.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]]
