Leisure hours among the gems

by Augustus C. Hamlin

THE SAPPHIRE.

The colored varieties of sapphire were probably known to primitive man, and were gathered in their rough state to serve as rude ornaments long before the diamond, with its less attractive natural appearance, was recognized as a treasure or a gem. The mountain torrents, laying bare the superficial strata of the gem beds, early exposed to view the sapphires of bright and attractive colors, which readily caught the close, observing eye of the savage; while the diamond, lustreless within its apparent crust, was unnoticed and unknown until civilization became far advanced and revealed the hidden splendors of the gem by the application of art.

We may therefore infer with a reasonable degree of probability that the colored sapphires, though perhaps not the most ancient in mineralogy, were in reality among the earliest gems known to man. The researches of the antiquary and the archæologist rather strengthen this view, for specimens of these stones are found among the ruins of the ancient and long-forgotten cities of Arabia and Persia, while the diamond is not.

This beautiful mineral has been known in the land of its birth from time immemorial as “korund;” and under this harsh name were included all those beautiful gems known to commerce as the Oriental ruby, topaz, emerald, and sapphire. The ancients in the days of Pliny bestowed upon the blue variety the more euphonious name of “hyacinthus.” Modern nomenclature, however, has adopted the term “sapphire” for all the transparent forms of the mineral, reserving the name “corundum” for the opaque and translucent or non-crystallized varieties.

In making use of this word, we have another illustration of the strange adoption of a term which is destitute of any relationship to the characters of the object it is intended to describe. The “sapphirus” of the ancients referred to lapis-lazuli, a blue opaque mineral spotted with minute metallic flakes; and the only significance it bears in connection with any of the forms of corundum is the simple fact that it means azure. If we follow the antiquaries still farther into the mists of early language, in seeking the etymology of the name, we shall probably find even less satisfaction. The nature of this gem, as well as most of the other precious stones, was mere conjecture to the ancients, and they formed their estimate of them chiefly from their hardness and color.

Among the early Greeks, Theophrastus strove in vain to discover some satisfactory basis of arrangement for these minerals, and to explain their forms, their constituents, and the manner of their creation. But his efforts and those of his contemporaries were of little avail; and so Ictinus, when he constructed the marvellous façade of the Parthenon, and Phidias, while he adorned it with immortal statues of marble and other stones, were alike ignorant of the nature of the materials they employed in their work. Several centuries later the treatises of the Latin philosopher Pliny show that science had made but little progress in this respect. The people of India and of the valley of the Euphrates, however, undoubtedly studied at a very early period the internal structure of the precious stones, and the revelations thus obtained had some effect in shaping their religion and their views of civilization.

In searching for the mysterious in the gems, the Assyrians discovered the cuneiform crystals in the interior of transparent sapphires, and adopted the forms for their own use, believing them to be the language of the genii. We have little doubt but that the cuneiform character which now reveals the history of the extinct Oriental empires had its origin from the wonderful crystallizations sometimes seen in the internal structure of the sapphire. These crystals are sometimes visible to the naked eye; but when the polished surface of the mineral is exposed to a magnifying lens of even low power, they appear with startling distinctness, and exhibit forms of perfect arrow-head shape of all colors. The field of vision may at first include but a single arrow-head crystal of perfect symmetrical outline floating in the azure of the stone; but as the field is shifted myriads of crystals may suddenly come into view, presenting a scene of such remarkable beauty and fascination that the observer ceases to wonder at the credulity of Arabian superstition. These crystallizations may occur in sapphires of any hue, and then again we may search in vain for them in many other specimens of the same mineral. Some specimens may contain a very few of these arrow-head forms, while others seem to be composed of multitudes and masses of them. One large red sapphire of four karats weight submitted to our inspection appears to be composed of clouds of these cuneiform crystals; and under the magnifying power of about twenty diameters it presents fields of arrow-heads flashing forth the most brilliant hues, and changing into new scenes of startling and transcendent beauty as the focus is varied. Whatever startled the imagination of the ancients with a new and mysterious beauty was at once invested with supernatural power.

In connection with this theme it is interesting and instructive to trace back the history of the gems and precious stones even within the period of the past two hundred years, and read the descriptions and definitions bestowed upon them by mineralogists. Some of the most gifted of men, like Linnæus and Wallerius, labored diligently to place them correctly in science; but their efforts to define and arrange them properly seem at the present day like schoolboy fancies. Daubenton conceived the brilliant but erroneous idea of arranging them according to their color, taking the solar spectrum for a standard. His idea was to place them in seven genera, according to the seven principal prismatic colors, and constitute species according to the different shades. This able man was not then aware that the sapphire and the tourmaline exhibit quite all of the colors of his seven genera.

Romè de L’Isle was the first mineralogical writer who classed the gems systematically; but it has since appeared that the amateur, Chevalier Baillou, preceded him in his crystallogical ideas; for in 1747 this observer described, in the catalogue of his collection, his views in relation to the properties of gems, and how their characters might be readily ascertained by the tests of hardness and specific gravity, and also by the form of their crystallizations. The distinguished and learned Abbé Haüy became interested and even fascinated with the study of the history and physical properties of the gems and the precious stones; and to his genius we are indebted for much of the information we have at the present day on this subject. He was deeply interested in the nature and characteristics of the Oriental precious stones; and being dissatisfied with the harsh term and the vague synonomy of “korund,” as applied to some of them, he proposed the more elegant name, “telesie.” But science, often disdainful of new terms, finally adopted the name proposed by Wallerius; and at the present time all of the fine and transparent varieties of corundum are called sapphire.

This remarkable mineral is found in mineralogical specimens in China, Siberia, America, and other parts of the world; but all of the fine gems, with perhaps few exceptions, come from Burmah, Pegu, Siam, lower Bengal, and Ceylon.

The island of Ceylon is the most famous of all the localities thus far known, and it is in reality the most wonderful gem deposit in the world. It was known in the period of the Roman Empire, as the land of the luminous carbuncle. This island, which is situated at the southeast extremity of the peninsula of Bengal, and separated from it by a broad but shallow strait, is about as large as England in its area. In the southern centre of the island a group of lofty mountains appears, rising to the height of about 8,000 feet above the level of the sea. On one side this great upheaval descends in successive ranges of hills until the flanks of the mountains subside into the alluvial plains; whilst on the other side the mountain range is characterized by abrupt precipices sometimes of several thousand feet in height. The great gem-producing districts of the island extend along the base of this mountain range for about fifty miles; and the central and richest part is considered to be located around Ratnapoora, which is scarcely two hundred feet above the level of the sea. This want of elevation in the Ceylon gem strata or placers becomes a marked feature when considering the high plateaux in which the diamond occurs in other parts of the world, also coupled with the fact that the two gems are not found together in the same placers. Here are situated the celebrated mines which have yielded vast quantities of the sapphire, especially the blue variety, for an indefinite period of time. They are not small and trivial deposits, but extend over large areas. Some of the plains which cover the deposits are more than thirty miles in extent, and form a large tract of country. Among them are the Kondapalle, Elk, Tolapella, Horton, Bopatalava, Moonstone, Newera Ellia, and many others.

The amount of labor expended in excavations on these plains is stupendous, and evidences still remain which indicate vast operations and remunerative labor in far distant times. The eastern portion of the plain at Newera Ellia furnishes a good example of the extent of the explorations. This region is still called the vale of rubies, and was mined on a grand scale by the ancient kings of Kandy. Many acres of this plain have been completely upturned, and the surface is still indented with numberless pits of large size, varying from three to seventeen feet in depth. The period of these extensive operations is unknown, and is so far distant as to be beyond the mention of history or tradition.

Most of the gem-bearing districts are classed as wild lands, and belong to the English Crown. As yet the authorities have never bestowed a thought upon their value as a source of revenue, and the search for gems is free to the world. Although much territory has been mined in a rude manner in past times, the fields are by no means exhausted, and offer excellent inducements to skilled labor. If some of the energy and determination now exhibited in the South Africa diamond mines could be transported to Ceylon, the gem marts would soon display the splendors of ancient times.

Ratnapoora, which is the gem mart of Ceylon, and situated in the midst of the mines, means literally the city of rubies. The mines adjacent to it and in the district of Saffragan are the principal ones now worked in the island, but the gems are found under the western plains that extend from Adams Peak to the sea. The plains and valleys southeast of Ratnapoora are all gem fields; and the beds of the torrents sometimes contain so great a quantity of broken fragments of sapphire, garnet, zircon, etc., that the sifted sands are used by the lapidaries in polishing gems.

The mining operations are generally carried on by the native Cingalese, who labor in the light of a pastime and only during intervals of their agricultural employments. Some few, however, undertake the labor as a regular business, but they belong to a low and dissipated class, and do not work systematically or with regularity. Therefore, the gem-mining of Ceylon cannot be regarded as a fixed and permanent business.

