G N E 



G N E 



'>lenJc : is but ieldora found, and only in the thin flaty variety 

 of gneifs, which padts into mica and hornblende flatc. 

 4 Steatite : occui-s principally in the gneifs forming the walls 

 of the metalliferous veins in tiie Freiberg diilrift ; it is con- 

 sidered by fome as mica thus transformed by fulphuric acid. 

 5. Aftinote : is faid fometimes to conllitute an ingredient of 

 tfneifs in Switzerland and Hungary. Metallic iub.'lances 

 that are fometimes found dilTeminated in gneiis, in the vici- 

 nity of veins, cannot properly be enumerated even as acci- 

 dental component parts of this rock. 



Gneifs abounds in metals moret'iiin any other rock, as may 

 be feen from the richncfs of thi Saxon and Bohemian mines, 

 thofe of Salzburg, Sec. There are but f;w among the 

 known melals that arc not found in it, either in veins or beds. 

 "■The oldcft gr.eifs in the Saxon Ertzgebirge," fays Mr. 

 Jnmefon, " that with reddilli-coloured feldfpar, is the leafl 

 produftive in ores ; but the newer, with white coloured 

 feldfpar, is the moft produftive ; and the veins, tlioiigh 

 fmall, are numerous. Tiie oldell venigenous formation ap- 

 pears to be that which contains tin-Hone. Tlie tin-ore is 

 accompanied with wolfram, molybdena, arfenic-pyrites, 

 fluor-lpar, chlorite, topaze, and opi'.l. The iecond venigenous 

 formation appears to be a le.id-glance formation. The third 

 formation coniilb- principally of copper, and the ores are 

 grey copper-ore, copper -glance, copper-pyrites, and va- 

 ne? '.fed copper-ore. The fourth formation, v.-hich is very 

 excenfive, contains ores of cobalt. The newefl: formation is 

 that which contains ores of filver. Veins containing an'-i- 

 mony_, and red iron-llone occur in gneifs, and tliefe are fup- 

 pofed to be newer than any of the preceding. The metaili- 



ferous beds that occur in tins 



contain argentiferous 



leaJ-glance, blende, copper and iron-pyrites. It fometimes 

 alfo contains formations of gold.'' 



There are three confiderable beds oi rocks fuberdir.ate to, and 

 fy nchronic with, gneifs, and which are therefore not feen in gra- 

 nite, wz. granular limcltone, as it is oblerved, for inftancc, near 

 Freiberg; primitive trap, fuch ashornblende-flate, at Kutlen- 

 berg in Bohemia, at Kongfberg in Norway, &c ; and the 

 older porphyry. (See Limestose, Trap, and Porphyry.) 

 Alfo fmall beds of common garnets, aftinole, with magnetic 

 iron-done, iron-pyrites, galena, &c. now and then occur 

 in gneifs. 



Gneifs 'being generally fuperincumbent on granite, is 

 hence confidered as next to this primitive reck in point of 

 age : there is, however, alfo a difference in the relative an- 

 tiquity of the different kinds of gneifs, and on the whole it 

 may be faid that the nearer it approaches in its texture to 

 M'ica-Jlaie, (fee that article,) the more recent is its origi:?. 

 From this it docs not, hov.ever, follow that there fhould 

 not be found kinds of gneifs which furpafs in antiquity even 

 fome kinds of real gi..mte. (See Gr.\mte.) The very 

 thick flaky varieties cif gneifs, with black mica and a fmall 

 proportion of mica, may, in general, be faid to be of more 

 ancient formation. 



Gneifs, though far lefs widely didributed than granite, has 

 ftlll a confiderable range ; it extends over the greatelt part 

 of the Saxon Ertzgebirge: the country about Freiberg, 

 GlaHiLitte, Marienberg, Ehrenfriederfdorf, conlifting almoib 

 entirely of it. In t!ie fame manner it is the characterizing 

 rock of the Bohemian mountainous mining diltiitt. It is 

 alfo found in Silefia, Carinthia, in fome parts of the Black 

 Foreft in Suabia ; nor is it wanting in the Tauriflcian moun- 

 tains, in Salzburg, in the Swifs Alps, the Pyrenees and 

 Vofges, in Scandinavia, Greece, &c. In Great Britain it 

 has been obfer-.-ed particularly m Scotland, in tlie iflands of 

 Coll, Tiree, Rona, and in the Slietland iflands It (houlU 



however be obfei-ved, that frequently other rocks have been 

 defcribcd as gneifs by topographical writers. 



