42 ANALYSIS OF SOME ANCIENT BONES. 



their solubility ter in question was composed of phosphoric acid, lime, and 



in water, ft jj tt j e magnesia, it remained for Messrs. Fourcroy and Vau- 



quelin to find how this compound could dissolve so copiously 



bolfr 6 ' 6 * n water * With this view' they boiled a gramme a long while, 



and several times in succession, in 400 parts of water. The 



first boiling had a rosy hue, evidently reddened paper tinged 



precipitated w ' tn litmus, and was copiously precipitated by alkalis, lime, 



by alkalis, and other alkaline substances. These precipitates had all 



the properties of neutral phosphate of lime, 

 and the fluid After having precipitated by ammonia a pretty large quan- 

 evaporate , ^^ o ^. ^ so | u tj n of this substance in water, they evapo- 

 rated the fluid to dryness. During the evaporation some 

 which left ammonia was given out. The matter that remained had a 

 acid 5 P ° rlC brown colour, attracted the moisture of the air, was acid, 

 and formed a copious precipitate with limewater; which 

 proved, that it was phosphoric acid. 

 Consequently It is evident from the experiments related, as well as from 



superphos- several others, that the white crystalline substance, which 



phate of lime ' . 



with a little covers and penetrates the bones found in the church of St. 



magnesia. Geneviva throughout their whole extent, is a true acidulous 



phosphate of lime, containing a small quantity of phosphate 



of magnesia. 



Whence ^ ut now sna ^ we account for the formation of the phos- 



coos the sur- phoric acid ? We know, that this acid does not predominate 



phwic acid? S " * n bones either dry or recent; and that, on the contrary, it 



is always accompanied witha a certain quantity of carbonate 



From a new of lime. Messrs. Fourcroy and Vauquelin see no way of 



acid forming, explaining this singular phenomenon, but by admitting, 



awa^rd'rf f e,tner tnat an ac '^ * s f ormea * by the decomposition of the 



the lime? animal matter, which acid not only saturates the carbonate 



of lime, but takes away a portion of lime from the phos- 



or from the phoric ; or that phosphorus existed in the animal matter, 



decomposition which has been converted into phosphoric acid, and after- 



c^naineVin 1 ^ war( * combined with the phosphate of lime, forming a su- 



the animal perphosphate. 



The latter ^ e hitter appears to these gentlemen more natural, 



more probable, since it is more agreeable to the laws of affinity, and par- 

 ticularly to the discovery of phosphorus in animal sub- 

 stances. In fact no acid could have been formed by the de- 

 composition of the animal matter but vinegar, or some other 



weak 