When an exploration has been determined upon, a small party of villagers set out for the promising region provided with the implements of mining and the means of camping out. The times selected for the operations are after the heavy rains which prevail in June and October, and the floods have subsided. The beds of rivers or smaller streams are often chosen as easier of access than the plains. If the river-bed is selected, the first act of the explorers is to seek for the proper locality where the gem-bearing strata may be found. To ascertain this, the Cingalese thrust a long iron rod of ten or twelve feet in length into the earth, and test the nature of the sub-soil. By means of long practice, the natives can adroitly penetrate the earth to a considerable depth, and, by the resistance to the movement of the rod, can detect the gem deposit of which they are in search.

If the indications are good, the natives proceed to build a hut if they are at a distance from their village, and prepare for the operations, which often extend over many weeks. After diverting a part of the force of the stream so as to form a quiet pool, they proceed to excavate the sand and gravel within a certain area. In order to accomplish this they use hoes with handles fifteen or more feet in length. The top strata are hurriedly raked up and thrown away; but as the pit deepens and the gem stratum is approached, the work is performed with greater care. As soon as the hoes bring up fragments and bowlders of white quartz, or strike a thin ferruginous crust, every particle of the gravel drawn up is carefully preserved. The gravel and sand thus obtained are then placed in large baskets woven of split bamboo and shaped to a conical point at the bottom. The basket thus filled is placed in the current of water, and its contents washed by imparting to it a circular motion. This washing process is kept up until the stones, gravel, and lesser particles are cleansed. During this operation the gems, which are much heavier than common stones, settle at the bottom of the basket, and are there collected together, so that when the superincumbent gravel is removed, the sapphires, garnets, zircons, etc., are easily discovered at the bottom and removed. This is the manner in which the wet diggings are carried on, and is the easiest mode of exploration; but it is by no means as sure or often as profitable as the operations in dry ground on the river banks or in the plains. The dry diggings are much more laborious, as the soil is firmer and the gem strata must be transported to water to be washed and sifted. These dry deposits are found the richest beneath the alluvial plains, which seem to have been in distant times shallow lakes and lagoons.

The gem stratum called mellan is always well defined, and occurs at a certain depth, which seems to correspond to the bottom of the lake at a definite period. This depth varies from two to twenty feet, and is perhaps even greater; but the natives rarely excavate below the depth of twenty feet. This peculiar formation, which is generally horizontal, is composed of a conglomerate of quartz gravel resting upon or mixed with a stiff clay, often indurated by a ferruginous oxide. In among this cascalho, or just below it and adhering to it, are found the fine pebbles and crystals of sapphire, tourmaline, garnet, zircon, spinel, and chrysoberyl. Under these rocks and in peculiar hollows in the plastic clay, which the natives call elephants’ footsteps, the gems are found clustered together heterogeneously, and often so perfect in form as to appear as though created there. At other places they are collected together in these pockets in such a manner as to suggest the idea that they had been washed in by a current of water.

All these varieties of gems, some of them widely differing from each other in composition and form of crystallization, are here embedded together, and seem to have one common origin. This is the true matrix, and the gems are not found in other portions of the soil unless some disturbing force has removed them, like a strong current of water breaking up the cascalho and transporting the gems to alluvions of its own deposit.

It is maintained and generally believed by mineralogists that the sapphire is formed in crystalline rocks; that in process of time the matrix is disintegrated, the gems set free, and washed down to the alluvial soils where they are now found. It is also thought that the gem-seekers might with patient care trace the precious stones to their source in the primitive ledges or the mountains, as the gold miner often follows for long distances the particles of gold in the soil until he discovers the parent vein in the solid ledge. But in Ceylon this view is not entertained by the natives; and all scientific efforts to find the sapphires in the mountain ledges have utterly failed. All trace of the sapphire and its attendant gems ceases as soon as we reach the limit of the gem stratum, and what seems to have once formed the shore of the lagoon. Beyond this plainly marked outline we may search in vain for the least sign of a connection with the older rocks either adjoining or at a distance. The result is the same if we examine the ledges on the same level or those of a higher elevation.

In some countries, in the granular limestone of New Jersey for instance, or the ripidolite of North Carolina, the granite of Siberia, or the dolomites of Switzerland, we find sapphire, or more properly corundum, of undecided colors, of inferior transparency or even of opacity; but it is very rare that a specimen is found of sufficient purity for ornamentation. The most transparent and perfect of these sapphires are generally impaired by cleavage planes which traverse the stone in several directions, preventing refraction of light, and often so marked as to appear like flaws. This circumstance indicates that the forces that deposited corundum and the fine sapphires were certainly different in character, or that the conditions in which they were exerted were not the same. For in Burmah, Pegu, India, or Ceylon, and wherever the perfect sapphires are found, they have one common matrix, and that is the peculiar ferruginous conglomerate.

This conglomerate is recognized as a recent formation; and how came these gems, which are believed to be as old as creation itself, to be found among it? This formation is not only recent, but it is actually taking place all over the world at the present day, and examples may be found in almost every country. We find in many places the peculiar strata of sand, gravel, and masses of stone in proper position to change into conglomerate, which requires the action of water highly charged with iron and lime or silica. Darwin found these stony layers in process of forming on the beaches of the Cape de Verde Islands, and in vain attempted to knock out a bolt of iron which had been cast ashore from some wreck not long before, and had in a short space of time become firmly fixed in the conglomerate. We may observe the same process taking place to-day on the coast of Cornwall, and among the débris of the ledges of the Abrolhos Islands. In dredging rivers large masses of solid conglomerate are often brought to light. The Thames has furnished many examples; and not many years ago a cannon-ball embedded in a crystalline calcareous rock was taken from the bed of the Mediterranean not far from the mouth of the Rhone. Fresh water laden with débris of vegetable matter also possesses the same cementing action as sea water, and an excellent example is seen in the allios now forming in the Landes of southern France. This allios is also a conglomerate, which has formed and is now forming at the depth of about three feet below the surface. Here the conglomerate of sand, pebbles, and angular fragments of rock is firmly cemented together by the rain-water, which filters down from the surface of the earth laden with vegetable matter. The cascalho in which the diamond is found is of similar character, and has a similar origin, for we likewise find there traces of vegetable débris, and the diamond itself contains germs of fungi and vegetable fibres of higher organizations.

But whence come the elements which form the gems? the inquirer will say. Can we gather figs from thistles? Marco Polo in the thirteenth century visited these gem beds, and has left his views in the following lines: “In ista insula nascuntur boni et nobiles rubini et non nascuntur in aliquo loco plus. Et hic nascuntur safri et topazii, amethisti et aliquæ aliæ petræ pretiosæ et rex istius insulæ habet pulchriorem rubinum de mundo.” Buffon, four centuries later, in seeking for the causes of the formation of this mineral, observed the peculiarities of the matrix on this island, and boldly stated that the origin of the precious stones like the rubies, the sapphires, and topazes of the East is the same as that of the diamond. He also stoutly maintained that these stones form and are found in the conglomerate in which is collected the débris of other matters. The researches of Sir Samuel Baker and others on these deposits seem to indicate, if they do not prove, that the sapphire in particular was formed in the sands, clay, or conglomerate where it is now found, and was not set free by the disintegration of the old crystalline rocks. Nordenskiold recognized these gem beds as true placers, but was inclined to think the gem strata had decayed and left the gems free. An article published some years ago in “Once a Week,” and supposed to have been from the pen of Sir Samuel Baker, who had lived many years at Ratnapoora, and had attentively examined the gem-bearing formations, gave the following account:—

“A common but erroneous belief is that the gems are formed in the mountains and washed down by the abrasion of the rocks and deposited in the alluvial bottoms. If it were so, they would have been traced to their source and sought for in the mountains, where they would naturally be found in greater quantities; but the natives never think of searching for precious stones in such places, and in the localities where they are found there does not appear to have been any local alteration in the veins of gravel since they were first thrown there; and my own conviction formed from observation on the spot, and for this and other reasons following, is that the sapphire and other gems have been formed and are still forming in the places where they are now found. In the first place, rounded sapphires and sapphire crystals with facets of brilliant lustre are found lying side by side. Secondly, both the rounded stones and the numerous perfect crystals, with their pyramids unbroken, show that they were never broken from other rocks, but were formed unattached to any matrix, in a soft medium such as fine sand or clay. I have seen hundreds of these taken loose from the same spot. Thirdly, crystals of sapphire are found with their edges reduced, yet with brilliant facets, which is inconsistent with their reduction by rolling. Fourthly, sapphire being much harder than any other stone with which it could come in contact, it is not easy to understand how any attrition could be brought to bear upon it to bring it to the beautifully translucent polish which the rounded stones usually bear more especially considering the short distance from the mountains to the alluvial bottoms between which the water-wearing process is supposed to be effected.

