Chrysolite so named was our topaz. 

 If this is true the Chrysolite of 

 the ancients was found on the island 

 of Topazios in the Red Sea. Diodones 

 Siculus says of the stone there that it was 

 not discernible by day but was bright at 

 night, so that it could be seen by patrols. 

 They would cover the luminous spot with 



a vase and the next day come and cut 

 out the rock at the place indicated, when 

 upon polishing, the gem would appear. 

 The name Chrysolite was also applied to 

 a number of other yellow g-ems such as 

 zircon and beryl, in former times, as 

 stones of a similar color were usually 

 classed together. 



Oliver Cummings Farrington. 



EPIDOTE. 



This is a mineral possessing several 

 interesting characters and having many 

 qualities desired in gems, yet its use in 

 jewelry is very limited. It is com- 

 paratively common as one of the constit- 

 uent minerals of metamorphic rocks, but 

 in its ordinary occurrences it is not suit- 

 able for gem purposes. It is only when 

 occurring in large transparent crystals 

 that pieces suitable for cutting can be 

 obtained. Its peculiar green color is one 

 of its most striking characters, enabling 

 it nearly always to be recognized. This 

 color is a yellowish-green known as 

 pistachio green and is hardly possessed 

 by another mineral. It frequently, how- 

 ever, shades to black on the one hand 

 and brown on the other so that it cannot 

 be taken alone as a criterion for deter- 

 mination. Epidote is quite strongly 

 pleochroic — that is, it exhibits different 

 colors in different directions, being often 

 green in one direction, brown in another 

 and yellow in another. It is usually cut 

 so as to show the green color, and the 

 stone must generally be made quite thin 

 to get the proper transparencv. Epidote 

 is a rather hard and heavv mineral, its 



hardness being nearly equal to that of 

 quartz and its specific gravity 3.2 to 3.5. 

 It is brittle and has a basal cleavage. Its 

 luster is vitreous to resinous. 



In composition it is a hydrous silicate 

 of calcium, aluminum and iron, the dark- 

 ness of its color increasing with a larger 

 proportion of iron. It is fusible before 

 the blowpipe, but unattacked by acids be- 

 fore fusing. The finest crystals of epi- 

 dote for cutting come from the Knap- 

 penwand in the valley of the Pinzgau, 

 Austrian Tyrol. Specimens of these 

 are shown in the accompanying colored 

 plate. This occurrence was discovered 

 in 1866. Quite recently an occurrence 

 of Epidote more beautifully crystallized 

 even than that of the Kjiappenwand was 

 discovered on Prince of Wales Island, 

 x\laska, but unfortunately these speci- 

 mens are too opaque for cutting. Being 

 a rather heavy mineral, Epidote lingers 

 among the pebbles of stream beds, and 

 material suitable for cutting is hence 

 sometimes found in this way. Brazil and 

 North Carolina are localities where Epi- 

 dote of this sort has been found. 



Oliver Cummings Farrington. 



137 



