188 TRAVELS TO DISCOVER 



ly the fame with this which is the bloody jafper, or blood- 

 Hone, is what we had not time to fettle. 



. I should firft have made-mention of the verde antico, the 

 dark green with white irregular fpots, becaufe it is of the 

 greatefl value, and neareft the Nile. This is produced in the 

 mountains of the plain green, or ferpentine, as is the jafper, 

 and is not difcoverable by the duft, or any particular colour 

 upon it. Firft, there is a blue fleaky ftone, exceedingly even 

 and fmooth in the grain, folid, and without fparks or co- 

 lour. When broken, it is fomething lighter than a flate, 

 and more beautiful than mod marble ; it is like the lava of 

 volcanoes, when polifhed. After lifting this, we come to the 

 beds of verde antico ; and here the quarrying is very obvi- 

 ous, for it has been uncovered in patches, not above twenty 

 feet fquare. Then, in another part, the green ftone has 

 been removed, and another pit of it wrought. 



I saw, in feveral places in the plain, fmall pieces of A- 

 frican marble fcattered about, but no- rocks or mountains 

 of it. I fuppofe it is found in the heart of fome other co- 

 loured marble, and in ftrata, like the jafper and verde anti- 

 co, and, I fufpecl:, in the mountains of Ifabella marble, efpe- 

 cially of the yelloweft fort of it, but this is mere conjecture.. 

 This prodigious ftore of marble is placed upon a ridge, 

 whence there is a defcent to the eaft or weft, either to the 

 Nile or Red Sea. The level ground and hard-fixed gravel 

 are proper for the heavieft carriages, and will eafily and 

 fmoothly convey any weight whatever to its place of em- 

 barkation on the Nile ; fo that another wonder ceafed, how 

 the ancients tranfported thofe. vaft blocks to Thebes, Mem- 

 phis, and Alexandria,. 



Cosseir 



