of our era. The Prakrit name here employed,
_ganettiya_, is equivalent to the sanscrit _ganayitrika_, or “counter,”
and it is enumerated among the ten utensils of a Brahman ascetic. The
other nine are the tridanda-stick, the water jar, the Bramanical thread,
the earthen vessel named karotikâ, the bundle of straw used as a seat,
the clout, the six-knotted wood, the hook, and the finger-ring. It is
said that no mention of rosaries has been found in Indian Buddhist
literature.[531]
A splendid ecclesiastical ornament is described in the inventory of the
royal treasures in the Château de Fontainebleau made in 1560, on the
accession of Charles IX. This was of gold and composed of a crucifix
with the figures of the Virgin Mary and St. John. It was “enriched with
41 sapphires, 3 pointed diamonds and 12 balas-rubies,” which served to
mark the nails in the cross. The weight of the gold was 25 marks 5
ounces, and the value of the entire object, gold and precious stones, is
given as 2720 écus, or about $6120. The intrinsic value of the gold
alone would be about $4240.[532]
The most impressive of the ecclesiastical ornaments in the Spanish
churches was the _custodia_, or monstrance, in which the Holy Eucharist
was borne through the streets on Corpus Christi day; indeed, only at
this time was the custodia publicly shown. It was in fact a large
shrine, generally affecting the form of a church tower. The most ancient
example now in existence is in the Cathedral of Gerona. It is of gold,
is 1.85 m. (over 6 feet) high, and weighs nearly 66 pounds. This work,
in which the architectural style is an ornate Gothic, was completed in
1458 by the goldsmith Francisco de Asís Artau. One of the finest
specimens, however, was executed by Enrique d’Arphe for Charles V and is
in the Cathedral of Toledo. This _custodia_ measures no less than nine
feet in height and is three feet wide. Here also the form is that of a
Gothic tower; the cross at the apex was made by the goldsmith Lainez,
and is adorned with 86 pearls and 4 large emeralds.
The shrine itself contains 795 marks’ weight of silver (about 600
pounds), the gold in its composition weighing 57 marks, or about 38
pounds. The Venetian Navagero estimated its worth to be 30,000
ducats.[533]
The wife of Marshal Junot, the celebrated Duchesse d’Abrantès, seeks to
exonerate her husband and to refute the many charges of spoliation
brought against him during and after the French occupation of Spain in
1808 and the succeeding years. For her, Marshal Lannes was a much worse
offender, and she asserts that after the siege of Saragossa in 1809,
Lannes secured possession of the immensely valuable treasures of the
church of Nuestra Señora del Pilar, treasures valued at nearly
$1,000,000. On his arrival in Paris, Lannes informed Napoleon that he
had brought with him from Spain “a few colored stones of little value,”
and was graciously told that he could keep them for himself. The finest
jewel of this collection contained 1300 diamonds, nine of which were of
great magnitude and value; the jewel was heart-shaped, and had in the
centre a dove, typifying the Holy Spirit, with wings extended. It had
been given to the church by Doña Barbara de Portugal, Queen of
Spain.[534]
About the year 1630 there could be seen in Paris a crucifix a foot and a
half high, all of a single piece of yellow amber; on either side were
the figures of the Virgin Mary and of St. John respectively, each carved
in most excellent style. The writer who gives this information, a lineal
descendant of Lodowyk van Berghem, commonly regarded as the first
diamond-cutter, tells from hearsay evidence of a marvellous emerald
which six hundred years before his time, or about 1060, hung suspended
from the top of the nave of the Cathedral of Mainz. It was “as large as
half-a-melon,” and was of exceeding brilliance.[535]
The writer of a Bohemian poem on the legend of St. Catherine’s betrothal
to Christ, written about 1355, appears to have been, in one part,
inspired by the glowing adornment of the Wenceslaus chapel in the
cathedral of St. Veit. The poet gives an enthusiastic description of the
gorgeous ornamentation of the mystic, imaginary temple in which the
betrothal takes place. The pavement is of aquamarine beryl, the walls
are studded with diamonds in golden settings, the framework of the
windows is alternately of emerald or of sapphire, and the window-panes
are not of stained glass, but of precious or semi-precious stones. Some
of these are not ill fitted for this use, the transparency of rubies,
amethysts, spinels, jacinths, garnets, and similar stones, admitting
quite sufficient light; but others mentioned here, such as turquoises,
chalcedonys and jaspers, would permit but a dim ray of light to traverse
their opaque or semi-opaque substance. It has been conjectured by some
that the poet drew his material from the account of the temple of the
Holy Grail in the old German legend, probably through a Bohemian
version; but as he omits in his enumeration twelve of the stones given
in the Grail legend, and adds a number of others, diamond, turquoise,
chalcedony, garnet, etc., this literary source is not fully
satisfactory. Rather might it be believed that the splendid decoration
of the Wenceslaus chapel and of the Karlstein Castle suggested the
vision wrought out by the Bohemian poet, especially as among the stones
he mentions which are not in the Grail legend, we have the garnet, so
eminently a product of Bohemia.[536]
A peculiar and very interesting facetted diamond of 6³⁄₃₂ carats
displays alternate black and white facets and presents the appearance of
a clearly defined Greek cross in black outline when viewed by
transmitted light. The original crystal, which came from Brazil and
weighed 10½ carats, was an octahedron and was of a jet black hue. The
expectation was that the result of its cutting would be the production
of a black brilliant, but when one of the points of the octahedron had
been removed to form the table, it became evident that the black tint
was only superficial, the body of the crystal being white. This
peculiarity was then utilized by leaving some of the natural black faces
of the crystal. This diamond was found to be of excessive hardness,
rendering the task of cutting it an exceedingly arduous one. It is now
in the possession of one of the Royal Household of Siam.[537]
Among the Buddhist legends current in India in the seventh century A.D.
is one referring to the vases offered by the “four kings of heaven” to
the Buddha. They first brought four gold vases, but the Buddha declared
that one who had renounced the world could not use such costly vases.
Silver vessels were then substituted, and were also refused, as were
successively vases made of rock-crystal, lapis lazuli, carnelian, amber,
ruby and other precious materials. Finally, four stone vases were
proffered. These were of violet color and transparent, but the fact that
they were not of precious material rendered them acceptable to the
Buddha.[538]
The images of Buddha usually bear as adornment a small gem. This is most
frequently a moonstone, but occasionally a ruby or some other gem will
be used. The reason for this religious use of gems must not be sought
only in the idea that precious and costly objects are most fitting as
decorations of the sacred images, but it also implies a certain belief
in the magic or quasi-sacred character of the gem itself.
The Saddharma-Pundarîka, one of the nine most sacred books of the
Buddhists, composed perhaps as early as the beginning of our era, gives
the following description of a celestial stûpra, a sort of shrine
containing a celestial being:[539]
It [the _stûpra_] consisted of seven precious substances, _viz._,
gold, silver, lapis lazuli, musaragalva, emerald, red coral, and
Karketana stone.
This _stûpra_ of precious substances once formed, the gods of paradise
strewed and covered it with _mandârava_ and great mandâra flowers. And
from that stûpra of precious substances there issued the voice:
“Excellent, excellent, Lord Sâkyamuni! thou hast well expounded the
Dharmapayârya of the Lotus of the True Law. So is it, Lord; so is it,
_sugata_.”
Some of the most valuable temple treasures in the Island of Ceylon were
preserved in a pagoda near the frontiers of the realm of Saula. The
report of the gold and jewels accumulated here excited the avidity of
the Portuguese, then in control of a considerable part of the island,
and finally an energetic attempt was made to gain possession of them.
Although the existence of the pagoda was well attested, the Portuguese
were ignorant of its exact location in the tract of forest land wherein
it stood. The expeditionary force consisted of 150 Portuguese and 2000
Lascars. On nearing the forest they placed themselves under the guidance
of a native captured in the neighborhood. He led them through the
woodland, traversing it hither and thither, but no pagoda appeared.
Suddenly the native exhibited signs of madness, which were at first
believed to be simulated, but were later regarded as genuine, on which
he was made away with and another native substituted, however, with the
same result. One after another five natives showed the same symptoms and
were successively put to death, and at last the Portuguese were
compelled to abandon this unsuccessful quest. We have here either a
remarkable example of fidelity to the temple, or else an instance of the
psychic influence of the terror inspired by the risk of violating it.
Undoubtedly the priests represented the result as due to supernatural
influence, and perhaps really felt justified in doing so.[540]
An official account of the embassy of the Cinghalese monarch Kirti Sri
to Siam, in 1750, offers a description of the magnificent pagoda erected
over the Sacred Footprint of Buddha, at Swarna Panchatha Maha Pahath.
The free use of sapphires and rubies is quite natural, when we consider
that some of the finest specimens of these stones are still found in
this region:[541]
Above the sacred footstep and made of solid gold was a pagoda
supported on suitable pillars, forming a shrine. At the four corners
were placed four golden _sésat_, and from above hung four bunches of
precious stones like bunches of ripe areca-nuts in size. On the edge
of the roof hung ropes of pearls, and on the point of the spire was
set a sapphire the size of a lime fruit. Within and overshadowing the
footprint like a canopy, there hung from the middle of the spire a
full-blown lotus of gold, in the middle of which was set a ruby of
similar size. Chariots, ships, elephants, and horses with their
riders, all made of gold, and of a suitable size, were placed on a
golden support above the silver pavement. This was hung on wires of
gold, to which were hung ornaments set with pearls the size of the
_nelli_ fruit, as well as other jewelled ornaments, rings and chains.
By some skilful device all this could be moved along the silver
pavement.
Recent excavations made by Dr. J. H. Marshall in the Punjab, India, on
the site of the ancient city of Taxila, captured by Alexander the Great
during his Indian campaign, have brought to light many valuable Buddhist
remains, dating from about 2000 years ago. One of the most striking of
these is a relic casket taken from a _tope_ of the type called _dagoba_,
this name designating that class of those Buddhist structures designed
especially for the reception of relics. This relic casket is of
steatite, and contained a golden box within which was a fragment of
bone, presumably regarded as a relic of the Buddha; around it were many
pearls as well as engraved carnelians and also a number of other
precious stones.
A carved sapphire, once in the collection of the Marquess of
Northampton, shows a representation of the Hindu divinity, Siva. It is
of Indian workmanship and the stone measures 1½ inches in length, 1½
inches in width and ¾ inch in thickness.[542]
One of the writers most familiar with Indian gem-lore recognizes that
while the rich and educated Hindus of our day wear diamonds and other
gems chiefly as ornaments, in ancient times these brilliant objects were
more largely employed in India to enrich the images of the gods, thus
rendering the idols more impressive and causing them to be worshipped
with more intense fervor. In ancient India gemmed ornaments were
believed to bring to the wearer “respect, fame, longevity, wealth,
happiness, strength, and fruition”; a list of benefits long enough to
satisfy the most exigent. However, as though this were not enough, we
are further assured that these gems “ward off evil astral influences,
make the body healthy, remove misery and ill-fortune, and wash away
sin.”[543]
[Illustration:
Ceremony annually observed in the Mogul Empire of weighing the
sovereign against precious metals, jewels and other valuable
objects, which were distributed as gifts. From “Histoire générale
des cérémonies religieuses de tous les peuples du monde,” by Abbé
Banier and Abbé Mascrier, Paris, 1741.
]
The oldest jewel offered to a shrine by an Indian potentate, of which we
have certain knowledge, was a magnificent pendant containing a number of
precious stones, the gift of Sundara Pandiyan, at a date prior to 1310
A.D. Another magnificent gift was a gorgeous jewelled turban adorned
with diamonds, rubies, emeralds and pearls, bestowed in 1623 by Trimal
Nayakkan.[544] These gifts or dedications show the prevailing tendency
to propitiate the higher powers and insure success in royal enterprises.
The English ambassador, Sir Thomas Roe, sent to the court of Shah
Jehangir by King James I, saw the Shah on the day of his great birthday
festival when he was weighed against a great variety of objects, jewels,
gold, silver, stuffs of gold and silver, silk, butter, rice, fruits,
etc. All these things, heaped up on the scale balancing the one in which
stood the Shah, were distributed as imperial gifts after the conclusion
of the ceremony. Sir Thomas Roe declares that on this occasion (he
missed seeing the actual weighing) the monarch was adorned with a great
array of jewels, and he adds: “I must confess I never saw at one time
such unspeakable wealth,” a testimony of considerable value, for the
English Court in the time of James I was one by no means poor in jewels,
that sovereign having a great fondness for them. After the ceremony of
weighing had been completed, Jehangir enjoyed the spectacle of a
procession of twelve troupes of his choicest elephants, each troupe led
by a “lord elephant of exceptional stature.” The finest of these had all
the plates on his head and breast set with rubies and emeralds, and all
the elephants as they neared the Shah saluted him with their
trunks.[545]
In Persia the pink and red coral was believed to have acquired its
beautiful color after removal from the water, and the odor of the
material was said to be a trustworthy means of discriminating between
genuine and imitation coral; genuine coral had the smell of sea-water.
The Chinese and the Hindus prized this substance very highly, because
among them it was used to adorn the images of the gods.[546]
The perforated jade disk called _ts’ang pi_ is still used as the symbol
of the deity Heaven (T’ien) in the temple of that divinity at Peking. By
a regulation of Emperor K’ien-lung, the proper dimensions of this
ceremonial disk were rigidly established; the diameter of the disk
proper was set at 6.1 inches, and its thickness at ⁷⁄₁₀ of an inch; the
perforation was to have a diameter of ⁴⁄₁₀ of an inch. While the quality
of the jade to be employed is not especially determined, the name
_ts’ang_ implies jade of a bluish shade. The veined type of stone is
regarded as peculiarly adapted for this purpose.[547]
[Illustration:
PERFORATED JADE DISK CALLED _TS’ANG PI_, A CHINESE SYMBOL OF THE DEITY
HEAVEN (T’IEN)
From Berthold Laufer, “Jade, a Study in Chinese Archæology and
Religion,” Chicago, 1912, p. 157.
By courtesy of the Author and Field Museum of Natural History,
Chicago.
]
We are apt to regard Tibet as the land least accessible to modern
influence of any kind, and that least in touch with any aspect of
European civilization. It seems, therefore, not a little strange that at
the chief altar of the Royal Chapel in the Dalai Lama’s palace on Potala
Hill, Lhasa, the elaborate _tse-boum_ (incense vase or vessel), used by
the Buddhist priests in their services, is a product of modern Parisian
art, having been made in Paris about ten years ago. The vessel proper,
which is carved from several exceptionally large pieces of coral, rests
upon a flat, silver-gilt base, ornamented with two dragons, and is
crowned with an oval framework of lapis lazuli leaves; upon this
framework is a coral statuette of Amitabha, the “Lord of Boundless
Light,” revered as the emanation of Adi-Buddha, supported by a lotus
flower of white chalcedony. At the apex of the leafy oval rests a
representation in white chalcedony of a crescent moon, above is a sun in
yellow stone from which springs a coral flame, symbolizing the radiance
of wisdom (_nada_). Although the Dalai Lama was anxious to avail himself
of the aid of French art for the embellishment of his altar, he took due
precautions that the religious character of the vessel should be
properly conceived and maintained, and therefore sent one of his
high-priests to Europe to choose the artists best fitted for the
execution of the vessel, and this priest took the pains to make a
special trip to Leghorn in order to select the coral appropriate for the
sacred utensil. As will be noted, this material, so greatly prized by
the Tibetans, is that most prominent in this temple incense vase. The
dragons attached to the silver-gilt platter have been placed there to
honor the Chinese, and are so affixed that they can be removed when no
Chinese representatives are present at the ceremonies. In the older
_tse-boum_, to take the place of which this Paris product was executed,
the red-tinted ivory was used where coral appears in the newer vessel.
The employment of this color is due to the fact that it is the sacred
color of Amitabha.[548]
Within the sacred precincts of the temple of Cho Kang, in Tibet, is a
splendid, life-size image of the Buddha formed of solid gold. The
priests teach that it is of supernatural origin, and ascribe its
execution to the creative energy of Visvakarma, a personification of the
formative energy in the cosmos. The gold in this image is, however, not
absolutely pure, but is alloyed with silver, copper, zinc and iron, the
choice of these four metal alloys being dictated by the significance of
the five metals in union as symbols of the world. The precious-stone
adornment of this wonderful idol consists of magnificent diamonds,
rubies, emeralds and _indranila_ or Indian sapphires. Pearl, turquoise
and coral necklaces are twined around the figure’s neck and crossed over
its breast; on its head rests a golden coronet with a setting of
turquoises, and rising from the rim of this coronet are five upright
leaves within each of which is a small golden image of the Buddha; from
one of these hangs as a pendant a remarkably fine, large and flawless
piece of turquoise, measuring six inches in length and four inches in
width. All these splendors lavished upon the image of the great apostle
of the simple life show but a poor comprehension of the deep meanings
and tendencies of his early career.
Treating of the religious associations of turquoise among the Tibetans,
Dr. Berthold Laufer writes:[549]
Turquoises, usually in connection with gold, belong to the most
ancient propitiatory offerings to the gods and demons; in the
enumeration, gold always precedes turquois as the more valuable gift.
They also figure among the presents bestowed on saints and Lamas by
kings and wealthy laymen. The thrones on which kings and Lamas take
their place are usually described as adorned with gold and turquoises,
and they wear cloaks ornamented with these stones. It may be inferred
from traditions and epic stories that in ancient times arrow-heads
were made not only of common flint, but also occasionally of turquois
to which a high value was attached. A powerful saint, by touching the
bow and arrow of a blacksmith, transforms the bow into gold, and the
arrow-head into turquois.
In the native languages of Mexico and Central America the name
_chalchiḥuitl_ most frequently designates jadeite, but it appears
sometimes to have been applied to other stones of a green or
greenish-blue color, such as the so-called amazon-stone from the region
of the Amazon River, and even occasionally to the turquoise. Thus the
talismanic value of the chalchihuitl seems to have depended rather upon
its hue and its rarity, than upon its mineralogical character; indeed,
among primitive peoples, stones of the same, or closely similar color,
although of different composition, often bore the same name, and were
conceived to have the same virtues whether talismanic or therapeutic.
Writing of the rich gifts sent by Montezuma to Cortés upon the latter’s
arrival at San Juan de Ulúa (1519), Bernal Diaz de Castillo
mentions[550] “four chalchiuites, a kind of green stone of great value,
and much esteemed by them [the Indians], more highly, indeed, than we
esteem the emerald. They are of a green color.” And he proceeds to state
that each one of these stones was said to be worth a great weight of
gold.
The statue of the earth-goddess Couatlicue, found in the village of
Cozcatlan, Mexico, and now preserved in the National Museum of Mexico,
shows, inserted in the cheek, a disk of jadeite.[551] Green seems thus
to have been the color sacred to this goddess, which may remind us of
the attribution of the green emerald to Venus. Indeed, green as the
color of foliage and plants must naturally have suggested itself as
eminently appropriate for an earth-goddess, just as its significance as
a symbol of life and generation connected it with the Goddess of Love.
The story of the emeralds brought from the New World by Hernan Cortés
must have been quite familiar to sixteenth century writers, for we find
Brantôme applying some details of this story to “a beautiful and
incomparable pearl” said to have been brought from Mexico by Cortés on
his return to Spain. This he later allowed to slip from his fingers into
the sea while showing it to a friend on board the ship that was bearing
him toward Algiers; it was lost in the sea, and in the words of Brantôme
“vanished from the sight of mankind, unworthy to possess such a miracle
of nature.” The loss of this pearl is looked upon by the French writer
as a punishment for the “inscription” Cortés had caused to be placed
upon it: Inter natos mulierum non surrexit major;[552] this refers to
John the Baptist and was, as we have seen, engraved upon one of the
famous emeralds of Cortés. Brantôme believes that its application to a
simple product of nature was sacrilegious and the cause of the object’s
loss; he also sees in this loss an omen of the death of the Emperor
Charles which occurred shortly afterward, and he draws attention to the
fact that the “Africans” called their kings “precious stones.”[553]
The Aztec art-workers of the period immediately antedating the Spanish
Conquest had attained a high order of skill in the difficult work of
inlaying carefully cut and shaped bits of precious material so as to
produce some form or design of symbolic or religious meaning. In judging
the artistic merit of such work, we must always remember that the Aztec
inlayers were only provided with rude and primitive tools and implements
for the execution of their task, and extraordinary patience and
application must have been necessary to complete some of the objects
that have been preserved for us. This art seems only to have been
cultivated in ancient Mexico and Central America, and perhaps Peru also;
of the Mexican work some twenty-five examples have been saved. The
Spaniards, shortly after their first landing, were given an opportunity
to judge of the quality of this Aztec inlaying, for among the gifts sent
by Montezuma to Cortés, were five such objects, a mask with
incrustations of turquoise, so disposed as to figure two intertwined
serpents; a crozier, also with turquoise mosaic and ending in a
serpent’s head; a pair of large ear-rings of serpentine form decorated
with the _chalchihuitl_ stone (perhaps nephrite or jadeite); a mitre of
ocelot skin, surmounted by a large _chalchihuitl_, and also decorated
with turquoise mosaic, and a staff of office with similar inlays. A
serpent-mask answering to the description of one of Montezuma’s gifts is
now in the British Museum and is in a fairly good state of preservation,
although unfortunately the two serpent-heads have been lost. Evidently
this mask was used in connection with the worship of Quetzalcoatl, the
serpent-god, an incarnation of which deity the poor Aztecs at first
believed Cortés to be.[554]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of Dr. Edward H. Thompson.
THE SACRED WELL OF CHICHEN ITZA
Wherein, according to tradition, human victims and votive offerings of
great value were cast.
]
Surpassing this mask in a certain strange and weird interest, and
equalling it in artistic workmanship, is another most remarkable Aztec
ceremonial mask, also in the British Museum Collection. The foundation
of this is the front part of a human skull, and its outer surface has
been covered with an incrustation of turquoise and jet mosaic in five
alternate bands, the upper, middle and lower ones being of jet, while
the two intermediate ones are of shaped pieces of turquoise; part of the
nose has been removed and the space covered over by tablets of pink
shell; protruding eyeballs are figured by convex disks of polished iron
pyrites with a bordering of white shell; a number of the teeth have been
broken out. Straps attached at the temples rendered it possible to bind
this mask to the face of an idol, or for a priest of high rank to wear
it on solemn ceremonial occasions.
Some three hundred yards or more from the great temple pyramid at
Chichen Itzá, Yucatan, Mexico, at the termination of the Sacred Way
traversed in times of tribulation, of pestilence or famine, by
processions of priests conveying sacrifices to be offered to the
offended divinities, was the Sacred Well. Into this the priests would
throw the ornaments and trinkets dedicated to the gods as
peace-offerings. But such inanimate objects were regarded as
insufficient, and even animal sacrifices were deemed to be inadequate,
and hence it often happened that prisoners of war and fair maidens were
cast into the deep, still waters of the Sacred Well.[555]
Many fragments of the carved stone ornaments have been recovered from
the depths of this Sacred Well, and even in their present imperfect
state, they testify to a considerable development of the lapidarian art
among the ancient Mayas, and a high degree of artistic skill in the
fashioning of such objects of adornment. Undoubtedly those used in this
way as sacred offerings were considered to be amulets and therefore to
be the more acceptable in the sight of the gods.
That lapis lazuli was as much favored for religious use by the
aborigines of the New World as it was in ancient Egypt and in other
parts of the Old World, is shown by the recent discovery of twenty-eight
carefully formed cylindrical beads of lapis lazuli among some very
ancient deposits in the island of La Plata, Ecuador. From the general
character of these deposits it is evident that they did not belong to
permanent dwellers on the island, and there is every reason to believe
that they were left by visitors from the mainland, who came to the
island for the performance of certain sacred rites and ceremonies.[556]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of Dr. Edward H. Thompson.
CARVED AND WORKED STONES FROM THE SACRED WELL AT CHICHEN ITZA,
YUCATAN, MEXICO
]
The ancient Mexicans held the turquoise in high esteem, and that Los
Cerrillos and other mines in Arizona and New Mexico were extensively
worked prior to the discovery of America is proved by fragments of Aztec
pottery-vases; by drinking, eating, and cooking utensils; by stone
hammers, wedges, mauls, and idols which have been discovered in the
debris found in many different localities.
While Major Hyde was exploring this neighborhood in 1880, he was visited
by several Pueblo Indians from San Domingo, who stated that the
turquoise he was taking from the old mine was sacred, and must not go
into the hands of those whose Saviour was not a Montezuma, and these
Indians offered, at the same time, to purchase all that might come from
the mine in the future.
About ten miles from Tempe, Arizona, in ruins designated as Los Muertos,
there was found enclosed in asbestos, in a decorated Zuñi jar, a
sea-shell coated with black pitch, in which were incrusted turquoise and
garnets, in the form of a toad, the sacred emblem of the Zuñi. Incrusted
clam shells, representing toads, may be seen in the Brunswick
Collection, the Christie Collection in the British Museum, and in the
Pitorini Museum, Rome.
At the annual Fiesta which is attended by the San Felipe, the Navajo,
the Isleta, the Acoma, the Jicorrilla, Apache and other Indians at the
Pueblo of Santo Domingo, a place situated about three miles west by
south of Wallace Station on the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fé Railroad,
a carved wooden image of the saint, about four feet in height, and said
to date from the time of the conquest in 1692, is carried in procession
through the principal streets to a small tent made of the finest Navajo
blankets, where it is placed on an improvised altar. Here various
offerings are made. Among them strings of turquoise beads, both round
and flat, of the choicest color, are suspended from the ears of the
figure, and from a string which encircles its neck. On the centre of the
breast is one of the curious turquoise-encrusted marine clam-shells
similar to the one found by Lieutenant F. H. Cushing in the excavations
near Tempe, Arizona. The writer saw a fine example of this ornamental
object suspended from the neck of the Virgin of Santo Domingo, at the
Annual Fiesta, August 4, 1890. With the exception of a black band of
obsidian running across the centre, the entire exterior of the shell is
covered with a sort of miniature pavement of little squares of turquoise
which are cemented to it with a black shellac-like substance obtained
from “the grease-wood” plant common in New Mexico.[557]
It has been suggested that the types of ornamentation used by the
aborigines of Central America may become fashionable at the time of the
opening of the Panama Canal. In jewelry the crawfish model, as shown in
a gold-plated ornament discovered in the Chiriqui district of Panama,
offers a striking and peculiar form which might win favor; a curious
frog pattern could also be used. If the local usage in ancient times is
to be considered, the emerald and other green stones would be given the
preference for decoration, as stones of this color were the most in
favor among the primitive inhabitants of Central America because it
symbolized the verdure of field and forest, and hence youth and vigor.
When set in gold these stones gained in symbolic value, for gold, having
the color of the sun, was regarded as typical of force, courage, and
vitality.
The mystic lake of Guatavita, high up on the Andean plateau of Colombia,
South America, was the chief holy place of the native Indians of this
locality hundreds of years ago, at a time when gold and emeralds were
plentiful among them, luxuries unknown to their impoverished descendants
of our day. Legend had taught them to regard this lake as the abiding
place of a powerful divinity or demon, whose good will must be secured
at any price if dire disease were to be held aloof from the people. Four
other sacred lakes on the plateau, Guasca, Siecha, Teusaca, and Ubaque,
shared in a lesser degree with the principal one in the attribution of
mysterious power. As early as 1534 word was brought to Sebastian de
Belalcazar, founder of Quito, that in the course of the religious
ceremonies held by the Indians at the Lake of Guatavita, they were wont
to cast into its waters immense quantities of gold-dust, emeralds and
other precious stones. It was also related that at these semi-annual
festivals the Caciques and the principal chiefs, bearing valuable gifts
of gold-dust and emeralds, were paddled out in canoes (or on rafts) to
the exact middle of the lake, this point being determined by the
intersection of two ropes stretching from four temples erected at four
equidistant points on its banks. Arrived at this spot the offerings were
cast into the lake, and the Cacique of Guatavita, whose naked body had
been coated with an adhesive clay, over which gold-dust was sprinkled in
profusion, sprang into the water, and after washing off the gold-dust,
swam to the shore. This resplendent living golden figure strongly
appealed to the Spaniards’ imagination, and the name they bestowed upon
the Cacique, El Dorado (“The Golden,” or “Gilded”), is used to our day
as a designation of a region or a spot exceptionally rich in gold. At
the moment the “Golden Cacique” made his plunge into the lake, the
assembled people scattered along its banks turned their backs toward the
water, shouted loudly, and threw their propitiatory offerings over their
shoulders into the lake.
Attempts have often been made to secure the treasures by drawing off the
waters of the lake, but only with very partial success so far. The first
serious effort is said to have been made by Antonio de Sepulveda, a
merchant of Santa Fé, in United States of Colombia, who obtained a
Spanish concession. In or about 1823 we have record of another
unsuccessful venture on the part of José Ignacio Paris, in an account of
Colombia written in 1824 by Captain Charles Stuart Cochrane, of the
Royal Navy, who aided Paris in his efforts. The report that at the time
of the Spanish Conquest, the Cacique of Guatavita caused gold-dust
constituting the burdens of fifty men to be cast into the lake, greatly
contributed to the zeal of the treasure-seekers in the vicinity. One of
the early attempts at least resulted in the recovery of so much treasure
that the Government’s 3 per cent. share is said to have amounted to
$170,000.
In none of these essays, however, was the lake really and effectually
drained off, and that of Paris in 1823 or 1824 failed in the same way,
because of inadequate capital. He had succeeded in persuading sixteen
shareholders to club together, each one contributing $500 to a common
fund, but after not only this $8,000, but $12,000 more supplied by
himself had been expended, there still remained 33 feet of water in the
lake.
Recently an English company has recognized that the treasure must be
sought at or even beneath the true bottom, as this existed at the time
of the Spanish Conquest, and thus at levels considerably lower than
those of the bottom at the present time. The project is, after 30 feet
of the present bottom has been removed, to set up a steam shovel and
sink down 40 or 50 feet in search of the gold-dust, golden ornaments and
emeralds believed to exist here.
VIII
Amulets: Ancient, Medieval, and Oriental
The present and the following chapter are devoted to a study of the
talismanic virtues attributed to precious stones and gems, as
distinguished from the curative powers with which they were credited. It
is sometimes difficult to establish a hard and fast dividing line
between the two classes, as everything that conduces to the happiness
and well-being of man also affects his bodily health, but a distinction,
correct in the main, may be made by regarding the talismanic use as
covering all cases except those in which the stone was used where to-day
some really medicinal substance would be administered.
A modern German writer on amulets has proposed to apply the term
“emanism” (Emanismus) to the virtue existing or supposed to exist in
amulets and talismans, and gives as his opinion that their virtue is
neither a spiritual nor a personal one, but the operation of forces, the
latter not being special, mysterious vital forces, but impersonal
physical components and qualities, and that these exercise their
influence by means of emanation. Wundt has held that the very earliest
amulets were parts of the human body, and almost always such parts as
were believed to be the bearers of the soul.[558]
Radiation or emanation of energy, without observable loss of substance,
is a fact familiar enough to us to-day, but this phenomenon was not so
generally accepted centuries ago. Still the lodestone always offered a
striking example with which all writers on such subjects were
acquainted. A stranger argument in support of the truth of this property
was adduced by the seventeenth century physician, Sir Thomas Browne
(1605–1682), who writes:[559]
If amulets do work by emanation from their bodies upon those parts
whereunto they are appended and are not yet observed to abate their
weight; if they produce visible and reall effects by imponderous and
invisible emissions, it may be unjust to deny all efficacy to gold, in
the non-emission of weight or deperdition of any ponderous articles.
While the learned doctor does not expressly state his belief in these
“imponderous and invisible emissions” from amulets, he certainly does
not attempt to deny their existence.
The Bolivian natives believe that the so-called mountain-sickness, the
affection from which some travellers suffer at high altitudes, probably
originates in subtle emanations from certain mineral veins. A
confirmation of the fact that such a belief exists, though not of the
truth of the theory, is found in the native name for this illness,
_veta_, which signifies at once “mountain-sickness” and a vein or lode.
The fact that at the pass of Livichuco, on the trail from Challapata to
Sucre, there are considerable deposits of antimony, is regarded as
substantiating this strange fancy.[560]
Among the Babylonians one of the most dreaded of the malign spiritual
powers was the terrible female demon Labastu, and a long series of
amulets are recommended, one or more of which should be worn to ward off
her pernicious influence. For some of these amulets precious stones were
used, and the effect of color, probably a determining circumstance in
the selection of the particular stone, was to be strengthened by the
color of the wrapping about the stone and of the cord by means of which
it was to be hung from the neck, or attached to the right or left hand
or foot, or to other parts of the body. As this dreadful spirit was
chiefly feared as the inducer of disease, the location of the amulet was
perhaps in some cases determined by the presence of local pain or
disorder; in this case it would be expected to act as a cure of disease
rather than a mere preventive. The following passages refer to such
stone amulets:[561]
[Illustration:
EYE AGATES
Used as charms against the Evil Eye. East Indian.
]
Thou shalt wrap up a _shubu_-stone in white wool, and hang it on a
white woollen cord, with four eye-stones (_enâti_) and four parê, and
bind it to thy right hand.
A black _ka_-stone shalt thou enwrap in black wool, hang it on a black
woollen cord, provide it with three eye-stones and three _parê_, and
bind it to thy left hand.
Thou shalt wrap a white _ka_-stone in red wool, hang it on a red
woollen cord, with four eye-stones and four _parê_, and bind it to the
right foot.
An _appu_-stone shalt thou wrap up in blue wool, hang it on a blue
woollen cord, furnish it with three eye-stones and three _parê_, and
bind it to the left foot.
Seven eye-stones and seven _parê_ shalt thou string on a black cord.
The _enâti_ (eye-stones) here mentioned were most probably eye-agates
similar to those still prized in the Mesapotamian region for their
supposed magical virtues, and more especially for protection against the
Evil Eye. There is, indeed, a bare possibility that some form of the
cat’s-eye (known by that name to the Arabs) or one of the star-stones
may occasionally be signified by this Assyrian name. The word _parê_, as
it is not preceded by the determinative character signifying stone, may
refer to some other material.
An immediate association of an animal eye with a turquoise, an example
of the sympathetic magic to which we have frequently alluded, comes from
Persia. During the celebration of the imposing ceremonies attending the
great annual assemblage of pilgrims at the shrine of Mecca, it is
customary to slaughter an immense number of sheep, and certain of the
Persian pilgrims will secure possession of some of the eyes of their
sacrificial victims, and will embed turquoises in them, firmly believing
that in this way they have composed an infallible amulet against the
Evil Eye.[562]
A Persian manuscript of a work entitled “Nozhat Namah Ellaiy,” written
in the eleventh century by Schem Eddin, the transcription being dated
1304, asserts that the turquoise (piruzeh), though lacking in
brilliancy, was esteemed to be a stone of good omen, and one that would
bring good luck, since this was indicated by its name, signifying in
Persian, “the Victorious.”[563]
One of the Egyptian tales from the time of the early dynasties shows the
value placed upon the turquoise in Egypt at that time. This recital
occurs in Baufra’s Tale. The reigning Pharaoh, to relieve a fit of
mental depression, took a pleasure trip on the palace lake in a boat
rowed by twenty beautiful and richly attired maidens. While bending over
her oar, one of the maidens let fall into the water from her
hair-adornment a fine turquoise (Egypt _mafkat_, thus rendered by
Petrie) and was deeply chagrined at the loss. However, the court
magician Zazamankh, who accompanied the sovereign, by his magic arts was
able to provide a remedy, for on his reciting a charm of great power the
turquoise rose up through the water so that it could be picked up from
the surface and returned to its disconsolate owner.[564]
[Illustration:
TYPES OF EGYPTIAN SEALS AND SCARABS IN THE MURCH COLLECTION,
METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART, NEW YORK
Royal names: Fig. 1, XII Dynasty (2000–1788 B.C.), Usertasen III; Fig.
2, XIII Dyn. (1788–1680, B.C.), Sebekhetep III; Fig. 3, Hyksos
Kings (1680–1580 B.C.), Aamu; Fig. 4, XVIII Dyn. (1580–1350 B.C.),
Amenhetep I; Fig. 5, XIX Dyn. (1350–1205 B.C.), Rameses II; Fig. 8,
XXII Dyn. (945–745 B.C.), Sheshonk I; Fig. 9, XXV Dyn. (712–663 B.C.),
Taharka; Fig. 10, XXVI Dyn. (663–525 B.C.), Psamtek I; Private
names; Fig. 11, Shemses, “Attendant”; Fig 12, Rera, “Superintendent of
the Storehouse of Offerings”; Fig. 13, Ankh, “Attendant”; Figs.
14–16, scroll designs and ornamental groupings of hieroglyphs; Fig.
17, Goodluck amulet “May your name be established, may you have a
son!”
Figs. 18–24, animal-back seals.
]
The Egyptians believed that the different kinds of precious stones were
endowed with certain special talismanic properties, and these stones
were combined in their necklaces in a way supposed to afford protection
from all manner of malign influences. The beads were of various forms,
sometimes round or oval, and at others, rectangular or oblong; besides
the stones in general use, such as the emerald, carnelian, agate, lapis
lazuli, amethyst, rock-crystal, beryl, jasper and garnet, beads of gold,
silver, glass, faience, and even of clay and straw, were employed. To
complete the efficacy of the necklace, small images of the gods and of
the sacred animals were added as pendants. Even on the mummies and mummy
cases such ornaments are painted in imitation of necklaces or collars of
precious stones, with flowers, etc., as pendants.[565]
One of the most artistic and beautiful specimens of ancient Egyptian
goldsmiths’ work was recently sent by Dr. Flinders Petrie, on behalf of
the Egyptian Research Account Society, to the Boston Museum of Fine
Arts. It is adorned with amethysts set in gold, the stones with their
symbolic settings constituting a charm of powerful amulets for the
protection of the wearer, who is believed to have been the Princess
Sat-Hathor-Ant, of the Twelfth Dynasty, the wife of the heir to the
throne. Dr. Petrie pronounces this to be one of the finest ancient
Egyptian necklaces he has ever seen.
This splendid ornament came from tomb No. 154 at Haragh. It measures
26.3 inches in length and is composed of 88 amethyst beads varying in
length from nearly a quarter-inch to about four-tenths of an inch (0.6
cm. to 1 cm.) and in diameter from a little over a quarter-inch to over
four-tenths of an inch (0.7 cm. to 1.1 cm.). The beads are slightly
flattened and the borings were made from both ends, meeting accurately
in the centre in the majority of cases. In spite of small surface scars,
they are generally of very clear and even color.[566]
Special chapters from the great Egyptian collection of hymns and
invocations known as the “Book of the Dead” were inscribed on certain
particular stones, as in the following instances:
Chapter XXVI of the Book of the Dead to be inscribed on, or recited
over, a figure in lapis lazuli.[567]
Chapter whereby the Heart is given to a person in the Netherworld.
He saith: Heart mine to me, in the place of Hearts! Whole Heart mine
to me, in the place of Whole Hearts!
Let me have my Heart that it may rest within me; but I shall feed upon
the food of Osiris, on the eastern side of the mead of amaranthine
flowers.
Be mine a bark for descending the stream and another for ascending.
I go down into the bark where thou art.
Be there given to me my mouth wherewith to speak, and my feet for
walking; and let me have my arms wherewith to overthrow my
adversaries.
Let two hands from the Earth open my mouth: Let Seb, the Erpâ of the
gods, part my two jaws; let him open my two eyes which are closed, and
give motion to my two hands which are powerless; and let Anubis give
vigor to my legs that I may raise myself upon them.
And may Sechit the divine one lift me up, so that I may arise in
Heaven and issue my behest in Memphis.
I am in possession of my Heart, I am in possession of my Whole Heart,
I am in possession of my arms and I have possession of my legs.
[I do whatsoever my Genius willeth, and my Soul is not bound to my
body at the gates of Amenta.]
Chapter XXVII of the Book of the Dead to be inscribed on, or recited
over, a figure in green feldspar.[568]
Chapter whereby the Heart of a person is not taken from him in the
Netherworld.
O ye gods who seize upon Hearts, and who pluck out the Whole Heart;
and whose hands fashion anew the Heart of a person according to what
he hath done; lo now, let that be forgiven to him by you.
Hail to you, O ye Lords of Everlasting Time and Eternity!
Let not my Heart be torn from me by your fingers.
Let not my Heart be fashioned anew according to all the evil things
said against me.
For this Heart of mine is the Heart of the god of mighty names
[Thoth], of the great god whose words are in his members, and who
giveth free course to his Heart which is within him.