“It is remarkable that the rounded sapphires and rubies are always the densest and of the finest water and color; showing that they were formed by different chemical forces from the others. In short, there is no more reason for supposing rounded sapphires to be water-worn than for supposing that the bowlders of jasper, for instance, on the Egyptian desert were so formed, when a fracture shows them to have been formed in concentric layers and to be in their original state. The same remarks apply to the crystals of some other minerals, as zircon, tourmaline, and spinel.”

The mineralogist, in contesting this opinion, will point to the round pebbles of sapphire as evidence of disintegration and subsequent aqueous action. But upon careful inquiry we shall find that these nodular masses are regular concretions and natural formations, which do not owe their form to the abrasion of exterior force, but are the results of crystalline action. We shall also find that these peculiar stones always form the finest specimens of the class of gems to which they belong, whether sapphire, diamond, tourmaline, topaz, or chrysoberyl.

In regard to beauty of color, density, hardness of texture, and brilliancy, these apparently water-worn masses are decidedly superior to the perfectly shaped crystals, and among all the true gem mines of the world this rule is observed. In the conglomerate of Ceylon we often find gems whose appearance indicates the shock and abrasion of waves or currents of water, while we find in adjoining places perfectly formed crystals whose facets display a lustre as brilliant as on the day of their creation. Some, then, have perhaps been moved about by aqueous action, while others have never stirred from their first position.

Among all the multitudes of sapphires taken from the mines of Ceylon, we have never seen or heard of a specimen fairly attached to any rock as a matrix. Sometimes the ferruginous cement which is one of the necessary components of the matrix unites accidentally the rough gem to a mass of quartz, but all the sapphires we have seen exhibit no sign of having been attached permanently to any mineral substance. In fact, all the rounded stones and the more perfect crystallized specimens have the appearance of having been formed in a soft medium like sand or clay.

Whence come the masses of quartz that are always found in the conglomerate, and which sometimes occur of a large size? may be asked by the inquirer. This is a question which cannot be answered satisfactorily, especially when the adjoining ledges do not contain the material. We can, however, solve the problem by supposing that beds of quartz have been formed on the beds of the lagoons, and were afterwards broken up by the action of the waves, frost, or other agencies. The clay, which is often a component of this matrix, is sometimes argillaceous and at other times kaolin. We are generally inclined to believe that these substances are always the results of decomposition; yet there are abundant evidences to show that they may be original deposits. The distinguished geologist Jameson was forced to admit this from his extended observations. We find blue, reddish, and yellowish mud in cavities of the hard crystalline rocks enveloping crystals of quartz and topaz, as at Greenwood, in Maine, or Schneckenstein, in Germany. The phenomena are well marked in the felspar quarries at Bowdoinham, in Maine, and also at Schemnitz, in Hungary, in a vein four or five inches wide traversing porphyry. Whence comes this substance, when there is no opportunity for infiltration, if it is not an original deposition? Perhaps by pseudomorphism.

How and why were these sapphires deposited in globular forms when the law of crystallization is so rigid and inflexible? This is a question which requires considerable assurance to answer, in the view that they are original depositions; but Nature offers many examples to sustain the theory if we search her domain; for instance, how were the rounded nodules of flint formed in the chalk-beds? Their shape is not due to attrition, and their peculiar arrangement forbids the belief that they have been rolled or abraded by the agency of water. In the interior of solid ledges we find nodules of quartz with rounded edges, as though they had been exposed to some dissolving agency or abrading force; yet they have been beyond the reach of external violence. Hence we must conclude that their globular form is perhaps due to some deviation in the usual process of deposition or crystallization. Huronite occurs in spherical masses in hornblendic bowlders; and we may find nodules of tourmaline in the interior of the most perfect crystals of the mineral. There are other examples.

The Cingalese do the mining and sell the gems to Moors, who resort to Ratnapoora to attend the jewel fair, which is held at the annual Buddhist festival of the Pera. Purchasers not only from all parts of Ceylon, but India, come to buy gems at this time. It has therefore become the great jewel mart of the world; and one can find there many of the rare and beautiful gems found in other parts of the world: the emeralds of Peru, the topazes of Brazil, the opals of Honduras, the turquoises of Persia, the jade of China; in fact, most of the gems that have a commercial value, or any tradition attached thereto, are to be found at these fairs. They are of greater importance than the famous fairs at Novgorod in Russia, to which the gems and precious stones of Northern and Central Asia are annually sent.

The Hindoos are the best buyers of gems of all the nations of the world. Their rajahs and princes pay the highest prices for the paragons; and the poor native had rather invest in a gem, which to his simple belief adds to his security and happiness, than hoard gold coins, which are no better for concealment. The Moors are also generally the lapidaries. The tools which they use in cutting the gems are rude and primitive, and often the stones are much impaired under their hands; but some of the workmen are skilful and are able to copy with exactness the most perfectly cut gems of the European lapidaries. Workmen of the inferior class may be found in the little towns all over the island; but the artists of the first rank are located at Callatura and Colombo. Immense numbers of garnets, zircons, and inferior sapphires, with other gems, are cut by these rude artisans, who place but little value on their time, and therefore work for a trifle. These precious stones are then sold on the island or exported to foreign lands, but are generally taken to India by travelling merchants, who exchange them for produce or money. The demand is so great from the populous Mohammedan nations, that many of these gems are really higher in price in India than in the gem marts in Europe, as in the time of Tavernier, three hundred years ago. Another potent reason prevents the market from being glutted: the Hindoo parts with his gem reluctantly, and only in case of necessity or in hope of greater gain; and the wealthy Parsee prides himself upon his display of gems, as well as upon his degree of caste. The quantity of gems treasured up by the inhabitants of India must be immense.

The composition of the sapphire, when found in the clear, transparent form, is pure alumina. Its degree of hardness is 9, being inferior only to the diamond; and its range of colors is very extensive, embracing most of those seen in the solar spectrum. Its specific gravity varies from 3.9 to 4.3; and, with the exception of the zircon, it is the heaviest of all the gems. It is also compact and exceedingly tough in its texture, and resists the shocks and wear of time better than any other gem, not excepting even the diamond, which is harder, but far more fragile. In point of brilliancy, it is below the zircon, garnet, and the spinel, its refractive index being 1.77 to 1.79. This mineral possesses remarkable electrical properties, but not so marked in degree as in the tourmaline or topaz; when this property is excited in the polished specimen, the attraction continues for a considerable length of time. The property of double refraction is not often very distinct, and by means of this peculiarity it is sometimes detected from the spinel.

The term corundum is now applied to the coarser and less transparent kinds of the stone, which have been used as a polishing material from time immemorial. The granular variety known as emery is largely mixed with iron ores, and is far inferior to the transparent and purer varieties as an abrading agent. It is always of a blackish or dark-gray hue, and is often mistaken for iron ore. Asia Minor furnishes nearly all of the emery used in the arts. It is found there in masses or bowlders, either free or in granular limestone. In the United States it is found along the gold belt in the Southern States; and in Chester, a town of Massachusetts, it occurs in a large and valuable vein associated with diaspore, ripidolite, etc., which generally accompany it. At this mine at Chester, translucent sapphires of bi-pyramidal form are sometimes found. Dr. C. J. Jackson found one small blue crystal quite transparent and doubly terminated.

The corundum belt of the United States has been traced, with wide intervals, however, from Philadelphia to Northern Georgia. All along this distance of several hundred miles, masses of corundum, more or less transparent, have been found during the past forty years, but active search failed to reveal the mineral in its matrix. A few years ago exploration in the extreme southwestern part of North Carolina discovered the long-looked-for corundum in situ. It was found on the side of a mountain, in a mica-like substance called ripidolite. The corundum from this locality appears in geodes and also in well-marked crystals, ranging from small size to even the weight of three hundred pounds. It is often of perfect transparency, but may be translucent or opaque. The transparent crystals and masses, although possessing limpidity, are traversed in all directions with cleavage planes, which prevent their use in ornamentation. The colors are also irregularly distributed in patches, clouds, or in thin veneers; many specimens have been seen of variegated hues,—red, white, yellow, and blue,—and even the whole of these colors have been seen in a single specimen.

From the great number of specimens submitted to our examination we have no hesitation in saying that gems cannot be quarried at will from these mines. The inequality of color and the frequency of cleavage planes will forbid. Small gems of few grains weight may be cut from some of the transparent masses if the clear portions are selected with care, and cut with that skill which is required in the shaping of gems whose color is unequally distributed. But it is doubtful if fine gems are found in this formation, for the conditions which deposited the corundum here, and the more perfect specimens in the true gem strata elsewhere, are quite different.

