80 MINES OF 



CHAP. II. 



in the mortars; for a passage in Pollux 1 ex- 

 pressly notices the sieve (<mXa) among the tools 

 of the miners. Neither the form of the fur- 

 naces nor of the bellows is described ; but the 

 latter is noticed by Theophrastus 2 , and repre- 

 sented as of small size. Charcoal was intro- 

 duced ; the traders in it being mentioned by the 

 same author 3 . 



The gold was melted by a gentle fire, with the 

 addition of a mixture of salt, nitre, and alum 

 (<rrv7rr77pa), by which substances the silver also 

 was purified 4 . It is not improbable that lead 

 was also added, to promote the flux of the metals. 

 The Colophonians were the most celebrated 

 among the Greeks for their skill in smelting 

 gold : but none of them were equally skilful in 

 purifying silver ; for the work was so imper- 

 fectly performed, as we learn from Strabo 5 , that 

 their successors were enabled to separate the 

 silver from the earths with a profit ; although 

 even they were far inferior to the operators on 

 metals in more modern times. Though the 

 Greeks were acquainted' with quicksilver, and 

 had much cinnabar, which they used as paint, 

 they were ignorant of its -property, or of its ap- 

 plication to the purpose of quickening the pro- 



1 Pollux, x. s. 149. ^ Theoph. de Lapid. p. 393. 



3 Idem. 4 Hippocrates de Diseta, p. 193. 



5 Strabo, ix. p. 613. 