And most keen of insight is his heart among the gods. Ho to me! Heart
of mine: I am in possession of thee, I am thy master, and thou art by
me; fall not away from me; I am the dictator to whom thou shalt obey
in the Netherworld.
Were there sufficient evidence as to the use of jade by the ancient
Egyptians, we might be justified in finding an allusion to this
substance in the 160th chapter of the Book of the Dead. This chapter was
to be inscribed upon a small column made of a green stone (Renouf
translates “green feldspar”), as appears in the text, which reads, in
part, as follows:
I am the column of green feldspar which cannot be crushed, and which
is raised by the hand of Thoth.
Injury is an abomination for it. If it is safe, I am safe; if it is
not injured, I am not injured; if it receives no cut, I receive no
cut.
Said by Thoth: arise, come in peace, lord of Heliopolis, lord who
resides at Pu.
The text is accompanied by a vignette in which Thoth is represented
bringing the column enclosed in a box or casket. This is one of the
forms of the _neshem_-stone, a name used in Egyptian as widely and
vaguely as was _smaragdus_ in Latin. One thing is, however, quite
evident, the material designated here must have been of exceptional
hardness and toughness, for the special virtue of the column-amulet was
to make the body as hard and indestructible as itself. Incidentally we
may recall that the hermetic work of Thoth, named by the later Greeks
Trismegistos, the Thrice Mighty One, which was said to have been
unearthed in a tomb, was inscribed upon _smaragdus_.
The larger part of the amulets used in ancient Egypt represented some
living creature. The most usual type is the bull’s head, which was cut
from carnelian, hematite, amazon stone, lapis lazuli, or quartz.
Prehistoric Egyptian amulets representing the fly have been found; these
were of slate, lapis lazuli and serpentine. In historic times gold was
employed as the material. Other types occurring in prehistoric times are
the hawk, of quartz or limestone; the serpent, of lapis lazuli or
limestone; the crocodile and the frog. Carnelian was freely used as the
material for amulets in the earlier historic times, among the prevailing
forms were the hand, the fist, and the eye; amulets figuring the lion,
the jackal-head, the frog, and the bee, also appear. Silver or electrum
was substituted for carnelian in the Middle Kingdom. At a later period
amulets were used less and less frequently.[569]
The mysterious virtues of the scarab are not yet forgotten in the East,
in Syria at least, for we are told that this beetle is an object of much
veneration among the Syrian peasants as an amulet. One use of it in this
way is to enclose a specimen in a box and lay this upon the breast of a
babe in its cradle as a sure protection against the greatly-dreaded Evil
Eye. There is also a superstition in this region that if a “scarab” is
found lying helplessly on its back, anyone who charitably relieves it of
its embarrassment by setting it on its feet, will be relieved of the
guilt of a number of sins.[570]
[Illustration:
By courtesy of Herbert J. Ward and John Murray, Publisher.
COLOSSAL SCARAB IN BLACK GRANITE, BRITISH MUSEUM
Length 60 in., by 33 in. high. From “The Sacred Beetle” by John Ward,
F.S.A.
]
It is difficult to see any other origin for the scaraboid, or imperfect
scarab form, than that afforded by the Egyptian scarabs, some of which
date back to about 4000 B.C. Whether we can literally say that the
scaraboid was introduced into Babylon by the Egyptians may be open to
question, as the form itself appears to have been evolved by Etruscans
and Greeks. Unquestionably the scaraboid was much more easily shaped
than the scarab proper, and for those traders who wished large supplies
for commercial purposes at a low cost, this was by no means a negligible
quality.
The evolution of the ring from the cylindrical seal is of course purely
a matter of conjecture. Here, as is often the case in a chain or series
of fossil remains, we have a succession of types which _may_ be
connected with one another genetically, but which _must_ not be so
connected. That is to say, we cannot prove the affirmative and can only
point to a probability.
Many cut and engraved stones, some of which had evidently been used as
talismans, have been washed up on the shore at Alexandria, Egypt. Not
all of these are completed, some being only half worked, as though the
engraver had become dissatisfied with his design, or had found a flaw in
the material, or that they had been lost from boats or ships. It has
been conjectured that these half-completed gems were the work of
household jewellers employed in the palaces of Alexandria.[571] In
Mas’ûdi’s “Meadows of Gold” we read that in his time, in the tenth
century A.D., there was what he terms “a fishery for precious stones” on
the sea-coast near Alexandria, Egypt. To account for this he relates two
bits of legend. One of them represents these fragments of precious
stones as having originally adorned the richly decorated vases and
vessels of Alexander the Great, which were broken up and cast into the
sea by Alexander’s mother after his death. The other tale was to the
effect that Alexander himself had gathered together a mass of jewels and
ordered them to be thrown into the sea near the Pharos, so that its
neighborhood should never be deserted; for, Mas’ûdi remarks, wherever
precious stones are to be found, whether in mines or in the depths of
the sea, men are sure to assemble to seek for them.[572]
The prophet Isaiah in his third chapter, where he scores the wantonness
and vanity of the Daughters of Zion (vs. 16–26), enumerates in detail
the various adornments of a Hebrew _mondaine_ toward the end of the
eighth century before Christ. Among the jewels and trinkets, amulets
(_lehâshîm_; v. 20) are expressly mentioned, and also “crescents,” these
being probably of gold. While it is not possible to determine the
material of the amulets, the fact that they are named together with rich
ornaments of various kinds, rings, nose-jewels, bracelets, anklets,
etc., indicates that they were of precious material, and were possibly
engraved precious stones or seals of some sort.[573] In the Song of
Songs, which can scarcely be assigned to a later date than Isaiah, and
may have been written earlier, the seal is named in what is perhaps the
most beautiful passage of this unique poem, Chapter VII, verse 6:
Set me as a seal upon thine heart;
as a seal upon thine arm.
For love is strong as death;
passion is unyielding as Hades,
The flashes thereof are flashes of fire;
an all-consuming flame.
The golden “crescents” were used as amulets by the Midianites for
suspension on the necks of their camels, at the period of the Hebrew
conquest of Canaan, as appears from the eighth chapter of Judges (v.
21).
The burying in a grave of valuable gems and ornaments worn by the
deceased during life must have been originally due to a belief that they
served as talismans to guard the remains from the malign influence of
evil spirits, or perhaps even to afford protection and aid, by some
strange occult power, to the soul of the departed in the under or upper
world whither it had journeyed. In the New World, among the more highly
civilized and wealthy Indian tribes of the south, this custom was very
general, and rich spoils have been taken from their graves by the
unsentimental settlers from Europe. In the Old World also this usage was
quite common; Egyptian tombs have afforded jewels of gold and gems worth
large sums intrinsically, apart from their archæological value, and only
to note one among many instances, we may recall the treasures unearthed
by the indefatigable Schliemann in the old Greek tombs of Mycenæ.
However, of all these finds none surpasses in interest that made by M.
Henry de Morgan near Susa on February 10, 1901, when there was brought
to light, from a depth of some six metres below the surface, a bronze
sarcophagus containing the skeleton of a woman. Heaped upon the breast
of the skeleton and strewn about the head and neck was a mass of
finely-wrought and artistic gems and jewels, including several detached
amulets. From coins found in the burial and also from the general
character of these relics, M. de Morgan believes that the interment must
have been made at some date between 350 and 330 B.C., just before
Alexander’s invasion of Persia.[574]
The jewels embrace a beautiful gold torque weighing 385 grams (something
over one pound Troy). The hoop terminates in two lions’ heads having
cheeks of turquoise, while on the muzzle is a lapis lazuli flanked by
two turquoises; on the top of the head is a plate of mother-of-pearl.
Bracelets similar in design and decoration to the torque go to complete
the parure. Of even greater interest than the gold torque was a
three-row pearl necklace, 238 of the pearls being still more or less
well preserved; originally there must have been from 400 to 500 of them.
Still another valuable necklace consists of 400 beads of precious or
ornamental stone material and 400 gold beads. The stones represented are
turquoise, lapis lazuli, emerald, agate, various jaspers, red and blond
carnelian, feldspar, jade (?), hyaline and milky quartz, amethyst of a
pale violet hue, hematite, several marbles and breccia. A fourth
necklace had a row of beads and pendants incrusted with carnelian, lapis
lazuli and turquoise; here the sharp contrast of the bright red
carnelian disturbs the harmonious effect produced by the combination of
the dark blue lapis lazuli and the light blue turquoise.
The detached amulets are of various forms, one figuring a sphinx with a
ram’s head; this was in white paste with green enamel. Another, of gold,
was rudely fashioned in the form of a lion or a cat, and there was also
a dove of lapis lazuli, poorly executed, the amulets (mainly of Egyptian
type) being of very inferior workmanship as compared with the jewels.
Still they serve to confirm the belief that this heaping up in the tomb
of all the dearest treasures cherished in life, was intended to exert a
post-mortem influence upon the after-life of the dead woman.
That some of the Hebrew patriots who fought under the banner of Judas
Maccabæus toward the middle of the second century B.C. were tinged with
the prevailing superstition regarding amulets, appears in a passage of
the second book of Maccabees, where it is stated that when Judas
collected together for burial the bodies of those patriots who had
fallen in battle before Odolla, they were found to have worn beneath
their tunics certain idolatrous amulets, a custom strictly forbidden to
the Jews. Their death was then looked upon as a signal instance of
divine justice, which “had made hidden things manifest,” and Judas
exhorted the people to take this lesson to heart and guard themselves
from sin.
The wealth of books on magic and divination produced in the ancient city
of Ephesus, in Asia Minor, was so great that the designation “Ephesian
writings” was quite generally given to writings of this kind, more
especially to denote short texts that could be worn as amulets or
charms. We read in the Acts of the Apostles (xix, 19) that after hearing
the fervent discourses of St. Paul, in which he eloquently attacked the
superstitions of the Ephesians, many of those who owned books of this
description were so deeply moved that they burned up all such books in
their possession, to the value of 50,000 pieces of silver, that is to
say $9000, equivalent perhaps to $90,000, if we make due allowance for
the greater purchasing power of money nearly two thousand years ago. The
small literary value of the writings of this sort that have been
preserved for us indicates that the loss to posterity by this auto-da-fé
was not very considerable, and yet many queer superstitions and strange
usages of which we now lack information must have been noted in these
magic rolls and sheets.
The following lines may serve to show how highly the jasper was esteemed
in ancient times, this designation covering jade as well:[575]
Auro, quid melius? Jaspis. Quid Jaspite? Virtus. Quid virtute? Deus.
Quid deitate? Nihil.
What is better than Gold? Jasper.
What is better than Jasper? Virtue.
What is better than Virtue? GOD.
What is better than the deity? Nothing.
The first mention of the famous charm Abracadabra, which so often
appears engraved on Gnostic gems, occurs in a Latin medical poem written
by Serenus Sammonicus who lived in the third century and is said to have
bequeathed his library consisting of sixty-two thousand volumes to the
Emperor Gordian the Younger. The poem recommends this mystic word, or
name, as a sovereign remedy for the “demitertian” fever, if it were
written on a piece of paper and suspended by a linen thread from the
neck of the patient. To have its full efficacy the word should be
written as many times as there are letters in it, but taking away one
letter each time, so that the inscription assumed the form of an
inverted cone.[576]
It is interesting to note that De Foe, writing in the seventeenth
century of the Great Plague in London (1665), alludes to this strange
talisman as still in use.[577] Treating of the curious prophylactics
employed at that time, he reproaches those who employed such methods,
and acted “as if the plague was not the hand of God, but a kind of
possession of an evil spirit, and that it was to be kept off with
crossings, signs of the zodiac, papers tied up with so many knots, and
certain words or figures, as particularly the word Abracadabra formed in
triangle or pyramid, thus:
A B R A C A D A B R A
A B R A C A D A B R
A B R A C A D A B
A B R A C A D A
A B R A C A D
A B R A C A
A B R A C
A B R A
A B R
A B
A”
A curious charm which was extensively used as an amulet in medieval
times consists of five Latin words so arranged that they can be read
backwards or forwards and also upwards or downwards. The disposition of
the letters is as follows:
s a t o r
a r e p o
t e n e t
o p e r a
r o t a s
This charm has been preserved for us in Greek and Coptic as well as in
Roman characters, and examples of it have been found cut in a marble
slab above the chapel of St. Laurent at Rochemaur (Ardèche), France, and
also in the plaster wall of an old Roman house at Cirncester,
Gloucestershire, England. In a Greek manuscript in the Bibliothèque
Nationale, in Paris,[578] the Latin words are transliterated and
translated as follows:
σάτορ, the sower
ἀρεπο, the plough
τένετ, holds
ὀπερα, works
ρότας, wheels
Another and more ingenious explanation of this puzzle has, however, been
given.[579] Beginning with the last word “rotas,” and taking the other
words in their order, it is proposed to read as follows: “The
plough-wheels (rotas), the laborer (opera), holds (tenet), creep after
him (arepo), I, the sower (sator).” The chief defect in this version
appears to be the assumption that “opera” can be rendered “laborer,” an
interpretation which is, at best, supported by a doubtful use of the
word in that sense by Horace. This charm appears in an Italian
manuscript of the fourteenth century,[580] where it is recommended to be
used for the assurance of a speedy delivery.
Touching the wonderful and mystic power attributed to the seven vowels
of the Greek alphabet by the Gnostics, C. W. King cites the following
words from the Pistis Sophia of Valentinus:[581]
Nothing therefore is more excellent than the mysteries which ye seek
after, saving only the mystery of the Seven Vowels and their forty and
nine Powers, and the Numbers thereof. And no name is more excellent
than all these [Vowels], a Name wherein be contained all Names and all
Lights and all Powers.
The last sentence probably refers to the arrangement of these vowels
often met with in inscribed Gnostic talismans, the so-called Abraxas
gems. Here we often find them in the following order Ι Ε Η Θ Ο Υ Α, and
the sound of these vowels really suggests the conventional pronunciation
of the Hebrew name Jehovah (yehowah). The words quoted from the Pistis
Sophia are placed in the mouth of Jesus, and King calls attention to the
fact that in Greek the same word is used for voice and vowel (φώνη). He
therefore believes that the passage in Revelations (x, 3–4): “The seven
thunders uttered their voices,” signifies that the sound of the seven
vowels “echoed through the vault of heaven, and composed that mystic
utterance which the sainted seer was forbidden to reveal unto mortals.”
[Illustration:
A MEDIEVAL SPELL
From a XIV century Italian MS. in the author’s library. The efficacy
of the spell is to be insured by reciting the accompanying
invocation thrice.
]
Certain talismans were supposed to afford protection not only to
individuals but even to entire cities. Of this class were two talismans
described by Gregory of Tours. He relates that Paris had enjoyed from
ancient times a surprising immunity from serpents and rats, as well as
from fires. However, in clearing out the channel beneath a bridge across
the Seine, the workmen found, embedded in the mud, two brazen images,
one of a serpent and the other of a rat; after these had been removed
from their resting place, serpents and rats appeared, and conflagrations
became common.[582]
Of the many memorials of the Age of Charlemagne preserved in the
Cathedral Treasury at Aachen, that popularly known as the Talisman of
Charlemagne always exerted a peculiar fascination over the minds of
those visiting the shrine, both because of its sacred character and on
account of the mystic power ascribed to it.
The “Talisman” is composed of two large sapphires, cut _en cabochon_,
one being of oval form and the other square, these constituting
respectively the front and back of the relic; enclosed between them is a
cross made from wood of the Holy Cross said to have been found in
Palestine by St. Helena, mother of Constantine the Great. This is only
visible when looking through the oval sapphire set in front of the
medallion. The two sapphires are joined and framed by a band studded
with precious stones, and various other gems are set above and below
them. The oval sapphire is of a pale blue, and is furnished with a gold
openwork bordering. At the top of the medallion, in a square space is
set a lozenge-shaped garnet, and around the oval sapphire forming the
front are placed successively, (1) an emerald, (2) a pearl, (3) a
garnet, (4) a pearl, (5) an emerald, (6) a pearl, (7) a garnet, (8) a
pearl, (9) an emerald, (10) a pearl, (11) a garnet, (12) a pearl, (13)
an emerald, (14) a pearl, (15) a garnet, (16) a pearl.
The square sapphire at the back of the medallion is of poor quality and
imperfect color; about it are sixteen settings, containing respectively,
(1) (lacking), (2) a pearl, (3) a garnet, (4) a pearl, (5) an emerald,
(6) a pearl, (7) a garnet, (8) a pearl, (9) an emerald, (10) a pearl,
(11) a garnet, (12) a pearl, (13) an emerald, (14) a pearl, (15) a
garnet, (16) a pearl.
On the band are set the following stones: (1) a pearl, (2) a sapphire,
(3) a pearl, (4) an amethyst, (5) a pearl, (6) a sapphire, (7) a pearl,
(8) an amethyst, (9) a pearl, (10) an almost white sapphire, (11) a
pearl, (12) an amethyst, (13) a pearl, (14) a white sapphire.
In the summer of 1804, Empress Josephine went to Aix-la-Chapelle
(Aachen) to take the waters there, and during her stay, on August 1, she
visited the tomb of Charlemagne in the Cathedral. We are told that
Napoleon, who joined Josephine at Aix-le-Chapelle on September 3, had
already _authorized_ the Cathedral chapter to part with certain of the
relics and bestow them upon Josephine at the time of her visit to the
tomb. This authorization, of course, was only a polite equivalent for a
command, and was duly carried out, the most prized object secured by
Josephine being precisely this famed talisman. It eventually came into
the hands of Hortense, Josephine’s daughter, the mother of Napoleon III,
and was inherited by him. It is said to be now in a private collection
in Paris.[583] Empress Eugénie is stated to have worn it at the time of
the birth of the Prince Imperial, and to have further shown her belief
in the mystic, or magic, virtues of the talisman by sending it several
years later to Biarritz, that it might be kept for a time in the
sick-room of M. Bacciochi, when he was prostrated by illness in that
city.[584]
An Anglo-Saxon treatise on the medical art, from the beginning of the
tenth century, the original manuscript of which was owned by an
Anglo-Saxon leech named Bald, as testified to by an entry on the
title-leaf, gives the agate a prominent place as a talismanic and
curative agent. More especially is its power over the demon-world
emphasized. Indeed it is asserted to serve as a sort of diagnostic of
demoniacal possession, the words being: “The man who hath in him
secretly the loathly fiend, if he taketh in liquid any portion of the
shavings of this stone, then soon is exhibited manifestly in him that
which before secretly lay hid.” Less unfamiliar to those acquainted with
the early literature on the subject are the statements that the wearers
of agates were guarded against danger from lightning, and from venom.
The liquid “extract of agate,” taken internally, also produced smooth
skin and rendered the partaker immune from the bites of snakes.[585]
An extremely strange type of amulets found occasionally in Gallic
sepulchres are disks made from human skulls. It appears to be a
well-ascertained fact that the operation of trephining was performed at
this early date, almost if not quite exclusively in the case of infants,
and it is believed principally for the cure of epilepsy. If the child
survived the operation its skull was thought to have acquired a certain
magic power. This idea had its rise in the belief that epilepsy was the
result of an indwelling evil spirit, so that if the disease disappeared
as a result or sequence of the operation, this evil spirit was believed
to have made his way out through the aperture. On the eventual death of
one whose skull had been successfully trephined, disks were sometimes
cut just on the edge of the opening through which the possessing spirit
had slipped out, leaving as a trace of his passage some of his diabolic
but still potent virtue.[586] That the superstition regarding these
cranial disks lasted well into the sixteenth century, even among some of
the educated, is proven by the fact that on a bracelet which belonged to
and was worn by Catherine de’ Medici, one of the talismans was a piece
of a human skull.
Attention was first called to the strange amulets taken from the human
skull by the operation of trephining, by M. Prunetière, at a meeting of
the French Association for the Advancement of Science, held in Lyons in
1873.[587] The specimen he then exhibited came from a sepulture in the
department of Lozère. This particular example showed a break on the
edge, and M. Paul Broca has conjectured that a small piece may have been
chipped off, so that it might be pulverized and administered as a powder
to persons suffering from disease of the brain, a treatment favored by
those who doubted the generally-believed supernatural origin of
epilepsy, and suspected its source in some lesion of the brain or of the
meninges. For this, of course, no more efficient remedy could suggest
itself, according to the old sympathetic theory of medicines, than a
powder made from the skull of one who had been an epileptic. These
skull-amulets have been unearthed in neolithic burials in various parts
of France, a considerable number having been found by M. de Baye and
others in the department of Marne; a specimen was also found in an
Algerian sepulture by General Faidherbe.
The great Greek physician Hippocrates of Cos, a contemporary of Plato,
advised that resort should be had to the operation of trephining in many
cases of injury to the head, and that the ancient Hindus were to a
certain extent familiar with it as a method of treating diseases of the
brain appears in one of the Buddhist recitals from a Tibetan source.
Here it is related that Atreya, master of the King of Physicians,
Jîvaka, when appealed to for help by a man suffering from a distressful
cerebral disorder, directed the man to dig a pit and fill it up with
dung; he then thrust the man into this soft and savory mass until
nothing but his head and neck protruded, and opened his skull. From it
was drawn out a reptile whose presence had caused the malady. Jîvaka
seems to have been in consultation with his master in this interesting
operation, and is said to have later extracted a centipede from a man’s
skull after making an aperture therein with a golden knife.[588] In
neither of these cases, however, do we have any hint that disks or
fragments from the human skull were used as amulets.
A ghastly object much favored in France in the Middle Ages, as it was
believed to give the owner the power to discover hidden treasures, was
the so-called _main-de-gloire_, or “hand of glory,” which was the
desiccated hand of one who had met his death by hanging.[589]
A remarkable talismanic bracelet owned by Catherine de’ Medici was set
with a skull-fragment and with a representation of a “_main-de-gloire_.”
This is described in the catalogue made in 1786 of M. d’Ennery’s
collection. The settings of the bracelet, ten in number, comprised the
following objects, to each of which was probably ascribed some special
significance and virtue.[590]
An oval “eagle-stone” (ætites), on which was graven in intaglio a winged
dragon; above this figure was the date 1559, the year in which the
bracelet was composed and that of the death of Catherine’s husband,
Henri II.
An octagonal agate, traversed by a number of tubular apertures, the
orifices of which could be seen on either side of the stone.
A very fine oval onyx of three colors, bearing graven on its edge the
following names of angels: Gabriel, Raphael, Michael, Uriel.
A large oval turquoise with a gold band.
A piece of black and white marble.
An oval brown agate, with a caduceus, a star and a crescent engraved in
intaglio on one of its faces, and on its edge the name Jehovah and
certain talismanic characters; on the other face were figured the
constellation Serpens, the zodiacal sign Scorpio and the Sun, around
which were the six planets.
An oblong section of a human skull.
A rounded piece of gold on the convex side of which was graven in relief
the “hand of glory” (_main-de-gloire_); on the concave side appeared the
Sun and Moon done in repoussé work.
A perfectly round onyx, bearing graven in the centre the name or word
“Publeni”; this possibly designated the original Roman owner of the
stone.
In the opinion of a German writer of the eleventh or twelfth century,
the amethyst, if worn by a man, attracted to him the love of noble
women, and also protected him from the attacks of thieves.[591] This
stone was always prized because of its beautiful color, even though it
was never so rare or costly as some others. Some authorities assert that
the amethyst induces sleep.[592] Perhaps this was one of the means by
which the stone cured inebriety, as it enabled its votaries to sleep off
the effects of their potations.
As testimony of the belief in the efficiency, remedial or talismanic, of
precious stones prevalent at the opening of the fifteenth century, may
be noted the presence among the manuscript books of Marguerite de
Flandres, Duchesse de Bourgogne, of a work listed as follows: “The book
of the properties of certain stones.” It was carefully enclosed in a
crimson velvet covering.[593] Incidentally it is a rather interesting
fact that at this early date, 1405, we find in Duchess Margaret’s little
library two Bibles in French and a separate copy of the Gospels also in
that language. This serves to disprove the popular idea that
translations of the Bible into the vernacular were in distinct disfavor
with Roman Catholics before the era of the Reformation. Of course until
the invention and use of the art of printing there could be no wide
diffusion of such translations.
The jacinth is described by Thomas de Cantimpré as being a stone of a
yellow color. “It is very hard and difficult to cleave, or cut; it can,
however, be worked with diamond dust. It is very cold, especially when
held in the mouth.” Among many other virtues, it protects from
melancholia and poison, and makes the wearer beloved of God and men. It
also acts as a sort of barometer, since it grows dark and dull in bad
weather and becomes clear and bright in fine weather.[594] Cardano says
that when the weather was fine the stone became obscure and dull, but
when a tempest was impending, it assumed the ruddy hue of a burning
coal. It also lost its color when in contact with any one suffering from
disease, more especially from the plague.[595]
As a result of his study of precious stones, Cardano was induced to
affirm that they had life, but he gravely states that he had never noted
that they possessed sex (a common belief in his day), although “as
nature delights as much in miracle as we do, some may be so constituted
that they are almost distinguished by sex.”[596]
The beautiful sapphire has always been a great favorite with lovers of
precious stones and to it has been attributed a chastening, purifying
influence upon the soul. Even Burton, in his Anatomy of Melancholy,
wherein precious stones are rarely mentioned, takes occasion to write as
follows of the sapphire: “It is the fairest of all precious stones of
sky colour, and a great enemy to black choler, frees the mind, mends
manners.”[597]
[Illustration:
FROM A PORTRAIT OF QUEEN ELIZABETH
In the possession of the Duke of Devonshire, K. G., Hardwick Hall. The
queen has jewels in her hair, a pearl eardrop, and two necklaces,
one fitting close to the neck, the other falling over the breast.
The stiff brocade skirt is embroidered with a wonderful array of
aquatic birds and animals. On the left, the cushion of the chair of
state is embroidered with the queen’s monogram. Surmounting the
chair is a crystal ball. The original canvas measures 90 × 66
inches.
]
The poets have sung the praises of the turquoise. In Shakespeare’s
Merchant of Venice, when the “amorous Jessica” made off with her
father’s jewels, Shylock particularly bewails the disappearance of his
turquoise, crying out that he would not have lost it for “a wilderness
of monkeys.” The poet Donne, also, writes of this stone and draws
attention to its sympathetic quality in these words:
As a compassionate turquoise that doth tell,
By looking pale, the wearer is not well.
That Queen Elizabeth clung fondly to life is well known, and it is said
that she trusted much in the virtues of a talisman which she wore round
her neck. This was a piece of gold engraved with certain mystic
characters. The statement has also been made that at the bottom of a
chair in which she often sat, was the queen of hearts from a pack of
cards, having a nail driven through the forehead of the figure.[598]
Could this have been a spell of witchcraft used against her hated rival,
Mary of Scotland?
The belief that turquoise changes its hue with the changing health of
the wearer leads an early seventeenth century author to offer it as a
symbol of wifely devotion, saying that “a true wife should be like a
turquoise stone, clear in heart in her husband’s health, and cloudy in
his sickness.” Although a more prosaic explanation than that of occult
sympathy has been proposed for this asserted change of hue, we need not
therefore reject the more poetic fancy.[599]
Among the believers in the virtue of amulets must be counted the French
religious philosopher, Pascal. After his death in 1662 there was found,
sewed up in his pourpoint, a piece of paper bearing a long and very
strange inscription. At the top was a cross with rays, a similar cross
being drawn at the bottom of the text. This began with the following
words:
Monday, November 23, the day of St. Clement, pope and martyr, and of
others in the martyrology.
The Eve of St. Chrysogone, martyr, and of others. From about half-past
ten in the evening until about a half-hour after midnight,
FIRE
Then follow a series of ejaculations and short religious sentences, and
toward the end, after the name of Christ, thrice repeated, the words:
I have separated myself from Him, I have fled from Him, denied Him.
and finally the prayer that this separation might henceforth cease. The
original text is said to be in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris with
the MS. of the “Pensées.”
Pascal is stated to have always kept this amulet on his person, removing
it carefully from the lining of an old garment and putting in a new one,
when this was assumed. The strange introduction referred to a vision of
fire which he had had on the night in question, and this has been
explained as resulting from a severe nervous shock he had experienced
six months before, when driving along the banks of the Seine. As the
vehicle neared Neuilly the horses took fright and ran away, dashing
toward the edge of the bank; just on the brink the reins broke and the
horses plunged down into the river, leaving the carriage in which Pascal
was sitting on the edge of the precipice. This shock impressed him so
vividly that he would often see the precipice before him as distinctly
as though it were a reality. In any case the matter is of interest as
showing that one of the most gifted men of the seventeenth century was a
believer in amulets.[600]
The giving of corals to new-born infants was expressly forbidden in 1708
in the bishopric of Bamberg, because of the superstition connected
therewith, although Christian painters of the fourteenth century often
represented the child Jesus as holding corals in his hand. The
persistence of the superstition as to the Evil Eye and the belief that
coral safeguarded the wearer therefrom, have impressed many cultured
Italians of our day, and even so able and clear-headed a statesman as
prime minister Crispi is said never to have gone to a parliamentary
sitting without having with him a coral amulet.[601]
Some characteristic Hindu amulets figure the god Jagannath (Lord of the
World), or associated divinities, and also symbols related to the
worship of this form of Krishna.[602] In the month Joyestha (May-June)
his world-renowned temple at Puri in Orissa is thronged with pilgrims
from all parts of India, and on the great festival day his image and
those of his brother Balarana and of his sister Subhadra are taken out
of the sanctuary and placed in an elaborately decorated car, which is
drawn through the streets of the city. The readiness of fanatical
believers to sacrifice their lives by casting themselves beneath the
wheels of this ponderous car, has made the expression “Car of Jagannath”
almost a household word, freely used by those who know little or nothing
about Hindu religion. The English Government has long since put a stop
to these reckless and useless martyrdoms.
Many of these amulets are made of a black steatite. One represents
Krishna (Jagannath) standing and playing on a flute, another figures
this avatar of Vishnu with his wife Radha. A curious series presents
Jagannath, Balarana and Subhadra; the unnaturally large heads of the
figures and the truncated crowns and legs are explained by the fact that
the group was carved from the trisala of a tope of a Buddhist temple
erected at Puri in the third century B.C., the Hindus of a later time
having utilized this relic of a former faith for gods of their ethnic
religion. There are also a number of stamps, incised with emblematic
figures such as a shell, a _sankha_ wheel, a serpent, two footprints,
etc., so that the corresponding seal may be impressed in colored clay
upon the arms of the faithful in the sanctuary of Jagannath. Many of the
amulets bearing the double footprint, emblematic of Vishnu
(Krishna-Jagannath), are arranged in groups of five, all being
perforated so that a group can be suspended on the person.
The footprints are explained by a curious legend to the effect that when
a dispute as to superiority arose between the gods of the Trimurti,
Brahma, Siva and Vishnu, the selection of a test to decide this was left
to Bhrigu, one of the ten patriarchs. He approached Brahma without
saluting him; this infuriated the god, but he restrained himself.
Approaching Siva in turn, Bhrigu failed to return the god’s salutation,
which so enraged him that he raised his trident to slay the insulter,
and was only prevented from doing this by the timely intervention of the
goddess Parvati. Nothing daunted Bhrigu pursued his test, and, finding
Vishnu reposing with his head in Lakshmi’s lap, he kicked the divinity
to arouse him. Vishnu, however, instead of losing his temper, quietly
arose; saluted the rash patriarch, and even thanked him for the
reminder, and craved his pardon that he had not immediately greeted him,
asserting that the kick (which must have been most vigorously
administered if it left _two_ footprints) had left on his breast a mark
of good augury.
[Illustration:
COMPLETE VIEW OF THE ANCIENT JADE GIRDLE-PENDANT (FROM, KU YÜ T’U P’U)
From “Jade,” by Berthold Laufer.
By courtesy of the author and Field Museum of Natural History,
Chicago.
]
A fine presentation of the style of jewels worn by the Mahârânî of
Sikkim, a full-blooded Tibetan by birth, is offered by a portrait of
this queen done in oil by Damodar Dutt, a Bengali artist, in 1908, while
the Mahârânî was sharing the captivity of her husband at Darjeeling,
where they had been sequestrated by the British authorities for many
years. The elaborate and rather oppressive headdress is a typical
adornment of the queens of Sikkim; the broad bandeaux are composed of
pearls, and a brilliant color effect is produced by the rows of
alternating corals and turquoises. The gold ear-rings have a
turquoise-inlay, in concentric rings, and from the queen’s neck hangs a
long necklace of coral beads, separated at intervals by large spheres of
amber; a coral bracelet and two rings, with coral and turquoise setting
respectively, complete the very effective, if not especially costly,
jewelry.[603]
Jade girdle pendants having a talismanic quality were in great favor
during the period of the Chou dynasty (1122–249 B.C.). The typical
girdle pendant of that time was a seven-jewelled one, each of the
combined ornaments being made of some one of the choice varieties of
jade. These adornments consisted of a top-piece or brooch, whence
depended a circular central plaque (yü), flanked by two square ornaments
(kü); below followed a centre-ornament of segment form, on either side
of which was a bow-shaped jewel. The girdle ornaments were rich in
symbolic significance, the rhythmic swinging of the jades caused a
musical note whenever they came in contact with one another, or with any
metallic object; as love-trinkets they had the most fortunate meaning;
as indications of office they gained consideration and respect for the
wearers of high rank, while for those of less distinction they were so
differentiated as to become marks of the respective craft or
vocation.[604]
In Siam the girls’ heads are shaved, with the exception of the top of
the head, where a knot of hair is allowed to grow. On the fourteenth
anniversary of the girl’s birthday this “top-knot” is cut off, the
operation being accompanied by a solemn religious ceremony, to mark
and consecrate the event, which denotes the passing of the girl into
womanhood. On this occasion, the members of the family gather together
all the jewels they can secure for the adornment of the “new woman,”
and where they are not wealthy enough to provide brilliant and rich
ornaments from their own possessions kind friends will always be found
ready to supply the deficiency. In the case of the Siamese girl
figured in our plate, and of a girl companion, the Queen of Siam
herself acted as fairy godmother to the extent of furnishing from her
own private treasures a costly and suitable decoration. The gems and
ornaments worn were worth $20,000 and are said to have filled a small
steamer-trunk.[605]
In a favorite form of white jade amulet, the stone is cut flat and is
then inlaid with rubies in gold settings, so disposed as to indicate a
flower-form. Jade amulets of this type are found in China and in various
parts of northern Asia, and are believed to guard or free the wearer
from palpitation of the heart.[606]
[Illustration:
TIBETAN WOMAN WITH COMPLETE JEWELRY
From “Notes on Turquois in the East,” by Berthold Laufer.
By courtesy of the author and Field Museum of Natural History,
Chicago.
]
Flowers fashioned from precious stones make most attractive ornaments,
and by their variety of coloring can be worn with almost any costume. A
celebrated beauty of London society has a number of pansies of different
colors, one made of rubies, another of sapphires, still another of
emeralds, and so on through the range of colors. In this way she always
had a pansy according in color with that of her gown. As bridal gifts
these jewel-flowers are most appropriate, more especially when the
lady-love bears a “floral name” such as Violet or Rose.
Coral ornaments of all sorts are in great demand in Tibet, and a fine
piece of this material will bring about $20 an ounce, and is therefore
literally worth its weight in gold. The Venetian traveller, Marco Polo,
who visited Tibet in the latter half of the thirteenth century, already
noted that coral was in high favor there and that coral necklaces
adorned the necks of the women and also those of the idols in their
temples. The love of personal adornment is very strong among the Tibetan
women, and those in any way well-to-do load themselves with a mass of
jewelled ornaments, great pieces of amber, coral and turquoise
constituting the principal gem-material. The favor extended to coral,
apart from the religious significance of red as symbolical of one of the
incarnations of Buddha, may perhaps have an esthetic basis as well, for
red or pink affords a pleasant contrast to the dark complexions and hair
of the Tibetans.[607]
Much more prized, however, than coral is the beautiful blue turquoise,
which not only serves for purely ornamental use but is freely employed
in the decoration of religious objects, such as the curious “prayer
wheels” so indispensable a part of Tibetan ritual.
The talismanic quality of this stone is an important element in its
popularity, as it is supposed to bring good fortune and physical
well-being to the wearer and to afford protection against contagion. The
Tibetans share in the quite general belief that the turquoise will grow
pale in sympathy with the present or prospective fortune and health of
the person wearing it, and as a loss of color is considered portentous
of coming evil, such stones are gotten rid of as soon as possible to be
replaced by those of a brighter hue. The dealers who buy up for a
trifling sum these discolored turquoises often treat them with a dose of
blue dyestuff which superficially restores the color, and it is stated
that many of the soldiers of the British expeditionary force to Tibet in
1904 were at first deceived into buying these vamped-up stones, but they
soon discovered the deception and were more careful later on. Turquoises
are also believed to guard against the Evil Eye, and a quasi-sacred
character is lent to some especially fine specimens by setting them in
the foreheads of statues of the Buddha or other religious images.[608]
The women of Tibet are said to prize most highly as amulets pieces of
cloth adorned with turquoise or coral, which they have acquired from the
Lamas, who by the imposition of their priestly blessing have endowed
these objects with a peculiar sanctity in the eyes of the Tibetan
devotees. Another amulet favored in this far-off land is a small metal
box of gold, silver, or copper, and encrusted with turquoise. Within are
enclosed little scrolls inscribed with mystic characters to conjure evil
spirits and thwart their malevolent schemes for the tribulation of
mankind.
An ingenious, if rather far-fetched explanation of the supposed power of
coral to avert lightning and hail is given by Fortunio Liceti. In his
opinion, coral, being of a warm quality, overcomes the coldness of the
atmosphere, which produces lightning by the attraction of contraries,
and hail by its own quality. This is a specimen of the attempts to find
a plausible physiological reason for the powers of gems, the writers
never for a moment hesitating to accept the popular beliefs in this
respect.[609]
[Illustration:
“THE LIGHT OF THE EAST”
Mural fresco painting by Albert Herter, in the Hotel St. Francis, San
Francisco, California. The crystal ball upheld by the female figure
is more highly esteemed in Japan than any other jewel. Note the fine
contrast afforded by the black armor of the Japanese warrior to the
white arm and pure crystal sphere.
By Courtesy of the Artist and Hotel St. Francis, San Francisco.
]
Among the Bhots of Landakh in the western part of Tibet, a large piece
of amber or agate is often worn by the men suspended from the neck as an
amulet. Here as in so many other parts of the world, the amulet is
believed to acquire especial efficacy when worn in this way, as it comes
in immediate contact with the person of the wearer.[610]
A very singular manner of using precious stones as talismans is noted in
Burma.[611] There are certain talismans called _hkoung-beht-set_, which
are inserted in the flesh beneath the skin. They are usually of gold,
silver, or lead, or else of tortoise-shell, horn, etc., but sometimes
they are rolled pebbles and occasionally precious stones. We are told
that when a prisoner is found to have such talismans on, or rather in
his person, the jailer cuts them out lest they should be used to bribe
the guards. The talismans owe much of their supposed power to
inscriptions in mystic characters, and they are so highly favored that
some of the natives wear one or more rows of them across the chest.
For the Japanese, rock-crystal is the “perfect jewel,” _tama_; it is at
once a symbol of purity and of the infinity of space, and also of
patience and perseverance. This latter significance probably originated
from an observation of the patience and skill required for the
production of the splendid crystal balls made by the accurate and
painstaking Japanese cutters and polishers.
The belief of Mohammedans in the Evil Eye claims the authority of the
Prophet to the effect that “the áïn (eye) is a reality.” The Arabs also
designate the Evil Eye as _nuzra_, “the look,” and _nafs_, “breath or
spirit.” It is not commonly regarded as the result of a definite
malevolent intention, but rather as an effect engendered by envy at the
sight of anything especially beautiful or attractive. Indeed, sometimes
the bare expression of great admiration is supposed to produce evil
results, as is illustrated by the assertion that when a man, on seeing
an exceptionally large and fine stone, exclaimed, “What a large stone!”
it immediately broke into three pieces.
In the Sahara, the horns of oxen, and sometimes their skulls with the
horns attached, are set over the entrances of dwellings to protect the
residents from this dreaded influence; in Tunis and Algiers, boars’
tusks are also used in this way. However, the most favored weapons of
defence are the outstretched fingers of the hand, sometimes but two
fingers, but more often all five. The gesture of holding out the fingers
toward the envious person is frequently accompanied by the utterance of
the words: _Khamsa fi ȧïnek_, “five (fingers) in your eye!” The number
five has thus acquired such a special significance that Thursday, as the
_fifth_ day of the week, is looked upon as the appropriate day for
pilgrimages to the shrines of those saints whose protection against the
Evil Eye is believed to be most potent.[612]
The Arabs of Arabia Petraæ believe that when anyone casts longing and
covetous eyes upon any animal belonging to another, part of his soul
enters the animal and the latter is doomed to destruction if it remains
in the possession of the rightful owner. The same idea prevails in the
case of a child whose possession is envied, or who is unduly admired.