The colors of the North Carolina corundum are often very fine, and we have seen specimens of a superb blue that retain their hues by candlelight. None of the reds we have ever seen have the true pigeons’-blood tint, but are tinged with blue, and are therefore of a finer shade when seen by artificial light than by daylight. The yellows are also of a decided shade, and generally form a portion only of the crystal or mass of sapphire.

Some fine crystals have been found here, but we have seen none so perfectly crystallized as the pyramidal specimens from the Asiatic mines. Several large crystals have been exhumed, one of which weighs three hundred pounds, and is well defined in its form of crystallization. It is now preserved in the valuable cabinet of Professor Shepherd, of Amherst College.

A few years ago the gold-miners, while seeking for gold in the river-beds and alluvial deposits among the mountains of Montana, observed little transparent crystals of stone among the nuggets and flakes of gold, as they cleared out their rude apparatus used in washing the auriferous soils. But little notice was taken of these limpid stones, as their colors were generally faint; but the observing gold-seekers remarked their great weight and the remarkable coldness to the touch, as they passed them around to each other in wonderment. For a long time the miners flung these minerals away with other refuse, unconscious of their character or their value; but one day there appeared in the dark sands of the gold-pans a stone which flashed forth such brilliant red gleams as to excite anew the curiosity and cupidity of the miners. This discovery led to inquiry, and the gold-seekers learned too late concerning the value of the treasures they had carelessly thrown away. Afterwards the gems were preserved and sent with the gold-dust to the States. They proved to be sapphires. Some of them were finely crystallized in long, regular prisms, but the most of them were without definite form. None of the several hundred specimens that have been submitted to us exhibited smooth faces, like the brilliant facets of crystals found in cavities of the crystalline rocks or in the gem mines of Ceylon; but all exhibited a roughness of the exterior, as though they had been abraded by aqueous action.

The colors of these sapphires are generally faded or faint; some are snow-white, but the most of them are of a faint bluish or greenish cast. We have, however, seen small gems of fine red, yellow, hyacinth, light-blue, and celadine green. We have also information of a beautiful red sapphire of six karats, but failed to trace it after it was sent from Montana.

This discovery establishes the fact beyond a doubt that the gem occurs in quite perfect form in the territories of the United States. Most of the specimens we have seen were collected at El Dorado Bar, which has since been abandoned by the gold-seekers. From this superficial search and incomplete information concerning the locality of the gem, we are unable to determine whether regular gem mines are to be found in this country, or along the slope of the mountains, which extend either north or south to a great distance. We have been assured, however, by officers of the army, that fine sapphires have been brought to them by the Indians in Colorado living on the same range and formation that stretches into Montana. Therefore we shall not be surprised if well-directed search along this formation should reveal gem beds of value; and the mere circumstance that the gold-washers do not discover them is of but little weight; for gem-seeking and gold-mining are two different explorations.

It is a little singular that none of the beautiful gems occur in huge specimens, like some of the products of the vegetable kingdom. Nature, however, in the mineral line, or certainly with the gems, creates her perfections in small bodies. We sometimes find a clear crystal of topaz, tourmaline, or emerald of a few ounces or even pounds in weight, but they are very rare; while the generality of all the choice specimens are comparatively of a diminutive size. When occurring above a certain weight they become defective either in color, limpidity, or form. They are precious stones, it is true, so far as composition is concerned, but they are not gems according to the acceptance of the word. By the word gem we not only mean a precious stone, but its transformation into a form possessing limpidity, brilliancy, attractive color, or some other charm.

As regards the sapphire, its perfect forms occur in diminutive size. This mineral is also found in Bohemia, near Merowitz, in an argillaceous or marly cement, with garnets, zircons, and even fossil shells. Tavernier relates that he saw in possession of General Wallenstein, when at Prague, some beautiful rubies, which were obtained in Bohemia. Fine stones of even five karats weight have been discovered at these mines. Concerning the mines of Lower Bengal we have but little information, and will not venture to give a description. We think they have the same characteristics as those of the gem beds of Ceylon. The Ilmenes Mountains, in Siberia, furnish sapphires of a strong blue. In Greece and Saxony they are also found in small quantities of undecided colors, and generally opaque. Impure specimens of well-defined colors are found in the volcanic débris of Expailly, in France, or among the snow-white dolomites of St. Gothard; in the granite ledges close to the base of the glacier of Bois, in the Alps of Savoy, we may observe regular prisms of sapphire, quite transparent and sometimes of a decided blue or a tender green.

The massive and opaque varieties known as adamantine spar are said to be found in granitic rocks in China, and on the coast of Malabar; but very little is known concerning the exact condition of these localities. Fibrolite and magnetic iron are said to accompany the corundum in several of its localities. Brard believes that the blue diamond of Pliny of the Island of Cyprus is no other than the blue sapphire. And this belief is not without foundation, as some of the varieties of corundum are found on the islands and coasts not far distant. Occasionally stones of fine blue tints and of considerable size are found. In 1853, a large and beautiful piece was found in the gem strata near Ratnapoora, and sold to a Moor at Colombo for $20,000. Fragments as large as goose eggs are also sometimes found in the Saffragan district, but are of an inferior character, according to Dr. Davy. Mawe describes one of three hundred and ten karats. We have in our collection a transparent, light-blue, and finely shaped crystal of three hundred and eight karats, but we fear that it will not match the distinct crystal of three inches in length which belonged to Sir Abram Hume.

The suite of blues exhibited by this gem is very extensive, and embraces all known shades and even the purest prismatic hue. The deep regal blue is too intense a color for a night gem, as by artificial light it becomes black. But there are sapphires of a celestial blue possessing perfect limpidity and rich velvety reflections that retain their splendid colors by night as well as by day, and they merit the distinction bestowed upon them by the ancients when they consecrated them to Jupiter. These superb gems are, however, exceedingly rare, and are eagerly sought for by amateurs at prices far above that of the colorless diamond. The general color of the blue sapphire is a light shade, from which it passes through various gradations to a blue black. Perfect stones of fine colors are quite rare, for they are apt to be clouded, and the color distributed unevenly in the mass. Frequently the color is in one extremity of the crystal, or appears as a spot on the surface of a nodule. In other specimens it is arranged in bands or thin clouds. Hence much skill is often required to cut them so that the gem may display a proper distribution. Frequently the color is left in the bottom of the gem, and when the stone is set the color is diffused by refraction through the upper portions, so as to give the gem the appearance of being colored throughout.

One of the most perfect and beautiful specimens of sapphire is the magnificent blue gem now in the Natural History Museum of Paris. It was given by M. Weiss in exchange for a collection of choice minerals. It is of the form of an oblique angular parallelopipedon of 132¹⁄₁₆ karats. Haüy thought it had been cut and polished; but Satrin believed that only its natural faces were polished, and that the form of the primitive crystal was not altered. This is the most probable view, for no lapidary of even ordinary skill would select the rhomboidal form for so beautiful and valuable a gem. This remarkable gem, without defects, notwithstanding its great size, was found in Bengal by a poor wooden-spoon maker. It finally was acquired by Rospoli, of Rome, but was purchased for the French Crown after several vicissitudes. It was obtained at the price of 170,000 francs, which price is certainly below its true value. France also possesses several other superb sapphires of large size. There is also in Dresden a fine sapphire, a gift from Peter the Great.

There was in the ancient Hungarian crown a fine large sapphire, surrounded with four oblong green gems, the nature of which has not yet been made known. These mysterious green stones, rendered still more interesting by the disappearance of the crown, are perhaps of modern introduction, as they are not mentioned in the inventory of the jewel when Queen Elizabeth pledged it to the Emperor Frederick IV. Hence the inquiry arises, are they green sapphires, emeralds, tourmalines, or antique glass?

In the Universal Exhibition at London, in 1855, two immense and beautiful sapphires were displayed among the collection of gems and jewels which had been gathered from all parts of the world; they belonged to Miss Burdett Coutts, and were valued at nearly $200,000. At the same exhibition might have been seen a beautiful oval sapphire, and another in the form of a drop, and of very unusual size and beauty, belonging to a rich Russian countess.

The Imperial Crown of the First Order of the Czar of Russia contains an enormous blue sapphire of great beauty and value. The Russian treasury also possesses some others of great size and rare beauty. Among them is the famous light-blue stone which formerly belonged to the cabinet of the English banker, the late Mr. Hope. There is also a very large and celebrated sapphire, said to be of marvellous beauty in the Vienna Kronenschatze. Most of the treasuries and regalias of Europe contain fine sapphires of value and beauty. Among the Crown jewels of France, there are two superb gems of twenty-seven karats each, one of nineteen karats, and about a dozen ranging in weight from nine to thirteen karats each.

