48 Field Museum of Natural History — -Anth., Vol. XIII. 



We noticed from the statements of the Pei shi and Sui shu that 

 se-se are attributed to the Persians, and from the T'ang shu that these 

 jewels were known in Syria. In the epoch of the T'ang dynasty (6x8- 

 906) the three great religions of Western Asia, Mazdeism, Nestorianism 

 and Manicheism reached a high degree of expansion and spread over 



name for ruby in China is hung pao shi ("red precious stone"), it should be 

 understood that this is not the balas ruby, but the Burmese ruby (see also 

 G. E. Gerini, Researches on Ptolemy's Geography, pp. 39, 741, London, 1909). 

 Russian manuscripts of the seventeenth century mention expressly "Chinese Idl" 

 (K. P. Patkanov, I. c, p. 21) which goes to show that spinels really existed in China 

 and were traded from there to Russia. Julius Ruska (Das Steinbuch des Aristoteles, 

 p. 32) doubts the correctness of the identification of the Persian word Idl with the 

 spinel, and is inclined to regard it as tourmalin, as it is stated that the colors of the 

 stone are red, yellow, violet and green (which, however, is no conclusive argument), 

 that the same stone is often half red and half green, that it is found in a matrix of 

 white stone, and smaller stones frequently lie around a bigger one. I have no judg- 

 ment on this matter, but wish to point out on this occasion that it is impossible to 

 reach any certain results in this line from the Chinese field of research, before our 

 colleagues in the Persian and Arabic quarters have satisfactorily settled their ques- 

 tions and furnished us with the material to build our conclusions. From .a purely 

 philological point of view, however, it does not appear that Ruska's opinion can be 

 upheld. There can be no doubt that the word pijdzakl denotes the balas ruby, and 

 that the Chinese word pi-ya-se phonetically corresponds to it. The Imperial 

 Dictionary in Four Languages renders this Chinese term by the Tibetan and Mongol 

 words nal and Manchu langca (Laufer, Jade, p. 109, note 3); these two forms are 

 nothing but variations of the Persian word Idl, and consequently Persian Idl must 

 designate the balas ruby, so it does also in Osmanli and some other Turkish dialects 

 which have adopted this word. Likewise in Russian the spinel was known under the 

 name Idl in the seventeenth century (K. P. Patkanov, /. c, p. 20). Dr. Ruska, to 

 whom I submitted this observation, was good enotigh to write me that he does not 

 mean to reject in principle the interpretation of Idl by spinel, but mainly wishes to 

 point out the difficulties of the case arising from the confused descriptions of the 

 stone. He thinks the green color is so rare in this mineral that it is impossible that 

 the same stone should be often half green and half red, a feature which, however, not 

 seldom occurs in tourmalin (especially with neutral, colorless intermediary zone). 

 He further states that he has no doubt of the correctness of the equation pi-ya-se = 

 pijdzakl and nal = Idl, and obligingly refers to the fact that the word pijdzakl is con- 

 tained also in Vullers' Lexicon Persico-Latinum with the additional form piydzl 

 which comes still nearer to the Chinese word. According to Vullers, pijdzek is the 

 name of a district where are the mines of the Idl. As the word pijdz means "onion," 

 it was wrongly translated into Arabic as hasall "onion-like Idl," and even pijdzl was 

 perhaps understood in this sense. Dr. Ruska refers to a study on Qazwini now in 

 print, where he has commented on this subject. Meanwhile E. Wiedemann (Zur 

 Mineralogie im Islam, p. 216) has commented on Dr. Ruska's opinion in a translation 

 of al-Akfani's mineralogy, who identifies al-balachsh with Persian Idl. Wiedemann, 

 on the ground of the specific gravities giv^n by al-Khazini, holds that in this case Idl 

 should be translated by ruby-spinel, but admits that in other cases it could signify 

 tourmalin. With obliging courtesy Dr. Ruska has recently sent me a proof of the 

 note previously referred to (the above remarks were jotted down a year ago) where 

 he says that the identification of the Idl with the balachsh, the stone of Badakshan, 

 and with the rubis balais is confirmed by al-Akfani; but he adds: "This doe;s not 

 exclude a freer usage of the word for all possible red gems, for who might say that the 

 only then known means of their distinction, the determination of specific gravity, has 

 always been employed?" This result is entirely satisfactory, and we return to the 

 former conclusion that Idl, in general, designates the balas ruby, with the restrictions 

 made by Dr. Ruska. In no case can it certainly be expected that any Oriental names 

 of minerals, plants, or animals will exactly coincide with our scientific species; it is 

 always necessary to grant the former a certain latitude. But for purposes of transla- 

 tion we have to adhere to the one principal notion connected with -the object. 