Where the identity of the one who has cast the spell is known, there is
a fair chance of rendering it harmless if a piece of the guilty one’s
garment can be stolen and the animal or child rubbed with it. The virtue
of coral as a protection from such dangers is generally believed, and
almost every woman, child, mare and camel, wears or bears a coral amulet
of some kind. A special variety of amulets against the Evil Eye, worn by
equestrians, are small, smooth flint-stones, gathered at a spot where
two valleys unite; and, for horses, protection is believed to be
afforded by a ring of blue glass or blue porcelain, suspended from the
neck. Another queer superstition among these Arabs regarding the Evil
Eye is that if a child yawns, this is supposed to be a sign that he has
been smitten by the evil spell, and the mother is advised to place
glowing coals on a plate, strew alum over the coals, and bear the plate
around the child.[613]
Over the entrance gate of the Alhambra in Granada, Spain, may be seen
the representation of a hand, and this is regarded as having been
figured there to serve for a talisman against the Evil Eye,[614] just as
some of the Arabs are still wont to paint or figure a so-called
“Fatima’s Hand” on doors or door-posts for a similar purpose. The idea
which has been advanced that the “horse-shoe arch” had some connection
with the belief in the luck-bringing quality of the horse-shoe, is,
however, scarcely to be admitted as an explanation of this most
characteristic feature of Moorish architecture.
IX
Amulets of Primitive Peoples and of Modern Times
The folk-lore tales of the settlement called Milpa Alta, in the Federal
District, Mexico, not far from Mexico City, have preserved many legends
from old Aztec times, as this community was originally settled by some
noble Aztec families fortunate enough to escape with their goods from
the Spaniards at the time of the conquest by Cortés. In several of these
legends the chalchihuitl (a green stone, often nephrite or jadeite) is
mentioned. Thus it is said that when some minor divinity sees fit to
confer upon a man or woman the endowments of a _tlamátque_ or “sage,” he
gave warning of this in a dream, and the truth of the vision was
confirmed when, during the ensuing day, the dreamer found on the ground
within his enclosure idols of _chalchihuitl_, or fragments of obsidian,
which were believed to have fallen from the sky, this usually occurring
during a rainstorm. Evidently the rain had washed them out of the earth
or volcanic ash in which they had been buried. These objects were
immediately picked up and preserved, as they signified that the person
whose dream had thus been verified was admitted to the companionship of
the gods. There appears to have followed some initiation ceremony to
render definite the consecration of the chosen _tlamátque_, and this was
to be connected with a fiery ordeal, the traces of which in scars or
severe burns, and sometimes even in the loss of eyesight, served to
recommend the “sage” to those seeking his aid. This was called for in
cases of illness and also for the finding of hidden treasure and for
predictions of the weather. In attempting to effect cures, the
_tlamátque_ made use of pieces of jade as talismans, fortified by
elaborate exorcisms and prayers.[615]
Among the lower classes of the Mexican Indian population of Milpa Alta,
to cure diseases the aid of a _tepo pohque_ (one who purifies the
disease) is sometimes called in. This once very general custom is,
however, gradually falling into disuse. The progress of popular
scepticism is illustrated by the half-apologetic tone in which this is
explained in the words: “If he does no good, he will do no harm, and
besides he is so cheap.” The healer may be either a man or a woman. One
of the most important helps is a chain of chalchihuitl beads. After
invocations of the various appearances of Christ and of the Virgin
chronicled in local tradition, and of the patron saints (for these
Indians are devout Roman Catholics), the healer chooses out a
chalchihuitl bead with which he pretends to extract the “air” from the
sick person. He successively touches with it the patient’s temples, the
sides and top of the head, the stomach, and lastly the affected part, at
the same time forcibly drawing in his own breath, producing thereby a
peculiar noise. The use of the stone is sometimes supplemented by that
of two eggs, one being held in each of the healer’s hands. A different
type or form of chalchihuitl is used for each different disease, and as
a final operation the affected part is moistened with alcohol, and then
“massaged” with the stone, bathing with a hot decoction of herbs being
also resorted to in some cases.[616]
A characteristic object secured in the Province of Chiriqui, Republic of
Panama, is a singular amulet of a fine quality of green translucent jade
(jadeite). This is fashioned into a conventional representation of a
parrot with a disproportionately long beak. The details of the bird-form
are but roughly indicated, what is supposed to represent the head and
body being but a trifle larger than the beak. In the region of the neck,
marked by a peripheral incision, there is a hole through which a cord
for suspension was probably passed. The type resembles that of the
Chiriquian gold parrots, and differs from that of the amulets of Las
Guacas, Costa Rica. As a much larger number of jade objects have been
found at this latter place than occur at Chiriqui, it has been
conjectured that the common source was a deposit of jade somewhere in
Costa Rica.[617] Chiriqui has also yielded a plain, highly-polished
amulet of pale green jade; the front is convex and is traversed by a
groove; a small hole has been pierced near the top to facilitate
suspension.
The South American Indians had a class of stone love-amulets,
representing more or less clearly two embracing figures. It was claimed
by their magicians that these had not been cut or fashioned in any way,
but were so formed by nature, and were endowed with the power of
attracting to the wearer the love of the chosen object of affection.
These special amulets bore in the native language the names of
_huacanqui_ and _cuyancarumi_. They were said to be found buried in the
earth where a thunderbolt had descended, and were thus a particular
class of the so-called “thunder-stones,” and a high price could be
obtained for one, more especially if the owner had to deal with a woman.
A characteristic specimen, presumably from Ecuador, is of black
serpentine.[618]
The Araucarian Indians of Chili and Argentina, who occupied a region
1000 miles in length, bordering on the Pacific Ocean, according to facts
communicated by the Rev. Charles Sadleir, had their medicine _women_,
instead of medicine-men. These women carried with them a quartz crystal
(as did many of the medicine-men of the Indian tribes) or a rolled
fragment of quartz found in the river beds. They affirmed that this
crystal had been entered by a mighty spirit who dwelt in one of the
great volcanoes which existed in that region (called _pillan_ in the
native tongue). This spirit inspired the medicine-woman with a knowledge
of what she should tell those who came to her for advice or for
forecasts of the future.
A medicine-woman will never show the crystal, because, as the abode of a
spirit, it must not be seen. While it is to be supposed that the
services of these “doctoresses” are not altogether gratuitous, the
Araucarians as a general rule detest gold, although they willingly
accept silver. This preference for the less valuable metal is due to the
traditions handed down to them from the time the Spaniards persecuted
their ancestors for the gold they owned, or were thought to own.
These Indians have a peculiar belief in regard to the nature of the
soul, which they regard as a dual being formed of a superior essence, or
spirit, which they call _pullu_, and an inferior essence, or soul, to
which they give the name _am_.
An agate charm in the shape of a dog’s head was found in the Valley of
Mexico. The material used here was a banded agate with a rich stain in
the centre. The great variety of markings presented by these stones
rendered them especially attractive for use as amulets, since fancy
could easily trace designs and figures of symbolic significance
calculated to secure success or protection.
Of all quaint ideas in amulet making and naming, none is stranger than
that of employing for this purpose artificial eyes from Peruvian
mummies. Originally eyes of the giant cuttlefish (_loligo gigas_), they
were used by the ancient Peruvians to replace the natural eyes of the
dead because these substitutes were more durable. Of course the rather
grewsome source whence these mummy-eye amulets were secured, bringing
them measurably in touch with a sort of necromancy, made them all the
more sought after by the superstitious natives. An example from a mummy
found at Cuzco, Peru, was exhibited by the writer in the Folk-Lore
Collection at the Columbian Exhibition in Chicago in 1893.[619]
A strange animal figure from the Pueblo Bonito ruins, rudely carved out
of stone and having a band composed of pieces of turquoise set about the
neck, was undoubtedly an amulet. Two depressions in the stone where the
eyes should be indicate that these were of inlaid turquoise. In spite of
the imperfect form of this object, it gives evidence in some of its
details to the skill of the native artist who executed it, especially in
the care he has taken to protect the soft stone from the attrition of
the cord used for its suspension, a piece of bird-bone having been
introduced into the perforation near the neck, and the ends of the hole
countersunk and filled with gum into which a piece of turquoise was set;
one of these caps still remains in place. Frog forms, entirely of
turquoise, also appear in Pueblo Bonito, several tadpoles and frogs of
this material having been found in the burialroom explored by Mr.
Pepper. Sometimes the form is barely indicated by the protuberant eyes
and a slight incising which marks the place of the neck.[620]
[Illustration:
TURQUOISE INCRUSTED OBJECTS, PROBABLY AMULETS, FOUND AT PUEBLO BONITO,
NEW MEXICO
The work of ancient Indian dwellers in this region. From George H.
Pepper, American Anthropologist, vol. vii, Pl. xvii. 1. Turquoise
incrusted bone. 2. Jet frog with turquoise eyes. 3. Jet plaque with
turquoise setting.
]
The Pueblo Bonito ruins in New Mexico have furnished some very effective
examples of turquoise inlaying by the Indians of an earlier time who
dwelt in this region. The symbolic forms, the precious material used for
the inlays, and the labor and skill expended in the execution of certain
of these works, indicate that they must have been regarded as amulets.
Perhaps the finest inlaying-work is shown in the turquoise decoration of
a fragment of bone of peculiar shape, having alternate bands of jet with
a chevron-decoration of interlaced triangular pieces of jet and
turquoise. Another of these jet and turquoise amulets is a frog, the
body being of jet and the protruding eyes of turquoise; about the
creature’s neck runs a band of turquoise mosaic. Still another of these
relics is a square plaque of jet with an inlaid turquoise at each of the
four corners; two of these inlays have fallen out.[621]
The history of the turquoise, a stone which has been mined in Persia for
thousands of years, and has long been prized as one of the most
beautiful and attractive of the semi-precious stones, has been very
fully and ably treated in an exceedingly comprehensive monograph
recently published by Dr. Joseph E. Pogue.[622] This valuable and
interesting work contains extracts from all the older and more modern
writers on the subject, and also describes the stone fully from a
mineralogical point of view, besides discussing it from the historic
standpoints.
So highly was the turquoise esteemed among the Pima Indians of southern
Arizona, that the loss of one was looked upon as a most ominous event,
portending for the owner a serious illness or physical disability, which
could only be cured by the magic rites of a medicine-man. When one of
those worthies is called in to avert the impending misfortune, his
favorite remedy consists in placing a piece of slate, a turquoise and a
crystal in a vessel filled with water, the liquid being administered in
regular doses to the threatened victim. The threefold remedy, comprising
a specimen of the lost stone, is supposed to outweigh and counteract the
probable evil influences of the lost turquoise alone.[623]
The magic power that dwelt in these Indian fetishes was named _oyaron_
in the Iroquoian tongue, and each person or kindred was believed to have
a special _oyaron_ which exerted a controlling power over their good or
evil fortune. The material object in which this entity would take up its
abode was determined in a peculiar way. When a youth had attained
maturity, he was entrusted to the charge of an old man who took him to a
far-away lodge in the wilderness. Here he had his face, shoulders and
breast blackened to symbolize his lack of spiritual or occult
enlightenment. He was then compelled to fast for a considerable time and
was instructed to carefully note his dreams, and if he should have an
exceptionally vivid dream regarding any specific object, to tell his
guardian of it. The fact was then duly reported to the wise men of the
tribe, who decided whether the object was the chosen abiding place of
his _oyaron_. This having been satisfactorily determined, an object of
the kind was sought out and was preserved and treasured by the one to
whom it had been assigned in the vision. Perhaps the familiar spirit
might have elected to dwell in a calumet, a pipe or a knife, or else in
some animal, plant, or mineral form.[624]
[Illustration:
INDIAN MEDICINE-MAN
From “Histoire Générale des Cérémonies Religieuses du tous les Peuples
du Monde,” by Abbé Banier and
Abbé Mascrier, Paris, 1741.
]
The Midêwiwin, or, as it is sometimes erroneously called, the “Grand
Medicine Society” of the Ojibway Indians, is an association composed of
shamans, whose supposed powers are much in request among these Indians
of the northwest. Two other classes of medicine-men exist among them to
a very limited extent, the Wâbeno, “Men of the Dawn,” and the Jessakid
or “revealers of hidden things.” The members of this latter class, who
operate singly, are regarded as very dangerous and generally malevolent
sorcerers, having the power to call evil spirits to their aid, and are
even believed to practise the fearful art of drawing a man’s soul out of
his body, so that he either becomes insane or dies. The turtle is
regarded by the Jessakids as the abode or symbol of the mightiest
spirit. However, the Midês, members of the Midêwiwin, are far the most
numerous, and it is to them that the Indian looks for help and health.
While they usually “treat” their patients in their own abodes, when the
disease fails to yield to the might of ordinary incantations and spells,
the assistance of the great magic stone in the Medicine Lodge or
Midêwigen must be resorted to. For this purpose the sick person is
carried thither and is laid on the ground constituting the floor of the
lodge, so that the diseased part of his body may touch the stone. In
addition to this magic stone, which is set in the ground near the
entrance, three magic wooden posts rise up, one behind the other, and at
the end opposite the entrance is set a painted wooden cross, the base of
which is cut four-square, each side having a different coloring, namely,
white, for the East, the source of light; green, for the South, the
source of rain which brings the verdure; red, for the West, where the
red glow of the sunset appears and whither the spirits of the departed
wend their way after death, and, lastly, black, for the cold and
pitiless North, the origin of disease, famine and death.[625]
The various adjuncts of the sorcerer’s trade are carefully preserved by
the Midê or Jessakid in his medicine-bag. A good specimen of this was
made out of the skin of a mink, _Putorius vison_, Gapp., and adorned at
one end with two fluffy white feathers.[626] Often a flat, black,
water-worn pebble will be one of the great treasures in this sack. The
virtues of a stone of this type are said to have been put to a curious
test on the person of a Jessakid at Leech Lake, Minn., in 1858. The man
offered to wager $100 that if he were securely tied up, hand and foot,
with stout rope, but having his stone resting on his thigh, he could
remove the bonds without assistance. The wager was taken up and the test
duly applied; the Jessakid being left alone in his tent tightly and
firmly bound. Before long he called out to those on the watch outside
the tent that search should be made for the rope at a certain spot
nearby. This was done and the rope was found with the knots undisturbed,
while the Jessakid was to be seen calmly seated on the ground, smoking a
pipe and still bearing his magic black stone on his thigh.[627]
French missionaries of the early part of the eighteenth century reported
that the Indian wizards of some of the northwestern tribes would take a
pebble the size of a pigeon’s egg, and mutter over it certain
conjurations. This, they assert, caused the formation of a like stone
within the body of the person who was to be bewitched.[628] The
medicine-men of certain Canadian tribes of this time were not content
with muttered conjurations in treating their patients, but would not
infrequently resort to the charm supposed to be exerted by dancing and
howling before the sick person. The nervous shock produced by a
combination of such grotesque movements and discordant cries might well
“rouse” the patient, and perhaps had sometimes good effects in restoring
vitality.
[Illustration:
Canadian Indian Medicine-man. From “Histoire générale des cérémonies,
mœurs, et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde,” by
Abbé Banier and Abbé Mascrier. Vol. VII. Paris. 1741.
]
An interesting use of the Röntgen rays to detect hidden amulets is noted
by Stewart Culin. It was conjectured by Mr. Cushing that some pieces of
turquoise, conceived to be the hearts of fetichistic birds, were
concealed beneath the heavy wrapping of brown yarn that binds the
finger-loops of the prehistoric throwing stick in the Museum of the
University of Pennsylvania. This object was too valuable and too fragile
to permit of its examination, and therefore the Röntgen rays were used,
disclosing the presence of four stone beads, presumably of turquoise, as
Mr. Cushing had indicated.[629]
As the Point Barrow Eskimos are so largely dependent on fishing, they
especially favor amulets or talismans referring to this, and in many
cases the peculiar power of the talisman is accentuated by giving it a
specially significant form. Thus, from Utkiavwin was brought a piece of
dark crimson jasper two inches long, rudely fashioned by chipping into
the form of a whale, and also a similar figure made from a water-worn
quartz pebble.[630] Another Point Barrow amulet consisted of three small
fragments of amber, carefully wrapped up and placed in a cottonwood box
1½ inches in length. This box was cleverly made of two semicircular
pieces of the wood, the flat faces having been hollowed out so as to
leave space for the amber. They were then bound together by loosely
knotted sinew braid.[631]
A black jade, adze-shaped, that may have served as a fisherman’s
talisman for the Point Barrow Eskimo, was brought from Utkiavwin. It
measured 5.1 inches in length, and was slung with a thong and whalebone,
so that it could be suspended. Its weight is so considerable as to make
it somewhat burdensome for wear on the person, but as one of these
Eskimo wore a stone weighing two pounds suspended from a belt, the jade
artefact may really have been worn in this way. The form suggests that
of a sinker, as was also the case with the two-pound stone, and it may
have earned its repute as a talisman from having been used in former
times by some exceptionally fortunate or skilful fisherman, in the
belief that it would transmit his good luck to anyone wearing it.[632]
An artefact of somewhat similar form, 1.4 inches in length, and made of
red jasper, came from the same locality; this was slung in a sinew band
for suspension.[633]
The native Greenlanders of a couple of centuries ago had a great variety
of amulets, and Hans Egede, in his Description of Greenland, notes these
“Amulets or Pomanders” which the natives wore about the neck or arms,
the materials being of the most heterogeneous kind, pieces of old wood,
old fragments of stone, bones of various animals, the bill and claws of
certain birds, and many other objects whose form or associations had
suggested the possession of a magic potency.[634] A similar account of
old Greenland amulets is given by David Crantz, another early author,
who even asserts that some of the amulets were so grotesque that the
natives themselves occasionally laughed at them. In the absence of any
more definite talisman, recourse was sometimes had to the expedient of
binding a leather strap over the forehead or around the arm.[635]
Possibly, however, some talisman was hidden beneath this strap, or else
it may have been designed to serve as a point of support for an amulet
that had been taken off at the time the traveller saw the strap.
Animal amulets, that is to say, amulets for animals, are in use in the
Arctic regions, one class of these being stones that have fallen from a
bird-rock. These the Eskimo attach to their dogs, proceeding upon the
theory that as these pieces of rock in falling from a great height have
traversed the air with tremendous rapidity, they will communicate the
quality of fleetness to the dogs.[636] This transmission of an acquired
quality of the stone to the person wearing it is shown in other
instances, a favorite amulet with the Eskimos being a piece of an old
hearth-stone. This is believed to give strength to the wearer, because
the stone has so long endured the attacks of fire, the strongest and
fiercest element. Such fragments of stone are often worn by Eskimo
women, who wrap them up in pieces of seal-skin, making in this way a
decoration to be worn on the neck.[637]
Not only does the medicine-bag of an Eskimo medicine-man serve to guard
his trusted amulets and talismans, but some of these wonder-doctors
claim to be able to draw within it the soul of a sick child, so as to
keep this soul hidden away from all harm and danger. In fact, the
opinion has been expressed that many personal amulets have owed their
repute to their supposed power as soul-guardians, the owners’ souls
having been transferred to the material body of the amulet, which is
more easily concealed and kept out-of-the way of injury than is the
human body, the tabernacle of the spirit. A trace of this belief has
been found by some in the term _battê ha-nephesh_, used by Isaiah (chap,
iii, ver. 20). These feminine adornments are called “perfume boxes” in
the Revised Version, but the literal meaning is “houses of the soul (or
life).”[638]
The natives of southwestern Australia regard shining stones with so much
veneration that only sorcerers or priests are believed to be worthy to
handle them, and so great is the faith in the innate power of such
objects that any ordinary native does not dare to touch them and cannot
even be bribed so to do. For the preservation of the virtue of these
stones it is considered essential that no woman shall be permitted to
touch them, or even to look upon them. A particular form of talisman is
made by winding lengths of opossum yarn about a fragment of quartz, of
carnelian, of chalcedony, or some other attractive stone, and thus
forming a round ball about the size of a crochet-ball; these are worn
suspended from the girdle. Talismans of this type are very highly prized
for their supposed power to cure diseases, and in case of illness a
tribe which is not provided with one will borrow it from a more
fortunate tribe.[639] White quartz is used by the natives in New South
Wales, Australia, for the manufacture of a charm to cast a spell over an
enemy. This charm is called _muli_, and consists of a fragment of white
quartz to which a piece of opossum-fur has been gummed; it must then be
smeared with the fat of a dead body and placed in a slow-burning fire.
It is confidently believed that the person over whom the spell is cast
wastes slowly away and dies.[640]
Jade carvings of an exceedingly peculiar type are the _hei-tikis_
(neck-ornaments) greatly prized among the Maoris of New Zealand. The
grotesque representation of the human form here realized by the native
carvers, the association of these objects, treasured up as heirlooms,
with the personality of some renowned ancestor, the story that the
special portraiture to be made was sometimes communicated in a dream or
vision, all this induces the belief that in former times, though perhaps
not at the present time, the Maoris looked upon their _hei-tikis_ as
amulets, or possibly even as fetiches.[641]
The Dowager Queen Alexandra is said to greatly value as a talisman a
pendant consisting of a nugget of massive gold surmounted by a figure of
a hunchback, executed in green enamel. The nugget is hollowed out and
opens when a secret spring is touched; within appears a heart-shaped
ornament made of New Zealand jade. The story runs that this jewel was
given to his mother by the late Duke of Clarence, the elder brother of
the present King George V.[642]
The popularity in England of these queer _hei-tiki_ amulets, made from
the _punamu_ or “green-stone” (nephrite) of New Zealand, has been
ascribed by many to the wearing by Queen Alexandra of ornaments made of
New Zealand jade, and to the report that every member of the “All
Blacks,” an almost invincible English foot-ball team, carried some
little trinket made from this material while he was engaged in play. The
popular faith in “lucky jade” was further corroborated by the story that
Lord Rosebery had on his person a jade amulet when his horse Cicero won
the Derby and that Lord Rothschild was wearing such an amulet as his
horse St. Amand carried his colors to victory.[643] When we consider to
how great an extent popular enthusiasm is excited in England by her
great and classic horse-races, we need not hesitate to believe that
these reports did much to render jade amulets generally fashionable.
[Illustration:
HEI-TIKI AMULETS OF NEW ZEALAND
Made of the jade found on the island, the punamu, or “green-stone.”
Illustrates the two types of this “neck-ornament,”
one with the eyes slanted to the left, the other to the right.
]
An old Polynesian legend recounts that jade was brought to New Zealand
from a distant land by a certain Ngahue, who sought by this means to
save the precious material from an enemy who coveted it. He settled at
Arahua, on the west coast of the middle island, and in this region he
found an eternal and safe resting place for his jade, which he valued
above all things.[644] This legend has often been adduced as a proof
that the New Zealand jade was brought from other countries, but as it
proceeds to state that Ngahue made neck and ear ornaments of this
material, there is at least as great probability that we have here the
supposed origin of the _hei-tiki_ ornaments, and that the legend
testifies to the popular belief that the art of making these objects
came to New Zealand from without.
The quasi-magic character of New Zealand jade (nephrite) in the eyes of
Maoris of the olden time is proved by the fact that certain
superstitious restrictions were established in regard to the cutting of
nephrite, one of these being that no woman should be allowed to approach
the jade-cutters while they were engaged in their task. For the drilling
of holes in jade implements or amulets the cord-drill was employed, and
the surface of the object received its polish by rubbing it with a piece
of sandstone, after it had been roughly fashioned, by chipping, to the
desired form. The toughness of jade is such that infinite patience and
long-continued effort must have been necessary to complete any ornament
or implement under these primitive conditions.[645]
A curious and characteristic jade artefact, known as _nbouet_ or
_koindien_, is found among the natives of New Caledonia. This is a more
or less circular disk of jade, with a cutting edge. In most cases this
disk is attached through two perforations to a straight cylindrical
handle, having a slit at the upper extremity into which the jade disk is
introduced. The lower extremity has an ovoid termination, or else it is
set in a cocoanut shell, usually covered with the integument of a
pteropod. Attached are pendants of beautiful marine shells, and
sometimes the cocoanut shell is filled with small pebbles so that it can
be used as a rattle. These _nbouet_ were originally used as cleavers to
cut up the dead bodies for the cannibalistic orgies, and this use seems
to have been thought to impart a kind of talismanic virtue to the
objects, for they eventually became insignia of the chiefs of the native
tribes.[646]
The ornament most highly prized by the natives of New Caledonia is a
necklace of perforated jade beads. One of these necklaces, in the rich
collection of Signor Giglioli, contains 122 jade beads, somewhat larger
than peas; another necklace comprises eight beads alternating with small
shells of the _oliva_, a species of mussel. As a pendant hangs an
_oudip_, or slung-shot, of steatite.[647] Necklaces of this kind are
called _peigha_ by the natives, and the high esteem in which they are
held probably arises from their supposed talismanic powers. The jade
ornaments or artefacts found in the neighboring Loyalty Islands have all
been brought from New Caledonia, and we are told that so great was the
value placed upon them that the natives of the Loyalty Islands often
traded their young girls in exchange for objects made from the greatly
coveted jade.
From a Fijian mission teacher at Goodenough Island comes a tale of a
magic crystal. Many years ago some Europeans embarked in a boat manned
by two Fijians to visit one of the smaller islands of the group. After
they had landed and gone off to explore the island, one of the Fijians
said to the other: “You look after the boat while I take a look around.”
He had not gone far when he saw two strange men, one of whom fled at his
approach; the other he seized, holding on to him fast, although dragged
along for a considerable distance until after scrambling up a hill the
strange man finally loosed himself and disappeared in the hollow of a
tree-trunk. For some time the Fijian lay in a trance, but awakening from
this he found his way back to the boat. In the course of the afternoon
the strange being appeared to him suddenly and told him “to go back to
the tree, where he would find a small stone wrapped up in a piece of
calico.” This he duly sought and found; it proved to be a crystal, like
glass. In the night time the man or spirit again appeared and strictly
enjoined the Fijian not to let anyone see his crystal but told him that
if he wished for anything he only had to look into the stone. The
possession of this treasure earned a wonderful repute for the Fijian as
a medicine-man, as when any sick person sought for help one look into
the stone revealed the proper remedy for the disease. All this time,
however, no one had been allowed to see his crystal, or to suspect the
source of his wisdom. At last his fame reached the ears of some European
doctors, who called him in to help them in their hospital work, and
while he was at the hospital two young men came in and asked him to
prescribe for a sick friend. The Fijian consented, but, unluckily for
him, the men saw him take out his crystal and look into it before
prescribing the treatment. They told this to the doctors and the man was
locked up for two years, his crystal being taken away from him. The
mission teacher who related the story believed that Sir J. Thurston, at
this time governor of the islands, had secured possession of the
confiscated crystal.[648] It is rather difficult to determine in what
proportions truth and fiction are represented in this tale.
The doctrine of sympathy finds an echo among the natives of Melanesia.
In the Banks Islands, for instance, if a native comes across a piece of
coral to which the action of the waves has imparted the form of a loaf
of bread, this will be taken to signify that such a coral has an
affinity with the bread-fruit tree, and the native will bury it under
such a tree in the confident expectation that its fruit-bearing quality
will be enhanced thereby. Chance may perhaps seem to prove the truth of
his belief, and in this case he will permit his neighbors to bury stones
near his own, so that somewhat of its virtue may pass into them.[649]
To have one’s life depend upon the safe preservation of a talisman may
not always be a blessing, as appears in a Kalmuck story. A Khan who
owned such a talisman thought that he had concealed it so effectively
that no one could find it, and hence he did not hesitate to make the
discovery of its hiding-place a crucial test of the skill of a wise man
who came to visit his court. The sage proved equal to the emergency and
found the talisman while its owner was asleep, but was so rejoiced at
the successful accomplishment of the task that he very irreverently
clapped a bladder on the sleeping Khan’s head, who was so much enraged
at the indignity that he ordered the wise man’s immediate execution.
However, the latter quickly made use of the magic power over the Khan’s
life that the possession of the talisman gave him, and cast it down so
violently as to break it. No sooner had this happened than blood spurted
from the Khan’s nostrils and death overtook him.[650]
Agate amulets still find favor in Spain, a number of interesting
examples having recently been acquired in that country by Mr. W. L.
Hildburgh, many of them being offered for sale in small stalls, both in
the capital, Madrid, and in other of the Spanish cities.[651] In a
number of cases these amulets are milky white agates, this hue
recommending their use as lactation amulets. In one specimen, however,
secured in Seville, the agate showed seven concentric white stripes,
probably indicating that it had been used as a charm against the Evil
Eye as well as to favor the secretion of milk.
For the latter purpose, in lieu of agate, white glass beads are often
sold, a dealer in a small stall in Madrid having in his stock a string
of fifty such beads which he sold one by one to the women who had faith
in their efficacy; agate beads of combined grayish, reddish and white
coloration are also to be found.
Quite an ambitious type of these popular amulets is figured by Mr.
Hildburgh (Pl. i, p. 64, fig. 7). This is a triple pendant, with chain
attached for suspension, the upper part being an agate grayish-white and
reddish, probably rendering it at once a lactation amulet and one
serving still another use as a woman’s amulet. The middle of this
pendant was of blue glass banded with other colors, and the terminal was
of black glass, spotted blue, yellow and red; both of these glass
objects are supposed to have served against the Evil Eye. Thus this
particular amulet combined a number of virtues.
Coral is a favorite material for amulets in Spain as in many other
lands, being shaped for this purpose as a “fig-hand” or into some other
of the diverse forms to which a certain symbolic significance has been
given. One amulet of rock-crystal is reported, which may have been taken
from some old reliquary; this was used against the Evil Eye. Amber also,
in its way as generally popular as coral, is freely used in Spain by the
makers of amulets; being generally given the form of beads. The wearing
of these is regarded as very effective in the case of teething children.
For some reason or other, a preference is given to facetted beads, in
spite of the risk that the sharp edges may irritate the sensitive and
delicate skin of an infant.[652]
Some of the “fig-hand” amulets made and sold in Madrid are of jet, the
peculiar hand form being in many cases so highly conventionalized as to
be barely indicated. These are believed to be efficacious not only
against the Evil Eye, as the other amulets of this form, but also for
the preservation of the hair. When worn for this purpose the women of
Madrid are said to carry them upon any part of the person, but those of
Toledo place them in the hair itself, so that the desired effect may be
more immediate.[653]
In southern Russia amulets enjoy high power both among Jews and
Christians. Especially are they valued for the protection of children
and for the cure of their diseases. An imitation wolf’s-tooth, made of
bone, set in a ring, is one of these amulets; however, while such
imitation teeth are used, the natural teeth are greatly preferred. As an
amulet against the Evil Eye the wing-bones of a cock will be used. This
malign influence is held in such awe by the common people that they do
not even dare to use the word “evil” of it and call it “the _good_ eye.”
Carnelian beads purporting to have been brought from Palestine command
what is regarded as a good price, three roubles being paid for a single
one; these are great favorites with the Jews more especially, one of
their supposed virtues being to prevent abortion.[654]
The religious fervor of the Russians is illustrated by the character of
the amulet said to be constantly worn by the Czar as a protection
against the dangers which hourly threaten him. This is a ring in which
is set a piece of the True Cross, the sacred material which was believed
to lend a mighty potency to the famous “Talisman of Charlemagne.” A less
venerable belief is said to render the Czar superstitiously careful to
see that an ancestral watch in his possession is always kept wound up,
for a family legend tells that should this watch ever stop the glory of
the reigning house would pass away.[655]
Of bone amulets there is a great variety. Among those used in the
British Isles may be noted a hammer-shaped type, fashioned out of a
sheep’s bone, worn by Whelby fishermen as protection from drowning;
similarly shaped bone amulets find favor with some London laborers as
preventives of rheumatism. This is the type of Thor’s Hammer, still
popular with the Manxmen. The strange resemblance of the os sacrum of
the rabbit to a fox’s head has recommended its use as a talisman, or
luck-bringer, and a London solicitor is stated to have owned an example
which he had mounted as a gold scarf-pin, the likeness to an animal head
being brought out still more by the insertion of onyx eyes.[656]
The talismanic power of the turquoise is still credited in provincial
England, for in the counties of Hampshire and Sussex it is believed that
when two persons station themselves on opposite banks of a frozen stream
or pond, on a Christmas Day, and each one slides a turquoise to the
other over the ice, both of them will be blessed with good fortune for
the following year and will prosper in all their undertakings. If the
stream or pond were at all wide, the fact of having accomplished this
feat successfully might indeed be taken as proof of considerable
dexterity, and might perhaps indicate that one who could succeed in this
little exploit had a chance of making his way in more important matters.
The natural markings on agate pebbles often present designs having some
special symbolical significance, and could then be looked upon by the
superstitious as amulets of notable power, much exceeding in efficacy
those artificially formed. A strange instance in illustration of this is
an agate pebble picked up not long since on Newport Beach, Rhode Island.
This stone is clearly and definitely marked with the mystic Chinese
monad, a device that is widely known in the United States from its
adoption as a symbol by the Northern Pacific Railroad.
A limestone pebble with peculiar markings is in a private collection in
New York. This somewhat resembles in shape the famous magatama jewel of
the Japanese, and the markings suggest that, like the latter, it may
have had a phallic significance, or at least one connected with the
worship of the reproductive powers. The markings indicate an attempt to
figure an undeveloped being, and possibly the object was intended for
use as an amulet to facilitate parturition.
The prevailing reaction against the purely materialistic beliefs so
generally accepted a score or more of years ago, finds expression in a
marked tendency toward a renewal—in a greatly modified form, of
course—of the old fancies or instinctive ideas touching the virtues of
gems. Thus one modern writer at least was bold enough to suggest not
long since that “the efficacy of charms and precious stones may be
recognized and placed on a scientific basis before many years are
passed.”[657]
[Illustration:
HILT OF JEWELLED SWORD GIVEN BY THE GREEKS OF THE UNITED STATES ON
EASTER DAY, 1913, TO THE CROWN PRINCE OF GREECE, LATER KING
CONSTANTINE XII. See page 373
View from above, showing the splendid star-sapphire, a symbol of
success, set at the apex.
]
The belief in the hidden powers of precious stones was used as the theme
of one of Hoffman’s novels, “Das Fräulein von Scudéry.” Here the hero,
René Cardillac, is represented as a man for whom the possession of
precious stones has become indispensable, and who is happy only when he
can handle them and watch the play of light and color emanating from
them. They exert a kind of hypnotic influence over him, and so intense
and absorbing is his devotion to them that he even resorts to murder
rather than part with one of his darling stones.
In the course of a meeting of the English Folk-Lore Society, one of the
members expressed the opinion that the revival of interest in amulets
and talismans and in all sorts and kinds of “mascots” was largely due to
the articles printed about such things in certain of the daily and
weekly papers. These items, put in a taking way and read with avidity,
more especially by those who were already predisposed to a belief in the
mythical or magical, served to spread these fancies far and wide
throughout the land. The president of the society, Dr. Gaster, in
closing the discussion, said that “from his experience the modern belief
in amulets as aids to luck was genuine and widely spread.”[658]
One of the latest Parisian oracles on mystic subjects, the Baroness
d’Orchamps, says that emeralds should not be worn by women before their
fiftieth year, although men may wear this gem without danger at any age.
Sapphires, on the other hand, may be worn by both sexes at all times,
since they have a potent influence for good luck. Hence speculators, and
indeed all who hope for a favorable turn of Fortune’s wheel, should look
with favor on this stone. As medicinal gems, the ruby and the moonstone
are especially recommended; the former for chronic headaches and the
latter for the manifold forms of nervousness. Lastly, the diamond, if
worn on the left side, wards off evil influences and attracts good
fortune. The unjustly maligned opal is asserted to be robbed of all
power to harm if it be associated with diamonds and rubies.
Many of the members of the French nobility are the owners and wearers of
talismanic ornaments of one kind or another. A powerful combination of
such “life-preservers” is credited to the Duc de Guiche. On his right
hand he wears three curiously chased rings, one on the first finger, the
second on the middle finger, and the third on the “ring-finger.” One of
the rings is set with a sardonyx engraved with the figure of an eagle,
the second ring bears a topaz on which has been graven a falcon, and the
third ring shows a beautiful coral bearing the design of a man holding a
drawn sword in his right hand. Both the stones and the special designs
engraved on each one are in accord with the oldest traditional lore in
regard to talismans, and the stones themselves are those indicated by
the date of the duke’s birth and by his baptismal name. While such an
array of finger rings would hardly appeal to the taste of an American
man, the fashion of wearing an appropriate series of rings has met with
considerable favor among our American mondaines, and certainly has the
merit of lending an individual significance to the rings selected for
wear.[659]
[Illustration:
JEWELLED SWORD GIVEN BY THE GREEKS OF THE UNITED STATES, ON EASTER
DAY, 1913, TO CROWN PRINCE CONSTANTINE, LATER KING CONSTANTINE XII
OF GREECE
Top of scabbard, showing didrachm of Alexander the Great.
]
[Illustration:
JEWELLED SWORD GIVEN BY THE GREEKS OF THE UNITED STATES, ON EASTER
DAY, 1913, TO CROWN PRINCE CONSTANTINE, LATER KING CONSTANTINE XII
OF GREECE
Side view of hilt.
]
The magnificent star-sapphire set in the hilt of the richly chased and
ornamented sword given by the Greeks of America to King Constantine of
Greece, on Easter Day, 1913, just before the recipient succeeded to the
royal dignity, may be looked upon as a talisman designed to assure good
fortune and long life to the sovereign, as well as prosperity to the
state over which he rules. This sword, which was made by Tiffany &
Company, is even more noteworthy because of its artistic merit than on
account of its intrinsic value. Another talismanic embellishment of the
sword is an inlaid didrachm of Alexander the Great (356–323 B.C.); it is
a well-known fact and one frequently recorded by ancient and medieval
writers, that the coins of this monarch were often treasured up as
amulets or talismans.[660] In the present instance, indeed, the charm,
if charm there be, should work most effectively, as we can imagine no
more appropriate guardian of the present ruler of Greece than the
greatest hero and the mightiest conqueror the Greek race ever produced.
This sword was presented to His Majesty Constantine XII, King of the
Hellenes, by the Greek residents of the United States, to commemorate
his defeat of the Turks at Salonika and Janina. By these victories of
the Greek armies under King Constantine, who was at that time the Crown
Prince of Greece, the Greek people of Macedonia and Epirus were
liberated from the Turkish yoke, and these rich provinces were added to
the Greek crown. The Committee of Presentation consisted of Mr.
Caftanzoglu, Chargé d’Affaires of Greece in Washington; Mr. D. Vlasto,
editor of “Atlantis”; Dr. Breck Trowbridge, president, and Dr. T.
Tileston Wells, vice-president of the Society of American Philhellenes,
with the coöperation of Dr. George F. Kunz, a member of the council of
the above society.
The green variety of microcline, a potash-feldspar, is known as the
“amazon-stone.” It is found at Amelia Court House, Virginia, at Pike’s
Peak, Colorado, at Rockport, Cape Ann, and in the Ural Mountains in
Russia. It has recently been proposed as the stone for the Suffrage
party. This amazon-stone could be cut in little beads of a beautiful
pale green and after appropriate mounting they could be worn suspended
by a ribbon from the button-hole. As the stone is inexpensive it ought
to meet with favor among the hundreds of thousands who are aggressive in
their advocacy of this cause.
Among the many persons of our day who still have or had a lingering
faith in the efficacy of amulets, may be mentioned the late actress,
Mrs. Annie Yeamans, who left special directions in her will that a
little amulet attached to a gold chain which she constantly wore, should
be left on her body and buried with her. We may call this superstition
or sentiment, as we will, but there seems to be an almost invincible
tendency to associate something of those dear to us and lost to us with
inanimate objects that may have been theirs, and the memories called up
by some simple trinket show that psychologically a certain power really
does exist in such objects. The sentiment they awaken is only in
ourselves, and the impression that awakes it as well, but the presence
of the inanimate object actually conditions the awakening of the
feeling. Thus we can scarcely deny to amulets a certain inherent quality
in this respect.
