BON 



BON 



records that we have been able to confult. " Camilla Re- 

 gina de Volfci," written by Stampiglia, and fet by Marc 

 Antonio Bononcini, the brother of John, for tiie imperial 

 court of Vienna, about the year 1^597, was in fnch favour 

 all over Italy, that it was performed at Venice, 1698; Bo- 

 logna, 170' ; Ferrara, and Padua, 1707 ; Bologna again, 

 1709; Udine, 1715; and a third time at Bologna, 1719; 

 and feems to have been tlie opera that was performed in 

 England, during 1706, fifteen times ; 1707, twenty; 1708, 

 ten ; and 1709, eighteen ; in all iixtv-four times ! 



BONONIA, in Ancient Geography, a town of Oalha Cif- 

 padana, called Fclfuia, at the time when the Etrufcans were 

 mafters of the northern part of Italy, and then their capital ; 

 fuppoftd bv fome to have been founded by an Etrufcan 

 prince, denominattd Felfinns. But when thcfe firft poflef- 

 fors were driven away by the Boians, it acquired the name 

 of Bononia. In the year of Rome 564, the Romans con- 

 dufted a colony to this place, with a view of fortifying this 

 fide of the country. It afterwards became a municipal city ; 

 and owed much of its magnificence to Auguftus. See Bo- 

 logna. — Alfo, a town of Upper Pannonia, placed by 

 Ptolemy on the Drave. — Alfo, a town of Dacia Ripenfis. 

 Not. Imp. — Alfo, a town of Upper Moefia, in the route 

 from Viminiacum to Nicor.iedia, between Dorticon and Ra- 

 tiaria. It. Antonin. — Alfo, a town of Eower Pannonia, in 

 th-e route along the Danube, between Cufi and Cucci, 19 

 miles from Sirmium, according to Ammianus Marcellinus. 



BONONIAN Stone, afmall, grey, foft, gloffy, fibrous, 

 ponderous; fulphureous ilone, about the bignefs of a large 

 walnut, or even of an orange ; when broken, having a kind 

 of cryftal, or fpany talc within ; found in the neighbour- 

 hood of Bologna, or Bononia, in Italy ; and, when duly 

 prepared, making a fpecies of phofphorus. It is of no cer. 

 tain figure ; but is fomecimes round, fometimes oblong and 

 cyhndric, and fometimes denticular, which lall kind is faid 

 to be the moll fliining and tranfparent. Its colours are va- 

 rious ; fome being alh-co!oured, others of a fky-bluc, fome 

 of a ferruginous colour, others yellow, others greyi(h white, 

 and fome almoft perfectly white. The beft for ufe are faid 

 to be the (ky-coloured and the white. This ftonc is found 

 jr. feveral parts of Italy, but efpecially in the diftrift of Bo- 

 logna, towardo the Apennine mountains, and on mount Pa- 

 leriio, or Paterno, about five Italian miles from Bologna. 

 They are m.oft; commonly found after heavy rains, among the 

 earth wafhed cfT from the neighbouring mountains. In 

 this cafe the feveral maffes of it appear, when the earth is 

 wafhed away, as bright as burnifhed filver, or with the glit- 

 tering of talc refembling the glofs of a looking-glafs. This 

 ftone is the ponderous fpar, or combination of vitriolic acid 

 with ponderous earth. See Spar. 



A cheraill, vvhofe name was Vinccnzo Cafciarolo, having 

 gathered fome pieces in a river at the foot of mount Paterno, 

 carried them home, in hopes by the tire to draw filver out 

 of them ; but inftead of what he expetted, found that ad- 

 mirable phenomenon they exhibit, which confifts in this, that 

 having been expofed to the light, they retain it, and fhinein 

 the dark. This difcovery was made about the year 16 jo. 



The property of this ftone is, that though it has no lucid 

 appearance in the dark, until it undergoes a particular cal- 

 cination, it becomes capable, by previous preparation, of im- 

 bibing, when expofed for a few minutes to the light of day, 

 or even to the riarre of a candle, fuch a quantity of hght, 

 that it afterwards (liines in the dark for an interval from 

 eight to fifteen minutes, like a glowing coal, but without any 

 fenfible heat. The light it emits is fufficient to read by, if 

 the letters be placed near it. It does not retain its light 

 long, but requires often renewing ; and when well prepared, 



Its virtue will lad five or fix years, but feldom longer. 

