SCALES, MIRRORS, LEATHERS 



Every now and again, the carp in the basket before 

 me show signs of movement and jump up. The light, 

 playing on their bodies, enhances the bronze and 

 golden flashes which accentuate the beauty of the 

 scales and are produced by those scales. These flashes 

 of light are given out by the scales themselves, which 

 are, in fact, thin, transparent blades, which let the 

 light pass through them, breaking it up in the process. 

 The iridescent flashes, resulting from this physical 

 action, enhance the underlying brownish hue of the 

 skin due to the chromatophores (or cells with a coloured 

 pigment) which are included in the substance of the 

 capsules by which the scales are surrounded. 



But when I turn to the baskets which are filled with 

 " mirror " carp I find quite a different state of affairs. 

 Here the reflections are more intense, more varied, and 

 even more beautiful, but they are also more localized. 

 There is hardly any sign of the delicate coat of scales 

 patterned somewhat like a draught-board and looking 

 like carved marquetry. Instead, over a dark brown 

 skin we find broad glittering scales, much larger than 

 those of other carp, and set out in three longitudinal 

 rows on each side; one in the middle of the side, 

 one near the belly and one near the back. These 

 three bands, sometimes supplemented by isolated scales 

 scattered about the body, stand out upon the dull 

 background of the rest of the body which has no 

 scales at all. In them we observe extremely diverse 

 plays of light and iridescence like that of the thin 

 plates. These scales — which by their brilliance really 

 deserve their nickname " mirror " — give out all the 

 reflections to be seen in polished metal. Sometimes 

 displaying every flashing glorious hue from gold to 

 silver or steel; sometimes becoming dull, then bursting 

 forth again like sparks, they give the creature a strange, 

 surprising appearance of its own. 



The baskets of " leather " carp are quite different 

 from all the rest. In them is no play of light, no 



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