Often some strange, quaint, or bizarre design seen in the shop of a
dealer in antiques will make a peculiar and individual appeal to the
observer, and will be chosen by him as his personal amulet, as though
fate had destined the object for his special use. So we are told that
Mr. Augustin Osman, the artist, secured possession of a singular gold
ornament representing a human skull; upon it was figured in opals the
word “Ave.” On the first night after the acquisition of this object, the
artist had a vivid dream, in which the impression was conveyed to him
that he would always enjoy good fortune as long as the golden skull
remained in his possession. Evidently the opals took nothing in his
opinion from the luck-producing quality of this grewsome ornament;
indeed, it seems more probable that they added to it.
[Illustration:
THE BIRTH OF THE OPAL
Autographed for this work by the authoress, Ella Wheeler Wilcox
]
A curious modern talisman is the work of M. Charles Rivaud, who has
frequently exhibited splendid specimens of artistic jewelry at the Paris
Salon; this talisman cleverly combines artistic merit with a dash of
African magic. It is a slender bracelet composed of interlaced spirals
of oxidized silver and gold; around the circlet is twined a hair taken
from an elephant. Among the tribesmen of the Soudan the hairs of this
animal are believed to be endowed with great talismanic virtue; indeed,
they enjoyed a similar repute among the ancient Romans. Whether this
belief was due to the idea that the wearer of the hair was assured a
mighty protection, typified by the enormous strength of the elephant, or
whether to the fact that the elephant was with some peoples a divine
symbol, we cannot easily determine.
The opal has long since emerged from the slight cloud of disfavor due to
a most erroneous fancy that it was in some way associated with ill-luck.
This idea, possibly in its origin explainable by the comparative
fragility of the gem, found a consistent and earnest opponent in the
late Queen Victoria, whose influence did much to make opals fashionable.
Of late years they have become favorite bridal gifts, the exceptional
variety of color in the beautiful examples from the White Cliff mines in
New South Wales, having also contributed to the renewed popularity of
the stone. A parure of these opals was not long since bestowed upon the
Empress Augusta by Emperor William of Germany, and one of the finest
Australian opals is a treasured possession of the Duchess of
Marlborough.
A very attractive example of symbolic jewelry has lately been made by a
jeweler’s firm of Besançon, France. This ornament is composed of three
keys, to which are given the respective names, Key of Love, Key of Good
Fortune, and Key of Heaven. They are to open up for the wearer the
treasures of true love, of wedded bliss, and, finally, of paradise. A
legend from the time of the Crusades suggested the form of this pretty
jewel. Mourning the departure of a knight on the long and perilous
journey to Palestine, a Provençal maiden wandered through the woodland,
seeking peace and consolation in its quiet recesses. As she passed along
the leafy pathways, she all unconsciously gave utterance to her longings
and fears in softly spoken words. All at once a bright light beamed
about her, and a radiant fairy advanced toward her and gave her an ivory
casket in which lay three jewelled keys, masterpieces of the goldsmith’s
art. The first of these, the fairy assured her, would open the young
knight’s heart to receive her image; the second would open the church
door to admit her, a happy bride; and the third, when life’s journey was
o’er, would unlock for her the gates of Paradise.
On the deservedly popular watch bracelets, things of beauty as well as
utility, the precious stones used for decoration are sometimes selected
for the significance of the first letters of their names when read in
sequence. The following example may be noted:
D iamond
E merald
A methyst
R uby
S apphire
A gate
R uby
A methyst
In this way any name or endearing epithet can be prettily expressed.
X
Facts and Fancies about Precious Stones
Many interesting facts about precious stones do not properly refer
either to their talismanic or curative powers, and yet serve in not a
few cases to indicate more or less clearly the reasons which have
determined popular fancy or superstition in attributing particular
virtues to a given stone.
As an instance of the strange vagaries of belief in the influence
exerted by certain of these stones, we may take the statement that
powdered agate dissolved in beer was used by the Bretons as a test of
virginity. If a young girl were unable to retain this delectable mixture
on her stomach, she was supposed to be impure.[661] The ability to stand
this test seems rather to prove the possession of a strong stomach than
a clear conscience.
Rainbow Agate is a name appropriately applied to agates showing a
beautiful prismatic effect. These are composed of quartz and chalcedony
in very fine layers. The writer secured a splendid specimen of this type
of agate set in a jewel which had formed part of an old Saxon
collection; it may possibly have come from India. The prismatic play of
color differs from that observed in quartz iris, in that the iridescence
is due to the minute interference lines and not, as with the iris, to
internal fractures.
The greatest interest was manifested in the eighteenth century in these
agates, one of which was described in a special pamphlet under the
title, “Regenbogen Achat,” and illustrated with a colored plate. The
effect was that of a spectrum rather than the iris effect of the
crystalline quartz. This iris was also highly valued, and great favor
was set upon brilliant examples of what was in reality rock-crystal
fractured, the small fracture-planes causing the breaking up of the
light and producing the rainbow or iris effect. In fact it was a
spectrum produced by the mixture of quartz between the chalcedonic
layers.
Cellini has a marvellous story to tell of a luminous carbuncle. A
certain Jacopo Cola, a vine-grower, going into his vineyard one night
noticed what appeared to be a bit of glowing coal at the foot of one of
the vines, but on reaching the spot he was unable to locate the source
of this radiance. Very wisely he retraced his steps to the spot whence
he had first observed the light, which became again apparent, and when
he now very carefully approached the vine he found that the gleam
proceeded from a rough little stone, which he joyfully picked up and
carried off with him. He showed it to a number of his friends and among
them chanced to be a Venetian envoy, an expert on precious stones, who
immediately recognized that the find was a carbuncle. Thereupon taking a
base advantage of the finder’s ignorance, he succeeded in buying the
stone for only ten scudi, and then hastened away from Rome, lest his
deception should be discovered. Not long afterwards this same Venetian
went to Constantinople and sold the stone to the Sultan of the time for
100,000 scudi, a profit of 10,000 per cent.[662] The fact that the
vintner could only see the gleam from a given spot is in itself
sufficient proof that what he noted was merely the reflection of some
distant light striking a smooth surface of the stone at a certain angle.
Among the many virtues credited to carnelian by the Mohammedans may be
noted its power to preserve the equanimity and gravity of the wearer in
the midst of disputes or inordinate laughter. A special and peculiar
utilization of this material was to employ splinters of it as
toothpicks. Their use not only whitened the teeth but also prevented
bleeding of the gums. The Prophet, according to tradition, asserted that
the wearer of a carnelian ring would never cease to be happy and
blessed.[663]
The chrysolite is now regarded as a semi-precious stone only, yet
Shakespeare presented this gem as the type of excellence in its kind
when he wrote (“Othello,” Act V, Scene 2):
Nay, had she been true,
If heaven would make me such another world
Of one entire and perfect chrysolite,
I’d not have sold her for it.
It is interesting to note that this appreciation of the beauty of the
chrysolite is also shown in an old Greek glossary of alchemical terms,
where occur the words: Ιερὸς λίθος ἐστὶ Χρυσόλιθος, “Sacred stone means
the chrysolite.”[664]
Such was the sacred quality ascribed to strings of coral beads in some
parts of Africa, not long since, that they were regarded as the most
precious gifts a ruler could bestow. If the favored recipient were so
unfortunate as to lose this royal donation—which was a mark of high
rank—he himself, as well as all involved in the theft, incurred the
penalty of death. A writer of the seventeenth century, Palisot de
Beauvais, relates that in Benin human victims were sacrificed at a
“coral festival,” when the corals of the king and royal family were
dipped in the victim’s blood, so as to placate the coral fetish and
ensure a further supply of the precious material.[665] Possibly human
blood was believed to strengthen the special virtue supposed to be
inherent in this red substance.
There is a note of republican simplicity in the reported wearing of
coral ornaments on ceremonial occasions by the present Queen of Italy.
Indeed, the assertion that this is done to stimulate the coral industry
in Italy may be true, as nothing would better tend to do this than such
an example of royal favor for coral. Certainly this is in marked
contrast with the almost exclusive use of pearl ornaments of all kinds
so characteristic of Queen Margarita, whose devotion to the pearl, now
perhaps the most costly of gems, had a poetic appropriateness for one
bearing her name, and we can scarcely imagine the Pearl of Savoy without
her splendid parures and necklaces of pearls. Still, undoubtedly this
new departure renders it possible for all Italian women, rich or poor,
to loyally follow the example set by their Queen Helena, and there is
little danger that the rich will ever neglect to avail themselves of the
exclusive privilege they possess of owning and wearing diamonds, pearls,
rubies, sapphires and emeralds, which surpass coral as much in beauty as
they do in price.
A comparatively recent attempt to use diamond dust as a poison is said
to have been made in 1874 on Colonel Phayre, British Resident at the
court of the then reigning Gaikwar of Baroda. The colonel was in the
habit of refreshing himself after his morning walk with a glass of
sugared water flavored with a little lime-juice. One day, on taking a
sip of his customary beverage, he noted that it had a strange taste, and
instead of drinking it he saved it up and had it analyzed. The analysis
revealed the presence of arsenic in quantity sufficient to cause death,
and of diamond dust as well. Here, as in the case of Sir Thomas
Overbury, the really innocuous diamond material was accompanied by an
actual poison. The current belief in the poisonous quality of the
diamond is reflected in the words “mortal as diamond dust,” used by
Horace Walpole in one of his letters to the Countess of Ossory.[666]
A German writer of the seventeenth century quotes with admiration a
wonderful tale told by Johannes Bustamantius to the effect that he had
seen a marriage of two diamonds, the two crystals being so firmly drawn
toward each other by mutual sympathy that when they were put in one
place they would cling to one another, as with an “unending kiss,” as
though one were a man and the other a woman, and he asserts that the
union was blessed with offspring. This curious idea has been repeatedly
put forth by certain of the older writers as we have had occasion to
note elsewhere.[667]
After expatiating on the mechanical skill displayed by the Indians of
the New World, an early Spanish traveller gives the following details
regarding their success as gem-cutters:[668]
Yet all that we have said is surpassed by the ingenuity of the Indians
in working emeralds, with which they are supplied from the coast of
Manta and the countries dependent on the government of Atacames,
Coaquis or Quaques. But these mines are now entirely lost, very
probably through negligence. These curious emeralds are found in the
tombs of the Indians of Manta and Atacames; and are, in beauty, size
and hardness superior to those found in the district of Santa Fé; but
what chiefly raises the admiration of the connoisseur is, to find them
worked, some in spherical, some cylindrical, some conical, and of
various other figures; and all with a perfect accuracy. But the
unsurmountable difficulty here is, to explain how they could work a
stone of such hardness, it being evident that steel and iron were
utterly unknown to them. They pierced emeralds and other gems, with
all the delicacy of the present times, furnished with so many tools;
and the direction of the hole is also very observable; in some it
passes through the diameter, in others only to the centre of the
stone, and coming out at its circumference they formed triangles at a
small distance from one another, and thus the figure of the stone to
give it relief was varied with the direction of the holes.
The existence of emeralds in the region near Berenice is vouched for
by Ptolemy. The mines of emerald here were duly entered in the map of
the patriarch and the Arabs are said to have dug for them; but, Pocock
writes, “As all stones that may be found belong to the Grand Signior,
the Arabs are very well satisfied that the presence of emeralds should
not be suspected, because he would have the profit, and the
inhabitants might be obliged to work in the mines for a very small
consideration.”[669]
The number of ancient hematite artefacts found in the United States
indicates that this material was more largely used within its
territorial limits for implements and ornaments than in any other part
of the world;[670] indeed the somewhat sweeping statement has been
ventured that it does not seem to have been used outside of this section
of the New World; however, some exceptions to this rule must be
admitted. That certain of these ornaments were used as amulets is highly
probable, and they were undoubtedly regarded as objects of great value,
since with the primitive tools at his command the Indian cutter must
have found his task a very hard one, requiring the expenditure of much
time and patience. In the Andover Collection there is an exceptionally
fine specimen from Ross County, Ohio. It is of heavy pure hematite,
which has been worked into the form of a pendant; notches have been made
at both ends, as a form of decoration, and on the lower, broad end,
fourteen lines have been incised; the edges are slightly beveled and the
patina indicates the antiquity of the work. The lines have evidently
been made by a flint cutting-implement.[671] Another probable hematite
amulet is a rudely fashioned fish effigy. Here the appearances of eye
and gill (only on one side) are evidently merely natural irregularities
of surface, which it has been conjectured determined the cutter to add a
mouth and round off the material so as to approximate a fish-form; the
hematite is black and of fine quality. This relic comes from Cole Camp,
Benton County, Missouri.[672] The larger number of these hematite
artefacts are from Missouri, southern Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio,
West Virginia and Kentucky, and considerable numbers have been turned up
in Tennessee, New York, Wisconsin, and parts of Arkansas. Only a
relatively small number were taken out of burials or graves, the
majority of specimens having been secured on or near the surface.
Shah Jehangir relates in his memoirs that Mûnis Khân, son of Mihtar
Khân, presented him with a jug of jasper (jade), which had been made in
the reign of Mîrzâ Ulugh Beg Gûrgân, in the honored name of that prince.
It was a very delicate rarity and of a beautiful shape. Its stone was
exceedingly white and pure. Around the neck of the jar were carved
characters expressing the auspicious name of the Mîrzâ and the Hijra
year. Jehangir ordered them to inscribe his name and the auspicious name
of Akbar on the edge of the lip of the jar.[673]
Jade ornaments of ancient workmanship have been found in Syria, and it
is quite likely that in many cases where the designation plasma is used
by ancient writers, true jade, or nephrite, was the material. As there
was no specific designation for jade, the different varieties were
assimilated to other stones of like color and appearance, so that, among
others, the names jasper, plasma and even _smaragdus_ were used to
denote jade.
Mortuary tablets of jade have been used from time immemorial in China
for the reception of historic inscriptions, the toughness and durability
of the material making it especially desirable for this purpose. In the
case of rulers, such tablets not only bore the names of the deceased
sovereign but also an epitome of the leading events of his reign, and
additions were made to this record from time to time so that in historic
value they may be compared with the clay tablets of Babylonia and
Assyria. One of these interesting monuments found its way to San
Francisco, after the looting of the Forbidden City by the international
army of relief in 1901. On it appeared a record of the treaty between
the United States and China in 1868, and the other records went back to
the death of Shun Chi in 1661. Probably owing to exposure to the weather
the earlier inscriptions were not very legible.
At all important Chinese marriage ceremonies the priest carries what is
known as a “marriage sword.” This is usually about twelve or thirteen
inches in length and the sheath is often studded with various pink
stones, cut _en cabochon_. The stones most favored for this decoration
are pink tourmaline, rubellite from the Shan Mountains, or rose-quartz,
and the natural color of these gems is often intensified by placing a
pink paste or foil beneath them; occasionally the coloration of the
stones is enhanced by dipping them in a pink aniline solution. A piece
of green jade is usually set as a boss at the hilt of this symbolical
sword. In one remarkable specimen the guard consisted of a piece of
white jade with the figure of a dragon carved in relief upon it; the
sword-blade was of bronze. At the marriage ceremony the bridegroom is
given the sword to hold, and the bride the sheath; as the wedding ring
is placed upon the bride’s finger, sword and sheath are brought
together.
Among the innumerable forms of jade decoration or carving, produced by
the indefatigable and painstaking Chinese artists, is a small curved
wand often having a trefoil termination; sometimes the entire wand is of
jade, and at other times it is of teakwood adorned with jade medallions,
frequently showing birds and flowers. This wand was used as a kind of
sceptre of office, and the official entitled to bear it would hold it in
both hands when standing before the emperor. Its name, _ju-i_, means
“may all be,” and is to be taken as a wish that everything may turn out
fortunately. In modern times the _ju-i_ is carried as a lucky charm,
although its official significance is not forgotten. This form of wand
is said to have been introduced into China from India, at the time of
the Buddhist propaganda, and in representations of Buddhist priests they
are sometimes shown carrying one of them. In ancient India it was taught
to be one of the seven precious objects, the _septa-ratna_, mentioned in
the Vedas.[674] This Indian origin is, of course, highly probable, but
it is strange that in ancient Egypt also, curved wands of a somewhat
different type, made of ivory and embellished with symbolical figures,
possessed the same blended significance of marks of official dignity and
magic wands.
A large mass of lapis lazuli was found in one of the Inca graves of Peru
by Señor Emilio Montés, and was exhibited by him in the Centennial
Exhibition of 1913. With the exception of one corner that has been
chipped off, the block is of symmetrical form, the dimensions being, in
inches, 24 × 14 × 9, and the weight 312 pounds. The smoothed surface
gives evidence of careful and fairly successful polishing by the native
lapidaries. This exceptionally fine specimen of lapis lazuli is now in
the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.[675] Evidently in
ancient Peru as in the Old World the “celestial hue” of lapis lazuli was
thought to render it most appropriate for use as a memorial offering to
the dead or as a talisman by the aid of which their heavenward journey
might be made easier.
The so-called “black onyx” has almost entirely replaced jet. This is a
chalcedony impregnated with a carbonic matter, such as blood or a
solution of sugar, the carbonate of which is charred by sulphuric acid,
giving a rich, velvety, black hue to the stone, which takes a high
polish. However, a certain limited amount of the old “Whitby Jet” once
so highly favored is still mined and worked up into ornaments in the
neighborhood of Whitby on the northeast coast of England, in the
district of Leeds, although but fifty persons are now engaged in this
industry which fifty years ago gave employment to 1500 workers. Some
Spanish jet is also used, a material harder and more brittle than that
found in England.
[Illustration:
Autographed for this work by the author of the poem, Dr. Edward
Forrester Sutton.
]
The story was current that Pope Leo X (1475–1521) had a precious stone,
probably some type of “moonstone,”[676] which grew brighter as the moon
waxed, exhibiting the soft, silvery brilliance of our satellite, and
then gradually lost its brightness as the moon waned, growing paler and
dimmer and becoming quite obscure as the moon’s disk ceased to be
illumined by the sun. As a mate to this, Pope Clement VII (1475–1534)
was reputed to have in his possession a stone with a golden spot which
moved across the surface in exact accord with the apparent motion of the
sun across the heavens from sunrise to sunset.[677] These are
undoubtedly fables that were circulated intentionally, or more probably
through pure love of exaggeration, in order to enhance the merit of two
exceptionally fine specimens of moonstone and sunstone in the papal
treasury.
In the eighteenth century the collection of the Duke of Brunswick
contained a magnificent ancient drinking-cup, of the kind used in
sacrificial ceremonies, cut from a single piece of onyx; this cup was
said to have formed part of the rich spoils taken from Mithridates by
the Romans under Pompey. It was valued in the duke’s inventory at
150,000 thalers, and Catherine II of Russia is stated to have offered
four times that sum, or 600,000 thalers ($400,000) for this unique
cup.[678]
In the symbolism of the Manichean sect, an early Christian heresy owing
its origin to a direct and predominant influence of Persian ideas,
pearls occupy a prominent place. A legendary or poetic pearl called “the
bright moon” was the symbol of compassion, and one of the treatises ends
with the words: “Our heart has received the majestic splendor of the
pearl granting every wish.” We are also told of “a diamond pillar” which
sustains humanity, and the Messenger of Light is likened to a perfumed
mountain entirely composed of a mass of jewels.[679]
The recital of two Arab travelers, Hasan ibn Vazid and Sulaiman, who
visited India in the ninth century, contains a curious theory of the
formation of pearls or rather of the pearl-oyster. The primal matter is
assumed to be a gelatinous moss, analogous to that of a species of algæ.
This floats upon the water and attaches itself to the keels of ships,
where it hardens, develops a shell, and finally drops off to sink into
the depths of the sea. The formation of the pearl itself is then
discussed and the theory noted in Pliny’s Natural History and so often
repeated after his time, namely, that pearls are formed from the “dew of
heaven,” is cited; but the writer adds: “Others say that they [the
pearls] are produced in the oysters themselves. This appears more
probable and is confirmed by experience; for the greater part of those
observed in the oysters are firmly attached there and are immovable.
Those which are mobile are called by the merchants seed-pearls.” As a
true Mohammedan the writer concludes with the pious ejaculation: “God
knows how the matter really stands!”[680]
The same travellers relate the story of the discovery of a pearl under
very singular conditions. An Arab came to Bassora with a very fine
pearl. He took it to a druggist whom he knew and asked the latter how
much it was worth. The merchant estimated it at a hundred pieces of
silver, to the great surprise of the Arab, who demanded whether anyone
could be found willing to pay so much. Without hesitation the merchant
declared that he was ready to give the price himself, and immediately
paid over the money. He then took his purchase to Bagdad, where he
secured a large profit on his investment. On concluding his sale the
Arab told the Bassora druggist how he had secured his pearl. One day,
while walking along the Bahrein coast, he saw on the sands a dead fox,
whose mouth was tightly compressed by a strange object. On closer
observation this proved to be an enormous pearl-oyster shell. Evidently
the fox had thrust his snout into the shell while the valves were open
so that he might devour the soft contents, but the valves suddenly
closed upon him and he had died of suffocation. On prying open the shell
the Arab found therein the pearl which was destined to bring him what he
regarded as a fabulous sum.[681]
The women of the Arab town occupying a site close to that on which stood
the Babylon of ancient times, wore, as a favorite adornment, nose-rings
of gold set with a pearl and a turquoise. The English traveller, John
Eldred, who traversed Mesopotamia in 1583, found this custom so general
that he writes: “This they doe be they never so poore.”[682]
For years a statement has been going through the press that pearls are
liable to become diseased and die, and that the famous necklace of
pearls presented by President Thiers of France to his wife, and
bequeathed by Mme. Thiers to the French Government, had lost their
lustre and died, perhaps owing to the death of the owner. For there is
an old belief that pearls, as well as opals and turquoises, lose some of
their lustre when the owner or wearer becomes ill, and change to a dull
and lifeless hue when the owner dies. An examination of the necklace by
the writer showed that the pearls were in good condition, and to confirm
his statement to this effect he had the director of the Louvre Museum
write him a letter. In this official communication the director not only
states that the pearls had not sickened and died, but that they were in
as “healthy” a condition as they had ever been.
The invariable experience of the writer has been that whenever pearls
have been said to have suffered in this way, the true explanation has
been that they were old and poor at the time of their purchase, and that
this romance was started on its travels as an excuse to cover up the
defect of such pearls and to arouse the belief that they had been
remarkably beautiful and valuable when they were originally acquired.
As though to make amends to the Queen Gem for such disadvantageous
rumors, considerable publicity has recently been given to a report that,
in the Musée de Monaco, there was a luminous pearl whose beauties were
revealed by an inner light, so that darkness had no power to dim its
lustre. In a thoroughly impartial spirit, the writer went to the
fountain-head for information in this matter, and received as answer
from the director of the museum that there was no such pearl in the
collection and that he had absolutely no faith in the luminosity of
pearls.
As has been seen, both of these legends must be set aside as false, and
we fear there is just as little truth in a report that a genuine
“pearl-powder” is now used by the fair ladies of Paris and by their
numerous imitators. The story goes that the Arab workmen engaged in
pearl-piercing in India are noted for the clearness—we can hardly say,
the lightness—of their complexions, and that this is supposed to be
attributable to the fact that, when resting from their difficult task,
they are in the habit of taking up some of the pearl-dust that has
fallen on the floor and rubbing their faces with it. As the conditions
under which these men work are eminently unsanitary, those who noted the
clearness and smoothness of their complexions came to the conclusion
that there must be something especially beneficial in pearl-dust, and
brought the matter to the notice of a French chemist. The latter
proceeded to utilize the suggestion and compounded a new cosmetic. He
did not, however, pin his faith to the pearl-dust alone, but wisely
added a number of other ingredients.
Still another mythical tale in reference to pearls has to be refuted.
For some time past numerous specimens of a so-called “cocoanut-pearl”
have been brought from the East. These are very white pearls, resembling
in hue the hard meat of the cocoanut, and said to have been produced in
the cocoanut, just as other pearls are produced in certain species of
mollusks. However, the writer has always found them to be pearls
secreted by the gigantic mollusk _Ostrea Singapora_.
A strange poetic fancy regarding the transmutation of parts of the human
form into gems of the sea appears in Ariel’s song in Shakespeare’s
“Tempest”:
Full fathom five thy father lies,
Of his bones are coral made;
Those are pearls that were his eyes,
Nothing of him that doth fade
But doth suffer a sea-change
Into something rare and strange.
_Tempest_, Act I, Sc. ii.
Some natives of the Sulu Archipelago believe that the nautilus pearl is
a most unlucky object to possess, for should a man engage in a fight
while wearing such a pearl he would inevitably be killed. Hence, when a
native by chance comes across one of them, he very quickly throws it
away, as a probable bringer of ill-luck. Occasionally, however, such
pearls fall into the hands of those who are less influenced by
superstition, and one weighing 72 grains was given, in 1884, to an
Australian gentleman, by Mohammed Beddreddin, brother-in-law of the
Sultan of Sulu. This was a perfect, pear-shaped pearl of a creamy-white
hue and somewhat translucent; it is composed of the porcelanous, not of
the nacreous constituent of the shell.[683]
[Illustration:
East Indian Baroque pearl. Weight over 1700 grains, Holland, 1775.
]
It has been stated that this Sulu superstition is not shared by the
natives of Celebes Island, near Borneo, for here such pearls are kept as
charms and talismans. One of an irregular pear-shape, weighing 27½
grains, has been found on the northern coast of the island.[684] The
finding of a nautilus pearl by a Chinese woman in Borneo is noted by
Rumphius, who describes it as being as large as a bean and white as a
piece of alabaster, hard and bright, but of very irregular shape. The
finder put it in a closed box, and was not a little surprised to
discover when she opened the box after a time that the original pearl
had engendered another one the size of a lentil; later it had two other,
smaller offspring. The woman carefully treasured her find as a lucky
stone which would bring her good fortune in her search for mussels.
Rumphius shrewdly conjectures that the smaller concretions had broken
off the larger one while it was enclosed in the box.[685]
The well-known lines in Shakespeare’s “Othello”:
Of one whose hand, like the base Judean’s,
Cast away a pearl richer than all his tribe.
have been explained in many different ways by the commentators, one of
whom (Steevens) saw in them a reference to the following story current
in Venice in the sixteenth century. A Jew, after long and perilous
wanderings in the East, succeeded in bringing with him to Venice a great
number of fine pearls. These he disposed of there at satisfactory
prices, with the exception of one pearl of immense size and
extraordinary beauty, upon which he set a price so high that no one was
willing to pay it. Finally, the Jew invited all the leading gem-dealers
to meet him on the Rialto, and when as many of them as answered his call
had assembled, he once more, and for the last time, offered his peerless
pearl for sale, detailing all its perfections in eloquent terms.
However, he made no concession in the price, and the dealers unanimously
refused to purchase it, probably expecting that the Jew would at last be
forced to make a reduction, but to their amazement, instead of doing
this, he threw his pearl before their very eyes into the waters of the
canal, preferring rather to lose it than to cheapen it.[686]
The belief that the growth of pearls in the pearl-oyster was due to
rain-drops is perpetuated in the Arab proverb: “The rain of the month of
Nisan brings forth pearls in the sea and wheat on the land.”[687] This
spring month was, and is still, the period when pearl-fishing begins in
the Orient. Another pearl proverb repeats the evangelical saying in this
form: “Do not throw pearls under the feet of swine.”
A Tonquinise legend of the origin of pearls represents them as springing
from the blood of a young princess who was slain by the king, her
father, because she had betrayed to her husband the secret of a magic
bow, whose death-dealing arrows always flew to their mark. In his anger
at his daughter’s act, the father drew his scimitar and beheaded her,
but with her last breath she prayed that her blood might be turned to
pearls. Her prayer was heard and now the finest pearls of this land are
found in the waters about the place where she died.[688]
From blue sapphires the color may be extracted so that they become
white, in such sort that they excellently imitate the diamond, so well,
indeed, that the fraud can only be detected by an expert jeweller. This
art was known at an early period, and no doubt induced many writers to
ascribe certain of the qualities of the diamond to the sapphire. As
illustrating this, a Rabbinical author states that a certain man went to
Rome to sell a sapphire. The purchaser said to him: “I will buy it
provided I may first test it.” He placed it on an anvil and struck it
with a hammer; the anvil was split and the hammer was broken to pieces
but the stone remained in its place uninjured.[689]
[Illustration:
CLEOPATRA DISSOLVING HER PRICELESS PEARL AT THE BANQUET TO MARK ANTONY
Tapestry. Eighteenth century.
]
The virtues of the sapphire are enumerated at length by Bartolomæus
Anglicus, the old scholastic philosopher, who flourished in the first
half of the thirteenth century and taught theology in the famous
University of Paris.[690] After noting the old dictum according to which
the sapphire was the “gem of gems” and one worthy to adorn the fingers
of kings, Bartolomæus proceeds to instruct his readers in regard to the
wonderful curative powers of this beautiful gem. These appear always to
be connected with its supposed calming and cooling influence. Thus it
reduced the temperature in fevers and checked the flow of blood; for
instance, if attached to the temples it stopped nose-bleed; if the heart
were unduly excited, this agitation could be controlled by the power of
the sapphire. Too profuse perspiration was also checked if a sapphire
were worn. It shared with the diamond the virtue of reconciling discord.
Its power as an antidote to poison was believed to be proved by an
experiment in which a spider was placed in a box with a sapphire. After
a short time the poor spider expired, done to death by the supreme
virtue of the celestial stone. A like story was told by ancient writers
in regard to the emerald. Of course, the chastening virtues of the
sapphire are not forgotten, virtues which have caused it to be selected
as especially appropriate for the rings of cardinals and high church
dignitaries; this belief arose from the association of purity with the
color of the heavens, the pure, unadulterated blue of the cloudless sky.
One of the rarest and most beautiful of the corundum gems of Ceylon is
locally known there by the name _padparasham_. It is of a most rare and
delicate orange-pink hue, the various specimens showing many different
blendings of the pink and orange. The significance of the Cinghalese
name seems to be somewhat obscure, but a probable conjecture explains it
to mean “hidden ray of light”; another etymology would see in the first
syllable, _pad_, an abbreviation of _padma_, lotus, the petals of this
flower often having a soft orange tint. In this case the meaning would
be “hidden lotus,” as though the very color-essence of the flower were
enclosed within and shone through the gem.[691]
A Persian treatise on precious stones was composed by Mohammed Ben
Mansur[692] in the thirteenth century of our era. This work was written
for Sultan Abu Naçr Behadirchan, and consists of two divisions, the
first treating of precious stones and the second of metals. It is
interesting to note in this treatise the recognition of the essential
likeness of the Oriental ruby, sapphire, topaz, etc.; these varieties of
corundum are all grouped under the single designation “_yakut_.” Ben
Mansur writes:[693]
The yakut is six-fold: 1, the red; 2, the yellow; 3, the black; 4, the
white; 5, the green or peacock-hued; 6, the blue or smoky-hued. Some
divide the yakut into four classes: red, yellow, dark, and white,
reckoning the peacock-hued and the blue among the dark. The yakut cuts
all stones except carnelian and diamond.
Although the Oriental carnelian is hard and difficult to cut or polish
only popular prejudice accounts for this statement, as it falls far
short of the diamond in hardness.
Pseudo-Aristotle, writing some time from the seventh to the ninth
century A.D., was the first to define clearly the three leading
varieties of the corundum gems (yakut) as the same mineral substance,
and differing only in color. These are the ruby, the Oriental topaz
(jacinthus citrinus) and the sapphire. Instead of according different
medicinal or talismanic virtues to these three precious stones, this
writer states that each and all of them, when set in rings or worn
suspended from the neck, protected the wearer from danger in epidemics,
gave him the honor and good will of his fellow-men, and also the
privilege of having his petitions accorded.[694]
The great Athenian comic poet, Aristophanes (c. 448–c. 385), makes
Strepsiades, one of his characters in the “Clouds,” assert to Socrates
that he knows of a stone having the virtue of saving him from the
payment of a claim of five talents, for which suit has been brought
against him. This stone, called ὓαλος in Greek, was to be found in the
stock of those who dealt in medicines; it was transparent and with it
fire could be kindled. The philosopher, although he knows the stone well
enough, fails to see how it could be made to help the defendant in a
suit at law, and asks Streposiades what he proposes to do with it. The
latter is not at a loss for an answer and declares that when the clerk
proceeds to write down the charge on his waxen tablet, he, Streposiades,
will hold the stone in the sun’s rays so that its beam of light will
fall upon the tablet and melt the wax, thus quite literally “wiping out
the charge.”[695]
Rock-crystal was so highly prized in Roman times that one of the
greatest treasures preserved in the Capitol was a mass of this stone,
weighing fifty pounds, that had been dedicated by Livia, wife of
Augustus Cæsar. Vessels of great size were also made from this material,
one of the largest being a bowl owned by Lucius Verus, the colleague of
Marcus Aurelius, the dimensions of which were so great that the stoutest
toper of the time could not empty it at a single draught. If we can
trust a statement of Mohammed Ben Mansur, the Arabs and Persians of a
later age must have far surpassed the Romans in the size of their
crystal vessels, for he says that a Mauritanian merchant owned a basin
of rock-crystal within which four men could seat themselves at the same
time. It is true that this basin was composed of two pieces of the
material.[696]
The Chinese word for crystal, _ching_, was originally represented by the
symbol [Symbol]; that is, three suns, an attempt to figure the
refraction and dispersion of light by the crystal.[697] The _soui che_
stone of the Chinese which is said to quench thirst if it be placed in
the mouth, is almost certainly rock-crystal, for the Chinese, in common
with the ancient Greeks and Romans, believed this substance to be a
transformation of water, a kind of fossil ice. A similar power was
attributed by Pliny to one of the varieties of agate.[698]
Labrets of quartz are used in Central Africa and we have a very
interesting description by M. A. Lacroix regarding these ornaments as
worn by the natives of a part of the French possessions. In the land of
the Bandas the natives highly prize a piece of rock-crystal so shaped
that it can be introduced into the lower lip. This usage is confined to
the basins of the Ombella, the Kemo and the Tomi, affluents of the
Oubanghi.
The following description of the labrets was communicated to M. Lacroix
by M. Lucien Fourneau, Administrator of the Colonies:
These objects, called _baguérés_, consist of hyaline quartz, perfectly
transparent; they are very regularly cut, and measure from four to
seven cm. (two to three inches) in length. Some have the form of a
very elongated and pointed cone, without any protuberances, the
greatest diameter being about one cm. (about half an inch); the
others, thinner and sharper, have at the base a rim destined to hold
them in place; in all cases a pad of thread constituting a kind of
permanent plug, assures and completes their stability. Some women wear
as many as three of these singular ornaments, thrust, point downwards,
into the same lip.
The most regular quartz crystals are selected, and these are chipped off
and roughly shaped by blows struck with a hard substance; the quartz is
then set in a wooden handle, and the final shaping and polishing are
accomplished by friction upon a round slab of quartzite or sandstone.
These slabs show grooves along which the crystals have been rubbed. On
an average the time required is four or five days of five hours. The
completed ornament is valued at nine pounds of red wood worth about
$1.20; sometimes one can be secured for three chickens, worth sixty
cents.[699] Those who cannot afford quartz labrets substitute wood,
glass, or pewter. M. Lacroix draws our attention to the fact that a
study of the processes employed in shaping and polishing these pieces of
quartz is of great importance for the elucidation of the methods in use
during the Stone Age.[700]
A nose-jewel from the New Hebrides consists of a crystal of hyaline
quartz reduced to a cylindrical form, one extremity having been pointed,
while the other retains the natural faces of the crystal. This was
passed through the septum of the nose, and was most likely worn as an
amulet.[701]
Rock-crystal has been used extensively in the past year with ornaments
of ribbon-like or plaque-like effects. Sometimes all the parts are made
into the exact shape of a bowknot, with a bordering of platinum and
diamonds, or of platinum and diamonds with a calibre-cut onyx; that is,
the rock-crystal material is cut into minute square or oblong stones,
which are run into double triangular edges that hold them. The crystals
are dulled, and frequently have the appearance of moonstones. At times,
indeed, moonstones are used in their place. Sometimes these panels, or
bits and pieces of rock-crystal, are drilled, diamonds set in platinum
are inserted into the drill-holes, and the ornament is engraved in
classic designs of Watteau-like effects.
The origin of Burmese rubies is thus explained in a Burmese legend
current in the region of the Ruby Mines. According to this legend, in
the first century of our era three eggs were laid by a female _naga_, or
serpent; out of the first was born Pyusawti, a king of Pagan; out of the
second came an Emperor of China, and out of the third were emitted the
rubies of the Ruby Mines.[702]
Dealing in precious stones was by no means an unusual occupation in
Europe more than four hundred years ago, as is shown by the fact that a
certain Peter, one of the secret agents of Perkin Warbeck, a pretender
to the throne of England in Henry VIII’s reign, was called in the secret
correspondence of the conspirators, “The Merchant of the Ruby.” Such
dealers frequently travelled from place to place, and usually offered
their wares to princes and nobles; hence the statement in a letter that
the Merchant of the Ruby “was not able to sell his wares in Flaunders”
might not seem suspicious if the letter were intercepted and read,
although the meaning was that the emissary had been unable to obtain
succor in Flanders for the cause of the pretender.[703] Probably this
designation also contained a covert allusion to the Red Rose of York,
for Perkin Warbeck gave himself out to be Richard, Duke of York.
A sixteenth-century traveller, the Portuguese Duarte Barbosa, after
saying that “the rubies grow in India,” proceeds to state that those of
finest quality and greatest value were for the most part gathered in a
river called Pegu and were named _nir puce_ by the Malabars. As a test
of their fineness, the Hindus would touch them with the tip of the
tongue, the coldest (densest) being the best. When a superior ruby was
thus picked out, the examiner would attach a little wax to its finest
point, and so pick it up and look through it against a bright light; by
this means any blemish would immediately become apparent. These rubies
came not only from the river of Pegu but from other parts of the land of
the same name, often being discovered in deep mountain clefts. However,
they were not cut and polished in that country, but were merely cleaned
and sent for cutting to “Palecote and the country of Narsynga.”[704]
The balas-ruby (originally a spinel from Badakshan) was one of the most
admired precious stones in medieval times, before the diamond was helped
to its proud preëminence by having its beauties revealed through the
exercise of the diamond-cutters’ skill. Almost all the large “rubies” of
which we read, those of Europe at least, were balas-rubies, as were also
by far the greater part of the so-called rubies in Oriental royal
collections of that and later times. The great Italian poet Dante uses
this stone (_balascio_) as a symbol of the glowing radiance of divine
joy in the following lines from the Divina Commedia (Paradiso, ix,
67–69):
L’altra letizia, che m’era già nota
Preclara cosa, mi si fece in vista
Qual fin balascio in che lo sol percota.
In very ancient times as well as at the present day (if we admit that
the _anthrax_ of Theophrastus really was ruby and not a pyrope garnet),
the ruby was the most valuable of all precious stones, the Greek writer
stating that at the time he wrote, about 260 B.C., an exceedingly small
specimen would sell for as much as forty gold pieces. His statement that
these stones came from Carthage and Marseilles should not induce us to
prejudge the question as to their real character, as many articles of
Asiatic commerce were distributed from these parts, more especially from
the great Carthaginian seaport.[705]
A variety of sapphire, having, to a certain extent, the coloration of
the ruby, was called by natives of Ceylon in the sixteenth century
_nilacandi_;[706] this might be rendered sapphire-ruby. These stones are
purple-red by daylight, but artificial light kills the blue and they
appear red. They are frequently called phenomenal sapphires or
alexandrite sapphires.
Indian poetic fancy has connected the creation of sapphires in Ceylon
with the fair maidens of that island.[707]
When the young Cingalese maidens sway, with the tips of their fingers,
the stems of the lavali blossoms, then do the two dark blue eyes of
the Daitya fall, eyes with a sheen like that of the lotus in full
bloom.
Hence it is that this island, with its long sea-coast and its
interminable forests of ketskas, abounds in magnificent sapphires,
which are its glory.
The following pretty bit of Oriental imagery occurs in a Cinghalese poem
on the deeds of Constantino de Sá, a Portuguese Captain-General. Here
the poet, writing of a river that flowed through the island, calls it
“that lovely stream, the Kaluganga, which meandered as a sapphire chain
over the shoulders of the maiden Lanka.”[708] Lanka is a Cingalese name
for Ceylon.
The depth of the coloration of sapphires and other stones was believed
to indicate their degree of “ripeness,” the pale stones being “unripe.”
