430 PLINY'S NATURAL HISTORY. [?>ook XXXVITT' 



CIIAP. 37. IASPIS ; FOUKTEF.y VA1UKTIES OF IT. DEFECTS FOUND 



LN IASPIS. 



laspis,** too, is green, and often transparent ; a stone which, if 

 surpassed by many others, still retains the renown which it 

 acquired in former times. Many countries produce this stone : 

 that of India is like smaragdus in colour; that of Cyprus is 

 hard, and of a full sea-green ; and that of Persia is sky-blue, 

 whence its name, " auri/usa." 47 Similar to this last is the 

 Caspian iaspis. On the banks of the river Thermodon the 

 iaspis is of an azure colour ; in Phry^ia, it is purple ; and in 

 Cappadocia of an azure purple, sombre, ;md not refulgent. 

 Amisoft 19 sends us an iaspis like that of India in colour, and 

 Chalcedoo, 4 * a stone of a turbid hue. 



But it is of less consequence to distinguish the several loca- 

 lities that furnish it, than it is to remark upon the degrees of 

 excellence which they present. The best kind is that which 

 has a shade of purple, tho next best being the rose-coloured, 

 and the next the stone with the green colour of the smaragdus; 

 to each of which the Greeks have given names 40 according to 

 their respective tints. A fourth kind, which is called by them 

 " boria," M resembles in colour the sky of a morning in autumn ; 

 this, too, will be the same th;it is known as " lierissusa."** There 

 is an iaspis also which resembles sarda* 3 in appearance, and 

 another with a violet tint. Not less numerous, too, are tho 

 other kinds that are left undescribed ; but they are all blue to 

 a fault, 6 * or else resemble crystal in appearance, or the tints of 

 the myxa M plum. There is the terebenthine^-coloured iaspis 

 also; improperly so called, in my opinion, as it has all the ap- 

 pearance of being a composition of numerous gems of this de- 

 scription. 



The best of these stones are set in an open bezel, the gold of 



5 Meadow-green jasper 



47 Sulmasius errom ou.sly tike* this to bo the Turquoise. It is our sky- 

 Hue jasper, no doubt. .See lieckmunu, lli*l. Inv Vol. I. p. -171, 7/o/m'jr 

 lit inn. . * S.-o JJ. vi. c. i!. 



" The flamkrg MS. gives " Culehedon" lien;. 

 1 Namt-lv, iroM^t/pf^atMftx, poiot><ra, arid tfftaf)ay^i^ovtTa 

 1 "Northern," apparently. *- Sky-blue," mentioned above. 



>3 See Chapter 31. Red jasper, or perhaps Ked porphyry. 

 Sl ** Ant" appears to be a preferable reading to the * ut" of the I5am- 

 MS. 4 See 15. xv. co. 12,' 13. 



'* Tcrebintuizusa." Yellow jasper, Ajassoii says. 



