of Plinies Natural! Hiftorie. 4.65 
A the citie of Rome,when the civile warre betweene him and Pompey was begun; tooke out of the 
citie chamber 15000 wedges or ingots of gold, 35000 lumpes or maffes of filver, and in readi¢ According 
_ money 4oooo Sefterces. And to fay a truth, neverwas the citie of Rome wealchier than at this ‘° #44. 
time. Moreover, myliws Paulus, after he had defeated and vanquifhed Per/éds tiie Macedoni- 
an king,bronght into tHe treafurie of the citiea bootie of 3000 pound of goldin weight. After 
which time the common people of Rome had never any tributes or taxes levied of them by the 
State. . 
Moreover,this is to be obferved, That after the overthrow and deftrifGtion of Carthage, thé 
beames began firft to bee guilded within the temple of the Capitoll, whiles 2:2 ummm was 
Cenfor.Andnow adaies you (hall not fee any good houfe of a privat man, but it is laid thick and 
B covered over with golet. Nay,the braverie of men harh not ftaied fo, but they haveproceeded to 
the arched and embowed roufs, to the wals likewife of their houfes which we may {ee every where 
as well and throughly guilded as the filver plate upon their cupbourds. And yet Catulws was di- 
verfly thought of in the agewherein helived,becaufe he was the firft chat guilded the brafentiles 
of the Capitol. : 
Touching the firft inventors, as well of gold; asalfo of all other mettals to {peake of, I have 
alreadie written in my feventh booke, As for the eftimation of this mettall, that itfhould bee 
_ cheefe as it is, fuppofe it proceedeth not from the colour; for filver hath a brighter luftre,more 
like to the day,and in this refpect more agreeable to the enfignes of warre than that of gold, be- 
caufe it glittereth and fhineth farther off; And hereby is theit errour manifettly convinced, who 
C commend thecelour of gold, in this regard, thatic refebleth the ftarres:for well itis knowne 
that their colouris not reputed richeft,cither in precious {tones or in many things befides, Nei- 
ther is gold preferred before other mettals, becavfethe matter is more weightie or pliable than 
the reft; for lead {urmounteth it, both in the one and the other, But] hold, thatthe reputation 
~ which it hath,commeth from hence, That it alone of all things in the world, loofeth nothing in 
the fire : forfay thatahoufe be burnt wherein goldis,yet it waftethnot : and looke what gold is 
committed to the funerall flames, it confumeth not with the dead bodie,but is found allagaine 
among the afhes. Nay,the oftener that it hath been in the fire, the better itis and the more refi- 
ned ; in fuch fort, that the beft gold which they call Obryzum, isknowne by this, if it bee of the 
fame deepe red colour that the fire is wherein it is tried. Anda principal] argument this is of fine 
D gold, if it hardly be kindled and fet on fire red hore, Moreover, this is wonderfull inthe nature of 
*gold, thatin a fire made of light ftraw or chaffe, ic will moft quickly becomered hot and mele; *Thishaply 
put the fame among the whoteft burning coales thatcan bee of wood, uaneath or hardly willit ™¥ Pe aes 
yeeld tothe heat thereofand refolve: asalfo for the purifying thereof,it ought to be melted with wife in fined 
lead. A greater reafon there isbefidesthat maketh gold fo precious: for that with ufe or hand. £01¢it isnot 
ling there isJitele of it loft and wafted;whereas filver,braffe,and lead, if you draw any linesthere- .h2, rietke 
with, colour as they go and leave fomewhat behind : they foile their hands alfo who occupie the ftronger fire it 
fame with the fubftance and matter that fheddeth fromthem. Over and befides, thereis nota ee ee 
mettall will bee driven out broader with the hammer, or devide eafily into more parcels than ‘ 
_ gold,infomuch as every ounce of it may be reduced into feven hundred & fiftie leaves, or more, 
E and each one of them foure fingers large every way. The thickeft gold foile beareth the name at 
this day of Praneftium, forthat the image of Fortune at Pranefte is above all other moft richly 
guilded. The next thereto in goodnefle is the foile or leafe of gold named Queftoria. In Spaine 
they ufe to call by the name of Strigiles, the {mall peeces of that fine gold which is found natu- 
rally alone above all the refteither compaé in fome mafle, orin manner of fand and gravell; 
whereas all other parcels of gold taken out of the mines, need to bee fined and broughtto their 
perfedtion by the meanes of fire. But this gold that I {peak of,is gold prefently at the firft,andno 
fooneris found,butthe matter thereof by and by isconfummatandaccomplifhed.Lo howgold 
is found in the owne nature pureand perfect! As for the other manner of finding and fining 
gold,whereofI meane to fpeake anone, itis forced(as it were)and upon conftraint. But above all 
F other properties cocommend the goodnefle of gold, this efpecially is to be obferved, That there 
isnoruft norcanker,nonor any filth befides breeding of itfelfetherein, whichis able either to 
corruptthe goodneffe, or deminifh the weight and {ubftance thereof . What fhouldI fay how 
firme it continueth and durable againft falt and vinegre,{corning all their injuries :& yet other- 
wile theit moifture is able to cat into any other mettals, yea,andto confume and tame all ae 
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