As an illustration of this, Cardano instances a sapphire he had
examined, a small part of which was blue, while the rest resembled a
diamond. Specimens of this kind exist in several collections.[709] The
writer has seen many that are dark blue when viewed from above, and
almost white when viewed through the back. The Cinghalese lapidaries had
very cleverly cut a crystal that was white, with a thin coating of blue,
so that the blue was at the back, fully realizing the wonderful
dispersive power of the sapphire, and that it would appear dark blue if
viewed from above. The value was naturally only trifling compared with
that of a perfectly even-colored gem.
Al-Berûnî (973–1048 A.D.) gives as the hues of the “red _yakut_” (ruby),
pomegranate-colored safran (henna), purple, flesh-colored, rose-colored,
and of the shade of a pomegranate blossom. Other colors of the _yakut_
(corundum crystals) were yellow (Oriental topaz), gray, green (Oriental
emerald), white (white sapphire), and black. A henna-colored _yakut_, if
weighing one mitqal (about 24 carats), was valued at 5000 dinars
($12,500), if its weight was half as much, or about 12 carats, it was
esteemed to be worth 2000 dinars ($4500), but for one weighing as much
as 2 mitqals (48 carats) no definite price could be given, probably
because of its great rarity and costliness.[710]
The Sanskrit name for the topaz, _pita_, signifies “the yellow stone.”
This Sanskrit word is thought by many to be the original of the Hebrew
_pitdah_, a stone of the high-priest’s breastplate. Another Sanskrit
name is pushparaga, “flower-colored.”[711] It must be borne in mind,
however, that these names refer not to our topaz but to yellow corundum,
or Oriental topaz, as it has often been called.
A topaz of exceptional size is that known as the “Maxwell-Stuart
Topaz”[712] from the name of the owner. It was brought from Ceylon to
England with a lot of inferior rubies and sapphires for use in
watchmaking, and was believed to be simply a piece of quartz. So little
was it appreciated that when sold at auction it only brought £3 10s.
($17.50). When on closer examination its true quality became apparent,
the owner decided to have it cut in brilliant form. The operation
required twenty-eight days’ consecutive work, the diamond-wheel being
used, and resulted in the production of a fine cut stone of a pure white
hue, weighing 368³¹⁄₃₂ carats. When the cutting was partially completed,
a “feather” became apparent that would have spoiled the table, but as it
was still possible to reverse the position of table and culet, this was
done, and the “feather” removed. At this time, in 1879, this topaz could
lay claim to being the largest cut stone in existence, although its size
is considerably surpassed now by that of the largest Cullinan diamond,
516½ carats.
The same exceptional position taken by jade among the Chinese is
occupied by turquoise among the Tibetans; these are so emphatically
primates among gem-minerals that the very name “stone” seems a
designation unworthy of them, and as a Chinese would say, “it is _jade_,
not a stone,” so would a loyal Tibetan exclaim of his favorite gem, “it
is a _turquoise_, not a stone.” Another indication of the exceptional
rank of turquoise in Tibet is that, as with the famous Oriental and
European diamonds and also with some celebrated balas-rubies, certain of
the first turquoises of Tibet have received individual names, such, for
example, as “the resplendent turquoise of the gods” and “the white
turquoise of the gods.” A tradition relates that the largest turquoise
found up to that time was discovered in the eighth century A.D. by King
Du-srong Mang-po on the summit of a mountain near the sacred Tibetan
city of Lhasa.[713]
In 1613, Shah Abbas of Persia sent to Jehangir six bags of
“turquoise-dust,” weighing in all some 23½ pounds Troy. However, the
material proved to be of very inferior quality, for the jewellers
searched in vain through the whole mass for a single stone fit for
setting in a ring. Jehangir consoles himself with the reflection that
“probably in these days turquoise-dust is not procurable such as it was
in the time of Shah Tahmasp.”[714]
When the Syrian monarch Antiochus XIII visited Syracuse during the
prætorship of Caius Verres, he bore with him many richly adorned
vessels, some of them being of gold set with gems after the Syrian
fashion. However, the finest of all was a wine-cup carved out of a
single piece of precious-stone material. When this had once met the gaze
of the greedy Verres, he did not rest until he had got it into his
possession. To attain his end he resorted to a most ignoble stratagem.
Professing his ardent admiration of this as well as of the other
richly-adorned and finely-wrought vessels, Verres requested that they
might be left with him for a short time so that he might contemplate
them at his leisure, and might also have an opportunity to submit them
to examination by his goldsmiths with a view to having some copies
executed. Antiochus readily acceded to this request, but when after the
lapse of a few days he wished to regain possession of his things, Verres
put him off from day to day, on one pretext or another. Finally, as
Antiochus refused to take the more than broad hints that the precious
objects should be bestowed as gifts, Verres spread the rumor that a
piratical fleet was on its way from Syria to attack Sicily, and forced
Antiochus to leave the island that very day, retaining the borrowed
vessels in spite of all remonstrances.[715]
That precious stones should be used to decorate the teeth seems a rather
queer development of art, although the practice is not altogether
unknown at the present day, when we hear now and again of diamonds being
set in teeth to satisfy the vanity of some eccentric individual. In
pre-Colombian times, however, there is abundant evidence that this
strange form of personal adornment was by no means rare, several
examples having been unearthed from burials in Ecuador, and evidence of
the usage being offered by remains from Mexico and also from Central
America. Among the Mayans here jadeite seems to have been the stone
principally favored for this purpose, while in Mexico hematite has been
met with in Oaxaca, turquoise in Vera Cruz, and at other places in the
land, rock-crystal and obsidian.[716] For the insertion of the stones,
the primitive dental artists carefully and skilfully cut or rubbed away
the enamel from a section of the front part of the tooth to be
decorated, and then applied the precious stone, cut to the required
shape, as an inlay. The way in which this was done gives evidence of a
remarkably high degree of skill in this line of work; in many cases an
inlay of gold was used, instead of a precious stone, and it has even
been conjectured that some of these gold inlays represent a kind of gold
filling for the protection of the tooth. While this is open to question,
the undoubted fact that new teeth were occasionally inserted to take the
place of those which had fallen out or decayed, as shown in several
specimens, might be regarded as corroborative of the broader assumption.
The expert workmanship of these pre-Colombian “dental surgeons” is
clearly manifested in the good condition of the teeth whence so much of
the enamel had been removed, showing that the inlays must have been so
closely adjusted that the tooth was effectively protected from the
introduction of moisture.
One of the latest fashionable fads, suggested by the great variety of
bright-colored costumes worn by the _mondaines_ (and others) at the
present day, is the selection and wear of jewelry set with stones of the
same color as the striking gown. Thus with a costume of glowing red, the
ruddy ruby would be chosen, a sky-blue costume would insure the wearing
of the justly popular sapphire, dress of a golden-yellow hue would call
for one of the shades of topazes, while the “new brown,” now so much in
vogue, finds its complementary stone in topaz of a slightly darker
shade. The grass-green costume would suggest one of the many beautiful
shades of the tourmaline, and jewelry of the pink tourmaline would be
appropriate to garments of this color. With their wonderful play of
color, opals would accord with all varieties of hue in costume and might
thus be worn with either of the other more especially matched stones.
An old account of the London trades and guilds, in writing of the
jewellers’ art, makes the following statement regarding the
qualifications of a jeweller, as appropriate to our own times as to any
other.[717]
He ought to be an elegant Designer, and have a quick Invention for new
Patterns, not only to range the stones in such manner as to give
Lustre to one another, but to create Trade; for a new Fashion takes as
much with the Ladies in Jewels as in anything else; he that can
furnish them oftenest with the newest Whim has the best Chance for
their Custom.
Index
A
Aazem, great name of God, on rain-stone,5
Abarchiel, angel of March, 248
Abbott, Charles E., vii
Abdos, St., 252
Abenzoar, 136
Abracadabra charm, 326, 327
Abraham, 86
Abrantès, Duchesse d’, 295
Acontus, St., 252
Acosta, José de, 210
Acrostics in jewels, 375
Actinolite, 29
Acts of the Apostles in burning of Ephesian magic books, 325
Adair, 107
_Adlerstein_, 193
Ægospotami, meteor of, 79, 80
Aepinus, Franz Ulrich Theodor, 54
_Ætites_, 20, 124, 173–178
names of, in various languages, 175
Ætius, 174
Agapitus, St., 252
Agate, 30, 31, 291, 317, 324
amulets of, in Spain, 368
as Anglo-Saxon talisman, 331
banded, stone of Benjamin, symbolical meaning of, 283
curative use of, 129
dog’s head amulet of, from Mexico, 351
“eye-,” 315
idol of red, in Kaabah, 84
pebbles of, with natural markings, 377
“rainbow agate,” 377, 378
Agatha, St., 257, 272
Agincourt, battle of, 259
“Ahnighito,” great Cape York meteorite, 97
Alban, St., stone in Abbey of, 151–153
Al-Beruni’s statement of prices of precious stones in eleventh century,
403
Alcathous, 2
Alchemist’s gold, 14, 16
medallion transmuted into, 15
medal made from, 15, 16
Alchemy, 14–16
_Alectorius_, 20, 119, 160, 179, 180, 181
Alexander the Great, 299, 322, 324, 378
wonderful stones found by, 70
Alexandra, Queen, talisman of, 362
Allen, Edward Heron, 116
Amazon stones, 143, 148, 304, 320
symbol of Suffrage Party, 374
Amber, 60–64, 297, 343, 345, 358
account of, by Tacitus, 60
beads, 61–63
bulls of Romans, 60
crucifix of yellow, 295
curative power of, 62
electrical property of, 63
hair, 61
necklace of, as aid to longevity, 63
oil of, 64
Ambergris, 185, 186
Ambrose, St., 243, 272
American Folk Lore Society’s exhibit in Chicago, 190, 191, 352
American Museum of Natural History, 32, 34, 96, 99
Amethyst, 58, 123, 296, 330, 335
engraved, in Egyptian amulets, 280
necklace of, ancient Egyptian, 317
stone of Dan, symbolical meaning of, 283
Amitabha, emanation of Adi-Buddha, coral statuette of, in Royal Chapel
at Lhasa, Tibet, 303
Amulets and talismans, 313–376
Abracadabra, 326, 327
against Evil Eye, 345–347
Babylonian, 314, 315
Chinese jade wands as, 385
detected by Röntgen rays, 358
Egyptian necklace of, 317
Egyptian, with engraved amethyst, 280
encircled with elephant’s hair, 375
explanations of influence of, 313, 314
for animals, 360
fragments of skull used as, 331–334
from Pueblo Bonito ruins, 352
from Russia, 308
Gnostic, with seven vowels, 328
_hei-tikis_ of New Zealand jade, 361
Hindu, 330, 340
in the Bible, 278, 322, 323, 325, 360
in Ecuador, to arouse love, 350
in Egypt, 317–321
in old Italian MS., 327, 328
in Persian grave, 324
jade, in Panama, 349
life preserving, story of, 366, 367
“mummy eyes,” Peruvian, 350
of agate and coral in Spain, 367, 368
of Catherine de’ Medici, 334
of hematite, 383
of Mexican Indians, 348
of Paris, 329
of the Czar, 309
Pascal’s, 337
pearls as, 392
Queen Elizabeth’s, 337
set in the skin in Burma, 345
“Talisman of Charlemagne,” 329–331
teeth and bone used as, 368, 369
Tibetan, 343–345
used by Eskimos, 358, 359
Anatganor, angel of December, 248
Anaxagoras, predicts fall of meteorite, 80
“Angelical stone,” for visions, 16
Angels, 241–251
figures of, on medieval gems, 245
guardian, 244, 246, 248, 249, 250
in Song of Moses, 250
Luther’s opinion of guardian, 250
Mohammedan, world-bearer, on ruby-rock, 248
not to be worshipped outside the church, 244
of months, in Sepher de-Adam Kadmah, 247, 248
seven good, and seven bad, 246, 247
Anglo-Saxon “Laece Bok,” of Bald, 331
Anna, Santa, President of Mexico, 256
Anne, St., 253, 272
de Beaupré, shrine of, 254–256
jewel dedicated to, 256
relics of, 255, 256
Antar, Persian hero, legend of, 88, 89
Anthony, St., of Padua, 253, 266, 272
medallion given to church of, by Pope Paul V, 254
_Anthrax_, 401
Aphrodite, 81
Apollo, 3
Apollonia, St., of Alexandria, 272
legend of, 257
Apollonius of Tyana, 81
Aquamarine, engraved with head of Julia, 288
“Aqua Tofana,” 266
Ariston, St., 252
Aristophanes, 284
Aristotle, pseudo-, 5, 69, 70, 163, 396
Arnobio, Cleandro, 140, 142
Arnobius, 74
Arphe, Enrique d’, 294
Aschentrekker (ash-attractor), a Dutch designation of tourmaline, 52,
54
Asis Artau, Francisco d’, 295
_Askal_, stone said to break the diamond, 69
Assos, Asia Minor, stone of, 3
Astarte, 81, 83
Asteria, 291
_Astroites_, 199
_Atnongara_-stones of Australian medicine-men, 16
Aubrey, John, 260
Auspicius, St., 255
Autoglyphus, 196
“Aviator-stone,” 116, 117
Avicenna (Ben Sina), 90, 125, 138
Azaêl, angel, 246
B
Baccii, Andrea, 153
_Bætyli_, 76, 82
Bajazet II, Sultan, 291
Balas-ruby, 401, 404
Bannockburn, Battle of, 25
Barbara de Portugal, Queen of Spain, 295
Barbara, St., 273
legend of, 258
Barbosa, Duarte, 401
Barnabas, St., 268, 273
Baroda, Gaikwar of, 380
Bartholomæus Anglicus, 147, 394, 395
Bartholomew, St., 271
Basillæ, St., 252
_Battê ha-nephesh_ of Hebrews, 360
Bauhin, Caspar, 202
Bausch, 175, 176
Belaleazar, Sebastian de, 311
Belemnites, 112, 161, 191
Bellermann, Johann Joachim, 278
Belucci, Prof. Giuseppe, 107, 145, 200
Benzinger, 78
Berghem, Lodowyk van, 295
Berlin Academy of Sciences, 54
Bertholin, Caspar, 139
Beryl, 287, 317
curative use of, 130
stone of Gad, symbolical meaning of, 283
Bezoar, 13, 17, 123, 126, 160, 170, 201–220
American, 218, 219
etymology of name, 203
from monkeys, 203
from skull of rhinoceros, 211
genesis of, according to Peruvians, 210
mineral, 211
Occidental, 212–215
prices of, 204, 208, 214, 216, 218
Queen Elizabeth’s, 215
Rudolph II’s, 215, 216
test of, as poison antidote, by Ambroise Paré, 205–207
by Emperor Rudolph II, 208, 209
“Black magic,” 29
“Black stone” of Kaabah at Mecca, 73, 84–88
Blaise, St., 256, 257, 267, 273
Blake, W. W., vii
Bloodstone, 121, 286
Bomare, Valmont de, 155, 217
“Book of the Dead,” extracts from, 318–320
Boot, Anselmus de, 65, 144, 145, 151, 162, 165, 192, 199, 204, 223, 226
Borodino, battle of, 96
Borrichius, Plaus, 154
Boston Museum of Fine Arts, 317
Boulder’s, legends of, 38 _sqq._, 263
Boyle, Robert, 105, 125
Braddock, Charles, vii
Brantôme, Seigneur de, 305, 306
Brereton, Sir William, 111
Brezina, Aristides, 90
British Museum, 32, 307
Broca, Paul, 332
Broichan the Druid and St. Columba, 24, 156
_Brontia_, 162, 197, 198
Browne, Sir Thomas, on amulets, 314
Bruce, Robert, 25
Brückmann, U. F. B., 127
_Bucardites_, 196
Buddha, gem on images of, 297
jewelled pagoda over sacred footprint of, 299
solid gold image of, 303, 304
vases offered to, 297
_Bufonitis_, or “toad-stone,” 163
Burckhardt, 85
Burgarde, St., 267
Burton’s “Anatomy of Melancholy,” on stone charms, 336
C
Caftanzoglu, 373
_Callimus_, inclusion in _ætites_, 174, 175
Callistratus, 62
Callistus, St., 252
Caloceri, St., 251
Candlemas Day, 269, 272
Cañon Diablo meteorite, 99–101
diamonds in, 100, 101
Canticles, 284, 322
Cantimpré, Thomas de, 12, 130, 164, 172, 180, 285, 336
Cape York meteorites, 96–98
chemical composition of, 98
Carbuncle, 279, 387
curative use of, 130
luminous, story of, told by Cellini, 378
Cardano, Girolamo, 144, 167, 336
Carew, Sir George, 214
Carnelian, 291, 297, 300, 317, 324, 361, 368, 378
rings, Mohammed’s good augury of, 379
stone of Reuben, symbolical meaning of, 281
used for amulets in ancient Egypt, 320
Carpoforus, St., 252
Carrington, Hereward, vii
Catherine II, Empress, 387
Catherine, St., of Alexandria, 259, 295
Catlin, George, 35, 36
Catlinite, 35, 37
Cat’s-eye, 11, 29
Cecil, Henry, 235
Cecil, Sir Robert, 214
Cellini, Benvenuto, 20, 378
_Ceraunia_, 82
Ceylon, temple treasure in, 298, 299
Chalcedony, 30, 31, 123, 131, 287, 291, 296, 301, 303, 361
Chalchihuitl, 304, 305, 307, 348
Charlemagne, Emperor, 189, 255, 288, 290
talisman of, 329–331
Charles V, Emperor, 294, 306
Charles V of France, 177
Charles IX of France, 294
Charles the Bald, 288
Charm in old Italian MS., 327, 328
_Chelidonius_, or “swallow-stone,” 119, 172
_Chelonia_, 170, 171, 198
Cheops, mummy of, decorated with precious stones, 279
_Chesbet_, Egyptian name of lapis lazuli, 149
Chicken Itzá, Sacred Well of, 307, 308
Chinkstone (phonolite), 2
Chladni, 95, 104
Chlorophane, 237
Christ, head of, engraved on emerald, 291, 292
Christian II of Denmark, his magic pebble, 21
Christian IV of Denmark, 140
Christopher, St., 258, 259
Christy collection, 309
Christy, David, 218
_Chrysocolla_, 53
Chrysolite (peridot), 287, 291
a sacred stone, 379
in Shakespeare’s Othello, 379
Chrysoprase, 123, 277, 287
_Cinædias_, 169
Claudian’s epigrams on rock-crystal, 32
Claui, St., 252
Clemens, St., 252
Clement VII, Pope, 387
Clerc, G. O., vii
Clotaire II, 262
Cochrane, Capt. Charles Stuart, 312
Coligny, Gaspard de, 207
Color, harmony of, between gowns and jewels, 407
Columba, St., and white pebbles, legend of, 24, 25, 156
Conrad III, King of the Germans, 290
Constantine the Great, 329
Constantine XII, of Greece, star-sapphire in sword of, 372–373
Coral, 30, 119, 120, 121, 123, 124, 126, 298, 301, 304, 341, 371
amulets of, in Spain, 368
Crispi’s amulet of, 339
curative use of, 131–133
greatly favored in Tibet, 343
in Benin, Africa, 379
ominous change of hue, 132, 133
selected for Dalai Lama’s incense vessel, 303
“tincture of,” 132
worn by Queen Helena of Italy, 380
_Cornu ammonis_, 197
Cortés, Hernan, 305, 307
Corundum, 133
varieties of, 396
“Crab’s eye,” 167
“Crabstone,” 121, 122
Crantz, David, 359
_Crapaudine_, or “toad-stone,” 164, 165
Crescentius, St., 252
Crispi, Francesco, 339
Crispin and Crispian, SS., 259, 273
Cross, jewelled, of Duke of Brunswick, 289
of Zaccaria, 290, 291
“Crown of the Virgin,” 287
Crystal, magic, of a Fijian, 364–366
Crystal balls as curative amulets, 25
Culin, Stewart, 358
Curative “crystals” of Australian medicine-men, 16
of Kainugá Indians of Paraguay, 18
of New Guinea medicine-men, 19
Curative use of gems, 118–159
for “Black Death” plague, 120
Francesco India’s opinion of, 124, 125
in Bohemia, 121
in Denmark, 126
in Leyden, 126, 127
of particular stones, 129–159
prices of stones, 123
Robert Boyle on, 125, 126
Cushing, Lieut. F. H., 310, 358
_Custodia_, or monstrance, examples of, in Spain, 294, 295
Cuthbert, St., 273
well of, 265
Cybele, image of, a meteorite, 74, 75
Cyprianus, St., 252, 253
Cyriacus, St., 252
D
_Dagoba_, jewelled Buddhist reliquary, 300
Damigeron, 129
Daniel, Book of, 242, 243, 250
David, St., 270, 273
Davison, J. M., 99
“Dawn stones” (eoliths), 109
Declan, St., 273
stone named after him, 43
De Foe, Daniel, 326
Delphi, Omphalus of, probably a meteorite, 76
“Depositio Martirum” of 354 A.D., 251, 252
“Devil’s stone,” boulder in East Prussia, 42
Diamond, 16, 61, 294, 300, 304, 372, 387
curative use of, 135
in Cañon Diablo meteorite, 99–101
said to have been given as poison in Baroda, 380
uncut, in “Sacred Shrine” of Chartres, 291
with cross effect in black and white, 296, 297
Diana, 81
Diaz de Castillo, Bernal, 305
Didanor, Angel of June, 247
Dieris of Central Africa, rain-stones of the, 6
Dietrich of Bern, Saga of, story of “Victory Stone” from, 199, 200
Dioscorides, 150, 173
Dodge, Mrs. William E., 99
Dog-collars set with coral as cure for hydrophobia, 131
Dolmens, curative stones of, 38
whirling stones of, 39
Domingo, Santo, Fiesta de, 309
Donato, St., amulets of, 265
Donne, John, 337
Dragons, gem-bearing, of India, 11
Draper, Mrs. Henry, vii
“Druid’s glass,” 227, 228
E
“Easter stone,” 285
Ebers papyrus, 148, 149
Echinites, 192, 193
Egede, Hans, 359
Elagabalus, Emperor, 83
Eldred, John, 389
Electric gems, 51–64
Elephants, 299, 301
“Elf-stones,” 108, 109, 110, 161
Elizabeth, Queen, 215, 337
Eloy, St., 264, 273
“Emanism,” term used to denote influence of amulets, 313
Emerald, 4, 16, 29, 53, 68, 119, 120, 123, 124, 125, 131, 136, 277,
278, 287, 291, 294, 298, 304, 310, 317, 324, 330, 343, 371, 395
ancient, from Berenice, Egypt, 382
cast into sacred lake of Guatavita, Colombia, 311
curative use of, 135
dedicated to Venus, 305
engraved with head of Christ, 291, 292
in cathedral of Mainz, 295
of Hernan Cortés, 305
of Temple of Melkarth at Tyre, 81
stone of Levi, symbolical meaning of, 281
_Enastros_, 192, 194
Encelius, 167
Enimie, St., legend of, 262, 264
_Entrochus_, 192, 194
Ephesian writings for amulets, etc., 325
Ephesus, Temple of Diana at, 81
_Épreuve_, or tester, 181
Erasmus, 164
Erasmus, St., 267
Erman, Adolph, 149
Erosion of stones and pebbles, 22
Ethelred II, 152
Eugénie, Empress, 331
Eulalia, St., 269
“Evil eye,” 131, 265, 315, 320, 339, 344, 345–347, 367, 368
“Expanding stone,” 45
F
Fabianus, St., 251, 253
Fairbanks, Arthur, vii
“Fairy stones,” 37
Farrington, O. C., vii
“Fatima’s hand,” 347
Feavearyear, A. W., vii
Feldspar, 30, 77, 324
in “Book of the Dead,” 318, 319
Felicissimus, St., 252
Felicitas, St., 251, 253, 274
Felix, St., 252
Ferdinand III, Emperor, 15
Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, vii
Filippus, St., 252
Filocalus, Furius Dionysius, calendar of, 251
Floating-stones, 223
Flower jewels, 342, 343
Foote, A. E., 101
Fossils and concretions, virtues of, 160–190
Fox, John, Jr.’s “Trail of the Lonesome Pine,” 37
Foy, Sainte, statuette of, 261, 262
Francis I of Austria, 89
Franklin, Benjamin, on tourmaline, 57
Frederick III of Denmark, 126
French Academy of Sciences, 54
G
Gabelchover, Wolfgang, 153, 158
Gabriel, archangel, 243, 245, 246, 250 334
Galactite, 3, 4
Galba, Emperor, 83
Galen, 136, 137, 146, 188, 232
Garcias ab Orta, 68, 204
Garcilasso de la Vega, 214
Garnet, 123, 291, 296, 309, 317, 330
“Gascoigne’s powder,” 127, 128
Gaster, 371
“Gem of Sovranty” or “Gem of the King of Kings,” 11
Gem-cutters, American Indian, 381
George V, King, 362
George, St., 261, 274
legend of, 260
thalers, 260
Gesner, Conrad, 4, 54, 73, 144
Gesta Romanorum, snake story from, 238
Giglioli, Enrico H., 364
Girasol, 291
_Glæsum_ (amber), 60
_Glossopetræ_, 161, 180, 188–190
Gnostics, magic jewels of, 328
“Godstones” buried with the dead, 23
“Golden Cacique” (El Dorado) at Lake Guatavita, 311
Gordian the Younger, Emperor, 326
Gorgonus, St., 252
_Grammatias_, variety of jasper, 284
Green, Miss Bella Da Costa, vii
Gregory X, Pope, 119
Gregory XIII, Pope, 212
Gregory of Tours, his account of Paris talismans, 329
Guatavita, Lake of, treasures thrown in, 310–312
_Guligas_ (bezoars) artificially induced by Dayaks of Borneo, 217
H
Haberden, William, his researches on tourmaline, 56, 57
Hadrian, Emperor, 1
Hahedan, angel of October, 248
Hair-balls, 220, 221
_Hajar al-hattaf_, or “hen-stone,” 181
Hajar al-hayyat (“madstone”), 225
_Hajer al-Kelb_, “dog-stone,” 11, 12
_Hajer al-mathar_, Arabic rain-stone, 5
Hammer-Purgstall, 89
Harington, Sir James, 120
Haupt, Paul, 277
Haüy, Abbé, 56
Haye, Olivier de la, his poem on “Black Death,” 120
Hei-tikis, carved jades of New Zealand, 361
Helena, Queen, 380
Helena, St., 329
Heliotrope, 291
Hematite, 124, 125, 320
American Indian artefacts of, 382, 383
black, Abraxas gem of, 287
curative use of, 136–138
He-no, Iroquois god of thunder, 107
Henri II, of France, 334
Herculanus, St., 252
Hermetes, St., 252
Herodian, 74
Hertz, B., 48
Hildburgh, W. L., 367
Hildegard, St., her theory of curative stones, 13
Hill, Sir John, 118
Hippocrates of Cos, 333
Hofmann, Johann Peter, alchemist, 15, 16
Hoffman’s “Fräulein von Scudéry,” 371
Holme, Saxe (pseudonym), 51
Holmes, W. H., vii
Hope, Henry Philip, collection of, 48
Hortense, Queen, 330
Hugo, Victor, 153
Huntington, O. W., 101
Huth, Ernst, 235
Huxley, Thomas, 105
Hyacinth (sapphire?), 282
_Hyænia_, 169
Hydaspes River, stone of, 2
Hyde, Major, 309
Hydrophane, or “magic stone,” 240
_Hysterolithus_, 75, 195, 196
I
Ibn Al-Beithar, 11, 148, 167
Ibn Batoutah, 84
Ibn Kadho Shobah, 4
Ichthys, angel, 246
Iliad, 138
Inclusions in crystals, 31, 34
India, Francesco, 121, 124
“Indian stone,” 163
Innocent VIII, Pope, 291
Isabel of Bavaria, precious-stone remedy of, 177
Ivory, 303
Ixmaracdus, St., 252
J
Jacinth, 123, 124, 125, 127, 184, 291, 296
curative use of, 138
Jacinti, St., 252
Jackson, Helen Hunt, 51
Jacob’s stone at Bethel, 76, 78
Jade, 4, 77, 121, 283, 285, 324, 348, 359, 383, 384, 404
amulets of white, 342
as preservative of dead body, 142
carved amulets of, in Panama, 348, 349
Chinese girdle pendants of, 341
Chinese wands of, 384
curative use of, 139–143
disk of, in Temple of Heaven, Peking, 302
Eskimo talismans of, 358
_hei-tiki_ amulets of, from New Zealand, 361
in Egypt, 319
in New Caledonia, 363, 364
mortuary tablets of, Chinese, 384
of New Zealand, 362
ornaments of, from Syria, 384
Queen Alexandra’s, 362
Jadeite, 77, 304, 305
Jagannath, 339, 340
James I of England, 49, 301
James, St., 271, 274
Jargoon, 120
Jasper, 4, 30, 53, 124, 148, 286, 287, 296, 317, 324, 383
curative use of, 144, 145
Eskimo talisman of, 358
stone of Asher, symbolical meaning of, 283
talismanic virtue of, 284
Jehangir, Mogul Emperor, 92, 208, 301, 383, 405
Jeremiel, angel, 251
Jerome, St., 176, 274
on jasper talismans, 284
on jewels of Prince of Tyre, 280
Jerusalem, Temple of, 9
stones of the New, 70
Jessen, Peter, vii
Jet, 352, 386
curative use of, 146, 147
Jeweller’s dictum in old London, 407
Job, Book of, 250
John XXI, Pope, 119
John, St., 267, 271, 274
John the Baptist, 290, 306
Joseph, St., 266
Josephine, Empress, 330
Judd, Neil M., vii
Julianetes, St., 252
Julius II, Pope, 267
Jupiter the Thunderer, 82
Juvenal, 60
K
Kaabah at Mecca, black stone of, 73, 84–88
Kaempfer, Engelbert, 207, 209
Khusrau Nushirwan, 89
Khusrau II, 69
K’ien-lung, Emperor, 302
King, Rev. C. W., 62, 328
Kircher, Athanasius, his theory of _lusus naturæ_, 50
Koenig, 99, 100
Kohut, 243
_Krallenstein_, 193
Krishna, 37
L
_Lacrima cervi_, “stag’s tear,” 170
Laet, Johann de, 53, 54, 141, 190, 192
“Lake George diamonds,” 26
_Lamiæ_, 190
Lanciani, 75
_Languier_, or “tester,” 181
Lannes, Marshal, 295
_Lapides caymanum_, 181
_Lapis Armenus_, 124, 149
curative use of, 147, 148
_Lapis carpionis_, 168, 169
_Lapis Judaicus_, 187, 194
_Lapis lazuli_, 78, 123, 124, 148, 149, 280, 284, 297, 298, 301, 317,
320, 324
in “Book of the Dead,” 318
large mass of, found in Indian grave, 386
religious use of, in Ecuador, 308
stone of Issachar, symbolical meaning of, 282
_Lapis Malacensis_, 204
_Lapis manati_, 181, 182
_Lapis nephriticus_ (jade), 140
Laufer, Berthold, 304
Laurence, St., 267
Laurentus, St., 252
Lavoisier, 94
Lebour, Mrs. Nona, vii
Lémery, M. Louis, 54
Leo IV, Pope, 126
Leo X, Pope, 386
Leopold, Emperor, 16
Liceti, Fortunio, 344
_Lingucs Melitenses_, 189
Linnæus, 54
“Lithica,” Orphic poem on stones, 137, 224
Lithomania, 19
“Liver-stones,” 186
Livia, wife of Augustus, 397
Loadstone, 64–68, 119, 313
as elixir of youth, 68
oracle, De Boot’s, 65, 66
for the gout, 68
of Maniolæ Islands, 64
Robert Norman’s poem on, 66, 67
Loch-mo-naire in Scotland, legend of, 155, 156
“Loda’s stone of power,” 35
Los Muertos, Zuñi, jar with turquoise inlays found at, 309
Lough Neagh, Ireland, legend of yellow crystal there, 35
Louis XIV, 133
Louis XVI, 153
Louvre Museum, 280, 291, 389
Lucia, St., 258, 271, 275
legend of, 257
“Lucky stone,” 28
Luminous stone of male cobra, 237
Lusus Naturæ, stones bearing naturally marked images, 47–51
Luther, Martin, 249
_Lychnis_ of Pliny (tourmaline?), 52
_Lychnites_, 176
Lysander, 79
M
Maccabæus, Judas, 325
“_Madstones_,” 225 _sqq._
_Mafkat_ (Egyptian for turquoise?), 316
Magic stones, 1–71, 109 _sqq._
belief in, condemned by Church Councils, 38, 39
“day-stone” and “night-stone,” 70
of Guernsey, 40
of Island of Arran, 40
of Island of Fladda, 40
stone that attracts hair, 69, 70
_Magnes_ (loadstone), 124
Magnusen, Finn, 198
_Main-de-gloire_, 334
Malachite, 148, 291
curative use of, 150
“Malediction stones” in Ireland, 46, 47
Mallet, F. H., 233
Mamoun, Khalif, 279
Maquam Ibrahim, sacred stone in Kaabah at Mecca, 88
Marbodus of Rennes, 174
Marco Polo, 343
Margaret, St., 270, 275
Margarita, Queen of Italy, 380
Marguerite de Flandres, 335
Mariette, 279
Mark, St., 290
Marquette, Jacques, 35
Marriage sword, Chinese ceremony of, 384, 385
Marshall, J. H., 299
Martial, 60
Martin, St., 271
and the Devil, legend of, 44
Mary of Scotland, 337
Mask, ancient Mexican, with turquoise inlays, 306, 307
Mas’ûdi’s “Meadows of Gold,” 321, 322
Matthias, St., 270
Meander River, magic stone of, 12
“Median stone,” for colic, 144, 151
Medici, Catherine de’, 332
her bracelet of charms, 334
Medicine-men, 348, 349, 353–358
cure by dancing and howling, 357
in Australia, 17
medicine-bag of, 356, 360
of the Kainugá Indians, Paraguay, 18
of New Guinea, 19
Medicine-women of Araucarian Indians, Chili, 351
Megara, sonorous stone at, 2
Megenberg, Konrad von, 12, 151
Memmiæ, St., 252
Memnon, Vocal, 1
Mentzel, Christian, 187
Mephniel, angel of January, 248
Mercato, Michele, 93, 212
_Mesticas_ of the Malays, 17, 18
invulnerability conferred by, 18
Meteorites, 72–117
accidents caused by, 102–104
coins representing, 90, 91
collection of, in Vienna, 90
from Cape York, 96–98
from Kiowa Co., Kansas, 101, 102
from Willamette, Ore., 98, 99
of Ægospotami, 79, 80
of Bacubrit, Mexico, 103
of Book of Joshua, 79
of Cañon Diablo, 99–101
of Castrovilarii, Calabria, 93
of Diana Temple at Ephesus, 81
of Eisleben, 103
of Ensisheim, 73
of Knyahinya, Hungary, 102
of Lahore, India, 92
of Luce, Dept. Marne, France, 94
of Magdeburg, 91
of Mecca (Black Stone), 73, 84–88
of Paphos, 81
of Pergamos, brought to Rome, 74
of Radacofani, Italy, 91
of Zanzibar, 71
Pallas, or Krasnojarsk, 95
_pwdre ser_, or “star-rot” of Welsh, 104–106
Swords made of, 88–90, 92
“Verwünschte Burggraf” of Elbogen, 89, 90
Michael, archangel, 243, 245, 246, 250, 334
Midêwiwin, or Great Medicine Society of the Ojibways, 354, 355
magic stone of, 354
medicine-bag used by, 356
Milinda, King, 11
Milo of Croton, wore an _alectorius_, 179
_Milprey_, “thousand worms,” Cornish name of a snake-stone, 227
“Mineral stone,” for turning pebbles into precious stones, 16
Mohammed, 74, 84
Mohammed Ben Mansur, 396, 397
Mohammed Ghazni, Sultan, 90
Moissan, Henri, 100
Monardes, Nicolo, in jade, 139, 201, 203
Montezuma’s gifts to Cortés, 305, 307, 309
Months, angels of the, 247
Moonstone, remarkable, of Pope Leo X, 386
Moonstone Beach, Santa Catalina Island, pebbles from, 30
Moore, Thomas, 250
Morael, angel of September, 248
Morgan, Henry de, 323
Morgan, J. Pierpont, 185
“Mummy eyes,” Peruvian, 352
Museum of University of Pennsylvania, 358
N
Napoleon I, 96, 295
Napoleon III, Emperor, 330
Nash, Thomas, 166
Nautilus pearls, 391
Nebuchadnezzar I, 78
Necklace of the Egyptian Princess Sat-Hathor-Ant, XII Dynasty, 317, 318
_Neshem_-stone, 320
New Caledonian stone amulets, 45
New Zealand jade, _punamu_ or “green-stone,” 361–363
Newton, Hubert A., 72, 73, 74
Nicholas I, Emperor, 285
Nicholas, St., 275
legend of, 258
Nicholas, St., of Bari, “manna” of, 266
Nicostratus, St., 252
Noah’s rain-stone, 4, 5
Nonnus, St., 252
Nordenskiold, Baron N. A. E., 97
Norman, Robert, poem on loadstone, 66
_Nung-gara_, or Australian medicine-men, 17
O
_Oleum succini_, 64
_Ombria_, 162, 197, 198
Onyx, 277, 335, 369
curative use of, 151–153
stone of Zebulon, symbolical meaning of, 282
wonderful cup of, belonging to Duke of Brunswick, 387
Opal, 372, 374, 407
favored by Queen Victoria, 375
parure of, for Empress Augusta, 375
Orchamps, Baronesse d’, 371
Osman, Augustin, 374
_Ostrea Singapora_, 391
_Ostrites_, 224, 225
Otilia, St., 267
Overbury, Sir Thomas, 381
Ovid, 131
_Ovum anguinum_, 162, 197, 221–224, 226
_Oyaron_, Indian amulet-control, 354
P
_Padparasham-gem_ (corundum) of Ceylon, 395
Palladius, 64
Paré, Ambroise, 206, 207
Paris, Matthew, 152
Paris talismans, Gregory of Tours’ account of, 329
Parthenus, St., 251
Pascal, Blaise, amulet of, 337, 338
_Pater de sang_, or “blood-rosary,” 133
Patrick, St., 43, 225
Paul II, Pope, 126
Paul V, Pope, 254
Paul, St., 269, 275
at Malta, 161, 189
Pausanius, 2
“Peace Stone,” 58
Pearls, 20, 120, 124, 126, 127, 277, 280, 291, 294, 299, 300, 304, 305,
330, 341, 380, 387
Arabic theory of genesis of, 388, 394
“cocoanut,” supposed, 391
from Philippines, 391, 392
immense baroque, 392
Mme. Thiers’ necklace of, 389
necklace of, in Persian grave, 324
of nautilus, 391
“powder,” 390
Rumphius on supposed breeding of, 392
story of a luminous, 390
story of, thrown into Venetian canal by pearl-dealer, 393
strange tale of, 388, 389
Peary, Admiral Robert E., 96
“Pebble-mania,” 19, 20
among birds, 20
Pebbles, ornamental, 19–31
worn by Hindus, 37
Penel, angel, 246
Pepper, George H., 352
Peridot (chrysolite), 281
Perkin Warbeck, 401
Perpetua, St., 251, 253
Persian princess, jewels in her grave, 323–325
Pescadero Beach, Cal., pebbles from, 30
Peter, St., 250, 251, 276, 290
Peter’s, St., in Rome, 51
Petrie, Flinders, 317
Petrograd Museum of Natural History, 95
Petrus Hispanus (Pope John XXI), 119
Philadelphia Academy of Natural Sciences, 32
Philippine pearls, 391, 392
“Philosopher’s Stone,” 14, 16
Phonolite, 2
_Pierre de santé_, 153
_Pierres de foudre_, 94
“_Pierres tourniresses_,” or whirling stones, 39
_Pietre gravide_, or “pregnant stones,” 178
Pilatus Mountain, Lake Lucerne, galactite found on, 4
“Pipestone,” 35
_Piropholos_, stone from heart of a poisoned man, 12
Pitchblende, 129
_Pitdah_, stone of high-priest’s breastplate, 403
Plasma-emerald, 20
Plato’s Phædon, _daimon_, or guardian angel in, 246
Pliny, 3, 32, 52, 62, 80, 82, 129, 137, 146, 169, 170, 172, 173, 188,
196, 221, 222, 224, 226
Plutarch, 80, 82
Pogue, Joseph E., 353
Point Barrow Eskimos, amulets of, 358, 359
Ponce de Leon, 14
Poncet, Charles Jacques, 210
Pontianus, St., 252
“Porcupine-stone,” 184, 185
Precious stones thrown up on coast of Alexandria, Egypt, 321
Procopius, 64
Protus, St., 252
Psellus, 129, 135
Ptolemy the Geographer, 382
_Pwdre ser_, “star-rot,” 104–106
Pyrite, curative use of, 153
Q
Quartz, 324
for labrets and for nose-jewels in Africa, 398, 399
from Indian mounds, 26
from Lake George, 26
from Yucatan, 26
of large size, from North Carolina, 26
rutilated, 32
used by Araucarian medicine-women, 351
with inclusions, 30–34
Quartz pebbles, 19 _sqq._
in Indian skeleton’s hand, 28
in prehistoric graves, 24
polished by water or glacial action, 21, 22
with inclusions, 29, 30
Quirinius, St., 267
R
Radium, 129
Raguel, angel, 245
of May, 247
“Rainbow agate,” 377, 378
“Rainbow-disease,” 114
Rain-making stones, 4–7
Arabic, 5
from Karmania, 5
of Africa tribes, 5, 6
of Australian tribes, 6
of Noah, 5
Persian, 5
stone crosses as, 7
Turkish, 4
Raphael, archangel, 243, 245, 250
Raziel, angel, 247
Redi, Francesco, 232
Redondo Beach, Cal., pebbles from, 30, 31
Red-paint People of Maine, 28
Reed, Sir Charles Hercules, vii
Reich, David, 192, 199
Religious use of precious stones, 277–312
Renouf, P. Le Page, 319
Revelation, Book of, 243
Rhodonite used for tomb of Nicholas I, 285
as “Easter Stone,” 285
Rivaud, Charles, 375
Roch, St., 259, 267, 276
Rock-crystal, 123, 170, 285, 297, 317
as a rain-stone, 6, 7
Chinese name of, 398
curative use of, 153–157
immense vessels of, 398
“perfect jewel” of Japanese, 345
recommended in law suit by Aristophanes, 397
See also Quartz
Roe, Sir Thomas, 301
“Roland’s Foot,” stone at Toufailles, France, 43
Röntgen rays to detect amulets, 358
Rosaries, 202
Hindu, 293
legend of, 293
Rose-quartz, 384
Royal National Museum of Munich, 288
“Royal stone,” from eagle’s head, 13
Rubellite, 384
Ruby, 11, 16, 58, 123, 125, 291, 294, 296, 297, 299, 314, 343, 407
of Pegu, 401
on mummy of Cheops, 279
Mohammedan Atlas stands on, 248
origin of Burmese, 400
stone of Judah, symbolical meaning of, 282
“The Merchant of the,” 400
Rudolph II, Emperor, 208, 215
Rumphius, Georg Eberhard, 18, 238, 244, 392
S
Sabaoth, angel, 245
“Sacred shrine” of Cathedral of Chartres, 291
Sacred stone of Kiowa Indians, 44
Sadlier, Rev. Charles, vii
Saints’ Days, alphabetical list of, 272–276
_Sâlagrâma_-stone of Hindus, 196–198
emblem of Vishnu, 196
neither Sudra nor Pariah may wear, 198
Sammonicus, Serenus, 326
Sanchoniathon, 81
Santa Casa of Loreto, 186, 267
Santos-Dumont’s loadstone, 264
Sapphire, 11, 16, 31, 58, 119, 123, 124, 125, 284, 285, 287, 290, 291,
294, 299, 304, 330, 336, 343, 407
Bartholomæus Angelicus on, 395
carved, from India, 300
curative use of, 157, 158, 184
in talisman of Charlemagne, 329
of Ceylon, 402
stone of Joseph, symbolical meaning of, 282
test of a, 394
Sarcophagus-stone, 3
Sard, 287
Sardonyx, 123, 291, 372
engraved gem of, 288
Saturninus, St., 252
Sauvageot collection, 291
Scarabs, 320, 321
Schliemann, Heinrich, 323
Schola Salernitana, 120
Schrott, John, 230
_Schwindelstein_ (vertigo-stone), 153
Scipio Africanus, 74
Sebastian, St., 251, 259, 276, 290
Secundus, St., 252, 276
Seiler, Wenzel, alchemist, 15
Seleucia, meteorite of, 81
Semnes, St., 252
Sempronianus, St., 252
Seneca, 82
“Sepher de-Adam Kadmah,” 247
Serpentine, 320, 350
“Serpents’ eggs,” 221–224, 226
Seuerianus, St., 252
_Shahkevheren_, or “King of Jewels,” 68, 69
_Shah-muhra_, Persian magic stone, 13
Shakespeare, 162, 260, 337, 379, 391, 393
_Shamir_, mysterious Hebrew stone, 7–10
Arabic legend regarding, 9
in the Bible, 7, 8
in Rabbinical legend, 8
Sharks’ teeth, fossil, 190
Sh’efiel, angel of April, 247
_Shoham_-stone, 277
Siamese girl’s consecration, jewels worn at, 342
Signatures, doctrine of, 118
Silanus, St., 252
Simon and Jude, SS., 271
Skulls, disks from, as talismans, 331–334
in Buddhist legend, 332, 333
in neolithic times, 333
on bracelet of Catherine de’ Medici, 334
_Smaragdus_, 319, 320, 384
“Snake-stone,” 221–240
Snouck-Hurgronje, Dr. C., 87
Socrates, 397
Solomon, 9, 10
“Southern stone” in Kaabah at Mecca, 87
Spangenberg’s Saxon Chronicle, 103
“Spider-stone,” 183, 184
anecdote of, 183
Spinel, 296
Spitzer collection, 185
“St. Paul’s earth,” 189
Star-sapphire, as Christmas gem, 286
set in hilt of sword given King Constantine XII of Greece, 372, 373
Steatite, 300
_Steinzungen_, 189
Stone Age in China, 76–78
“Stone of the Banner,” 25
“Stones of the cobra,” 231, 232, 235–238
_Stûpra_, celestial, Hindu shrine, 298
Suckling, Sir John, 104
Suetonius, 83
Suffrage Party, amazon-stone as symbol of, 374
Sunstone, 387
Sutton, Edward Forrester, vii
Swithin, St., 270, 276
Swords made of meteoric iron, 88–90, 92
Symbolic jewel composed of three keys, 375
Sympathetic magic, doctrine of, 366
T
Ta’anbanu, angel of July, 247
Tabasheer, 149, 233, 235
Tacitus, 60, 81
Talismans, see amulets
Tan Sien Ko, vii
Tashnedernis, angel of February, 248
Tasmanian rain-makers, 34
Taurinus, St., 252
Tavernier, Jean Baptiste, 110, 185, 230, 231, 235
_Tecolithos_, 188
Teeth as amulets, 368
inlaid with precious stones, 406, 407
Tetragrammaton, 278
Thales, 63
Thebes, 1, 2
Theophrastus, 3, 53, 118, 173, 401
_Theriaca Andromachi_ or “Venice treacle,” 121
“Thesaurus Pauperum” of Pope John XXI, 119
“Thetis’s hair stone,” 29
Thevenot, M. de, 231
Thiers, Mme., pearl necklace of, 389
Thomas, St., 268, 271
Thoth, named “Trismegistos” by the Greeks, 320
“Thunder-stones,” 76, 86, 83, 92, 94, 106–116, 161, 350
Thurston, Sir J., 366
Tiberius Cæsar, 291, 292
Tibetan jewelry, 341
Tiffany and Co., 373
Timoteus, St., 252
Toad-stone, 162–167, 192
Tobit, Book of, 243, 250
Tofte, Richard, 61
Tohargar, angel of August, 247
Topaz, 11, 58, 124, 287, 290, 291, 372, 407
curative use of, 158, 159
etymology of name, 403
“Maxwell-Stuart,” 404
Tourmaline, 51–60, 384, 407
as Peace Stone, 58
brought to Holland from Ceylon, 52
experiments on, by Aepinus, 54
by Lémery in 1717, 55
from Mount Mica, Maine, 51
letter of Franklin on, 57, 58
named Aschentrekker by Dutch, 52
story of, “My Tourmaline,” by Helen Hunt Jackson, 51, 52
Trallianus, Alexander, 144
Trephining in primitive times to obtain skull-talismans, 332, 333
Tribes, Hebrew, meaning of their names, 281–284
_Trochites_, 192, 193
Trowbridge, Breck, 373
_Tse-boum_, or incense vase, in Dalai Lama’s palace at Lhasa, 302
Tubuas, angel, 245
_Turmali_, Cinghalese name of tourmaline, 52
Turquoise, 20, 159, 291, 296, 310
amulets of, from Pueblo Bonito, 352
book on, by Dr. Joseph E. Pogue, 353
favorite stone in Tibet, 343, 344, 404
in ancient Egyptian tale, 316
in ancient Persian jewels, 324
inlays of, in Mexican masks, 306, 307
large pendant of, on Buddha’s statue, 304
meaning of Persian name of, 316
offered to image of Santo Domingo, 309
of Los Cerrillos, 309
religious favor given to, in Tibet, 304
set in sheep’s eyes, 316
Shylock’s, 337
valued by Pima Indians of Arizona, 353
Tycho Brahe, 179
U
Uleranen, angel of November, 248
_Ultunda_-stones of Australian medicine-men, 16
_Umbilicus marinus_, 191
Uriel, archangel, 243, 245, 246, 251, 334
Urim and Thummim, 278
V
Valentine, St., 270, 276
Vases offered to the Buddha, 297
Verres, Caius, 405, 406
Verus, Lucius, 397
Victoria, Queen, 48, 375
Victorini, St., 252
Vienna, Natural History Museum of, 90
Virgil, 82
“Virgin’s milk,” 4
Vishnu, double footprint of, legend regarding, 340
Vitus, St., 270, 276
Vlasto, D., 373
Volmar, 13
W
Wada, T., vii
Walpole, Horace, 381
Walpurgis, St., Day, 21
Ward, W. Hayes, vii
“Watermelon stone,” variety of tourmaline, 58
Weighing of the Mogul Emperor, 301
Wells, T. Tilestone, 373
Wenceslaus Chapel in St. Veit’s at Prague, adorned with precious
stones, 296
“Whitby jet,” 380
White, H. C., 239
“White magic,” 29
White quartz of Clan Donnachaidh, 24, 25
in Indian mounds, 27
from Pueblo region of Southwest, 27
White stones in burials, 23, 24, 27
in Isle of Man, 34
oaths taken on, 35
Whitfield, J. E., 98, 99
Wilkes, Major J. D., 218
Willamette meteorite, 98, 99
chemical composition of, 99
Wilson, Robert, 154
“Witch-stones,” 200
Wittich, Johann, 132
Wolff, Johann, 126
Wright, Thomas, 153
Wundt, Wilhelm Max, 313
X
Xystus, St., 252
Y
Yeamans, Mrs. Annie, 374
Ypolitus, St., 252
Z
Zemzem, well of, at Mecca, 87
-----
Footnote 1:
Rosenfeld, “Singing and Speaking Stones”; Scientific American Suppl.