The Hindoos took great pleasure in carving images of their idols, and in making grotesque forms as well as talismans, from the precious stones found in their country; and very many examples are shown to the traveller. The sapphire was often chosen for this purpose; and neither its excessive hardness nor its high price offered any serious obstacles to the determined votary or the superstitious grandee. There is a statuette of Buddha, one inch in height, carved by the Hindoos out of a perfect sapphire, in the British Museum, which came from the sack of India. One of the richest reliquaries of any age or any country is the golden case at Kandy in Ceylon, which contains a tooth of Buddha, but which the naturalists declare to be the tooth of a monkey. Never was fancied sanctity so dearly enshrined. The dental specimen is enclosed in five golden cases fitting each other en suite and incrusted with the finest rubies, sapphires, and other gems Ceylon and India has afforded.

Philostratus describes a chamber in the ancient Royal Palace of the Parthians at Babylon as follows: “It has a roof fashioned into a vault like the heaven, composed entirely of sapphires, which are the bluest of stones, and resemble the sky in color. This is the chamber in which the King delivers his judgment.” The Asiatics, in all periods of their semi-civilized history, made a lavish use of this gem in the decorations of their dwellings and their temples. Even the partial ruins of some of these edifices still to be seen in various parts of India, exhibit great beauty in their impaired mosaics of precious stones.

The red sapphire is known in commerce as the Oriental ruby, and when in perfection is the most magnificent of gems, and is rarely approached in the beauty of its gorgeous hue by any other gem. The term ruby is an indefinite one, and refers to any stone of a rich red color. All these gems were classed together in the time of Pliny, under the generic name of “carbunculus,” but the red sapphire was reckoned a variety, and especially referred to under the name of “lychnis.” It is seldom found exceeding three karats in weight, and the distinguished mineralogist, Beudant, declares that a perfect red sapphire of thirty troy grains is unknown, and would be of inestimable value. It is a singular fact that while the blue variety should occur in masses and crystals of even several ounces in weight, the red is rare even at four karats. Modern mineralogists now maintain that all of the large historic rubies are spinels, but it is within the bounds of possibility that large red sapphires do occur sometimes as exceptions to an apparently rigid rule; for we have lately received from the Ceylon mines a transparent crystal of pink color which weighs two hundred and forty-one karats. It is also stated that the King of Arrakan possesses two magnificent prisms of one and a half inches in length and an inch in diameter.

But of all the fine red sapphires which are known and proved, there are but few above five karats. The largest one of which we have any definite knowledge is the beautiful gem set in the Toison d’Or of the French Regalia, and which weighs 8³⁄₁₆ karats (= 26 grains troy). The inventory of the French gems in 1791 justly illustrates the comparative rarity and diminutive size of the stone; for in this splendid collection, which had accumulated during a long period of time, and was then the richest in Europe, there were but four red sapphires above five karats, and only five above four karats. This variety is singularly liable to imperfections, and far more so than either the blue or the yellow. It is rare to find a ruby of the pure and characteristic pigeons’-blood tint that does not in some degree exhibit silky and opalescent fibres. This defect, which generally appears as a milkiness in the interior of the gem, is due to minute crystals dispersed throughout the stone, and which become apparent when the mineral is viewed parallel to the primitive axis of the crystal. Hence, in cutting the rough stone, considerable care must be exercised by the lapidary, so as to shape the gem and render its opalescence invisible. Rubies of exquisite color are often rendered comparatively valueless on account of fibres, clouds, and chalcedony-like bands. All the red sapphires, however, are not affected in this way. The blood-red are much more liable than those which have a tinge of blue. We have examined a number of red sapphires perceptibly tinted with violet, which were completely free from internal defects. This opalescence is never possessed by the spinel, and is therefore one of the distinguishing marks in testing the nature of the red gems. The red tourmaline is also strangely liable to internal fibres, hollow threads, clouds, and longitudinal streaks, and sometimes presents an appearance similar to that of the ruby. The red sapphire is also distinguished from the other varieties by being decidedly heavier, and also by being softer than the deep-blue.

Ceylon is famous for the abundance of blue sapphires, while the red variety is comparatively rare. In Burmah, however, the red variety is the most abundant and of the finest hue. The Ceylon rubies are regarded as inferior in tint to those found in Ava and Pegu of the Burmese Empire; but they are less inclined to be opalescent, and are therefore more brilliant. The violet tinge of the Ceylon rubies lessens their beauty when viewed by daylight; but it disappears in a great measure by artificial light, and the hue then becomes of a fine prismatic red, accompanied by the most vivid lustre; therefore we may say in general terms that the Burmese rubies are the most beautiful by daylight, and that the Ceylonese are superior by night.

The finest mines of rubies in the world are near the Capelan Mountains in Ava. But concerning their extent, history, and exploration, very little is known. Colonel Symes, who visited the country in 1795, with the British Embassy, stated that the richest and most valuable of the mines were then situated in the vicinity of the capital; but that there were many other mines in various parts of the kingdom. The information concerning these remarkable deposits is vague and uncertain even at the present day; but sufficient is known to establish the fact that the geological formation is very similar to the gem beds of Ceylon and Lower Bengal. According to the publications of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, the principal mines of Burmah are situated about seventy miles east of the capital; and the deposits are discovered by sinking pits at various depths in the earth until the gem stratum is reached. It appears to be precisely like the conglomerate of Ceylon, and occurs at a depth varying from two to forty feet below the surface.

It is stated that all of the fine gems above a certain weight are monopolized by the king, who styles himself “Lord of the rubies,” and consequently but very few find their way to the marts of other nations. It is also stated that the gems are polished at Amarapoora, where there are about twenty lapidary establishments; and that pulverized blue sapphire, or the massive corundum spar, which is a trifle harder than the red variety, is used as the abrading material. All of the mines are jealously guarded from the visits of Europeans; and when Professor Oldham was allowed to examine some of them in 1855, he could learn of but one European who had previously seen them. This favored person was a deserter from the British army, and was employed by the king as superintendent of the mines.

This gem is so highly prized in Burmah that when a fine gem is discovered a procession is formed of grandees, elephants, and soldiers, and sent out to meet it and escort it to the royal treasury. The long and exclusive possession of these mines has enriched the Crown immensely; but nothing is known with certainty. Colonel Symes, however, saw some of the state carriages of the King of Ava, which were splendidly decorated with jewels. One of these carriages was a magnificent and singular production of art. Its decorations were so profuse and contained so many precious stones set in silver and gold, that it presented one entire blaze of the most brilliant colors. A vast variety of gems were used in the construction of this truly Oriental vehicle; and among them were to be seen diamonds, rubies, white and blue sapphires, emeralds, amethysts, garnets, topazes, and crystals of all kinds. Another of these queer barbaric monuments of art was lately exhibited at Rangoon. It is known as the Royal Hitee. This grotesque piece of architecture, with fantastic name, is a light edifice thirty-five feet high, formed of seven terraces, surmounted by an umbrella, which is the emblem of royalty. The terraces were richly inlaid with gold and precious stones; and the sacred umbrella was profusely decorated with valuable rubies, pearls, diamonds, and emeralds.

Rambusson has recently stated that none of the mines yielding rubies have been worked for one hundred and fifty years; and that all of the gems now offered in commerce have been collected previously. We think this author is somewhat mistaken in this statement; for we know that the Ceylon gem-deposit yields more of these gems at the present time than for a long time past; and we do not quite believe that search for them has been entirely suspended in Siam or in Burmah. During the last years of the occupation of Ceylon by the Dutch, they exacted from the tribes of the interior of the island an annual tribute in the form of a certain quantity of precious stones. Hence the King of Kandy forbade further exploration for gems by the natives; and so the gem-fields lay neglected for a long time. Lately, however, under the English rule, the ancient fondness for gem-mining has revived among the Cingalese, and some fine gems have been discovered. In 1875 a native hunter found in a remote district of Siam some remarkable mines of red and blue sapphires; and explorations brought to light many valuable stones, which found their way to the gem marts of Rangoon and Calcutta. Splendid specimens were shown to Admiral Coote; and the consul at Bangkok saw a magnificent stone of three hundred and seventy karats, which yielded a blue gem of one hundred and eleven karats weight, and of the finest water.

