416 Flint's NATURAL HisTOEY. [Book XXXVII. 



beryls, and only yield to the smaragdus in value. India, too, 

 is the sole^^ parent of these precious stones, thus completing 

 her glory as being the great producer of the most costly gems. 

 Of all precious stones, it is opal that presents the greatest dif- 

 ficulties of description, it displaying at once the piercing fire 

 of carbunculus,^* the purple brilliancy of amethystos, and the 

 sea-green of smaragdus, the whole blended together and reful- 

 gent with a brightness that is quite incredible. Some authors 

 have compared the effect of its refulgence to that of the colour 

 known as Armenian®^ pigment, while others speak of it as re- 

 sembling the flame of burning sulphur, or of flame fed with 

 oil. In size, the opal is about as large as a hazel-nut, ^^ and, 

 with reference to it, there is a remarkable historical anecdote 

 related. For there is still in existence a stone of this class, on 

 account of which Antonius proscribed the senator IS'onius, son 

 of the Nonius Struma, whom the poet Catullus" was so dis- 

 pleased at seeing in the curule chair, and grandfather of the 

 Servilius Nonianus, who in our own times was consul.^ On 

 being thus proscribed, Nonius took to flight, carrying with 

 him, out of all his wealth, nothing but this ring, the value of 

 which, it is well known, was estimated at two millions of ses- 

 terces. How marvellous must have been the cruelty, how mar- 

 vellous the luxurious passion of Antonius, thus to proscribe a 

 man for the possession of a jewel ! and no less marvellous must 

 have been the obstinacy of Nonius, who could thus dote upon 

 what had been the cause of his proscription ; for we see the 

 very brutes even tear off the portion of their body for the sake 

 of which they know their existence to be imperilled,^^ and so 

 redeem themselves by parting with it. 



CHAP. 22. — DEFECTS IN OPALS : THE MODES OF TESTING THEM. 



Defects in opal are, a colour inclining to that of the flower 

 called heliotropium,''" or to that of crystal or of hailstones ; salt- 

 like grains intervening ; roughness on the surface ; or sharp 



^3 On the contrary, precious Opal is found in Hungary, at Frankfort, 

 and in Honduras, and other varieties in numerous parts of the world, in- 

 cluding the East Indies. 



" See Chapter 25 of this Book. "5 gee B. xxxv. c. 28. 



^^ The largest opal known is in the Imperial cabinet at Vienna. It is 

 the size of a man's fist, and weighs 17 ounces, but is full of fissures. 



" See Carm. 63 of the Poems of Catullus. ^s a.u.c. 788. 



^^ See B. viii. c. 47. He alludes to the story of the Beaver. 



'<^ See B. xxii. c. 29. 



