Pliny was undoubtedly familiar with the true emerald, and expressed his satisfaction in the following language:—
“There is no color so pleasing to the eye as that of the emerald. Whoever delights in the verdure of herb and leaf must enjoy infinitely more the contemplation of emeralds; for no verdure can compare to theirs. They are the only stones that charm the eye without wearying it. It loses its lustre neither in sun nor in shade, nor in artificial light. It shines continually with the same soft glow.”
In the time of Alexander, the emblems of authority of the Persians consisted of golden imitations of vines, loaded with clusters of emeralds, carbuncles, and other gems. At the famous marriage feast of Alexander and his eighty companions with their beautiful Persian brides, emeralds appear to have been the favorite gem used, and to have been esteemed above all other ornaments except the beautiful pearls of the Persian Gulf.
In ancient times this gem was not only prized as an ornament, but also as a talisman, and even as a medicine in the powdered state. Its beauty captivated the vain and frivolous, and its supposed virtues endeared it to the rich and the wise. It was supposed to exercise a good effect upon the eyesight; hence it was worn as a seal to be looked at; when worn as an amulet it endowed the wearer with courage, drove away evil spirits, assuaged terror, and prevented attacks of epilepsy.
Pliny states that Paulina, at the Banquet, was literally covered with emeralds and pearls, arranged over her dress in alternate rows.
The famous and fatal ring which Polycrates cast into the sea, as an offering to the gods in return for forty years of prosperity, was set with a beautiful emerald.
The ancient Etruscans carved the emerald at a very remote period, and the fact is proven by the scarabeus in the Townley collection.
The Castellani collection exhibits ear-rings of gold set with pendants of emeralds which were found in the tombs at Bolsena.
In the Devonshire gems there is a large emerald cut into a Gorgon’s head, in high relief,—evidently a gem of great antiquity and of exceeding value at the time of its conversion into a work of art.
Within the sarcophagus of Maria Honorii fifty rings set with different stones were found, and among them an emerald set in gold and engraved with a head supposed to be that of Honorius himself. It was probably fashioned for a royal signet and buried with the remains of its owner.