Rubies are even now scarce in India, and probably always will be, since the demand for them is very great among the wealthy of the populous nations of that country. Even three centuries ago Tavernier found it profitable to buy them in Europe and sell them again in the country whence they had been taken perhaps many centuries before. Red sapphires not only exhibit singular internal structures, but they may be colored strangely, thus puzzling the experimentalist to account for the distribution of coloring matter. Davila possessed a fine and rare ruby which exhibited a clear white band between two parts of red. Another gem showing a strange arrangement of color was to be seen in the cabinet of Chantilly. It was half red and half yellow. Stones of such distribution of color are marvels of rarity; but it is quite common to meet with them partly red and blue or white, or blue and yellow. They sometimes display a vague dichroism which is not so well defined as in the iolite or tourmaline. The naturalist Fanjas found at Expailly, in France, a transparent sapphire which, viewed in one direction, exhibited a green hue approaching the emerald in its beauty of tint, but when seen in another light it appeared of a very beautiful blue. In the Orleans collection there was a curious sapphire which had been engraved with the figure of a woman, the head being formed of white, and the dress of intense blue. It is related that M. Bossi, of Milan, who was an excellent connoisseur in gems, saw in possession of Prince Metsch a superb sapphire which appeared to be dotted with flakes of gold. We sometimes notice this singular appearance in the interior of other gems, and find by the use of the microscope that it is due to internal flaws or reflections from plate-like crystals within the stone. We are inclined to believe that this gem of Prince Metsch is to be classed with the sapphire owned by Abbé Pullini, which had been engraved upon by the ancients. This stone, when viewed in a certain direction, exhibited flakes of gold in the interior, which disappeared when the view was changed, which would hardly have been the case if the reflections had been produced by opaque bodies. We have before us a polished Siberian beryl which shows flakes of silver-white in certain lights, but which appear of dark-brown when the axis of vision is changed.

The Crown of England possesses some large and beautiful colored rubies, but they are probably spinels. The large one standing in the centre of the Maltese cross on top of the British crown is probably a spinel, but nevertheless of great beauty. It is also a gem of considerable historic interest, if we can believe the traditions that cluster around it, and it is believed to be the identical stone given to the famous Black Prince of England, by King Pedro of Castile, after the battle of Najara. Tradition also asserts that King Henry V. of England wore it in the front of his helmet, in the bloody battle of Agincourt, about a hundred years later. Its earlier history seems to be lost. Perhaps this is the identical ruby given in 1360 to Rudolph II. of Austria by the Queen Dowager of France. When Peter the Great visited England he gave one of the members of the royal family a very beautiful ruby which he carelessly took from his vest pocket. The last message sent by Mary, Queen of Scots, before execution to the Duke of Guise was accompanied with a beautiful ruby ring, as proof of the credibility of the messenger.

The King of Burmah is said to possess an immense ruby of wonderful beauty, of the size of a pigeon’s egg, but there is no authentic record of it. Tavernier mentions a ruby of 50 karats and another of 17¹⁄₂ karats, which he saw in possession of the King of Visapour; but as all gems of fine red color were then classed as rubies, we are ignorant of their nature. Among the numerous articles of loot obtained by the French in the sack of the Summer Palace at Pekin, was the necklace of the Emperor of China. This celestial jewel was formed of green jade stones of delicate color, perforated and strung upon a cord, to the centre of which was attached a monster red stone, of the nature of which we are not informed. It has been stated that the East India Company has the largest specimen of red sapphire known, but we are unable to vouch for the statement. The largest ruby seen in India by Garcia was of twenty-four karats weight. Chardin, however, describes a magnificent one among the crown jewels of Persia, in the year 1666. This matchless gem was as large as a hen’s egg cut in half, and was of superb color. On its superior face the name of “Chaic Sophy” had been engraved by one of its former possessors.

The Crown of Russia possesses the finest and most valuable collection of rubies in the civilized world. Some of them are of enormous size and are probably spinels, but they are nevertheless of great beauty and value. The degree of color gives the true value to the gem, no matter what its composition may be, if its hardness is equal to quartz. Among the red gems of lesser size there are undoubtedly red sapphires of value, but we have no positive details concerning them. In fact, all of the red stones of fine hues are classed as rubies without regard to their nature. The famous ruby placed under the cross in the Russian crown of Anna Ivanovna is said to have been bought at Pekin by the Russian ambassador for 120,000 roubles. It is indeed a wonderful gem, and is one of the marvels of the mineral world, whether its material be corundum, tourmaline, or spinel. It is now known that the Chinese have mines of rubies in the mountains of the Province of Yu-Nan, and it is possible that this gem may have come from that locality. The tourmaline deposits of Nertschinsk, which yield gems of splendid red hues, are not far distant from Pekin, and those mines may claim the honor of producing this rare stone.

The throne of gold, called by the Persians Takdis, was supported on feet formed of rubies. One of the seal rings of Chosroes II. was a pink ruby, with the legend engraved upon it, “Riches are the source of prosperity.” The fifth seal ring was a red ruby, bearing the legend, “Splendor and prosperity.”

The flowers, composed of the finest gems afforded by the mines of India, and placed by Shah Jehan on the tomb of his beautiful wife, in that wonderful mausoleum, the Taj Mahal, were the most precious ever made. The roses of these garlands were made of the finest rubies; and the leaves were composed of emeralds, which were made to glisten with diamond spray. The screen which was built around the tomb was carved from marble, and as delicately wrought as a veil of lace; and along its borders, lilies, tulips, roses, and other beautiful flowers, composed of precious stones, were inlaid in the marble.

The tomb of Mahomet, at Medina, must contain some superb gems and works of the goldsmith’s art. Here is to be seen that masterpiece of embroidery, the veil of Kunderas, which is composed of inwrought pearls and various precious stones of the value of ten millions of rupees. The faithful relate, that when the rays of the morning sun glance over it, its wonderful beauty seems enhanced by invisible influences. The famous sympathetic ruby of the sacred Kaaba, now preserved in the temple at Mecca, and believed to have fallen from the heavens at the beginning of the world, is undoubtedly an aerolite. The fiery red hue which it exhibited when traversing the sky, coming from unknown space, gave rise to the tradition of its being a latent ruby whose gleams of beauty had been temporarily suspended.

The yellow variety of sapphire is quite common, and exhibits many of the finest shades of yellow; but they are generally very faint in tint and often like the lemon in hue. They are exceedingly liable to imperfections, and especially to that opalescence which so often disfigures the red sapphire. Fine specimens, therefore, possessing transparency and beauty of color, are rare gems. But when it does occur in perfection, it forms a magnificent gem, which is only surpassed by the yellow diamond and zircon. Its rich golden hues, with soft and satin-like flashes, are far superior to the Brazilian topaz.

The Museum of Natural History in Paris possesses one of the finest yellow sapphires known. It is a wonderfully lustrous gem of fine color, and measures nearly an inch in length by half an inch in breadth. There is also in the same cabinet a strange gem which was once placed among the crown jewels of France. It was mentioned in the famous inventory of 1791, as a singular corundum of 19²⁄₁₆ karats weight, and of 6,000 francs value. It had been polished in the form of an elongated oval, and exhibited the remarkable appearance of being deep-blue at the extremities and yellow in the centre. This singular distribution of color is not often seen in fine specimens, although it is frequently met with among the inferior. We have also had the pleasure of examining another large gem, cut into the form of a brilliant, whose diagonal corners were blue and yellow, and yet, such was its play of dichroism, that light reflected through these two colors produced but a faint tinge of green.

This double arrangement of coloring is sometimes seen with blue and red sapphires, or yellow, blue, and white; but we have learned of but one fine gem displaying the red and yellow. Several of the transparent crystals from North Carolina exhibit the two hues in the same crystal; and we have seen one that was actually red, yellow, white, and blue. But the specimen was not sufficiently perfect to form a gem. Sometimes the yellow hues are of a greenish cast, and then they resemble the finest of the golden chrysoberyls, or they may approach the more verdant shade of the peridot. It is said by the antiquaries that none of the collections of ancient Greek and Roman engraved gems possess a single specimen in yellow sapphire. This singular absence may be partly accounted for by its rarity in perfection, and also from its liability to appear pale when set in gold.

In the French casket of gems, in the year 1791, mention was made of a superb yellow sapphire of 27¹⁴⁄₁₆ karats, two of 13 karats each, and one of 11 karats, all of which were valued at 8,900 francs. The beautiful specimen now exhibited in the Cabinet of Minerals, in the Garden of Plants at Paris, which is of the purest and richest color, joined with wonderful lustre, is supposed to be the gem mentioned above among the crown jewels. The French amateur and writer on gems, Caire, once possessed a remarkable and charming yellow sapphire of the great weight of twenty-nine karats. Its former Hindoo owner had seriously impaired its beauty by drilling a hole in one extremity for the purpose of suspension; and had also engraved on its sides inscriptions in Arabic, which were probably condensed quotations from the Koran to preserve the possessor from harm.

