BOOK IX. Liv. 108-LV. III 



the shells shut up, and diminish in size in proportion 

 to their abstinence from food ; but if it also thunders 

 they are frightened and shut up suddenly, producing 

 what are called ' wind-pearls,' which are only inflated 

 with an empty, unsubstantial show : these are the 

 pearls' miscarriages. Indeed a healthy ofFspring is 

 formed with a skin of many thicknesses, so that it 

 may not improperly be considered as a hardening of 

 the body ; and consequently experts subject them to 

 a cleansing process. I am surprised that though 

 pearls rejoice so much in the actual sky, they redden 

 and lose their whiteness in the sun, like the human 

 body ; consequently sea-pearls preserve a special 

 brilhance, being too deeply immersed for the rays to 

 penetrate ; nevertheless even they get yellow from 

 age and doze off with wrinkles, and the vigour that 

 is sought after is only found in youth. Also in old 

 age they get thick and stick to the shells, and cannot 

 be torn out of these except by using a file. Pearls with 

 only one surface, and round on that side but flat at 

 the back,are consequently termed tambourine pearls ; 

 we have seen them clustering together in shells that 

 owing to this enrichment were used for carrying round 

 perfames. For the rest, a large pearl is soft when in 

 the water but gets hard as soon as it is taken out. 



LV. When a shell sees a hand it shuts itself up Dmngfor 

 and conceals its treasures, as it knows that it is ^*'"'''''- 

 sought for on their account; and if the hand is 

 inserted first it cuts it off with its sharp edge, the 

 most just penalty possible — for it is armed with 

 other penalties also, as for the most pai*t it is found 

 arnong rocks, while even in deep water it has sea- 

 dogs " in attendance — yet nevertheless these do not 

 protect it against women's ears ! Some accounts 



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