 The method of ufing it to the greateft advantage, is to 

 remain for fome time in a dark room, and to introduce the 

 calcined fubftance immediately after its being expofed to the 

 light. 



M. Homberg is faid to be the firft perfon who taught us 

 the true manner of preparing and calcining tiie Boponian 

 ftone, having made a journey to Italy on pui-pofe to learn 

 it. Though others allege, that the true art of preparing 

 and calcining the (tore is loil ; there having been but one, 

 an ecclefiaftic, v.ho had the true fecret, and who is fince 

 dead, without communicating it to any perfon. See Phil. 

 Tranf. N''2I. 



M. Homberg, on his return from his travels in Italy, 

 brought v.-ith him a great number of thefe ftones, and cal- 

 cined 200 of them in fo many diiier;at ways, *.i'^t he at lall 

 found out the fecret. His method was as follows : — He 

 firft; fcraped the ftonc all over, till it appeared !ik' talc ; 

 then, having foaked it thoroughly in brandy, and inclofed 

 it in a pafte or cruft made of other Hones of the lauie kind 

 pulverized, he calcined it in the fire, or a fmall furn; ce. 

 After this operation, he took off all the powder of the crult 

 in which the ftone was inclofed. Both the powder and the 

 ftone, when brought into the dark from the open air, make 

 a luminous appearance ; and the former, if kept in a ftrong 

 and well-ftopped phial, when expofed to the air, imbibes the 

 hght, and if fprinkkd on pidlures and letters, illuminates 

 them in the dark. In preparing the pafte, the 'tone mull 

 be pulverized in a brafs mortar. This circumllance is men- 

 tioned by Lemery, who, in his " Cours de Chymie," de- 

 fcribes at large the whole procefs of preparing this ftone, 

 which he acknowledges to have learnt from Homberg him- 

 felf. 



The whole art of preparing this ftone, fo as to make it 

 ftiine in the dark, is dcfcribed at large in Hook's " Philofo- 

 phical CoUeftions," by fir Marc Antonio CeUio ; and in a 

 book of the fame author, publifned at Rome in lASo, on 

 this fubjecl : and the fubftance has hence been called " II 

 Fosforo de Marc Anton. Ceilio." 



The following has been ftated as an approved method of 

 calcining this ftone. Make a cylindric furnace of iron or 

 copper plates, 7 inches in diameter, and as many in height. 

 Line the infide of it with a ftrong lute, fo that the infide 

 may be 6 inches wide in the clear hollow ; at the top of this 

 make four notches, 2^ inches deep, and is i;.ch wide; to 

 this annex a cylindrical oart of the fame diameter, but a 

 little higher ; and at the bottom rnakt two afn-holes, or air- 

 holes, big enough to admit the hand. Line this, hke the 

 other, with good lute, and give it a bottom of lute, that 

 it may more powerfully refledt the heat ; ami line the cover 

 for the top with lute. Into this furnace introduce an iron- 

 wire grate near the bottom, for fullalning the coals, and fo 

 as to admit of free accefs of air. On this grate lay fome 

 pieces of lighted charcoal, and over thefe fome pieces not 

 lighted, all bruifcd to the fize of about a walnut. Some of the 

 ftones mull be powdered, and thole which are to ' c calcined 

 muftbe dipped in ftrong aqua vitx, and while wet rolled in 

 the powder, or the powder itfclf r.-!ay be made '!p into thin 

 cakes with mucilage of guna tragacanth. The ftones, thus 

 covered, or the cases, muil be laid upon the bed of char- 

 coal cbfe to one another, and another bed of fmcil pieces of 

 charcoal laid over them to the top of the furnace ; the cover 

 of the furnace is then to be put on, ;md the fire lighted. 

 When the charcoal is entirely confuraed, ai;d the whole is 

 cold, take out the ftones, and, feparating the cruft from 

 them, wrap them up in filk or cotton, and keep them dole 

 in a box for ufe. Preferve the cruft taken oflF the ftones ; 

 I for 



