464 DOMAIN V. CALCAREOUS. 



colours, and a hardness which renders it suscep- 

 tible of a fine polish. In general, the denomi- 

 nation of oriental stone implies less the native 

 place of the stone, than its intrinsic value ; thus 



tin Italy and France alabasters are found which 

 * 

 deserve the epithet of oriental. 



" The celebrated sculptor Puget discovered 

 near Marseilles an alabaster, so transparent, that 

 the eye could penetrate into the interior of the 

 substance; and, to the depth of two fingers, 

 trace the beautiful tints with which it was co- 

 loured. 



" Guettard says that the waters of Aix, in 

 Provence, form a deep-brown alabaster, mingled 

 with whitish zones, which make it resemble 

 the oriental kind. This alabaster is found in 

 an ancient conduit, built by the Romans, which 

 brings the water from a spring about half a 

 league from the town. 



" This aqueduct was entirely filled by this 

 beautiful alabaster, which presented distinct 

 layers, of about a line in thickness. They were 

 found by the lens to be composed of a great 

 number of very thin plates; and the whole 

 formed a solid compact mass, hard enough to 

 take the finest polish. 



" At Montmartre, and in the other hills of 

 plaster-stone in the environs of Paris, and espe- 



