60 JASPER. 
dergoing the punishment of scourging, and so cut that 
the red spots are made to represent drops of blood. 
The ancients procured bloodstones chiefly from 
Ethiopia ; but, at present, the most highly esteemed 
varieties are brought from Bucharia, Great Tartary, 
and Siberia. A kind of mineral nearly resembling this 
is found in Rum, one of the western isles of Scotland* 
The spots in bloodstone are particles of red jasper. 
96. JASPER is a species of quartz, and one of the hardest 
stones with which we are acquainted. It varies much in co- 
lour, being red, green, yellow, blue, olive, violet, black, and 
often variegated, spotted, or veined with several other colours. 
It is usually opaque, but is capable of receiving a beautiful 
polish. 
This stone is found in large and shapeless masses, and con- 
stitutes an ingredient in mountains of various parts of the 
world. 
Such is the hardness of jasper, that the savages of 
Canada avail themselves of it for the fabrication of the 
heads of javelins, and sometimes also of arrows. It is 
used by artists for the formation of vases, snuff-boxes, 
seals, and trinkets of various kinds ; and formerly cups 
and saucers were sometimes made of it. Many beau- 
tiful antique engravings have been made upon jasper. 
In the province of Andalusia, in Spain, there are 
four fine quarries of jasper. One of these is celebrated 
for a blood-red stone, streaked with white, exceedingly 
hard and very handsome, of which the beautiful columns 
of the tabernacle in the Escurial are made. This quarry 
is in the territory of Cogullus, in the archbishopric 
of Seville, and was purchased by the Crown in 1581 ; 
but was afterwards so far neglected that even the place 
where it lay was not remembered. It was, however, 
again discovered about the end of the reign of Charles 
the Third, after a very expensive search made by order 
of the government. 
Jasper occurs in the Pentland hills, near Edinburgh, 
and in several other parts of Scotland ; in the Shetland 
Islands, and Hebrides. It has been observed in most of 