No. 1720, p. 395, Dec. 19, 1908.
Footnote 2:
Johannis Laurentii Philadelpheni Lydi quæ extant excerpta; ed. Hase,
etc., Lipsiæ et Darmstadii, 1827, p. 104.
Footnote 3:
“La Statue vocal de Memnon,” by M. Letronne, in Mém. de l’Institut de
France, Académie des Inscriptions et Belles Lettres, vol. i, 42, 1.
Footnote 4:
See Theophrasti, “De lapidibus (Peri lithôn),” ed. by John Hill,
London, 1746, pp. 15–17; cap. 10.
Footnote 5:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” Lib. xxxvii, cap. 59.
Footnote 6:
De Mély, in La Grande Encyclopédie; art. pierres précieuses.
Footnote 7:
Conradi Gesneri, “De rerum fossilium,” etc., Tiguri, 1565, fol. 49
verso.
Footnote 8:
Giovanni B. Rampolli, “Annali Musulmani,” vol. ix, Milano, 1825, p.
481, note 75.
Footnote 9:
“Exposition de ce qu’il y a de plus remarquable et des merveilles,” by
Abdorrashish, surnamed Yakuti, a geographical work of the fifteenth
century, transl. into French and published in Notices et Extraits des
Manuscrits de la Bibliothèque du Roi, vol. ii, pp. 452, 520, 534;
Paris, 1789.
Footnote 10:
F. Stuhlmann, “Mit Emin Pascha im Herz von Africa,” Berlin, 1894, p.
588.
Footnote 11:
S. Gason, “The Dieyeric Tribe” in “Native Tribes of South Australia,”
pp. 276 sqq.; see also: A. W. Howitt, “The Dieri and Other Kindred
Tribes of Central Australia.”
Footnote 12:
H. L. P. Cameron, “Notes on Some Tribes of New South Wales.” Journ. of
Anthrop. Inst., vol. xiv (1885), p. 362.
Footnote 13:
J. L. van der Toorn, “Het animisme bij den Minangkabaner der
Padangsche Bovenland, Bijdragen tot de Taal-Land-en Volkerkunde van
Nederlandsch Indie,” vol. xxxix, 1890, p. 86.
Footnote 14:
Martin, “Description of the Western Islands of Scotland,” in
Pinkerton’s “Voyages and Travels,” vol. iii, p. 594.
Footnote 15:
See Pinder, “De adamante,” Berolini, 1829, pp. 70 sqq., where the use
of the word _adamas_ to designate iron is said to have been
conjectured by Schneider, in his “Analecta ad hist. rei met. vet.,”
pp. 5, 6. Adamas as a man’s name occurs in the “Iliad,” xii, 140 and
xiii, 560.
Footnote 16:
Julius Ruska, “Das Steinbuch aus der Kosmographie des Muhammad ibn
Mahmud al Kazwini,” Beilage to the Jahresbericht of the Oberrealschule
Heidelberg, 1895–96.
Footnote 17:
Camilli Leonardi, “Speculum lapidum,” Venetia, 1502, fol. xxix.
Footnote 18:
Philostrati, “Vita Apollonii,” Lib. iii, cap. 8.
Footnote 19:
“The Questions of King Milinda,” trans. by T. W. Rhys Davids; Sacred
Books of the East, vol. xxxvi, Oxford, 1894, pp. 14, 303.
Footnote 20:
Traité des Simples of Ibn Al-Beithar, in Notices et Extraits des
Manuscrits de la Bibliothèque Nationale, vol. xxiii, p. 409; Paris,
1877.
Footnote 21:
De Mély, “Le traité des fleuves de Plutarche,” in Revue des Études
Grecques, vol. v (1892), p. 332.
Footnote 22:
Konrad von Megenberg, “Buch der Natur,” ed. by Dr. Franz Pfeiffer,
Stuttgart, 1861, p. 456.
Footnote 23:
Volmar, “Steinbuch,” ed. by Hans Lambel, Heilbronn, 1877, p. 24.
Footnote 24:
St. Hildegardæ, “Opera omnia,” in Pat. Lat., ed. J. P. Migne, vol.
cxcvii, col. 1260.
Footnote 25:
D’Herbelot, “Bibliothèque Orientale,” La Haye, 1778, p. 230.
Footnote 26:
Clouston, “A Group of Eastern Romances,” Glasgow, 1889.
Footnote 27:
“Nützliche Versuche und Bemerkungen aus dem Reich der Natur,”
Nürnberg, 1760; cited by Bolton.
Footnote 28:
Bolton, “Contributions of Alchemy to Numismatics,” New York, 1890, pp.
17, 18.
Footnote 29:
Ashmole, “Theatrum chemicum Brittanicum,” London, 1652, pp. 4–6.
Footnote 30:
Spencer and Gillen, “The Native Tribes of Central Australia,” London,
1899, pp. 525–529.
Footnote 31:
Rumphius, “D’Ambonische Rariteitskamer,” Amsterdam, 1741, p. 291.
Footnote 32:
Rumphius, “D’Ambonische Rariteitskamer,” Amsterdam, 1741, pp. 291,
292.
Footnote 33:
Vogt, “Die Indianer des oberen Paraná,” Mitteilungen d. Anthrop.
Gesellsch. in Wien, 1904, vol. xxxiv, pp. 206, 207.
Footnote 34:
Hovorka and Kronfeld, “Vergleichende Volksmedizin,” vol. 11, p. 900;
communication from Dr. Rudolf Pöch.
Footnote 35:
Benvenuto Cellini, “Due trattati, uno intorno alle otto principali
arti dell’oreficeria,” etc., Fiorenzi, Valente Panizzi & Marco Peri,
1568, fol. 10 recto.
Footnote 36:
Axel Garboe, “Kulturhistoriske Studier over Ædelstene, med særligt
Henblik paa det 17. Aarhundrede,” Kobenhavn og Kristiania, 1915, p.
225; citing a manuscript in the Royal Library at Copenhagen.
Footnote 37:
See Herbert E. Gregory, “Note on the Shape of Pebbles,” in The
American Journal of Science, vol. xxxix, pp. 300–304; March, 1915;
also for two succeeding paragraphs.
Footnote 38:
See Herbert E. Gregory, “Note on the Shape of Pebbles,” in The
American Journal of Science, vol. xxxix, pp. 303, 304; March, 1915.
Footnote 39:
W. G. Wood-Martin, “Traces of the Elder Faiths of Ireland,” London,
1902, vol. i, p. 329.
Footnote 40:
Ibid., 1902, vol. i, op. cit., p. 330.
Footnote 41:
Nona Lebour, “White Quartz Pebbles and their Archæological
Significance”; reprint from Transactions of the Dumfriesshire and
Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian Society, January 30, 1914, p.
11.
Footnote 42:
Ibid., pp. 13 and 14, citing Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries
of Scotland, 1860–1, vol. iv, pt. i, p. 219.
Footnote 43:
Ibid., p. 12, citing Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of
Scotland, 1860–1, vol. iv, pt. i, p. 219.
Footnote 44:
William Thomas and Kate Pavitt, “The Book of Talismans, Amulets and
Zodiacal Gems,” London, 1914, p. 52.
Footnote 45:
From letter of Mr. Neil M. Judd, Assistant in Archæology in the United
States National Museum, communicated by Dr. W. H. Holmes, Head Curator
of the Department of Anthropology in that institution.
Footnote 46:
Communicated by Dr. Charles C. Abbott.
Footnote 47:
Warren K. Moorehead, “The Red-Paint People of Maine,” pp. 42, 43.
Reprint from the _American Anthropologist_ (N. S.), vol. xv, No. 1,
January-March, 1913.
Footnote 48:
See the present writer’s “Gems and Precious Stones of North America,”
New York, 1892, p. 128.
Footnote 49:
See N. F. Moore, “Antient Mineralogy,” 2d ed., New York, 1859, p. 190.
Footnote 50:
George Frederick Kunz, “Gems, Jewelers’ Materials and Ornamental
Stones of California,” California State Mining Bureau, Bulletin No.
37, Sacramento, 1905, pp. 71–73.
Footnote 51:
Plinii, “Historia naturalis,” Lib. xxxvii, cap. 73.
Footnote 52:
Collection des auteurs Latin, ed. by M. Nazaire; vol. i, Lucain,
Silius Italicus, Claudien, text and French trans., Paris, 1850, pp.
737, 738.
Footnote 53:
Torsten Kolmodin, “Lapparne och deres Land; Skildringar och Studier,”
Pt. III, Stockholm, 1914, p. 14.
Footnote 54:
Nona Lebour, “White Quartz Pebbles and their Archæological
Significance”; reprint from Transactions of the Dumfriesshire and
Galloway Natural History and Antiquarian Society, January 30, 1914, p.
10.
Footnote 55:
W. G. Wood-Martin, “Traces of the Elder Faiths of Ireland,” London,
1902, vol. i, p. 331.
Footnote 56:
Finn Magnussen, “Forsog til Forklaring over nogle Steder af Osian”;
Det Skandinaviske Litteraturselskabs Skrifter, 1813, Pt. II, pp. 237,
251.
Footnote 57:
W. G. Wood-Martin, “Traces of the Elder Faiths of Ireland,” London,
1902, vol. i, p. 330.
Footnote 58:
Kunz, “Gems and Precious Stones of North America,” New York, 1890, pp.
206–210.
Footnote 59:
Basher, “Catlinite, Its Antiquity as a Material for Tobacco Pipes,”
Am. Nat., vol. xvii, p. 745, July, 1883.
Footnote 60:
Renel, “Les religions de la Gaule avant le Christianisme,” Paris,
1906, p. 387.
Footnote 61:
Wirt Sikes, “British Goblins; Welsh Folk-Lore, Fairy Myths, Legends
and Traditions,” London, 1880, p. 362.
Footnote 62:
Renel, “Les religions de la Gaule avant le Christianisme,” Paris,
1906, p. 369.
Footnote 63:
Ibid., 1906, p. 368.
Footnote 64:
Paul Sebillot, “The Worship of Stones in France,” trans. by Joseph D.
McGuire, _American Anthropologist_, Jan.-Mar., 1902, vol. iv, No. 1,
p. 98; citing Société des Antiquaires, vol. i, p. 429.
Footnote 65:
Martin, “Description of the Western Isles,” in Pinkerton’s “Voyages
and Travels,” vol. iii, pp. 646, 627.
Footnote 66:
Sir Edgar McCulloch, “Guernsey Folk Lore,” London, 1903, p. 150.
Footnote 67:
Ibid., p. 157; fig. on p. 156.
Footnote 68:
Kuhn, “Norddeutsche Sagen,” Leipzig, 1848, p. 69.
Footnote 69:
Hermann, “Die erratischen Blöcke im Regierungsbezirck Danzig,” Berlin,
1911, p. 41; in vol. ii, Pt. I, “Beiträge zur Naturdenkmalpflege,” ed.
by H. Conwentz.
Footnote 70:
Walsh, “Curiosities of Popular Customs,” Philadelphia, 1911, p. 325.
Footnote 71:
Armand Viré, “Pierres à gravures et Pierres à légendes dans le Lot et
le Tarn et Garonne”; in Compte Rendu of the Ninth Session of the
Congrès Préhistorique de France, Paris, 1914, p. 349.
Footnote 72:
Ibid., p. 350.
Footnote 73:
Dr. Walter Hough in “Handbook of American Indians north of Mexico,”
ed. by Frederick Webb Hodge, Smithsonian Inst.; Bur. of Am. Ethn.,
Bull. 30; Washington, 1910, Pt. 2, p. 194.
Footnote 74:
Wirt Sikes, “British Goblins: Welsh Folk-Lore, Fairy Myths, Legends
and Traditions,” London, 1880, p. 365.
Footnote 75:
Father Lambert, “Moeurs et Superstitions des Néo-Calédoniens,” Noumea,
1900, pp. 217, 218, 222, 292–304.
Footnote 76:
See Scott’s “Border Minstrelsy,” vol. iv, Pt. II, p. 645.
Footnote 77:
Lean’s Collectanea (by Vincent Stuckey Lean), vol. ii, Pt. I, Bristol,
1903, p. 476; see W. F. Wademan in Jour. Roy. Hist, and Arch. Assoc.
of Ireland, July, 1875.
Footnote 78:
Catalogue of the collection of pearls and precious stones formed by
Henry Philip Hope, Esq. Systematically arranged and described by B.
Hertz, London, 1830.
Footnote 79:
Op. cit., p. 106.
Footnote 80:
Op. cit., No. 66, p. 106.
Footnote 81:
Op. cit., No. 65, p. 106.
Footnote 82:
Valentini, “Museum Museorum, oder der Vollständige Schau-Bühne,”
Franckfurt am Mayn, 1713, Pt. II, p. 41; figured.
Footnote 83:
Ulyssis Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, p. 527;
figured on p. 528.
Footnote 84:
Valentini, “Museum Museorum,” p. 42; citing description by Major in
his “Tractatus de cancris et lapidibus petrifactis,” p. 64.
Footnote 85:
Ibid., p. 42; Pl. IX, fig. 3.
Footnote 86:
Ibid., p. 41; figured. From report in Miscellan. Acad. Germ. Cur.,
Decur. I, Ann. I, Obs. CXIII, p. 232.
Footnote 87:
Athanasii Kircheri, “Mundus subterraneus,” Amstelodami, 1665, vol. ii,
pp. 42 sqq.
Footnote 88:
Op. cit., vol. i, p. 39; Pl. IV, fig. 6.
Footnote 89:
Scribner & Co., 1886.
Footnote 90:
The Germans called it Aschenzieher.
Footnote 91:
Pliny, “Naturalia historia,” Lib. xxxvii, cap. 29. In his recently
published “Curious Lore of Precious Stones” the present writer
suggested that Pliny’s _lychnis_ might have been a spinel, but while
some of these “ardent stones” may have been spinels, those displaying
the phenomenon of attraction must have been tourmalines.
Footnote 92:
A. C. Hamlin.
Footnote 93:
Theophrasti, “De lapidibus, peri tôn lithôn,” ed. by John Hill,
London, 1746, pp. 71–73 (cap. xlvi).
Footnote 94:
Idem, pp. 68–71 (cap. xlvi); see also Hill’s note on p. 69.
Footnote 95:
Johannis de Laet, Antwerpii, “De gemmis et lapidibus, libri duo,”
Lugduni Batavorum [1647], pp. 36, 40.
Footnote 96:
“_Curiose Speculationes_ bey schlaflosen Nächten ... von einem
_L_iebhaber der _I_mmer _G_ern _S_peculirt,” Chemnitz und Leipzig, bey
Conr. Stosseln, 1707, 857, pp. 80.
Footnote 97:
Johann Gustav Donndorf, “Natur und Kunst,” Leipzig, 1790, p. 516.
Footnote 98:
“Histoire de l’Académie Royale des Sciences et Belles Lettres,” vol.
xii, 1756; Berlin, 1758, pp. 105–121.
Footnote 99:
See Historie de l’Académie Royale des Sciences Année mdcccxvii Paris,
1719, pp. 7, 8.
Footnote 100:
Abbé Haüy, “Trattato dei caratteri fisici delle pietre preziose,”
Ital. trans. by Luigi Configliachi, Milano, 1819, pp. 135–138; see
Plate II, fig. 49.
Footnote 101:
Aepinus, l. c.
Footnote 102:
The Complete Works of Benjamin Franklin, ed. by John Bigelow, New York
and London, 1888, vol. x, pp. 282–285.
Footnote 103:
See the writer’s “Gems and Precious Stones of North America,” New
York, 1890, Pl. 4, and also his “Precious Stones” in 20th Annual
Report of the U. S. Geological Survey, Pt. VI, Washington, 1899, p.
577.
Footnote 104:
Cornelii Taciti, “Libri qui supersunt,” vol. ii, Lipsiæ, 1885, p. 243.
Footnote 105:
Sat. vi, 572; ix, 50.
Footnote 106:
Lib. v, 37, 9; xi, 8, 6.
Footnote 107:
Pfizmeier, Sitzungsbericht d. phil.-hist. Kl., Wien, 1866, vol. xliii,
p. 195.
Footnote 108:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” Lib. xxxvii, cap. 12.
Footnote 109:
Lean’s Collectanea, vol. ii, Pt. II, Bristol, 1903, p. 640.
Footnote 110:
Waver. Especially interesting as all amber changes in time.
Footnote 111:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” Lib. xxxvii, cap. 11.
Footnote 112:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” Lib. xxxvii, cap. 12.
Footnote 113:
Severus Sammonicus, “Preceptes médicaux,” text and French trans. by L.
Baudet, Paris, 1845, pp. 84, 85.
Footnote 114:
King, “Natural History of Precious Stones,” etc., London, 1865, p.
334, note.
Footnote 115:
Raumer, “Historisches Taschenbuch,” I Ser., vol. vi, Leipzig, 1835, p.
366.
Footnote 116:
Pyle, “The Therapeusis of Precious Stones,” in his “Medicine,”
Detroit, 1897, vol. iii, p. 115.
Footnote 117:
Palladii, “De gentibus Indie,” ed. Bissæus, London, 1665, p. 4.
Footnote 118:
Martin, “Observations et théories des anciens sur les attractions et
la repulsion magnétiques,” in Atti dell’ Accademia Pontefici dei Nuovi
Lincei, vol. xviii, p. 18 (1864–65).
Footnote 119:
“Gemmarum et lapidum historia,” Lug. Bat., 1636, p. 466; Lib. II, cap.
204.
Footnote 120:
From Robert Norman’s “The Newe Attractive,” London, 1581.
Footnote 121:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, p. 566.
Footnote 122:
Ploss, “Das Weib,” Leipzig, 1895, vol. ii, p. 350.
Footnote 123:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, pp. 564, 566.
Footnote 124:
Garcias ab Orta, “Aromatum historia” (Latin version by Clusius),
Antverpiæ, 1579, p. 178. See also Valentine Ball in Proc. Roy. Ir.
Soc., 3d Ser., vol. i, p. 662; Colloquy xliii, of the work of Garcias,
translated from the Portuguese original.
Footnote 125:
William Jones, “Credulities Past and Present,” London, 1880, pp. 160,
161; citing “Panorama,” vol. vii.
Footnote 126:
D’Herbelot, “Bibliothèque Orientale,” La Haye, 1778, p. 229.
Footnote 127:
Rose, “Aristotle de lapidibus und Arnoldus Saxo,” in Zeitsch. für D.
Alt., New Series, vol. vi. 1875.
Footnote 128:
Ibid., p. 358.
Footnote 129:
Ibid., p. 370.
Footnote 130:
Ibid., p. 379.
Footnote 131:
Nona Lebour, “Amber and Jet in Ancient Burials,” reprint from
Transactions of the Dumfriesshire and Galloway Natural History and
Antiquarian Society, Nov. 27, 1914, pp. 4, 5.
Footnote 132:
American Journal of Science, 4th Ser., vol. iii, pp. 1–13, New Haven,
1897.
Footnote 133:
Tiguri, 1565, f. 66.
Footnote 134:
Titi Livi, “Ab urbe condita,” lib. xxix, cap. 11.
Footnote 135:
“Adversus Gentes,” lib. vii.
Footnote 136:
Prudentius “Hymnus X,” 11, 156, 157. This writer was born in 348 A.D.
and died about 410.
Footnote 137:
“Dissertation sur la pierre de la Mère des Dieux,” in Mém. de l’Acad.
des Inscrip. et Belles Lettres, vol. xxxviii, p. 370; Paris, 1770.
Footnote 138:
Miers, “Fall of Meteorites in Ancient and Modern Times,” Science
Progress, vol. vii, No. 8, July, 1898, p. 351.
Footnote 139:
Laufer, “Jade: A Study in Chinese Archæology and Religion,” Chicago,
1912, pp. 54, 55, 57, 63, 64; Field Museum of Natural History, Pub.
154, Archæological Series, vol. x.
Footnote 140:
Morris Jastrow, Jr., “Die Religion Babyloniens und Assyriens,” vol.
ii, Pt. II, Giessen, 1912, pp. 689, 690.
Footnote 141:
Ibid., pp. 692–694.
Footnote 142:
Benzinger, Hebräische Archäologie, Freiburg i. B., 1894, p. 370.
Footnote 143:
Lenormant, “Lettres Assyriologiques,” Paris, 1872, vol. ii, p. 118.
Footnote 144:
Miers, “Fall of Meteorites in Ancient and Modern Times,” Science
Progress, vol. vii, No. 8, July, 1808, p. 349.
Footnote 145:
E. F. F. Chladni, “Verzeichniss der herabgefallenen Stein- und
Eisenmassen,” p. 5; Gilbert’s Annalen der Physik, vol. 1.
Footnote 146:
Plutarchi, “Vitæ,” Lipsiæ, 1879, p. 394; Lysander, 12.
Footnote 147:
C. Plinii Secundi, “Historia naturalis,” Venetiis, 1507, fol. 8,
recto; lib. ii, cap. 60.
Footnote 148:
Cornelii Taciti, “Opera,” Lipsiæ, 1885, p. 52.
Footnote 149:
Philostratus, “Apollonius of Tyana,” trans. by Baltzer, Rudolstadt i.
Th., 1883, p. 143 (iii, 59).
Footnote 150:
Lenormant, in Daremberg and Saglio’s Dict., des antiq. grecques et
romaines, vol. i, Paris, 1873, p. 645.
Footnote 151:
F. Lenormant, in Daremberg and Saglio’s Dict. des antiq. grecques et
romaines, vol. i, p. 645, Paris, 1873. See Fig. 739.
Footnote 152:
Aen. ii, 692–698.
Footnote 153:
De Mély, “Le traité des fleuves de Plutarche”; in Revue des Etudes
Grecques, vol. v (1892), p. 334.
Footnote 154:
Suetonii, “Opera,” Lipsiæ, 1886, p. 203; Galba, 8.
Footnote 155:
This name signifies “Mountain-God” and its assumption by the emperor
marked his devotion to the worship of the divinity animating the stone
of Emesa, El Gabal, which Elagabalus had conveyed to Rome, where it
remained until 222 A.D. This stone was regarded as a miniature
representation of the sacred mountain near Emesa. The stone is figured
on the aureus of the emperor Uranius Antonius. See Ch. Lenormant, Rev.
Numismatique, 1843, p. 273, sq., Pl. IX, No. 1.
Footnote 156:
Lenormant, “Lettres Assyriologiques,” Paris, 1872, vol. ii, p. 123.
Footnote 157:
“Voyages d’Ibn Batoutah.” Translation by C. Defremery and B. R.
Sanguinette, vol. i, 3d Ed., Paris, 1893, p. 314.
Footnote 158:
Sale, “The Koran” (Preliminary Discourse), Phila., 1853, p. 14.
Footnote 159:
Burckhardt, “Travels in Arabia,” London, 1829, p. 137.
Footnote 160:
Burckhardt, “Travels in Arabia,” London, 1829, p. 167.
Footnote 161:
Chardin, “Voyage en Perse,” Amsterdam, 1735, vol. iv, p. 171.
Footnote 162:
Giovanni B. Rampolli, “Annali Musulmani,” vol. viii, Milano, 1824, p.
589, note 104.
Footnote 163:
Dr. C. Snouck-Hurgronje, “Mekka,” Haag, 1888, vol. i, pp. 2, 4, 5.
Footnote 164:
Op. cit., p. 11.
Footnote 165:
From Hammer-Purgstall’s “Fundgrube des Orients,” vol. iv, Heft 3;
cited by E. F. F. Chladni, “Neues Verzeichniss der herabgefallenen
Stein- und Eisenmassen,” p. 55; Gilbert’s Annalen der Physik, vol. 1.
Footnote 166:
E. F. F. Chladni, “Neues Verzeichniss der herabgefallenen Stein- und
Eisenmassen,” p. 58; Gilbert’s Annalen der Physik, vol. 1.
Footnote 167:
Ibid., p. 5.
Footnote 168:
Berthelot, “Histoire des Sciences: La Chimie au Moyen-âge,” Paris,
1893, vol. iii, p. 225.
Footnote 169:
Brezina, “The Arrangement of Collections of Meteorites”; Proceedings
of the American Philosophical Society, vol. xliii, Jan.-Dec., pp. 212,
213.
Footnote 170:
King, “Remarks Concerning Stones said to have Fallen from the Clouds,”
London, 1796, p. 4.
Footnote 171:
Megenberg, “Buch der Natur,” ed. Pfeiffer, Stuttgart, 1861, p. 92.
(This is based on Thomas de Cantimpré’s “Liber de natura rerum,”
written about 1240.)
Footnote 172:
E. F. F. Chladni, “Neues Verzeichniss der herabgefallenen Stein- und
Eisenmassen,” p. 17; Gilbert’s Annalen der Physik, vol. 1. (From copy
having MS. notes and emendations by the author.)
Footnote 173:
Metallotheca Vaticana, Romæ, 1719, p. 248.
Footnote 174:
Ulyssis Aldrovandi, “Museum Metallicum,” pp. 528, 529.
Footnote 175:
Fundgruben des Orients, vol. iv, p. 282; Wien, 1814.
Footnote 176:
King, “Remarks Concerning Stones said to have Fallen from the Clouds,”
London, 1796, p. 26.
Footnote 177:
Lieut. Robert E. Peary, “Northward over the ‘Great Ice,’” New York,
1897, vol. ii, pp. 553 sqq.
Footnote 178:
Edmund Otis Hovey, “The Foyer Collection of Meteorites,” American
Museum of Natural History, Guide Leaflet No. 26, December, 1907, pp.
23–27.
Footnote 179:
Henry A. Ward, “Willamette Meteorite”; Proc. Rochester Acad. of Sc.,
vol. iv, pp. 137–148, plates 13–18.
Footnote 180:
Edmund Otis Hovey, “The Foyer Collection of Meteorites,” American
Museum of Natural History, Guide Leaflet No. 26, December, 1907, pp.
27, 28.
Footnote 181:
See the present writer’s “Diamond and Moissanite; Natural, Artificial
and Meteoric,” a lecture delivered at the Twelfth General Meeting of
the American Electro-chemical Society in New York City, October 18,
1907; here the literature on this important meteor is fully given. Two
other interesting meteorites are described by George F. Kunz and
Ernest Weinschenk in the American Journal of Science, vol. xliii, May
1892, pp. 424–426, figures.
Footnote 182:
See Henri Moissan, “Étude de la météorite de Cañon Diablo,” Comptes
Rendus de l’Académie des Sciences, vol. cxvi (1893), pp. 288 sqq.; see
also his paper on the Ovifak meteorite, Comptes Rendus, vol. cxxi
(1895), pp. 483 sqq.
Footnote 183:
G. F. Kunz and O. W. Huntington, “On the Diamond in the Cañon Diablo
Meteoric Iron and on the Hardness of Carborundum,” American Journal of
Science, vol. xlvi, December, 1893.
Footnote 184:
George F. Kunz, “On Five American Meteorites,” American Journal of
Science, vol. xl, Oct., 1890, pp. 312–323.
Footnote 185:
Lazarus Fletcher, in Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed., vol. xviii, p.
263; article Meteorites.
Footnote 186:
Chladni, op. cit., p. 8.
Footnote 187:
Petri Borelli, “Hist. et observ. phys.-med.,” 1676; cited by Chladni,
op. cit., p. 20.
Footnote 188:
Chladni, op. cit., p. 14; see also Gilbert’s Annalen, vol. xxix, p.
376.
Footnote 189:
Chladni, op. cit., p. 19.
Footnote 190:
Chladni, op. cit., p. 22.
Footnote 191:
See “Nature” for June 23 and July 21, 1910.
Footnote 192:
Merrett, “Pinax rerum naturalium Britannicarum,” London, 1667, p. 219.
Footnote 193:
“The Works of the Hon. Robert Boyle,” vol. i, p. 244, London, 1744.
Footnote 194:
Vol. ii, pp. 335–7, 1820.
Footnote 195:
Edward E. Free in Nature, Nov. 3, 1910, No. 2140, vol. lxxxv.
Footnote 196:
Arnaldo Faustini, “Gli Eschimesi,” Torino, 1912, p. 41.
Footnote 197:
Edward M. Curr, “The Australian Races,” Melbourne and London, vol.
iii, p. 29.
Footnote 198:
Bellucci, “Il feticismo in Italia,” Perugia, 1907, pp. 17 sqq.
Footnote 199:
Harriet Maxwell Converse, “Myths and Legends of the N. Y. State
Iroquois,” edited and annotated by Arthur Caswell Parker
(Ga-wa-so-wa-neh), New York State Museum Bulletin, No. 125, Albany,
1908, p. 40.
Footnote 200:
Adair, “History of the American Indians,” London, 1775, p. 425.
Footnote 201:
Frischbier, “Hexenspruch und Zauberbann,” Berlin, 1870, p. 19.
Footnote 202:
Ibid., p. 107.
Footnote 203:
Hartmann, “Bilder aus Westfalen,” Osnabrück, 1871, p. 144.
Footnote 204:
Lund, “Om de Sydamericanske Vildes Steenöxer,” Annaler for Nordisk
Oldkyndighed, Copenhagen, 1838–1839, p. 159.
Footnote 205:
Rath, in Globus, vol. xxvi, p. 215 (Braunschweig, 1874).
Footnote 206:
Koudela and Jetteles in Anthrop. Gesellsch. Wien, vol. xii, p. 159
(1882).
Footnote 207:
Quoted by Sir J. E. Tennant in Notes and Queries, vol. v, 1852, p. 121
(No. 119, Feb. 7, 1852).
Footnote 208:
“Les Six Voyages de Jean Baptiste Tavernier,” La Haye, 1718, vol. ii,
p. 439; liv. iii, chap. xi.
Footnote 209:
Magnusen, “Om en Steenring med Runeindskrift,” Annaler for Nordisk
Oldkyndighed, Copenhagen, 1838–1839, p. 133.
