( .6 ) 
A Friend of mine, who is very nice in diftinguifhing of Colours, 
aflurcs me, That in this Flower there is a beautiful complication 
of different fhadcs of Red, that all follow one another: For when 
it is in its Prime, there may be plainly difeerned in it. i. A Car- 
iiation. 2. A pale Scarlet. 3. A fuller Scarlet. 4. A Modena. 
And 5. aCrimfon. In fhort, the whole Flower together looks like 
a gold Tiflue with a velvet Pile, when view’d in the Sun fhinc. 
When the Flower had flood in Bloom about fix Weeks, it began 
to decay, and the Colours to fly off j and then it appeared mere 
like a filvcr TifTue upon a prince Colour,, that is, a Red out of 
Grain, being fullcft towards the Middle, and palefl toward the 
Edges. 
But as the Flowers begin to contrafl, fhrivel, and wither, then 
the Pctala affume a deep Crimfon Colour, which continues till they 
quite dry away. 
The Colours of the Pctala being that principally in which the 
Beauty of this Plant confifts, I fhall fubjoin to Cormitus’s Account 
of thefe, the manner in which other Authors, fincc his Time, have 
thought fit to exprefs them, 
Cornutus begins by obferving, that if the Plant flands in a good 
Soil, each Flower has fix T^etaUy two Inches long each, and with a 
fmall Sulcus running along them. That they arc refleded like thofc 
of the Martagon Lilly, and draw at lafl to a Point. That the Co- , 
lours arc fo cxtreamly Beautiful and Fine, that it is impofliblc to 
imitate them, but they come fomething near to that of Cinnabar, 
or the fineft fort of Gum Lacca. This Author takes notice likewife 
of the Spangles that appear in the Leaves when view’d in the Sun. 
^um Gemm£ florem patefaciunt in fex folia deducifolenty Ji potijji- 
miim plant a h£C refoluta ^ pingui humo feratur, nam Ji Jicca cr can- 
fe£ia pojita Jity foli macies plermopiie mnmillcs tmo aut alio folio 
mutilat .... Singula cujufque f.oris folia duas uncias fnnt longay 
admodum angufa ^ exigua veluti lacuna fulcata. Juxta floris cen- 
trum brevi cacumine graciiefeunty extrema parte reflexa refupinan- 
tur {pro more Lilii Montani quod Martagon njocanti) Color foris eji 
Cinnabaris aut lacca elegant ioriSy vena fanguinea tamen lacunarum 
media diferiminante .... Unus odor abefty ejus defe 6 ium Natura 
fupplevit vivacitate coloris, quern nem modo pigmentorurn mixturte 
Artificio quifquam affequi nequity fed nec ullis haEfenus floribus Ji- 
milem concejfijfe naturam objervatum eft. Nam prater eximium 
hunc color em quo intuentium obtuitum hebetat ; fi forte ferenus dies 
affulferitj floremque radiis fol meridianus illuftraverity mille velut 
fcintillas evibrat, quos pertinax oculus ijnconnivenfque vix mo- 
menta fubjlineat, 
R A P I N. 