The green variety is probably the rarest of all the forms of sapphire, and finely tinted stones are very seldom seen. They are generally of a faint sea-green tinge, and resemble beryls in their hues. But when they do occur of grass-green color, they form magnificent gems and far exceed the true emerald in lustre and brilliancy. We very much doubt, however, if they ever approach the emerald in its exquisite shade of green. We have examined many green stones from the Ceylon gem mines, and with one exception have found them to be green spinels, zircons, and tourmalines of various intensities of shade. The one undoubted specimen referred to was of an impure hue. The celebrated Romè de L’Isle possessed two beautiful crystals of green sapphire. When they display the sea-green hue or the mountain-blue of the beryl, they are then called Oriental aqua-marines, but fine stones of this description are not common. We have seen some small but very beautifully tinted gems of this class from the gold fields of Montana. Barbot speaks with ecstasy of two green sapphires from Matura in Ceylon, and which far exceeded any other gem in their velvety color, limpidity, and brilliancy. It is possible that these two gems may have been zircons, as these stones abound in Matura, and are of the most vivid lustre when perfect. But stones of fine green hues of this mineral are exceedingly rare. We have also seen a specimen of transparent corundum from Siam which was dichroite, blue and green one way, and entirely green the other. It called to mind that found at Expailly in France, by the naturalist Fanjas, and which appeared of an almost emerald green when viewed in one direction, or of a most beautiful blue when the axis of vision was changed.

The name girasole is applied to those gems that exhibit a peculiar radiance when exposed to the sunbeams. This curious play of light is seen in the transparent and translucent stones, but especially in the translucent. When the gem which possesses this quality is cut in the boss form it shows a glimmering light brighter at one part than at another, owing to a peculiar internal refraction. The effect is very beautiful when the gem is of fine color, and the bright spot moves mysteriously over a more sombre ground as the stone is turned in various directions. The sapphire rarely shows this property to the same perfection exhibited by one of the varieties of opal. We have seen two specimens from the North Carolina corundum mines, which would have been very superior gems if they had not been traversed in all directions by numerous cleavage planes. They were quite an inch in diameter, of a nodular form, and had been deposited in a ledge of ripidolite.

One of the most remarkable varieties of the sapphire is known as the asteria, which was so named by Pliny from the fact of its displaying diverging rays of light. This phenomenon is only seen in stones of semi-opacity or inferior clearness, and the star-like rays are so arranged as to be inclined to each other at an angle of 60 degrees. These stones may be of various colors,—blue, red, or gray,—yet the rays of the star are always white or faintly tinged, and stream forth in beautiful contrast to a ground of delicate blue or decided red. The stars appear the most distinctly to view when the polished gem is exposed to direct sunlight or a small bright flame. This mysterious play is seen in but few of the gems, and the sapphire exhibits it in its greatest perfection. It is indeed a curious thing to see a six-rayed star with long silken beams of light suddenly appear to view as the gem is turned to the light, and as quickly disappear as the focus is changed. No wonder the ancients believed the appearance due to supernatural powers. The microscope, however, has disclosed to the moderns the cause of the asterism. This instrument reveals multitudes of minute crystals within the stone, arranged in three different but equal angles. To obtain the stellate appearance in perfection, then, the stone must be cut and polished in cabochon or dome-like form. The apex of the gem is then in a direct plane to these angles, being perpendicular to the axis of the primitive form of the crystal, and therefore the rays of light are reflected from the sides of these multitudinous crystals producing the asterism.

As we have said before, some other minerals exhibit this phenomenon at times. We find it in rare specimens of quartz and in some of the mica group. In some rare fragments of quartz from Siberia the stellate appearance is seen in extraordinary perfection. The six-rayed star is not only seen by refracted light, but is even visible by transmitted light. Sometimes these stones also exhibit reflections of red and blue as the direction of the stone is changed, thus combining the girasole and asteria in the same gem. Lancon relates that M. Desmaret possessed a little plate of this variety of quartz, of so great beauty and perfection as to refuse 25,000 francs for it. There is in the Museum of the Jardin des Plantes a remarkable diamond asteria; and there are also in this collection and in the cabinet of the École des Mines some superb blue and red sapphire asterias.

The pure white sapphires are not often found. When well cut they exhibit a vivid eclat, and are sometimes mistaken for diamonds; but they are easily detected by the expert, since they do not possess even three fourths of the degree of brilliancy of the diamond, nor the prismatic play of color. Some of the faint-colored stones lose their tints when subjected to a high degree of heat, and improve in brilliancy and lustre. It is said that the Orientals practise this trick extensively, and sell the altered gems for diamonds. We are not aware of the refractive index of these fire-tested stones having been measured with the view of ascertaining the degree of change; but it is certain that their lustre is increased in a marked degree. Heat, however, does not affect all colored sapphires. Some of the red are often changed to deeper hues, and others are not affected. Brogniart found that the French sapphires from Expailly were actually rendered more intense in color by the action of fire. After numerous experiments with the faint-colored sapphires from Montana, we also have come to the conclusion that the stones from this locality are not perceptibly affected by long-continued heat.

Sir David Brewster, in conducting his famous experiments in optics, was of the opinion that the white sapphire, on account of its structure and its refractive power, was superior to all other transparent minerals for lenses for the microscope. The diamond, which one would naturally suppose to be the most perfect material for the purpose, on account of its high refractive power and apparent clearness, is really faulty, and comparatively worthless on account of its internal structure. If the white sapphire is of such excellence in this respect, on account of its compactness and refractive power, why will not the white zircon prove far superior as a lens, as it is the most compact, transparent, hard mineral known, and its refractive power is much greater than that of the sapphire? Black sapphires are now and then mentioned by authors, but we are inclined to believe that they are very rare; for Davy declares that he met with but two or three specimens in his travels in India or Ceylon. Blue stones of very deep hue appear sometimes quite black; but when they are placed in a strong light, and viewed in another direction, the blue tinge clearly appears. The violet sapphire of perfect hue is a very rare gem, and may be regarded as an accidental stone, being formed of an admixture of the blue and the red. Davy, in all his extended researches in Ceylon, found but two specimens of violet sapphire; and in our examinations of the rough gems from the mines, we are inclined to think the purple spinel is often supposed to be a purple sapphire. Romè de L’Isle found that this variety of sapphire is oftener ruby-violet than sapphire-violet, or that the red tinge prevailed more distinctly than the blue. The lilac-blue are exceedingly rare, and are eagerly sought for by amateurs.

There are some sapphires which exhibit a double play of colors when viewed by natural and then by artificial light. For instance, they may display a decided blue color by day and an amethystine tint by night. D’Auguy possessed a stone that showed in the daylight a beautiful, clear, and sparkling blue, but by candlelight it changed to a royal purple. The cause of this phenomenon is perhaps due to an excess of latent red in the stone, which, however, is not visible in the daytime; but which is called forth by the difference in the illuminating lights, as is shown in their spectra. The hyacinth sapphire is seldom seen, and when perfect is regarded as among the marvels of the species. Dutens possessed a fine one which had been engraved upon by the Greeks.

The subject of the glyptic art, or engraving upon stones, is very interesting to the student who seeks for evidences and traces of the social life of man in early ages. The engraved cylinders of Babylon and Nineveh, with their cuneiform legends, carry us back to traditions two thousand years before the Christian era; and from the engraved scarabei of Egypt and Etruria we form some ideas of the people whose history has otherwise been lost. We may, perhaps, consider the true era of the glyptic art as dating from the time of the Macedonian princes and the Persian conquests, although it had been practised in a rude way from far earlier times. This art of cutting figures upon bright and richly colored, though minute stones, was quite as much admired among the ancients as the laborious skill, with its powerful blows, which produced the heroic statues out of bronze or marble. And perhaps we may say that these gems, in their estimation, were of greater value, not only on account of their beauty and rarity and their minuteness, but also on account of their hardness, which defied the steel instruments of the ordinary sculptor, and yielded only to the dust and splinters of the hardest minerals, like the sapphire and the diamond. We may also safely affirm that the gem-engravers of the Alexandrian and Augustan ages were, in all that concerns excellence of design and composition, rivals of the most famous workers in marble and bronze. These admirable and wonderful artists contrived to enclose within the narrow limit of a little stone all the complicated details of an event in history, or of a fable in mythology; and to make them stand forth in beautiful relief as a cameo, or to sink them down as an intaglio, with all that truth of design and power of expression which characterize the excellence of the largest works of the most consummate masters.

