GEOMETRICAL TORTOISE. 21 



view, than most others of this perplexing tribe. 

 The pieces of which the disk of the shell consists 

 are very prominent, striated, or furrowed pretty 

 distinctly with numerous lines on their sides, and 

 terminated above by a yellowish, flat, square, or 

 rather hexagonal roughened space or centre, from 

 which proceed, in a radiated direction, several 

 well-defined yellow streaks towards the edge ; 

 thus constituting a beautiful kind of geometrical 

 appearance on the black ground-colour on which 

 they are disposed : the marginal pieces, which are 

 commonly twenty-four, sometimes twenty-six, in 

 number, are also streaked with yellow, but in a 

 somewhat different style, as may be seen by in- 

 specting the annexed engraving. In the bright- 

 ness of its colours, like all other Tortoises, it oc- 

 casionally varies ; but the beautiful regularity of 

 its pattern is scarcely ever obliterated, even in the 

 oldest specimens. In the number of pieces com- 

 posing the disk it is sometimes known to vary; 

 having occasionally fourteen instead of thirteen, 

 as is the case in a specimen preserved in the Bri- 

 tish Museum, and represented on pi. 306 of the 

 Naturalist's Miscellany. 



The native country of this beautifi\l Tortoise is 

 perhaps not truly ascertained ; though the shell is 

 more frequently seen in Europe than that of al- 

 most any other kind. It is said, however, to in- 

 habit Asia and Africa, and even to be found in 

 America. According to Mr. Thunberg it is parti- 

 cularly common in shrubby places about the Cape 

 of Good Hope. It is said to lay about twelve or 



