f\nirtety of the Smilhsoitian Institution 



CUP CARVED FROM THE WOOD OF THE NARRA TREE 



A inysteriouB chemical property which resides in this cup made from the wood of the Philippine Lignum 

 iiephrificiim or narra transforms water into a liquid of the deepest blue, and this, when held against the light 

 (as in the flask), shines with opalescent hues of fiery yellow, bright red, glowing purple, and sea green; in the 

 rays of an arc light the liquid may shine with a blue light of sufScient intensity to illumine the faces of those 

 standing near by. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries these cups were gifts for emperors and kings, and 

 marvelous cures were attributed to the water allowed to stand in them. The phenomena have been the subject 

 of many researches by famous chemiBts and physicists, yet even today the mystery is unsolved 