By means of these engraved gems, miniature but accurate copies of some of the celebrated masterpieces and noblest works of ancient sculptors have been preserved to us, while the originals have been destroyed, and even the record of them lost. An instance may be observed in the engraved gem in the Orleans cabinet, which is the only representation we now have of the famous statue of the Repose of Hercules, by Lysippus. As a learned critic has said, in these gems we have the emanations, ever fresh and unfaded, of the feelings and the taste of those ages when the love of the beautiful was the all-prevailing and almost sole religion, and flourished unfettered by tradition, prejudice, and conventional rules; whilst from the universal demand during those same ages for engraved gems, whether for signets or for personal ornaments, artists of the highest ability did not disdain the narrow field of the precious stone as the arena for the exercise of their power. The unparalleled vigor and perfection of many of these performances are a sufficient proof that they proceeded directly from the master’s hand, and were not mere slavish copies, by a mechanic, after designs created by the genius of another. The lovers of the fine arts may derive much benefit from the study of the antique in this particular branch of workmanship. What is there more pleasant than the contemplation of the work of the artists of antiquity; and to behold, shut up, as it were, within the narrow compass of a small gem, all the majesty of a vast design and a most elaborate performance? During the flourishing periods of the Greeks countless statues were carved by numerous artists; and it has been stated that Lysippus alone executed fifteen hundred, all perfect, and some of them colossal. Throughout Asia Minor, Greece, and Italy every town had its temple, gymnasium, or forum peopled with statues of those among her sons who had in any way distinguished themselves in arms, letters, or public games. These became the spoil of the later Romans, and an incredible number were transported to Rome from time to time. Nero is said to have selected from Delphos alone five hundred bronze statues for transportation to Rome. The Etruscan bronzes were quite as plentiful; and Flaccus is said to have carried away in triumph two thousand statues from the sack of Volsinii.

From these statements in ancient history concerning the number of large works in statuary, we can form some idea of the inexhaustible treasury of portraiture in another and oftentimes less costly material. It is estimated that for a period of three hundred years, the engraved gems were manufactured in countless numbers all over the Roman world. It is a little curious that licentious scenes and figures are never or rarely found on antique gems.

Among the gems preserved in the museum of the Vatican may be seen two engraved intaglios of early date, upon sapphires of an amethystine hue. Among the most beautiful of the engraved sapphires that have been preserved to us from ancient times is that of Cneus, now placed in the cabinet of the Strozzi, in Italy, which represents the figure of young Hercules. In the collection of gems at Turin there is a white sapphire, on which a fine head of Tiberius has been engraved. There may be seen among the crown jewels of Russia a beautiful sapphire of two shades, engraved with a representation of a female figure enveloped in drapery. The figure is engraved in the darker shade of the stone, while the drapery is carved from the lighter part. The French cabinet boasts of a very fine blue sapphire with an engraving representing the Emperor Pertinax.

King, the excellent and tireless antiquary, mentions, in his chapter on the hyacinthus, several beautiful and unique engraved sapphires. He states that engraved gems of this class, dating to times previous to the Imperial epoch, are extremely rare; still, there are extant some undoubted specimens, among which are a small Etruscan scarabeus and a magnificent head of Jupiter, executed in the purest Greek style. The accidental discovery of the last indicates how many more of the fine gems of antiquity may yet appear in course of time to gladden the lovers of the glyptic art. This gem was an inch in diameter, and of fine color; but to utilize it to the wants of the Turkish possessor, who wished to set it in the handle of his dagger, the engraved side was set downward and thus preserved from injury, while the back of the stone was rudely faceted by some Eastern lapidary. A Medusa’s head of the same style of execution, upon a stone of remarkable beauty, is one of the chief glories of the celebrated Marlborough collection. In the same museum there is another larger and deeper-hued sapphire bearing the head of Caracalla, the short, curly hair of the irascible tyrant being represented by a series of minute holes closely drilled together. One of the most famous of all engraved gems of this material is the signet ring of Constantius. The stone is one of great beauty and perfection, and weighs fifty-three karats. Its engraving represents the Emperor as spearing a monstrous wild boar before a reclining female figure, personifying Cæsarea of Cappadocia, the scene of exploit. It bears an inscription in proof of its royal use,—the letters “Constantivs Avg.” King mentions another fine specimen of the time of Hadrian, representing “Hebe feeding the eagle.” It was heart-shaped in form, of fine color, and quite an inch and a half in diameter.

The museums of Europe contain many examples of mediæval and modern engraved sapphires, one of the finest of which is the famous portrait of Pope Paul III. among the Pulsky gems, and attributed to Il Greco. It is a very beautiful stone, and three quarters of an inch square. In the Marlborough cabinet there is an extraordinary specimen of a thumb ring of high antiquity, cut from a single stone, but of rather a pale tint. Rings containing both plain and engraved sapphires have been the appointed symbol of church authority from a very early day. They have often been bestowed as the badge of pontifical rank, and the custom has descended to the present day. King devotes an interesting chapter to the history and description of this class of ornaments and symbols; and to his pages we must refer the interested reader.

Engraved red sapphires of ancient date are extremely rare, so rare that the experienced antiquaries, Lessing and Clarac, deny the existence of any antique intaglios of this variety. Investigation has proved that many of the supposed engraved rubies are really red spinel, garnet, or zircon. Nevertheless, there are a few examples to prove that the ancients did make use of the gem in the glyptic art, although the act was regarded as one of extreme extravagance, from the rarity, costliness, and beauty of the material. The Devonshire parure exhibits a convex red sapphire of about three karats weight, of pure pigeons’-blood tint, and engraved with a Venus Victrix in the latest Roman manner. Another shows a full-length figure of Osiris, in half-relief, of the time of Hadrian. In the museum of the Jardin des Plantes there are said to be two engraved red sapphires.

There are but few gems with which the blue sapphire can be confounded. The blue diamond can be easily detected by its superior brilliancy and hardness. It is very rare that the tourmaline appears of a deep blue, and still more rare for the topaz to assume the appearance except of the very light varieties, and the same may be said of the beryl. The iolite, which, however, is a very rare mineral, may resemble the blue sapphire, but its inevitable dichroism betrays its character. Turn the gem before the eye, and the deception vanishes; the blue disappears as if by magic, and the stone is gray. Kyanite sometimes appears of the most beautiful blue tints, but its softness indicates its nature, and prevents its use as a gem. The glass-workers, however, produce the most beautiful and attractive imitations of sapphire, and of all colors, lacking but one desideratum, and that is the thus far unattainable degree of hardness. The red, green, yellow, and white varieties may all of them be closely approached in color by other gems, and the best methods of detection are the tests of specific gravity, degree of hardness, and the optical phenomena.

The blue variety of sapphire being less sought after in ornamentation than the diamond, has not had a fixed scale in valuation. Still, prior, or for a few years prior, to 1850, the ordinary sapphire was placed by jewellers upon the same valuation as the emerald, or at about $15 the karat. Since this period its value has quadrupled, but has not kept pace with that of the emerald. The pale-blue stones have only a nominal value, and the same may be said of the very dark blue. But those sapphires which exhibit the perfect tint of the prismatic blue can command very high prices.

The ancient Romans excelled in their imitations of the ruby, both in hardness, color, and lustre; and a number of examples are yet preserved in some of the European cabinets. The bold robber, Charles, the Duke of Burgundy, was the possessor of several famous gems which he carried with him on his campaigns, and used as personal decorations on particular occasions. One of the choicest of them was a monster ruby more than an inch in diameter, which the famous Margaret of Anjou had given him. On that fatal day at Grandson it was placed with the historic diamond in a golden box, and left in the tent of the Duke, where it was captured by the mountaineers. The gems were carried to Berne by the victorious Swiss, and afterwards offered for sale to the rich Nuremberger, Jacob Fugger. Then it was discovered by the expert that the ruby was indeed a lump of red glass of ancient make, and probably of the date of the Roman Empire.

As the red sapphire is one of the rarest as well as the most beautiful of all gems, its value is in keeping with its attributes. As it overpowers all other gems with its gorgeous red, which is a pure prismatic hue, so it transcends all others in price. There are but very few gems with which it can be confounded in color. But no matter what the material may be, provided it displays the royal tint. It is extremely rare that the red tourmaline or spinel exhibit the perfect tint which is the characteristic of the red sapphire. The zircon sometimes displays a fine red color, and may imitate the sapphire. It is also within the range of possibilities that the diamond and garnet may closely resemble the true ruby. We have seen small garnets that exhibited the pigeons’-blood tint. The scarcity of the ruby is so great that fine gems are only to be acquired by the very wealthy. In the times of Cellini, three centuries ago, the price of the red sapphire was eight times that of the diamond. And to-day we may safely adopt Cellini’s estimate, for the gem is so rare that we cannot readily compute its value in comparison with the diamond, which is so abundant.

King, in commenting upon the valuation of precious stones during the past three hundred years, mentions two fine rubies which were sold in London recently for enormous sums of money. One of three karats brought $1,500; while another of finer tint, of less than four karats (11 grains), was sold for $5,500, or for $500 a grain, which price is quite equal to Cellini’s estimate made in the year 1560.