Footnote 210:
Magnusen, “Om en Steenring med Runeindskrift,” Annaler for Nordisk
Oldkyndighed, Copenhagen, 1838–1839, pp. 132–134.
Footnote 211:
Brereton, “Travels in Holland, the United Provinces, England, Scotland
and Ireland, 1634–1635,” Chetham Soc., London, 1844, p. 41.
Footnote 212:
The fossilized horny process of an extinct cuttlefish.
Footnote 213:
A. E. Wright and E. Lovett, “Specimens of Modern Mascots and Ancient
Amulets of the British Isles,” Folk Lore, vol. xix, 1908, p. 298; Pl.
VI, fig. 2.
Footnote 214:
Mooney, “The Medical Mythology of Ireland,” Am. Phil. Soc., vol.
xxxiv, p. 143, 1887.
Footnote 215:
Henderson, “Folk-lore of Northern England,” pp. 185, 186.
Footnote 216:
Nilsson, “The Primitive Inhabitants of Scandinavia,” trans. by the
author and ed. by Sir John Lubbock, 3d ed., London, 1868, pp. 200,
201.
Footnote 217:
Tournier, Bull. de la Soc. d’Anthrop., 1874, p. 386.
Footnote 218:
Bull. de la Soc. d’Anthrop., 1860, p. 96.
Footnote 219:
Morgan, “Matériaux pour l’hist. primitive,” Paris, 1885, p. 484;
Verhandl. Berl. Anthrop. Ges., 1879, p. 300; Von Rosenberg, “Der
Malayische Archipel,” Leipzig, 1878, p. 175.
Footnote 220:
Semper, “Die Philippinen,” Würzburg, 1869, p. 61.
Footnote 221:
Von Siebold, Jr., Verhandl. Berl. Anthrop. Ges., 1878, p. 431.
Footnote 222:
Sven Nilsson, “The Primitive Inhabitants of Scandinavia,” trans. by
the author and ed. by Sir John Lubbock, 3d ed., London, 1868, p. 199.
Footnote 223:
Memoirs of the Geological Survey of India, vol. x, pp. 255–259.
Footnote 224:
Theophrastus’s “History of Stones,” with an English version by John
Hill, London, 1746, p. 73.
Footnote 225:
Martius, “Unterricht von der Magiæ Naturali,” Leipzig, 1717, p. 290.
Footnote 226:
From a fourteenth century Italian MS. translation of the treatise in
the author’s library; see fol. 8, recto, col. 2; fol. 9, recto, col.
1; fol. 10, recto, col. 2; fol. 14, verso, col. 1; fol. 17, verso,
col. 1; fol. 25, verso, col. 1; fol. 26, verso, col. 1; fol. 26,
verso, col. 2; fol. 29, verso, col. 2.
Footnote 227:
Regimen sanitatis Salernitanum, ed. Sir Alexander Cooke, Oxford, 1830,
p. 125. This edition contains reproductions of many curious woodcuts
from the old German editions of Curio, published in 1559, 1568 and
1573.
Footnote 228:
Havard, “Histoire de l’orfévrerie,” Paris, 1896, p. 359; Olivier de la
Haye, “Poème sur la grande peste de 1348,” verses 3162 sqq.
Footnote 229:
Francisci Indiæ, “Hygiphylus sive de febre maligna dialogus,” Veronæ,
1593, pp. 125, 126.
Footnote 230:
Dr. B. Jézak, “Aus dem Reiche der Edlesteine,” Prag, 1914, p. 65.
Footnote 231:
Kobert, “Ein Edlestein der Vorzeit,” Stuttgart, 1910, p. 36.
Footnote 232:
Andrea Matthiolus, “Commentaries sur Discoride,” Lyon, 1642 (written
in 1565), p. 538.
Footnote 233:
Fühner, “Lithotherapie,” Berlin, 1902, p. 44.
Footnote 234:
Braunfels, “Reformation der Apptecken,” Strassburg, 1536, fol. XIV b,
XX b.
Footnote 235:
Francisci Indiæ, “Hygiphylus, sive de febre maligna dialogus,” Veronæ,
1593.
Footnote 236:
Op. cit. pp. 115 sqq.
Footnote 237:
Op. cit., p. 116.
Footnote 238:
Op. cit., pp. 118–122.
Footnote 239:
Boyle, “On the Usefulness of Experimental Philosophy,” Oxford, 1664,
p. 108.
Footnote 240:
Johannis Wolffii, “Curiosus amuletorum scrutator,” Francofurti et
Lipsiæ, 1692, p. 564.
Footnote 241:
J. B. Silvatici, “Controversiæ medicæ,” Francofurti, 1601, p. 223.
Footnote 242:
Axel Garboe, “Kunsthistoriske Studier over Ædelstene,” Kjbenhavn og
Kristiania, 1915, p. 254.
Footnote 243:
See Axel Garboe, “Kulturhistoriske Studier over Ædelstene, med særligt
Henbilk paa det 17. Aarhundrede,” Kjbenhavn og Kristiania, 1915, pp.
141 sqq.
Footnote 244:
U. F. B. Brückmann, “Abhandlung von Edelsteinen,” Braunschweig, 1757,
pp. 4, 5 of preface.
Footnote 245:
John and Andrew Van Rymsdyk, “Museum Brittanicum,” 2 ed. revised and
corrected by P. Boyle, London, 1791, p. 51.
Footnote 246:
Fernie, “Precious Stones for Curative Wear,” Bristol, 1907, p. 256.
Footnote 247:
Von Hovorka and Kronfeld, “Vergleichende Volksmedizin,” Stuttgart,
1908, vol. i, p. 355. Communication of Dr. Christof Hartungen, Jr.
Footnote 248:
Damigeron, “De lapidibus,” ed. Abel, Berol., 1881, p. 177.
Footnote 249:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” lib. xxxvi, cap. 54.
Footnote 250:
Orphei, “Lithica,” ed. Abel, Berol., 1881, vs. 610 sqq.
Footnote 251:
Pselli, “De lapidum virtutibus,” ed. Bemond, Lug. Bat., 1745, p. 10.
Footnote 252:
Konrad von Megenberg’s fourteenth century version, “Buch der Natur,”
ed. by Dr. Franz Pfeiffer, Stuttgart, 1861, p. 436.
Footnote 253:
Andreæ Baccii, “De Gemmis et Lapidibus Pretiosis” (Latin version by
Wolfgang Gabelchover of the Italian original), Francofurti, 1603, pp.
100, 101, Note of Gabelchover.
Footnote 254:
Johannis Braunii, “De Vestitu Sacerdotum Hebræorum,” Amstelodami,
1680, pp. 672–3.
Footnote 255:
Belucci, “Catalogue de l’Exposition de la Société d’Anthropologie”
(Ex. de 1900), pp. 278–279.
Footnote 256:
Severus Sammonicus, “Preceptes médicaux,” text and trans. by L.
Baudet, Paris, 1845, pp. 76, 77.
Footnote 257:
Gratii Falisci, “Cynegeticon”; collection des auteurs Latin, ed.
Nizard, vol. xvi, Paris, 1851, p. 786, lines 401–405.
Footnote 258:
Garbe, “Die indische Mineralien”; Naharari’s “Rajanighaṇṭu,” Varga
XIII, Leipzig, 1882, p. 76.
Footnote 259:
Lémery, “Cursus Chymicus,” Latin version by De Rebecque, Geneva, 1681,
p. 338.
Footnote 260:
Johannes Wittichius, “Bericht von den wunderbaren Bezoardischen
Steinen,” Leipzig, 1589, p. 56, cited in Axel Garboe’s
“Kunsthistoriske Studier over Ædelstene,” Kobenhavn og Kristiania,
1915, p. 98.
Footnote 261:
“Histoire critique des practiques superstitieuses; par un prétre de
l’Oratoire,” Paris, 1702, p. 326.
Footnote 262:
Hovorka and Kronfeld, “Vergleichende Volksmedizin,” Stuttgart, 1908,
vol. i, p. 107.
Footnote 263:
Rose, “Aristoteles De lapidibus und Arnoldus Saxo,” in Zeitsch. für D.
Alt., New Series, vol. vi, pp. 378, 379.
Footnote 264:
Garbe, “Die indische Mineralien”; Naharari’s “Rajanighaṇṭu,” Varga
XIII, Leipzig, 1882, p. 80.
Footnote 265:
“Oriental Accounts of the Precious Minerals,” trans. by Raja
Kalikishan, with remarks by James Prinsep; Journ. Asiat. Soc. of
Bengal, vol. i, Calcutta, p. 354.
Footnote 266:
See Pinder, “De adamante,” Berolini, 1829, p. 66.
Footnote 267:
Johannis Braunii, “De Vestitu Sacerdotum Hebræorum,” Amstelodami,
1680, p. 659.
Footnote 268:
Garbe, “Die indische Mineralien”; Naharari’s “Rajanighaṇṭu,” Varga
XIII, Leipzig, 1882, p. 76.
Footnote 269:
The emerald of Mexico was evidently the jade or the _piedra del
hijada_.
Footnote 270:
Gabriel Colin, “Avenzoar, sa vie et ses œuvres,” dissertation for
doctorate in Univ. of Paris, 1911, pp. 164, 165.
Footnote 271:
Claudii Galeni, “Opera omnia,” ed. Kühn, Lipsiæ, 1826, vol. xii, pp.
195, 196; De simplic. med., lib. vii, cap. 2.
Footnote 272:
Plinii, “Historia Naturalis,” lib. xxxvi, cap. 38.
Footnote 273:
“Lithica,” lines 636 sqq.
Footnote 274:
Avicennæ, “Liber canonis,” Basileæ, 1556.
Footnote 275:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, p. 965.
Footnote 276:
Monardes, “Delle cose che vengono portate dall’Indie Occidentali,”
Venetia, 1575, Bk. II, chap. XIV, p. 46.
Footnote 277:
T’ang Jung-tso, “Yü-shuo” (a discourse on jade), trans. by Stephen W.
Bushell; Investigations and Studies in Jade, The Bishop Collection,
New York, 1900, pp. 329, 330.
Footnote 278:
Jacobi Wolff, “Curiosus amuletorum scrutator,” Francofurti et Lipsiæ,
1692, pp. 218, 219; citing principally, Bartholini, “De lapide
nephritico.”
Footnote 279:
Axel Garboe, “Kulturhistoriske Studier over Ædelstene, med særligt
Henblik paa det 17. Aarhundrede,” Kobenhavn og Kristiania, 1915, pp.
204, 205; citing Caspar Bertholini, “De lapide nephritico opusculum,”
1628.
Footnote 280:
Johannes de Laet, “De gemmis et lapidibus libri duo,” Lugduni
Batavorum [1647], p. 84.
Footnote 281:
“Sammlung von Natur und Medicin-wie auch hierzu gehörigen Kunst- und
Litaratur-Geschichten,” Breslau, 1726, p. 262.
Footnote 282:
Cleandro Arnobio, “Tesoro delle Gioie,” Venetia, 1602, pp. 139–141.
Footnote 283:
“Les Lapidaires,” etc., F. de Mély, vol. i, Les lapidaires chinois,
Paris, 1896, p. 178.
Footnote 284:
Martius, “Beiträge zur Ethnographic und Sprachkunde Amerika’s zumal
Braziliens,” Leipzig, 1867, vol. i, p. 729.
Footnote 285:
Grombtchewski, Berichte der Geog. Gesellschaft zu St. Petersburg, vol.
xv, p. 454 (1889).
Footnote 286:
Alexandri Tralliani, “De medicamentis,” Basileæ, 1556, p. 593.
Footnote 287:
Revue Archêologique, 3rd ser., vol. i, pp. 299 sqq.
Footnote 288:
Gesneri, “De figuris lapidum,” Tiguri, 1565, fol. 113, verso.
Footnote 289:
“Gemmarum et lapidum historia,” Lugd. Bat., 1636, pp. 251–3.
Footnote 290:
Bellucci, “Il feticismo primitivo in Italia,” Perugia, 1907, pp.
87–90.
Footnote 291:
Claudii Galeni, “Opera omnia,” ed. Kühn, Lipsiæ, 1826, vol. xii, p.
207; De simplic. med., lib. vii, cap. 2.
Footnote 292:
Nicandri, “Theriaka,” Parisiis, 1557, p. 2.
Footnote 293:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” lib. xxxvi, cap. 34.
Footnote 294:
Bartholomæi Anglici, “De proprietatibus rerum,” London, Wynkyn de
Worde, 1495, lib. xvi, cap. 48; De gagate.
Footnote 295:
Johannis Baptistæ Portæ “Phytognomica,” Francofurti, 1591, pp. 170,
171.
Footnote 296:
Ibn el Beithar, “Traité des simples;” French trans. of L. Leclerc in
“Notices et Extraits de MSS. de la Bib. Nat.,” etc., vol. xxiii, Pt.
5, Paris, 1877, pp. 418, 419.
Footnote 297:
“Der Römisch Kaiserlichen Akademie der Naturforscher ... Abhandlung,
Siebenter Theil,” Nürnberg, 1759, p. 90.
Footnote 298:
Erman, “Zaubersprüche für Mutter und Kind,” Philosophische und
Historische Abhandlungen der König. Pr. Akad. d. Wissenschaften, 1901,
Berlin, p. 9.
Footnote 299:
“Papyrus Ebers, Die Maase und das Kapitel über die Augenkrankheiten,”
by Georg Ebers. In the Abhandl. d. phil. hist. Klasse der Königl.
sächs. Gesell. d. Wissenschaften, vol. xi, Leip., 1890, p. 318.
Footnote 300:
Dioscorides, “De materia medica,” lib. v, cap. 106.
Footnote 301:
Braunfels, “Von Edelsteinen,” Strassburg, 1536, fol. xlviii, a.
Footnote 302:
De Boot, “Gemmarum et lapidum historia,” Lug. Bat., 1636, p. 264, lib.
ii, cap. 113.
Footnote 303:
Ibid., loc. cit.
Footnote 304:
Höfler, “Volksmedizin und Aberglaube,” München, 1893, pp. 38, 39.
Footnote 305:
Konrad von Megenberg “Das Buch der Natur,” ed. by Dr. Franz Pfeiffer,
Stuttgart, 1861, p. 452.
Footnote 306:
Dugdale, “Monasticon Anglicanum,” London, 1819, vol. ii, pp. 184, 185;
also extract from Cotton MS., Nero D vii, on p. 217.
Footnote 307:
De vit. abbot.
Footnote 308:
Thomas Wright, “On Antiquarian Researches in the Middle Ages,” in
Archæologia, vol. xxx, London, 1844, pp. 444–446; cut on page 444.
Footnote 309:
Collin de Plancy, “Dictionnaire Infernal,” Bruxelles, 1845, p. 415.
Footnote 310:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” lib. xxxvii, cap. 10.
Footnote 311:
Andreæ Bacii, “De gemmis et lapidibus pretiosis” (Latin translation by
Wolfgang Gabelchover of Italian original), Francofurti, 1603, p. 103.
Footnote 312:
Wilson, “The Three Ladies of London,” 1584. The three female
characters are symbolical or allegorical and are named respectively,
Lucre, Love, and Conscience.
Footnote 313:
From MS. of Borch’s lectures of 1685, in the Royal Library at
Copenhagen, Thottske Collection, 744; cited in Axel Garboe’s
“Kulturhistoriske Studier over Ædelstene,” Kobenhavn og Kristiania,
1915, p. 215.
Footnote 314:
“Der Römisch Kaiserlichen Akademie der Naturforscher ... Abhandlungen,
Siebenter Theil,” Nürnberg, 1759, pp. 162, 163.
Footnote 315:
Valmont de Bomare, “Dictionnaire raisonné universel,” Paris, 1775,
vol. iii, p. 118.
Footnote 316:
Walsh, “Curiosities of Popular Customs,” Philadelphia, 1911, p. 624.
Footnote 317:
MacCulloch, “Religion of the Ancient Celts,” Edinburgh, 1911, p. 332.
Footnote 318:
Garbe, “Die indische Mineralien”; Naharari’s “Rajanighaṇṭu,” Varga
XIII, Leipzig, 1882, p. 83.
Footnote 319:
Johannis Braunii, “De vestitu sacerdotum Hebræorum,” Amstelodami,
1680, p. 659; citing pseudo-Dioscorides.
Footnote 320:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, p. 972.
Footnote 321:
Andræ Baccii, “De gemmis et lapidibus pretiosis,” Francofurti, 1603,
p. 68. Note of Gabelchover to his Latin version of the original
Italian.
Footnote 322:
Frederici Jacobi Schallingi, “ΟΦΘΑΛΜΙΑ sive disquisitio
hermetico-galenica de natura oculorum,” Erffurdt, 1615, p. 125.
Footnote 323:
Garbe, “Die indische Mineralien”; Naharari’s “Rajanighaṇṭu,” Varga
XIII, Leipzig, 1882, p. 79.
Footnote 324:
See Chapter II, pp. 106–116.
Footnote 325:
Anselmi Bœtii de Boodt, “Gemmarum historia,” Hanoviæ, 1609, p. 52.
Footnote 326:
Rose, “Aristoteles de lapidibus und Arnoldus Saxo,” Zeitschr. für d.
Alt., New Series, vol. vi, 1875, pp. 373, 374.
Footnote 327:
Petra, “Specilegium Solesmense,” Parisiis, 1855, p. 370.
Footnote 328:
“Le Grand Lapidaire de Jean de Mandeville.” From the edition of 1561,
ed. by J. S. del Sotto, Vienne, 1862, p. 90.
Footnote 329:
In Konrad von Megenberg’s “Buch der Natur,” ed. by Dr. Franz Pfeiffer,
Stuttgart, 1861, p. 437.
Footnote 330:
Erasmi, “Colloquia,” Lipsiæ, 1713, p. 596.
Footnote 331:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, p. 814.
Footnote 332:
Lemnii, “De miraculis occultis naturæ,” Francofurti, 1611, pp. 212,
213.
Footnote 333:
Mizauld, “Hundert curieuse Kunst-stücke,” in Martius’ “Unterricht von
der Magiæ Naturali,” Leipzig, 1717, p. 290.
Footnote 334:
Smith, “Jewellery,” London, 1908, p. 151.
Footnote 335:
“Anatomy of absurditie,” 1589; p. 40 of Collier’s reprint. Lean’s
Collectanes, vol. ii, Pt. II, Bristol, 1903, p. 643.
Footnote 336:
Lupton, “One Thousand Notable Things.”
Footnote 337:
Encelii, “De re metallica,” Francofurti, 1557, pp. 219, 220.
Footnote 338:
Idem, pp. 218, 219. See also p. 121 of the present book.
Footnote 339:
Cardani, “De subtilitate,” Basilæ, 1554; lib. vii, p. 211.
Footnote 340:
Traité des Simples of Ibn Al-Beithar in “Notices et Extraits des
Manuscrits de la Bibliothèque Nationale,” vol. xxiii, pp. 416–417;
Paris, 1877.
Footnote 341:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” lib. xi, cap. 79.
Footnote 342:
Encelii, “De re metallica,” Francofurti, 1557, p. 218.
Footnote 343:
Lemnii, “De miraculis naturæ,” Francofurti, 1611, p. 213.
Footnote 344:
Ibid., lib. xxxvii, cap. 56.
Footnote 345:
Ibid., lib. xxix, cap. 38.
Footnote 346:
Ibid., lib. xxxvii, cap. 60.
Footnote 347:
Danielis Sennarti, “Epitome naturalis scientiæ,” Francofurti, 1650,
lib. v, cap. 4, pp. 438, 439; citing Scaliger, Exercit. 112.
Footnote 348:
G. Rollenhagen, “Wahrhaffte Lügen von Geistlichen und Naturalichen
Dingen,” Wahrenberg, 1680, p. 93.
Footnote 349:
Plinii, “Naturalis historia,” lib. xxxvii, cap. 56.
Footnote 350:
Leonardi, “Speculum lapidum,” Venetia, 1502, fol. xxviii.
Footnote 351:
Ibid., fol. xxiv.
Footnote 352:
C. Plinii Secundi, “Naturalis historia,” ed. Janus, Lipsiæ, 1880, p.
249, lib. xxx, cap. 11.
Footnote 353:
In Konrad von Megenberg’s version “Buch der Natur,” ed. Pfeiffer,
Stuttgart, 1861, p. 440.
Footnote 354:
Rev. Oswald Cockayne, “Leechdoms, Wortcunning and Starcraft of Early
England,” London, 1865, vol. ii, p. 307 (Bk. iii, cap. i, of “Laece
Boc”).
Footnote 355:
“Naturalis historia,” lib. x, cap. 4, and lib. xxx, cap. 44.
Footnote 356:
Theophrasti, “De lapidibus” (Peri lithôn), ed. by John Hill, London,
1746, p. 16; cap. 10; see Hill’s note, pp. 16–19.
Footnote 357:
Marbodei, loc. cit.
Footnote 358:
Aëtii, Tetrabiblos, Basileæ, 1542, p. 77.
Footnote 359:
Conradi Gesneri, “De figuris lapidum,” Tiguri, 1565, pp. 142, 143;
with figures of ring. Pliny already mentions the callimus, “Naturalis
historia,” lib. xxxvi, cap. 39.
Footnote 360:
Bauschii, “De lapide ætite,” Lipsiæ, 1665, p. 64.
Footnote 361:
Ibid., p. 9.
Footnote 362:
Ibid., pp. 9, 10.
Footnote 363:
Ibid., pp. 11, 12.
Footnote 364:
Albert Hartshorne, F.S.A., in Proceedings of Society of Antiquaries of
London, Sec. Series, vol. xxii, p. 517, May 27, 1909.
Footnote 365:
MS. 8356 of the Bibliothèque Nationale, f. LXXII, verso.
Footnote 366:
F. de Mély La Grande Encyclopédie, vol. xxvi, p. 884.
Footnote 367:
Julius Ruska, “Das Steinbuch des Aristoteles,” Heidelberg, 1912, p. 4,
citing Petermann, “Reisen im Orient,” vol. ii, p. 132.
Footnote 368:
Bellucci, “Il feticismo in Italia,” Perugia, 1907, p. 94, note.
(Figures on pp. 94 and 95.)
Footnote 369:
Lacroix, “Minéralogie de la France,” Paris, 1893–1910, vol. iii, p.
399.
Footnote 370:
Lemnii, “De miraculis naturæ,” Francofurti, 1611, p. 213.
Footnote 371:
In Konrad Von Megenberg’s version, “Buch der Natur,” ed. by Dr. Franz
Pfeiffer, Stuttgart, 1861, p. 435.
Footnote 372:
The writer erroneously derives the name from the Latin verb
_allectare_, the true derivation being from the Greek ἀλέκτωρ, a cock.
Footnote 373:
Guiffrey, “Inventaires du Duc de Berry,” vol. i, p. 166.
Footnote 374:
Julius Ruska, “Das Steinbuch aus der Kosmographie des Muhammad ibn
Mahmud al-Kazwînî,” Beilage to the Jahresbericht of the
Oberrealschule, Heidelberg, 1895–96, p. 15.
Footnote 375:
Chabœuf, “Charles le Téméraire à Dijon,” 1474; in Mém. de la Soc.
burg. géog. et hist., vol. xviii, p. 137.
Footnote 376:
Monardes, “Semplicium medicamentorum ex novo orbe delatorum historia”
(Latin version by Clusius), Antverpiæ, 1579, p. 51.
Footnote 377:
Valentini, “Museum museorum, oder Vollständige Schau-Bühne,” Frankfurt
am Main, 1714, Bk. III, cap. 27, §§ 1, 4.
Footnote 378:
W. L. Hildburgh, “Further Notes on Spanish Amulets,” in Folk Lore,
vol. xxiv, No. 1, p. 70, March 31, 1913. Sec. Plate I, Fig. 27.
Footnote 379:
Encelii, “De re metallica,” Francofurti, 1557, p. 219.
Footnote 380:
See text in Axel Garboe’s “Kulturhistoriske Studier over Ædelstene,”
Kjbenhavn og Kristiana, 1915, p. 56, note from Simon Paulli,
“Quadripartitum botanicum,” Argentorati, 1667, p. 163.
Footnote 381:
Oswaldus Crollius, “Basilica chymica,” Frankfurt, 1623, p. 213.
Footnote 382:
“Les six voyages de Jean Baptiste Tavernier,” Pt. II, Paris, 1678, p.
470; liv. ii, chap. 24.
Footnote 383:
Williamson, “Catalogue of the Collection of Jewels and Precious Works
of Art, the Property of J. Pierpont Morgan,” London, 1910, pp. 12–14.
Footnote 384:
Caspar Neumann, “Disquisitio de ambra grysea,” Dresden, 1736, pp. 80,
81.
Footnote 385:
Gimma, “Della storia naturale delle gemme,” Napoli, 1730, vol. i, p.
479.
Footnote 386:
Christiani Mentzelii, “Lapis Bononensis,” Bilefeldiæ, 1675, p. 47.
Footnote 387:
Mercati, “Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719, p. 227.
Footnote 388:
Plinii, “Historia Naturalis,” lib. xxxvii, cap. 68.
Footnote 389:
Ibid., lib. xxxvi, cap. 35. See also Dioscorides V, 155; Ætius II, 19.
Footnote 390:
Claudii Galeni, “Opera Omnia,” ed. Kuhn, Lipsiæ, 1826, vol. xii, p.
199. De simplic. med., lib. vii, cap. 2.
Footnote 391:
Valentini, “Museum museorum, oder Vollständige Schau-Bühne,” Frankfurt
am Main, 1714, lib. i, cap. 24, § 2.
Footnote 392:
“Museum Wormianum,” Lug. Bat., 1655, pp. 7–9.
Footnote 393:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, lib. iv, cap. 10, p.
600.
Footnote 394:
“Museum Wormianum,” Lug. Bat., 1655, p. 65.
Footnote 395:
This is the fossilized horny part of the tail of an extinct
cuttlefish, and numerous specimens have been found in the marl of New
Jersey as well as in many other places.
Footnote 396:
Gesneri, “De figuris lapidum,” Tiguri, 1565, fol. 89, verso, 90,
recto.
Footnote 397:
Mercati, “Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719, pp. 138–139. Figure on
p. 138.
Footnote 398:
Andree, “Ethnographische Parallelen und Vergleiche,” New Ser.,
Leipzig, 1889, p. 33.
Footnote 399:
Reichii, “Medicina Universalis” [Vratislaviæ, 1691], p. 76. See Fig.
4, opp. p. 72.
Footnote 400:
De Boot, “Gemmarum et lapidum historia,” ed. Toll, Lug. Bat., 1647, p.
410; lib. ii, cap. ccxxvii, and also De Laet, “De gemmis et
lapidibus,” Lug. Bat., 1647, p. 138.
Footnote 401:
Ibid., p. 300; lib. ii, cap. cxlviii.
Footnote 402:
Valentini, “Museum museorum, oder Vollständige Schau-Bühne,” Frankfurt
am Main, 1714, vol. ii, p. 11.
Footnote 403:
See, in regard to this stone, Oppert, “Der Salâgrâma-Stein,”
Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, XXXIV Jahrgang, Berlin, 1902, pp. 131–137.
Footnote 404:
Magnusen, “Om en Steenring med Runeindskrift,” Annaler for Nordisk
Oldkyndighed, Copenhagen, 1838–1839, p. 133.
Footnote 405:
Valentini, “Museum museorum, oder die vollständige Schau-Bühne,”
Frankfurt am Main, 1714, vol. ii, p. 12.
Footnote 406:
Reichii, “Medicina universalis” [Vratislaviæ, 1691], p. 75. See Fig.
3, opp. p. 72.
Footnote 407:
Peringskiold, “Wilkina Saga eller historia on Konung Diedrich of
Bern,” Stockholmis, 1715, pp. 57, 58.
Footnote 408:
Bellucci, “Il feticismo in Italia,” Perugia, 1907, pp. 100–104.
Footnote 409:
Nicolo Monardes, “Delle cose que vengono portate dall’Indie
occidentali,” Venetia, 1575, pp. 95–6.
Footnote 410:
Ibid., pp. 104–5.
Footnote 411:
Caspar Bauhini, “De lapidis bezaaris ortu natura,” etc., Basileæ,
1625, p. 3.
Footnote 412:
Museum Brittanicum, John and Andrew van Rymsdyk, London, pp. 50–51.
Footnote 413:
De Boot, “De lapidibus,” ed. Toll, Lug. Bat., 1636, p. 367.
Footnote 414:
“De lapidibus,” Lug. Bat., 1636, p. 370. See also Mercati,
“Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719, p. 179, with figure of stone from
hedgehog.
Footnote 415:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum,” Bononiæ, 1648, p. 809.
Footnote 416:
Ibid., p. 809.
Footnote 417:
Ambroise Paré, “Œuvres Complètes,” Paris, 1841, vol. iii, pp. 341,
342.
Footnote 418:
Engelberti Kaempferi, “Amœnitatum exoticarum fasc. V,” Lemgoviæ, 1712,
pp. 402, 403.
Footnote 419:
Andreæ Baccii, “De gemmis et lapidibus pretiosis,” Francofurti, 1603,
p. 193; Latin version by Wolfgang Gabelchover of the original Italian.
Footnote 420:
Kaempferi, “Amœnitatum exoticarum fasciculi V,” Lemgoviæ, 1712, pp.
400, 401.
Footnote 421:
The Tûzuk-i-Jahangiri or memoirs of Jehangir trans. by Alexander
Rogers, London, 1909, p. 240; Orient. Trans. Fund, N. S., vol. xix.
Footnote 422:
“Voyage d’Ethiopie”; in Lettres édiflantes et curieuses, IV Recueil,
Paris, 1713, p. 103.
Footnote 423:
De Acosta, “Histoire Naturelle et Morale des Indes,” tr. by Cauxois,
Paris, 1600, f. 206 r. and v.
Footnote 424:
Von Hammer, “Auszüge aus dem persischen Werke, Buch der Edelsteine,
von Mohammed ben Manssur,” in Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 134;
Wien, 1818.
Footnote 425:
Boccone, “Recherches et observations naturelles,” Amsterdam, 1674, pp.
238, 239.
Footnote 426:
F. Nix, in Tijdschrift voor Ind. Taal, Land en Volk, vol. v, p. 151.
Footnote 427:
Julii Reichelti, “De Amuletis,” Argentorati, 1676, p. 75.
Footnote 428:
Mercati, “Metallotheca Vaticana,” Romæ, 1719, p. 175.
Footnote 429:
Valentini, “Museum museorum, oder Vollständige Schau-Bühne,” Frankfurt
am Main, 1714, bk. iii, cap. 13, §§ 1, 2, p. 446.
Footnote 430:
Pancirollus, “The History of Many Memorable Things,” London, 1715, p.
288.
Footnote 431:
Ibid., loc. cit.
Footnote 432:
R. Verneau and P. Rivet, “Ethnologie ancienne de l’Equateur,” Paris,
1912; vol. vi of Mission du service géologique de l’armée pour la
mesure d’un arc de méridien équatorial en Amérique du Sud, 1899–1906,
pp. 235, 236; figure (nat. size) on p. 235.
Footnote 433:
Historical Manuscripts Commission, MSS. of the Marquis of Salisbury,
Pt. V, London, 1894, p. 3.
Footnote 434:
Archæologia, vol. xxi, p. 153, London, 1837. From Warrant of Indemnity
given by King James I to the guardians of the crown jewels.
Footnote 435:
Jahrbuch der kunsthistorischen Sammlungen des allerhöchsten
Kaiserhauses, vol. xx, Pt. II, pp. lxv, xcvii, Wien, 1899.
Footnote 436:
Figured in Jeweler’s Circular Weekly, Dec. 17, 1913, p. 53; Charles A.
Brassler, “Gold Mounted Specimens of Bezoar.”
Footnote 437:
Skeat, “Malay Magic,” London, 1900, pp. 274 sqq.
Footnote 438:
Chau Ju-Kua, “Chu-fan-chi” (“A Description of Barbarous Peoples”),
trans. by Friedrich Hirth and W. W. Rockhill, St. Petersburg, 1911, p.
16, and p. 90, note 7.
Footnote 439:
Von Dewall, “Aanteekeningen omtrent de Noordoostkust van Borneo;”
Tijdschrift voor Ind. Taal. Land en Volk, vol. iv, p. 436.
Footnote 440:
Valmont de Bomare, “Dictionnaire raisonné universel,” Paris, 1773, p.
556.
Footnote 441:
Edwards, “History and Poetry of Finger Rings,” New York, 1855, pp.
110, 111.
Footnote 442:
“Scientific American,” vol. xv, No. 19, p. 299; November 3, 1866.
Footnote 443:
Dr. Learned, “Morocco and the Moors,” 1876, p. 281.
Footnote 444:
S. de Vries, “Curieuse Aenmerkingen der byzonderste Oost en
West-Indische Verwonderens-waerdige Dingen,” Utrecht, 1682, Pt. II,
pp. 912, 913.
Footnote 445:
See Ledra Hazlit, M.D., “Hair-balls of the Stomach and Intestines,”
Jour. A. M. A., vol. lxii, No. 2, pp. 107–110, with illustration; and
G. A. Moore, “Hair Cast of the Stomach with Respect of a Case,” Boston
Medical and Surgical Journal, Jan. 1, 1914.
Footnote 446:
Plinii, “Naturalis Historia,” lib. xxix, cap. 12.
Footnote 447:
Kunz, Dept. of Mining Statistics.
Footnote 448:
Johann Turi, “Muittalus samid birra; en bog om Lappernas liv.”; text,
and Danish trans. by Emilie Demnant, Kjøbenhavn, 1911, p. 184 (p. 62
of text).
Footnote 449:
Tertulliani, “Opera Omnia,” Parisiis, 1879, vol. i, col. 1425, De
cultu feminarum.
Footnote 450:
“Lithica,” lines 336 sqq.
Footnote 451:
The fyrste boke of the introduction of Knowledge made by Andrew Borde
of Psysycke Doctore. Ed. by Furnival, London, 1870, p. 121. Early
English Text Soc., Extra Series No. X.
Footnote 452:
Wirt Sikes, “British Goblins: Welsh Folk-lore, Fairy Myths, Legends
and Traditions,” London, 1880, p. 366.
Footnote 453:
Julius Ruska, “Das Steinbuch aus der Kosmographie des Muḥammad ibn
Mahmud al-Kazwînî,” Beilage to the Jahresberichte of the
Oberrealschule, Heidelberg, 1895–96, p. 15.
Footnote 454:
Edmond Doutté, “Magie et Religion,” Alger, 1909, p. 145; quoting
Largeau, “La Sahara algérienne,” p. 80.
Footnote 455:
“Gemmarum et lapidum historia,” Lug. Bat., 1636, pp. 347–349.
Footnote 456:
Daniel Wilson, “The Archæology and Prehistoric Annals of Scotland,”
Edinburgh, 1851, pp. 303, 304. Two specimens figured on p. 304.
Footnote 457:
John Brand, “Observations on the Popular Antiquities of Great
Britain,” London, 1849, vol. iii, p. 371.
Footnote 458:
Wirt Sikes, “British Goblins: Welsh Folk-Lore, Fairy Myths, Legends
and Traditions.” London, 1880, p. 360.
Footnote 459:
J. G. Frazer, “Balder the Beautiful,” London, 1913, vol. i, p. 16.
Footnote 460:
Arakel, “Livre d’histoire,” chap. liii; in Collection d’historiens
armeniens, French transl. by M. Brosset, St. Petersburg, 1874, vol. i,
p. 545.
Footnote 461:
F. de Mély, “Les lapidaires de l’antiquité et du moyen âge,” vol. i,
“Les lapidaires chinois,” Paris, 1896, pp. 237–238.
Footnote 462:
“Account of the Snake Stone,” in Lancet, vol. 177, London, July-Dec.
1909, p. 1478.
Footnote 463:
“Les six voyages de Jean Baptiste Tavernier,” Pt. II, Paris, 1678, pp.
410, 411; Bk. II, ch. xxiv.
Footnote 464:
“The Travels of M. de Thevenot into the Levant,” London, 1686, Pt.
III, p. 32; Bk. I, chap. 18.
Footnote 465:
Davy, “An Analysis of the Snake-stone,” Asiatic Researches, vol. xiii,
p. 318; Kaempfer, “Amoen. Exit.,” pp. 395–397; cited in Yule-Burnell,
“A Glossary of Anglo-Indian Colloquial Words and Other Phrases,”
London, 1886, pp. 643, 644.
Footnote 466:
“Jungle Life in India,” p. 83.
Footnote 467:
Redi, “Experimenta,” Amstelodami, 1675, pp. 4–8.
Footnote 468:
Edinburgh Philos. Journal, No. 1, p. 147; Philos. Trans., cix, p. 283;
and “The Natural History and Properties of Tabersheer,” 1828;
Edinburgh Journal, viii, p. 288.
Footnote 469:
Jour. de Pharmacies, xxvii, pp. 81, 161, 252; and Phil. Mag., x, p.
229.
Footnote 470:
Nature, xxxv, p. 437.
Footnote 471:
“Der Tabixir in seiner Bedeutung für die Botanik, Mineralogie, und
Physik”; X. Sammlung. Naturwissenschaftlicher Vorträge, Berlin, 1887.
Footnote 472:
Tavernier, “Voyages en Turquie, en Perse, et aux Indes,” Paris, 1718,
vol. ii, p. 392; liv. ii, chap. 24.
Footnote 473:
Engelberti Kaempferi, “Amœnitatum exoticarum fasciculi V,” Lemgoviæ,
1712, pp. 395, 396.
Footnote 474:
Kunz, “Gems and Precious Stones of North America,” 2d ed., New York,
1892, p. 183.
Footnote 475:
Rumphius, “D’Amboinsche Rariteitskamer,” Amsterdam, 1741, pp. 303–305.
Footnote 476:
“Die Gesta Romanorum,” ed. Wilhelm Dick, Erlangen, 1890, p. 127.
Footnote 477:
Dr. H. C. White, “The Chemical and Physical Characters of the
So-called ‘Mad-Stones,’” British Association for the Advancement of
Science, 73d Report, Meeting of 1903 at Smithfield, London, 1904, p.
605.
Footnote 478:
“Lancet,” vol. 164, Jan.-June, 1903, p. 343.
Footnote 479:
American Journal of Science, vol. xxxiv, Dec., 1887. See also Kunz,
“Gems and Precious Stones of North America,” New York, 1892, p. 144.
Footnote 480:
Leipsic, 1866.
Footnote 481:
Kohut, loc. cit., p. 25.
Footnote 482:
Dictionnaire d’Archéologie Chrétienne, ed. by Dom Fernand Cabrol and
Dom H. Leclercq, vol. i, Pt. II, Paris, 1907, col. 2088.
Footnote 483:
Ibid., col. 2089.
Footnote 484:
Dictionnaire d’Archéologie Chrétienne, ed. by Dom Fernand Cabrol and
Dom H. Leclercq, vol. i, Pt. II, Paris, 1907, cols. 2089, 2090.
Footnote 485:
Dictionnaire d’Archéologie Chrétienne, ed. by Dom Fernand Cabrol and
Dom H. Leclercq, vol. i, Pt. II, Paris, 1907, cols. 2088, 2089.
Footnote 486:
Macarius (L’Heureux), “Abraxus seu Apistopistus,” Antwerp, 1657, Plate
XIX, No. 78 (Gorlæus, 1695, Pl. CCXVIII, No. 430).
Footnote 487:
Zunz, “Die gottesdienstliche Vorträge der Juden,” Berlin, 1832, p.
167. Zunz conjectures that Eleazar of Worms (1176–1238) may have
written a portion of this work.
Footnote 488:
“Sepher de-Adam Kadmah,” Amsterdam, 1701, fol. 34 verso. The
interpretations of the several names are from Schwab’s “Vocabulaire de
l’angélologie,” Paris, 1897, except in the case of Ragael, where
Schwab gives “angel of the moment.”
Footnote 489:
Barrett, “The Magus,” London, 1801, p. 138.
Footnote 490:
Weber, “Jüdische Theologie,” 2d ed., Leipzig, 1897.
Footnote 491:
Lane, “Arabian Society in the Middle Ages,” ed. by Stanley Lane-Poole,
London, 1883, p. 106.
Footnote 492:
Schindler, “Der Aberglaube des Mittelalters,” Breslau, 1858, p. 4.
Footnote 493:
Peschel, “Völkerkunde,” Leipzig, 1885, p. 272. Quoted from Winwood
Reade’s “Savage Africa.”
Footnote 494:
Achelis, “Die Martyrologien,” p. 8.
