^he Bljhop of Landaff on 'Orichalcum", 65 



nag, and an European white copper, differing, 

 in fome qualities, from thofe which are brought 

 from Afia, but refembling them in fo many 

 others, that they have acquired their names. 

 Something of this kind may have been the cafe 

 with refpe(fi: to Orichalcum, and the mofl: anci- 

 ent Greelcs may have known no more of the 

 manner in which it was made, than we do of 

 that in which the Chinefe prepare their white 

 copper : they may have had too, an imitation 

 of the original, and their authors may have 

 often miftaken the one for the other, and thus 

 have introduced an uncertainty and confufion 

 into their accounts of it. 



There is as little agreement amongfl: the 

 learned concerning the etymology of Orichal- 

 cum, as concerning its origin. Thofe who 

 write it Aurichalcum, fuppofe that it is an hybri- 

 dous word, compofed of a Greek term fignify- 

 ing copper, and a L.atin one fignifying gold. 

 The moft general opinion is, that it ought to 

 be written Orichalcum, and that it is com- 

 pounded of two Greek v/ords, one fignifying 

 copper, and the other a mountain, and that 

 we rightly render it by. Mountain Copper. I 

 have always looked upon this as a very forced 

 derivation, inafmuch as we do not thereby dif- 

 cinguifh Orichalcum from any other kind of 

 copper ; moft copper mines, in every part of 

 the world, being found in mountainou? coun-i 



Vol. II. F tries. 



