504 
COITER. 
face of the tufts are generally clothed with the 
richest velvet green. The green oxides of copper 
indeed are ranked among the finest ornaments of 
our cabinets ; and although the first place must be 
given to the silky copper as the most delicate, yet 
the malachite falls but little short of it in beauty. 
This frequently vies with the emerald in colour, 
and the fine polish of which it is susceptible gives 
it some consequence with the jeweller. Some very 
fine specimens of this mineral, among a thousand 
others, were preserved in the ever-to-be-regretted 
Le verian Museum; but the most remarkable is that 
mentioned byPatrin, in the collection of Dr. Guthrie 
at Petersburg: it was 32 inches long, 1/ broad, and 
2 thick. This specimen was valued at sixteen 
hundred pounds. 
Malachite is sometimes mixed with azure cop- 
per, so as to produce a very beautiful effect ; and 
we occasionally see bones, especially the teeth of 
animals, which have their substance filled either 
with the azure or the malachite copper ore. When 
this happens, and the teeth take a fine polish, they 
are called turquoise stones , because they are said to 
have been first imported from Turkey. They are 
likewise found in Persia, but they are more subject 
to turn green than the others. These stones have 
been much esteemed for seals and other trinkets. 
Gray copper ore is very rich in metal, yielding 
from 80 to 90 per cent, of copper, and 10 or 12 of 
sulphur. It is so soft as to be cut with a knife al- 
most as easily as black lead, and is so remarkably 