Footnote 495:
Parmele, “Tothe-Lore,” reprint from the International Dental Journal,
January, 1899, p. 14.
Footnote 496:
Symeonis Logothetæ, cognomento Metaphrastæ, “Opera Omnia,” ed. Migne,
Parisiis, 1864, vol. iii, col. 315.
Footnote 497:
Aldrovandi, “Museum metallicum, Bononiæ,” 1648, p. 653.
Footnote 498:
Thoms, “Anecdotes and Traditions,” London, 1839, p. 103 (Camden Soc.
Pub.).
Footnote 499:
See plate in the present writer’s “Curious Lore of Precious Stones,”
J. B. Lippincott Company, 1913, opp. p. 356.
Footnote 500:
Mlle. Marie König, “Poupées et légendes de France,” Paris, n. d., pp.
77–80.
Footnote 501:
St. Louis Democrat, 1905.
Footnote 502:
De Lespinasse, “Les métiers et corporations de la ville de Paris,”
Paris, 1892, p. 11.
Footnote 503:
Nature, vol. lxxxvi, p. 429; Oct. 6, 1910.
Footnote 504:
Bellucci, “Il feticismo in Italia,” Perugia, 1907, pp. 113–119.
Figures.
Footnote 505:
Pettigrew, “On Superstitions Connected with the History and Practice
of Medicine and Surgery,” p. 36. (Quotation from Melton,
“Astrologaster,” p. 20.)
Footnote 506:
Notes and Queries, 2d Series, vol. viii, London, 1859, p. 242.
Footnote 507:
Wehrenfels, “A Dissertation on Superstition,” p. 36; prefixed to
“Occasional Thoughts on the Power of Curing the King’s-Evil,” London,
1748.
Footnote 508:
Lean’s Collectanea, vol. i, Bristol, 1902, pp. 373–384.
Footnote 509:
Johann Joachim Bellermann, “Die Urim und Thummim, die ältesten
Gemmen,” Berlin, 1824, pp. 21, 22. For a full account of the
breastplate see the present writer’s “The Curious Lore of Precious
Stones,” Philadelphia and London, 1913, chap. viii, pp. 275–306.
Footnote 510:
Wallace-Dunlop, “Glass in the Old World,” London, n. d., p. 6.
Footnote 511:
From “Jewellers’ Circular Weekly,” Nov. 12, 1913.
Footnote 512:
Sancti Eusebii Hieronymi “Opera Omnia,” ed. Migne, vol. iv, Parisiis,
1865, cols 543, 544.
Footnote 513:
Sometimes believed to be rock-crystal.
Footnote 514:
Sancti Eusebii Hieronymi “Opera Omnia,” ed. Migne, vol. iv, Parisiis,
1865, col. 544.
Footnote 515:
A stained or colored massive quartz.
Footnote 516:
Sancti Eusebii Hieronymi “Opera Omnia,” ed. Migne, vol. iv, Parisiis,
1865, col. 545.
Footnote 517:
Ibid. col. 544.
Footnote 518:
Konrad von Megenberg’s version, “Buch der Natur,” ed. by Dr. Franz
Pfeiffer, Stuttgart, 1861, p. 459.
Footnote 519:
The Complete Ceremonies and Procedures Observed at the Coronation of
the Kings and Queens of England, London, n. d., p. 28.
Footnote 520:
Sanctorum Hildefonsi, Leodegarii, Juliani, “Opera Omnia,” ed. Migne,
Parisiis, 1882, coll. 283–318.
Footnote 521:
Adolf Furtwängler, “Die Antiken Gemmen,” Berlin, 1900; vol. i, Plate
LXVII, Nos. 5, 2; described in vol. ii, p. 309.
Footnote 522:
Ibid., vol. i, Plate LXVIII, fig. 8; described in vol. ii, p. 307.
Footnote 523:
Op. cit., vol. i, Plate LXVII, in No. 7; described in vol. ii, p. 307.
Footnote 524:
Op. cit., vol. I, Plate LXVII, No. 3; described in vol. ii, p. 307.
Footnote 525:
Op. cit., vol. i, Plate LXVII, No. 1; described in vol. ii, p. 307.
Footnote 526:
Handbuch der Königlichen Museum zu Berlin, Kunstgewerbe Museum, by
Julius Lessing, Berlin, 1892, p. 14.
Footnote 527:
The Jewellers’ Circular, Wednesday, December 16, 1914, vol. lxix, No.
20, p. 43.
Footnote 528:
F. de Mély, “Le Trésor de Chartres 1314–1793,” Paris, 1886, pp. 16–21,
30.
Footnote 529:
See C. W. King, “Early Christian Numismatics,” London, 1873, pp.
95–112; “The Emerald Vernicle of the Vatican.”
Footnote 530:
Thurston, “History of the Rosary in all Countries,” Journal of the
Society of Arts, vol. 1, p. 271; London, 1902.
Footnote 531:
Leumann, “Rosaries Mentioned in Indian Literature;” in Trans. of the
Ninth Cong. of Orient; (1892), London, 1893, pp. 883–889.
Footnote 532:
Inventory of royal treasures in the Château de Fontainebleau, Bibl.
Nat. MS. franc. 4732; fol. 3 of transcript in author’s library from
the collection of M. E. Molinier.
Footnote 533:
Carlos Justi, “Los Arfe”; in España Moderna, vol. 299, November, 1913,
pp. 83, 87.
Footnote 534:
Mémoires de Madame la Duchesse d’Abrantès, Paris, n. d., vol. 7, p.
447.
Footnote 535:
Robert de Berquen, “Les Merveilles des Indes,” Paris, 1661, pp. 87,
32.
Footnote 536:
Dr. B. Ježek, “Aus dem Reiche der Edelsteinen,” Prag, 1913, pp.
128–131.
Footnote 537:
See G. F. Kunz, “Five Brazilian Diamonds,” Science, vol. iii, p. 649,
No. 69, May 30, 1884.
Footnote 538:
Heuen Tsang, “Mémoires sur les contrées occidentales,” French trans.
by Stanislas Julien, Paris, 1857, vol. i, p. 482.
Footnote 539:
“The Saddharma-Pundarîka, or the Lotus of the True Law,” trans. by H.
Kern, Oxford, 1884, p. 228.
Footnote 540:
See J. Ribeyro, “Histoire de l’Isle de Ceylon,” French trans. of Abbé
le Grand, Amsterdam, 1701, pp. 184, 185.
Footnote 541:
An account of King Kirti Sri’s embassy to Siam in 1672, Saka (1750
A.D.), trans. from Sinhalese by P. E. Pieris. Extract from Jour. Roy.
As. Soc., vol. xviii, No. 54 (1903).
Footnote 542:
Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of London, vol. xvii, p.
168, illustration.
Footnote 543:
Surindro Mohun Tagore, “Mani Mala,” Pt. II, Calcutta, 1881, pp. 573,
601, 703.
Footnote 544:
Hendley, “Indian Jewellery,” London, 1909, p. 106; see Major H. H.
Cole, “Preservation of the Natural Monuments of India,” Pl. 52.
Footnote 545:
“Journal of Sir Thomas Roe, Ambassador of James I to Shah Jehangir,
Mogul Emperor of Hindoostan”; in Kerr’s Collection of Voyages and
Travels, Edinburgh, 1824, vol. ix, p. 288.
Footnote 546:
Von Hammer, “Auszüge aus dem persischen Werke, Buch der Edelsteine,
von Mohammed Ben Manssur”; in Fundgruben des Orients, vol. vi, p. 138;
Wien, 1818.
Footnote 547:
Berthold Laufer, “Jade, a Study in Chinese Archæology and Religion,”
Chicago, 1912, p. 157.
Footnote 548:
J. Deniker, “The Dalai Lama’s new Tse-boum from Paris,” Century
Magazine, vol. lxvii, No. 4, Feb., 1904, pp. 582–583, with
illustration.
Footnote 549:
Berthold Laufer, “Notes on Turquois in the East,” Field Museum of
Natural History, Anthropological Series, vol. xiii, No. 1, Chicago,
July, 1913, p. 11.
Footnote 550:
“Verdadera historia de los sucesos de la conquista de la Nueva
España,” Bib. de Aut. Esp., vol. xxvi, Madrid, 1866, p. 35.
Footnote 551:
Dr. Eduard Seler, “Similarity of Design of Some Teotihuacan Frescoes
and Certain Mexican Pottery Objects,” in Proceedings of the
International Congress of Americanists, XVIII Session, London, 1912;
Pt. II, London, 1913, p. 200.
Footnote 552:
“Among them that are born of woman there hath not arisen a greater.”
Matt. xi, 11.
Footnote 553:
“Œuvres du Seigneur de Brantôme,” Londres, 1779, vol. v, pp. 35, 36.
Footnote 554:
W. H. Holmes, “Masterpieces of Aboriginal American Art,” II, Mosaic
Work; reprint from Art and Archæology, vol. I, no. 3, Nov., 1914; see
pp. 96, 97, and Figs. 2 and 3, pp. 92, 93.
Footnote 555:
Edward H. Thompson, “The Home of a Forgotten Race”; in The National
Geographic Magazine, vol. xxv, No. 6, pp. 585–608; June, 1914.
Footnote 556:
Fewkes, “Archæological Investigations on the Island of La Plata,
Ecuador,” Field Columbian Museum Pub. No. 56; Anthrop. Ser., vol. ii,
No. 5, Chicago, 1901, pp. 266 sqq.
Footnote 557:
George F. Kunz, “Gems and Precious Stones of North America,” New York,
1890, pp. 61, 62.
Footnote 558:
Karutz, “Der Emanismus,” in Zeitschrift für Ethnologie, 45th Jahrgang,
1913, Heft III, Berlin, 1913, pp. 559, 560.
Footnote 559:
Browne, “Pseudodoxia Epidemica,” London, 1650, Bk. II, chap. 5, p. 65.
Footnote 560:
Scientific American, June 28, 1913, p. 575.
Footnote 561:
Morris Jastrow, Jr., “Die Religion Babyloniens und Assyriens,” vol. I,
Giessen, 1905, pp. 335–339.
Footnote 562:
Pogue, “The Turquois,” Washington, 1915, citing an article by Sikes,
In “Folk-lore,” vol. xii, p. 268, London, 1901.
Footnote 563:
Cited by Joseph E. Pogue, in “The Turquois”; Memoirs of the National
Academy of Sciences, vol. xii, pt. ii, Third Memoir, Washington, 1915,
p. 13. From Ouseley, “Travels in Various Countries of the East, more
Particularly Persia,” London, 1819, vol. i, pp. 210–212.
Footnote 564:
Pogue, “The Turquois,” Washington, 1915, citing Petrie “Egyptian
Tales, First Series, Fourth to Twelfth Dynasty,” London, 1895, pp.
16–22.
Footnote 565:
Budge, “The Mummy,” Cambridge, 1894, pp. 330–331.
Footnote 566:
Communicated by Dr. Arthur Fairbanks, Director of the Boston Museum of
Fine Arts.
Footnote 567:
“Life Work of Sir Peter Le Page Renouf,” vol. vi, Paris, 1907.
Footnote 568:
“The Life Work of Sir Peter Le Page Renouf,” vol. iv, Paris, 1907, p.
71.
Footnote 569:
Flinders Petrie, “The Arts and Crafts of Ancient Egypt,” Edinburgh and
London, 1909, p. 79.
Footnote 570:
Carlo Landberg, “Proverbes et dictons de la province de Syrie, Section
de Sayda,” Leyden, 1883, pp. 313, 314.
Footnote 571:
Oskar Schneider, “Ueber Anschwemmung von antiken Arbeitsmaterial an
der Alexandriner Küste,” in “Naturwissenschaftliche Beiträge zur
Geographie und Kulturgeschichte,” Dresden, 1883, pp. 4, 5, 6.
Footnote 572:
Maçoudi, “Les Prairies d’Or,” text and French trans. by Barbier de
Meynard and Pavet de Courteille, vol. ii, Paris, 1863, pp. 436, 437,
chap, xxxii.
Footnote 573:
Gesenius in his Hebrew Dictionary even conjectures that the lehâshîm
may have been shells, which when held to the ear gave forth sounds
believed to have an ominous significance.
Footnote 574:
Delegation en Perse, vol. viii, Recherches Archéoligiques 3 ème Série,
Paris, 1905, pp. 36–58.
Footnote 575:
“Curieuse Kunst und Werck-Schul,” Nürnberg, 1705, p. 994.
Footnote 576:
Préceptes Médicaux de Serenus Sammonicus, text and trans. by L.
Baudet, Paris, 1845, pp. 74–77.
Footnote 577:
De Foe, “A Journal of the Plague Year,” London, 1895, p. 38 (vol. ix
of Works ed. by Aitken).
Footnote 578:
Ms. Gr. No. 2411, fol. 60. See C. Werscher, Bull. de la Soc. Nat. des
antiq. de la France, 1874, vol. xxxv, pp. 153 sqq.
Footnote 579:
King, “Early Christian Numismatics,” London, 1873, p. 187.
Footnote 580:
In the author’s library.
Footnote 581:
King, “Early Christian Numismatics,” London, 1873, pp. 229, 230.
Footnote 582:
Gregorii Episcopi Turonensis, “Historia Francorum,” ed. Arndt, and
Krusch, Para I, Hannoveræ, 1884, p. 349, lib. viii, cap. 33.
Footnote 583:
Dictionnaire d’Archéologie Chrétienne, ed. by Dom Fernand Cabrol and
Dom H. Leclercq, Fasc. xxv, Paris, 1911, cols. 696–698, with cuts of
the talisman taken from those given by E. Aus’m Weertht to illustrate
a paper in the Jahrb. des Vereins der Alterthumsfreunde im Rheinlande,
vols. xxxix-xl, p. 265–272, Plates IV, V, VI, Bonn, 1866. The original
photographs were taken by express permission of Napoleon III.
Footnote 584:
Emile Ollivier, “L’Empire Libérale,” Paris, 1897, vol. ii, p. 55.
Footnote 585:
Rev. Oswald Cockayne, “Leechdoms, Wortcunning and Starcraft of Early
England,” London, 1865, vol. ii, p. 299 (Bk. II, cap. 66 of the “Laece
Boc”).
Footnote 586:
Renel, “Les religions de la Gaule avant le Christianisme,” Paris,
1906, p. 97.
Footnote 587:
See Paul Broca, “Sur la trépanation du crâne et les amulettes
crâniennes de l’époque néolitique,” Revue d’Anthropologie, vol. vi,
1877, pp. 1–42, 193–225; and also his “Amulettes crâniennes et
trépanation préhistorique” in the same Revue, vol. v, 1876, pp. 106,
107.
Footnote 588:
Kumagusu Minakata, “Trepanning among Ancient Peoples,” Nature, Jan.
15, 1914, pp. 555, 556; citing Encyclopædia Britannica, 1910, vol.
xiii, p. 518, and E. A. Schiefner, “Tibetan Tales,” trans. Ralston,
1906, p. 98.
Footnote 589:
Pierre Lacroix, “Sciences et Lettres au Moyen Age,” Paris, 1877, p.
250.
Footnote 590:
Martin, “Histoire de France,” vol. x, Paris, 1844, p. 451, note. From
a communication of Pierre Lacroix, citing as authority: “Catalogue des
tableaux, antiquités, pierres gravées, etc., etc., du cabinet de feu
M. d’Ennery, écuyer,” by Remi and Miliotti, Paris, 1786.
Footnote 591:
Birlinger, “Kleinere deutsche Sprachdenkmäler”; in Germania, vol. iii
(1863), p. 303.
Footnote 592:
Cardani, “De subtilitate,” lib. vii, Basileæ, 1560, p. 473.
Footnote 593:
Inventaire des biens de Marguerite de Flandres Duchesse de Bourgogne,
Bibl. Nat., coll. Moreau, 1727; on fol. 96 of transcription in
author’s library, from the collection of M. E. Molinier.
Footnote 594:
Konrad von Megenberg’s old German version “Buch der Natur,” ed. by Dr.
Franz Pfeiffer, Stuttgart, 1861, p. 449.
Footnote 595:
Cardani, “De rerum varietate,” lib. v, Basileæ, 1557, p. 100.
Footnote 596:
Cardani, “Philosophi opera quædam,” Basileæ, 1585, p. 330.
Footnote 597:
“Anatomy of Melancholy,” Bk. II, § 4, i, 4.
Footnote 598:
Agnes Strickland, “Lives of the Queens of England,” vol. vii, pp. 770,
778.
Footnote 599:
Alex. Nicholes, “A Discourse of Marriage and Wiveing,” 1615, Hasl.
Misc. II, 180; cited in Lean’s Collectanea, vol. ii, Pt. II, Bristol,
1903, p. 641.
Footnote 600:
F. Lalut, “L’amulet de Pascal,” in Annales méd. psych., I ser., vol.
v, pp. 157–180; and P. E. Littré, “Médecine et médecins,” Paris, 1872,
pp. 95–97.
Footnote 601:
“Die Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart,” ed. by Friedrich Michael
Schiele, vol. i, Tübingen, 1909, col. 455.
Footnote 602:
Enrico H. Giglioli, “Di alcuni ex-voto amuleti, ed altri oggetti
litici adoperati nel culto di Krishna, sotto la forma di Jagan-natha a
Puri in Orissa,” Archivio per l’Antropologia, vol. xxiii, pp. 87–89;
Firanzi, 1893.
Footnote 603:
Berthold Laufer, “Notes on Turquois in the East,” Field Museum of
Natural History, Publication 169; Anthropological Series, vol. xiii,
No. 1. Chicago, July, 1913; see text opposite frontispiece plate.
Footnote 604:
Berthold Laufer, “Jade, a Study in Chinese Archæology and Religion,”
Chicago, 1912, pp. 194 sqq.
Footnote 605:
Communicated by Dr. Charles S. Braddock, formerly physician to the
court of Siam, under date of February 13, 1903.
Footnote 606:
Hendley, “Indian Jewellery,” London, 1909, p. 27; Plate XV, Figs. 112,
113.
Footnote 607:
L. Austine Waddell, “Lhasa and its Mysteries, with a Record of the
Expedition of 1903–1904,” London, 1905, pp. 347, 348.
Footnote 608:
Ibid., pp. 348, 349.
Footnote 609:
Fortunio Liceti, De annulis, cap. 19.
Footnote 610:
Hendley, “Indian Jewellery,” London, 1909, p. 59.
Footnote 611:
H. Shway Yoe, “The Burman: His Life and Nations,” in “Indian
Jewellery,” by T. H. Hendley. The Journal of Indian Art and Industry,
Jan., 1909, vol. xii, No. 105, p. 143.
Footnote 612:
Edmond Doutté, “Magie et Religion,” Alger, 1909, pp. 320 sqq.
Footnote 613:
Alois Musil, “Arabia Petræa,” Wien, 1908, vol. iii, pp. 314, 315.
Footnote 614:
Lean’s Collectanea (by Vincent Stuckey Lean), vol. ii, Pt. I, Bristol,
1903, p. 468.
Footnote 615:
Professora Isabel Ramirez Castañeda, “El Folk-Lore de Milpa Alta, D.
F., Mexico,” in Proceedings of the International Congress of
Americanists, XVIII Session, London, 1912, Pt. II, London, 1913, pp.
352–354.
Footnote 616:
Ibid., pp. 356, 357.
Footnote 617:
George Grant McCurdy, Ph.D., “A Study of Chiriquian Antiquities,” New
Haven, Conn., 1911, p. 42, figs. 45 and 49; Mem. of the Conn. Acad, of
Arts and Sciences, vol. iii, March, 1911.
Footnote 618:
R. Verneau and P. Rivet, “Ethnologie ancienne de l’Equateur,” Paris,
1912, vol. vi of Mission du service Géologique de l’armée pour la
mesure d’un arc de méridien equatorial en Amérique du Sud, 1899–1900,
pp. 222, 223, Plate XIII, fig. 4.
Footnote 619:
George Frederick Kunz, “Folk-lore of Precious Stones,” Chicago, 1894;
reprint from Memoirs of the International Congress of Anthropology;
see p. 269.
Footnote 620:
George H. Pepper, “The Exploration of a Burial-room in Pueblo Bonito,
New Mexico,” Putnam Anniversary Volume, New York, 1909, pp. 229, 230,
236, 237.
Footnote 621:
George H. Pepper. The plate is from the “American Anthropologist,” New
Series, vol. vii, pl. xvii.
Footnote 622:
“The Turquois. A Study of its History, Mineralogy, Geology, Ethnology,
Archæology, Mythology, Folklore and Technology.” By Joseph E. Pogue.
Third Memoir, vol. xii, National Academy of Sciences, Washington, D.
C., 1915, 162 p., plates 22, 4to.
Footnote 623:
Pogue, “The Turquois,” citing Russell, “The Pima Indians,” in 26th
Annual Report of the Bureau of Amer. Ethnology, 1904–1905, p. 112.
Footnote 624:
“Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico,” ed. by Frederick Webb
Hodge; Smithsonian Inst., Bur. of Am. Ethn., Bull. 30, Pt. II, p. 178;
Washington, 1910.
Footnote 625:
W. J. Hoffman, “The Midêwiwin, or Grand Medicine Society of the
Ojibway”; 7th Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, 1885–86, Washington,
1891, pp. 149–300, with many illustrations.
Footnote 626:
Loc. cit., Pl. XI, fig. 7, opp. 220.
Footnote 627:
W. J. Hoffman, “The Midêwiwin, or Grand Medicine Society of the
Ojibway”; 7th Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, 1885–86, Washington,
1891, p. 277.
Footnote 628:
L’Abbé Banier and l’Abbé Mascrier, “Histoire générale des cérémonies,
mœurs, et coutumes religieuses de tous les peuples du monde,” Paris,
1741, p. 101.
Footnote 629:
Free Museum of Science and Art, Bulletin No. 4, Jan., 1898, p. 183
(with figures).
Footnote 630:
John Murdoch, “The Point Barrow Eskimo,” 9th Report of the Bureau of
Ethnology, 1887–88, Washington, 1892, p. 435.
Footnote 631:
Ibid., p. 439, fig. 426.
Footnote 632:
Ibid., p. 438; see fig. 425.
Footnote 633:
Ibid., p. 439.
Footnote 634:
Hans Egede, “A Description of Greenland,” London, 1745, p. 194 (Eng.
trans.).
Footnote 635:
David Crantz, “The History of Greenland”: London, 1767, vol. i, p. 216
(Eng. trans.).
Footnote 636:
Rasmussen, “The People of the Polar North,” Philadelphia, 1908, p.
139.
Footnote 637:
Ibid., p. 139.
Footnote 638:
J. G. Frazer, “Balder the Beautiful,” London, 1913, vol. ii, p. 155.
See also by the same writer, “Folk-lore in the Old-Testament,” in
Anthropological Essays, presented to E. B. Tyler, Oxford, 1907, pp.
148 sqq.
Footnote 639:
Sir George Grey, “Journals of Two Expeditions of Discovery,” London,
1841, vol. ii, pp. 340, 341.
Footnote 640:
Bonney, Journ. of the Anthrop, Inst., vol. xiii, p. 130.
Footnote 641:
For further details concerning these strange ornaments, see the
writer’s “Curious Lore of Precious Stones,” J. B. Lippincott Company,
Philadelphia and London, 1913, pp. 87–90.
Footnote 642:
Fernie, “Precious Stones for Curative Wear,” Bristol, 1907, p. 39.
Footnote 643:
A. E. Wright and E. Lovett, “Specimens of Modern Mascots and Ancient
Amulets of the British Isles,” Folk Lore, vol. xix, 1908, p. 293.
Footnote 644:
Grey, “Polynesian Mythology,” London, 1855, p. 132.
Footnote 645:
Elsdon Best, “The Stone Implements of the Maori,” Dominion Museum
Bulletin, No. 4, Wellington, New Zealand, 1912.
Footnote 646:
Giglioli, “Materiali per lo studio della Età della Pietra,” Archivio
per l’Antropologia e l’Etnologia, vol. xxxi, pp. 79, 80; Firenze,
1901.
Footnote 647:
Ibid., pp. 82, 83.
Footnote 648:
“Folk Lore,” vol. xxiv, No. 2, July, 1913, Story sent to R. R. Marett
by Mr. D. Jenness of Baliol College, Oxford.
Footnote 649:
Fraser, “The Golden Bough,” Pt. I, “The Magic Art,” London, 1911, vol.
i, p. 164.
Footnote 650:
J. G. Frazer, “Balder the Beautiful,” London, 1913, vol. ii, p. 142;
citing B. Julg, “Kalmückische Märchen,” Leipzig, 1866, No. 12, pp. 58
sqq.
Footnote 651:
W. L. Hildburgh, “Further Notes in Spanish Amulets,” in Folk Lore,
vol. xxiv. No. 1, March 31, 1913, pp. 63–74; 2 plates.
Footnote 652:
W. L. Hildburgh, “Notes on Spanish Amulets,” Folk Lore, vol. xvii,
1906, pp. 454–472. See Plate VIII, fig. 29, opp. p. 462.
Footnote 653:
W. L. Hildburgh, “Further Notes on Spanish Amulets,” in Folk Lore,
vol. xxiv, No. 1, p. 66, March 31, 1913; one of those amulets is shown
in Plate I, fig. 4, p. 64.
Footnote 654:
S. Weissenberg, “Südrussische Amulette,” in Zeitschrift für
Ethnologie, 1897, pp. 367–369.
Footnote 655:
From Jewellers’ Circular Weekly, Feb. 5, 1913, p. 153.
Footnote 656:
A. E. Wright and E. Lovett, “Specimens of Modern Mascots and Ancient
Amulets of the British Isles,” Folk Lore, vol. xix, p. 295, Plate V,
fig. 1.
Footnote 657:
See A. E. Wright and E. Lovett, “Specimens of Modern Mascots and
Ancient Amulets of the British Isles,” Folk Lore, vol. xix, 1904, pp.
288–303; citing Bratly, “The Power of Gems and Charms,” London, 1907.
Footnote 658:
A, E. Wright and E. Lovett, “Specimens of Modern Mascots and Ancient
Amulets of the British Isles,” Folk Lore, vol. xix, p. 303.
Footnote 659:
St. Louis Democrat, 1905.
Footnote 660:
See the writer’s “The Curious Lore of Precious Stones,” J. B.
Lippincott Company, Philadelphia and London, 1913, p. 125; also pp.
68, 96.
Footnote 661:
Wilhelmus Parisiensis, quoted in Pancirollus, “History of Many
Memorable Things,” London, 1715, vol. i, p. 42.
Footnote 662:
Benvenuto Cellini, “Due trattati, uno intorno alle otto principali
arti dell’ oreficeria,” etc., Fiorenzi, Valenti Panizzi & Marco Peri,
1568, fol. 10.
Footnote 663:
Edmond Doutté, “Magie et Religion,” Alger, 1909, pp. 83, 84.
Footnote 664:
Berthelot, “Collection des anciens alchemistes grecs,” Paris, 1888,
1889, vol. i, p. 9 of text.
Footnote 665:
Roth, “Great Benin, Its Customs, Art and Horrors,” Halifax, England,
1903, p. 95.
Footnote 666:
See Wilt’s “History of India,” vol. ii, p. 197. Cited in Lean’s
Collectanea, vol. ii, Pt. II, Bristol, 1903, p. 641.
Footnote 667:
C. G. Jentsch, “Dissertatio physico-historica de gemmis,” Lipaiæ,
1706, p. 19. See also the present writer’s “The Curious Lore of
Precious Stones,” Philadelphia and London, 1913, p. 41.
Footnote 668:
Ulloa’s Voyage to South America, trans. of John Adams, in Pinkerton’s
Voyages and Travels, vol. xiv, London, 1813, p. 546.
Footnote 669:
Pocock’s “Travels in Egypt,” Pinkerton’s “Voyages and Travels,” vol.
xv, London, 1814, p. 238.
Footnote 670:
See Warren K. Moorehead, “Hematite Implements of the United States,”
Bulletin VI of the Department of Archæology, Phillips Academy,
Andover, Mass., Andover, 1912.
Footnote 671:
Ibid., p. 81, Fig. 41.
Footnote 672:
Ibid., p. 91, Fig. 47.
Footnote 673:
Note on jade copied from the Tûzuk-i-Jâhangiri, or memoirs of
Jahangir, trans. by Alexander Rogers, London, 1909, p. 146; Orient.
Trans. Fund, N. S., vol. xix.
Footnote 674:
See The Morgan-Whitney Collection of Chinese Jades and other Hard
Stones, donated to the Isaac Delgado Museum of Art, City Park, New
Orleans, 1914, p. 32; plate opp. p. 33.
Footnote 675:
Communicated by Dr. O. C. Farrington.
Footnote 676:
See in praise of the moonstone the poem autographed for this work by
the poet, Edward Forrester Sutton.
Footnote 677:
Petri Servii, “Dissertatio de unguento armario,” Romæ, 1643, p. 43.
Footnote 678:
Johann August Donndorf, “Natur und Kunst,” Leipzig, 1790, vol. ii, p.
497.
Footnote 679:
Berthold Laufer, “Notes on Turquois in the East,” Chicago, 1913, p.
50, vol. xiii, No. 1, of Anthropological Series of Field Museum of
Natural History; citing a translation by MM. Chavannes and Pelliot
entitled: “Un traité manichéen retrouvé en Chine,” pub. in Journal
Asiatique, 1912.
Footnote 680:
“Ancient Accounts of India and China by Two Mohammedan Travellers,”
trans. by Abbé Renaudot, London, 1733, p. 96.
Footnote 681:
“Ancient Accounts of India and China by Two Mohammedan Travellers,”
trans. by Abbé Renaudot, London, 1733, pp. 97, 98.
Footnote 682:
See Hakluyt, “The Principal Navigations, Voyages and Discoveries of
the English Nation,” London, 1589.
Footnote 683:
H. Lyster Jameson, in “Nature,” Oct. 7, 1912.
Footnote 684:
See “Nature,” Oct. 24, 1912, p. 220.
Footnote 685:
Rumphius, “D’Amboinische Rariteitskamer,” Amsterdam, 1741, p. 62.
Footnote 686:
Schiller’s “Werke,” ed. by R. Boxberger, vol. iv, Berlin and
Stuttgart, n. d., pp. 179, 180, note; from a communication to the
editor by Dr. R. Köhler of Weimar, in illustration of the following
lines of Schiller’s “Don Karlos,” Act II, Sc. 8:
Dem grossen Kaufmann gleich
Der, ungerührt von des Rialto’s Gold,
Und Königen zum Schimpfe, seine Perle
Dem reichen Meere wiedergab, zu stoltz
Sie unter ihrem Werte loszuschlagen.
Footnote 687:
G. W. Freytag, “Arabum proverbia,” Bonnæ ad Rhenam, 1843, vol. iii,
Pt. 1, p. 495.
Footnote 688:
Helvetius, “De l’esprit,” vol. ii, p. 17.
Footnote 689:
Johannis Braunii, “De Vestitu Sacerdotum Hebræorum,” Amatelodami,
1680, p. 683.
Footnote 690:
From a XIII century MS. of his work, “De Proprietatibus Rerum,” fol.
clxi, recto and verso. This vellum MS. was originally in the
possession of the Carthusian Monastery of the Holy Trinity at Dijon.
Now the property of I. Martini of New York.
Footnote 691:
Leopold Claremont, “Singhalese Gems,” in The Jeweler and Metalworker,
pp. 1936a–1936g, December 15, 1913.
Footnote 692:
Abridgment by Von Hammer in the “Fundgruben des Orients,” Wien, 1818,
vol. vi.
Footnote 693:
Ibid., p. 129.
Footnote 694:
Rose, “Aristoteles de lapidibus und Arnoldus Saxo,” in Zeitschr. für
Deutsches Altertum, New Series, vol. vi, p. 386.
Footnote 695:
Aristophanes, “Clouds,” lines 768 sqq.
Footnote 696:
A. R. Tutton, in Society of Arts, London.
Footnote 697:
Chalfant, “Early Chinese Writing,” Mem. of Carnegie Museum, vol. iv,
No. 1, Pittsburgh, 1906, Pl. VI, No. 75.
Footnote 698:
De Mély, “Les lapidaires chinois,” Paris, 1896, p. lxiv.
Footnote 699:
Lacroix, “Sur le travail de la pierre polie dans le Haut-Oubangi”; La
Géographie, bulletin of the Société de Géographie, Paris, Oct. 15,
1909, pp. 201–206; figures.
Footnote 700:
“Sur le travail de la pierre polie dans le Haut-Oubanghi,” Comptes
Rendus de l’Acad. d. Sc., vol. cxlviii, 1909, p. 1725.
Footnote 701:
Giglioli, “Materiale per lo studio della Età della Pietra,” Archivio
per l’Antropologia e l’Etnologia, vol. xxxi, p. 85, Firenze, 1901.
Footnote 702:
Communication from Taw Sein Ko.
Footnote 703:
Archæologia, vol. xxvii, pp. 175, 207. London, 1838.
Footnote 704:
“A Description of the Coasts of East Africa and Malabar in the
Beginning of the Sixteenth Century, by Duarte Barbosa, a Portuguese,”
trans. by Henry E. Staney, London, 1866, p. 208; Hakluyt Soc. Pub.,
vol. xxxv.
Footnote 705:
Theophrasti, “De lapidibus (Peri lithôn),” ed. by John Hill, London,
1746; cap. 31.
Footnote 706:
Garcias ab Orta, “Aromatum historia” (Lat. version by Clusius),
Antverpiæ, 1579, lib. i, p. 175.
Footnote 707:
Finot, “Les lapidaires indiens,” Paris, 1896, p. 39, from the
“Ratnaparikha” of Buddhabhatta.
Footnote 708:
Ribeiro’s “History of Ceylon,” tr. by P. E. Pieris, Galle, n. d., Pt.
II, p. 317.
Footnote 709:
Cardani, “Philosophi opera quædam lectu digna,” Basileæ, 1585, p. 329.
Footnote 710:
Eilhard Wiedmann, “Ueber den Wert von Edelsteinen bei den Muslimen,”
in “Der Islam,” vol. ii, 1911, pp. 347 sqq.
Footnote 711:
Garbe, “Die indische Mineralien; Naharari’s Rajanighantu, Varga XIII,”
Leipzig, 1882, p. 79.
Footnote 712:
J. H. Collins, “The History of a Remarkable Gem. The Maxwell-Stuart
Topaz.” Mineralogical Magazine No. 13, 1879.
Footnote 713:
Berthold Laufer, “Notes on Turquois in the East.” Field Museum of
Natural History, Anthropological Series, vol. xiii, No. 1, Chicago,
July, 1913, pp. 5, 8.
Footnote 714:
The Tûzuk-i-Jâhangîrî, or memoirs of Jahangir, trans. by Alexander
Rogers, London, 1909, p. 238; Orient. Trans. Fund, N. S., vol. xix.
Footnote 715:
M. Tullii Ciceronis, “In Verrem,” lib. iv, Oratio nona, cap. 27.
Footnote 716:
Marshall H. Saville in the American Anthropologist, vol. xv, No. 3,
July-September, 1913.
Footnote 717:
R. Campbell, “The London Tradesman,” London, 1747, p. 143.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES
1. Silently corrected obvious typographical errors and variations in
spelling.
2. Retained archaic, non-standard, and uncertain spellings as printed.
3. Enclosed italics font in _underscores_.
*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE MAGIC OF JEWELS AND CHARMS ***
Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will
be renamed.
Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright
law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works,
so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the
United States without permission and without paying copyright
royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part
of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm
concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark,
and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following
the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use
of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for
copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very
easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation
of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project
Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away--you may
do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected
by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark
license, especially commercial redistribution.
START: FULL LICENSE
THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE
PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK
To protect the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting the free
distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work
(or any other work associated in any way with the phrase "Project
Gutenberg"), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full
Project Gutenberg-tm License available with this file or online at
www.gutenberg.org/license.
Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works
1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to
and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property
(trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all
the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or
destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in your
possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a
Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work and you do not agree to be bound
by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the
person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph
1.E.8.
1.B. "Project Gutenberg" is a registered trademark. It may only be
used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who
agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few
things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See
paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic works if you follow the terms of this
agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.
1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation ("the
Foundation" or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection
of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works. Nearly all the individual
works in the collection are in the public domain in the United
States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the
United States and you are located in the United States, we do not
claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing,
displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as
all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope
that you will support the Project Gutenberg-tm mission of promoting
free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg-tm
works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the
Project Gutenberg-tm name associated with the work. You can easily
comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the
same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg-tm License when
you share it without charge with others.
1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern
what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are
in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States,
check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this
agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing,
distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any
other Project Gutenberg-tm work. The Foundation makes no
representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any
country other than the United States.
1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:
1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other
immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg-tm License must appear
prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg-tm work (any work
on which the phrase "Project Gutenberg" appears, or with which the
phrase "Project Gutenberg" is associated) is accessed, displayed,
performed, viewed, copied or distributed:
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no
restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it
under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this
eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the
United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where
you are located before using this eBook.
1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is
derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not
contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the
copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in
the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are
redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase "Project
Gutenberg" associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply
either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or
obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg-tm
trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg-tm electronic work is posted
with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution
must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any
additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms
will be linked to the Project Gutenberg-tm License for all works
posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the
beginning of this work.
1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this
work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg-tm.
1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this
electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without
prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with
active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project
Gutenberg-tm License.
1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary,
compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including
any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access
to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg-tm work in a format
other than "Plain Vanilla ASCII" or other format used in the official
version posted on the official Project Gutenberg-tm website
(www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense
to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means
of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original "Plain
Vanilla ASCII" or other form. Any alternate format must include the
full Project Gutenberg-tm License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.
1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying,
performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg-tm works
unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.
1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing
access to or distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
provided that:
* You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from
the use of Project Gutenberg-tm works calculated using the method
you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed
to the owner of the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark, but he has
agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid
within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are
legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty
payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in
Section 4, "Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation."
* You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies
you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he
does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg-tm
License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all
copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue
all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg-tm
works.
* You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of
any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the
electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of
receipt of the work.
* You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free
distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm works.
1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work or group of works on different terms than
are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing
from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of
the Project Gutenberg-tm trademark. Contact the Foundation as set
forth in Section 3 below.
1.F.
1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable
effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread
works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project
Gutenberg-tm collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may
contain "Defects," such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate
or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other
intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or
other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or
cannot be read by your equipment.
1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the "Right
of Replacement or Refund" described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project
Gutenberg-tm trademark, and any other party distributing a Project
Gutenberg-tm electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all
liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal
fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT
LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE
PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE
TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE
LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR
INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH
DAMAGE.
1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a
defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can
receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a
written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you
received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium
with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you
with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in
lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person
or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second
opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If
the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing
without further opportunities to fix the problem.
1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth
in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you 'AS-IS', WITH NO
OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT
LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.
1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied
warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of
damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement
violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the
agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or
limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or
unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the
remaining provisions.
1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the
trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone
providing copies of Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works in
accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the
production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg-tm
electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses,
including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of
the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this
or any Project Gutenberg-tm work, (b) alteration, modification, or
additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg-tm work, and (c) any
Defect you cause.
Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg-tm
Project Gutenberg-tm is synonymous with the free distribution of
electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of
computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It
exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations
from people in all walks of life.
Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the
assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg-tm's
goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg-tm collection will
remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project
Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure
and permanent future for Project Gutenberg-tm and future
generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see
Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at
www.gutenberg.org
Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation
The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit
501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the
state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal
Revenue Service. The Foundation's EIN or federal tax identification
number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by
U.S. federal laws and your state's laws.
The Foundation's business office is located at 809 North 1500 West,
Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up
to date contact information can be found at the Foundation's website
and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact
Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg
Literary Archive Foundation
Project Gutenberg-tm depends upon and cannot survive without
widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of
increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be
freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest
array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations
($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt
status with the IRS.
The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating
charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United
States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a
considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up
with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations
where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND
DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular
state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate
While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we
have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition
against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who
approach us with offers to donate.
International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make
any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from
outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.
Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation
methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other
ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To
donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate
Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works
Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project
Gutenberg-tm concept of a library of electronic works that could be
freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and
distributed Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks with only a loose network of
volunteer support.
Project Gutenberg-tm eBooks are often created from several printed
editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in
the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not
necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper
edition.
Most people start at our website which has the main PG search
facility: www.gutenberg.org
This website includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm,
including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary
Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to
subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.
