274 
stones; 
one of the fcarcell to be got. Some time after, 
Mr. Roboly came to Cairo, where Mr. Liron* 
court, the French Conful, a learned and very 
curious man faw, admired, and eafily obtained 
the Stone. Lironcourt accepted of the prelent 
■with pkafure, without knowing its value ; I wa* 
therefore allied the fecond time about it, and an 
fwered as before ; upon which Mr. Lironcourt 
compared it with the defcriptions which Pliny, 
and feveral other Authors, which he had in hi* 
fine library, ■ had given of the Opal, and was by 
them confirmed that I was right. But he knew no £ 
yet the value, and foon after fet out for Con flan' 
tinople. He there fhewed the Stone to a Cofl' 
noifleur, who told him it was an Opal, and that 
he valued it at feveral thoufand ducats. The An' 
cients knew the Opal perfe&ly well, and withotf 1 
doubt it was more common with them, than it 1 * 
at prefent. This, which 1 have defcribed, ha d 
probably lain concealed in the ruins of Alexandria' 
ever fince the time when all kinds of Gems an 
Jewels were part of the riches of its powerful i* 1 ' 
habitants. There is fcarcely any kind of Ston £ ’» 
accounted precious by the Ancients, which is 
to be found in the ruins of Alexandria and 
Cairo ; fome of them polilhed, others rough, 
have fee n the Chalcedon, Aga-onyx, Sard on)’*’ 
Cornelian, all found in thole places. I forbe 3 
mentioning Emeralds, and Sapphires, which 3t ^ 
frequently found there, and are not fo fcarce 3 
prefent as the former. The attentive Tavern*^’ 
who was a great Connoiffeur of Stones, fays, c g 
the Opal is not to be found in any place in * 
world, except in a mine in Hungary; but the A> 
cients, without doubt, had this and many £ 
Stones, of which we know not the country or p a 
whefl ce 
