COMMERCE OF INDIA. 



217 



used Pariah dogs of our days. Indian tortoises also found a 

 good market. But not only living animals, valuable skins 

 and horns also were exported. 



Pearls were another article, highly prized alike by ancient 

 as by modern nations. One of the most renowned pearl- 

 fisheries was on the coast of Ceylon, especially at Perimula 

 (Perimuda) on the island of Manaar. We know that the 

 Medes, Persians and other eastern people paid immense sums 

 for pearls, and Plinius tells us, that the Romans, especially 

 the Roman ladies, were very fond of them. The Roman 

 ladies adorned nearly every part of their body with pearls, 

 even down to the straps of their sandals, making their presence 

 known by the clinking of pearl- strings as do to this day the 

 Indian dancing girls. The sumptuousness displayed in those 

 times exceeded all bounds, thus we read, that Lolla, the wife of 

 the Emperor Caius Claudius, appeared often publicly covered 

 with smaragds and pearls, worth 40,000,000 sesterces or 

 £300,000 sterling. The story about the wager between Queen 

 Cleopatra of Egypt and the Triumvir Antonius is well known. 

 She possessed two large pearls, used as pendents of the ear, 

 which had been previously the property of other eastern 

 monarchs and were valued very highly. She dissolved one in 

 strong vinegar, drank it, and was only prevented by an atten- 

 dant of Antonius from dissolving the other pearl. The 

 draught thus swallowed was esteemed to be worth 10,000,000 

 sesterces, or a little more than £80,000 sterling. 



Though Silk is indigenous in China, and Kattigara (the 

 modern Kanton) was in ancient days the great silk market, 

 silk may be mentioned here, as the western nations received 

 it via India, and it is mentioned as Sericum Indicum in the 

 Roman Digesta. Moreover there exist also in this country 

 12 species of silk spinning worms. Indian-made silk articles 

 were bought by Greek and Roman merchants. In the latter 

 times of the Roman Empire silk dresses became more 