The eeonmnkal life made of gucifs is that for paving, and 

 for the conilniction of walls ; for both wiiich purpoles it i^ 

 extremely well calculated, by reafon of the facility with 

 which it is wrouglit hy tlie mafon. Hence in the' Saxon 

 mining diftriit not only almoll a!! buildings arr- coi,ftru<Jted 

 of gneifs, but alfo the wallin;; of the fliafts and levels is moft 

 advantngcoufly executed in tiiistifeful nek. 



^ GNEMON, in Bolriiy, :i tree fo called in the ifland of 

 Tornate and otiicrs of the Moluccas, which is named in tlit- 

 Malay language Meiwijc, or Aleii'wgo, a word apparently of 

 the fame derivation, whatever that may be. See Gne- 



TL'.M. 



GNERDEN. in Geography, a town of Perfia, in the 

 province of Irak; 150 miles E. of Ifpaiian. N. lat. 32^ 

 20'. E. long. 55 \ 



GNEKROUTOOH, a town of Birmah, on the Ira- 

 waddy ; 10 miles N. E. of Pagham. 



GNESEN, or Gnksn-.a, a city of Poland, in the 

 duchy of Warfaw, built, as it is faid, by king Lechus I., 

 founder of the monarchy, and called Cntfna, from an eagle's 

 nefl found there, denominated in the Pohlli language Gn.fiaii. 

 The kings of Poland were crov.ned in this city, and the 

 regalia were kept here till, in the year 1320, they were 

 removed to Cracow. During the independent cxiftence 

 of Poland, it was famous as the fee cf an archbi(hop, who 

 was primate of Polr.nd, and who aftcd as interrex i r regent 

 upon the king's deniife ; and wlio alio announced the 

 event, convoked the di^-ls and dictines of convocation, and 

 performed the funiStions of royalty. Gnefna is 100 milus 

 N. E from Brellaw, and 130 W. from Warfaw. N. lat. 

 52° 26' E. long. 17-42'. 



GNETUM, a name contrived by Linna-us, as we prc- 

 fume from )»r,;is-;»i-, brotkerhooil, alluding to the fituatioh 

 of the numerous male and female flowers, feveral of each 

 together in e.ich whorl. Eiiui. Mant. 18. Schreb. fij*). 

 Wllld. Sp. PI. V. 4. 591. Mart. Mill. Diet. v. 2. Jufl".4c6. 

 (Thoa; Aubl. Guian. v. 2. 874. Schreb. 650 .luff. 406. 

 Lamarck Illullr t. 784.) Clals and ord>.r, Mor.ttcia fiio- 

 nu'Je'phia. Nat. Or<l. Urtic'is ojfme, .luff, or rather, as he him- 

 felf hints, to be referred to a new order, which he propofcs 

 to term P\ feres. 



Gen. Ch. Cal. Catkin compofed of feveral remote, cal- 

 lous, thickened v.horls, each fubtcnded by a fmall partial 

 cnlyx, which is peltate, orbicul.ir, flat, entire, containing 

 feveral feffile florets, the male ones inftrior, the females 

 fnj)erior, in the fame whorl. Perianth of the male a minute, 

 ovate, coloured fealc. Cor. none. Slam. Filament one, 

 thread-fliaped, longer than the Icale; anthers in pairs, con- 

 nected. 



Perianth of the female a rude, lacerated fcale. Cer. none. 

 Pyi- Germcn ovate, fuperior, immcrled in the receptacle 

 of its own whorl, the length of the flairens; llyle conical, 

 iliurt; fligm.a three-deft, acute. Peric. Drupa ovate, of 

 one cell. Seed. Nut folitary, oblong, llriated, of one cell. 



Efl' Ch. Male, Calyx an nndivitled fealc of a whorled 

 catkin. Corolla none. Filament one, with a pair of anthers. 

 Female, Calyx a torn fcale of the fame whorl. Corolla none. 

 Stigma three-cleft. Drupa with one feed. 



Obf. Linncus obferves t4int Rnmphius makes his plant 

 diacious, but he found it monoecious, ar.d even faw one 

 catkin entirely male, flanding on its own footilalk, near a 

 female llorct. The /'/.^oa of Aublet, though fomewhat dif- 

 ferently deferibcd, is undoubtedly the fame genu.', and in- 

 deed fo like the original Gnelum in foliage, that it is not 

 very eafy to dittinguiih them. 



I. G. Cn.'mcn. 



