THE AUSTRALIAN NATURALIS1. 45 
1st Row: 2nd Row: 3rd Row: 4th Row: 
Carnelian Carbuncle Citrine Sapphire 
Peridot Lapis Lazuli Agate Beryl 
Amazon Stone Chrysophrase Amethyst Onyx 
Some students have identified the Ligure of the Bible with 
the lyneurium of Dioscorides and other writers. This was a 
mythical name connected with the animal know as the Lynx 
applied to what we now know to be Belemnites the fossil pen of 
a cephalopod—an extinct cuttle-fish—, which for many years 
have been popularly known as “thunderbolts” and to which 
magical properties were attributed. There can be little doubt, 
however, that ligure is identical with the lugkurion of Theo- 
phrastus, which was a hard yellow stone, used by seal en- 
gravers, transparent and difficult to polish, and which we iden- 
tify with our yellow sapphire. The belemnite is a soft fossil 
by no means ornamental, and it is extremely unlikely that such 
an object would be chosen for purposes of ornamentation. 
It will be of interest to endeavour to trace the Tribal names 
of Israel which were associated with the different stones of the 
breastplate. There is a good deal of evidence pointing to the 
association in history of the 12 signs of the Zodiac of the 
Greeks, the 12 months of the year, the 12 tribes of Israel, the 
jewels of the King of Tyre, and the 12 foundations of the New 
Jerusalem, but this is too large a subject to be dealt with here. 
From this association, however, undoubtedly arose the very old 
custom of wearing a particular gem as a birthstone or for an 
astral or zodiacal stone, the one chosen corresponding with the 
month of birth. The history of the tribes is extremely in- 
volved, but we know that the original twelve were the descen- 
dants of the twelve sons of Jacob. In Genesis 29, 35, 46 and 
49, the 12 names are identical, though the order of arrange- 
ment is different in each place. In Exodus 1, Joseph’s name 
is not included, owing to his absence in Egypt. Other tribes 
arose at later stages. Thus, in the lists given in Numbers, Levi 
drops out, because, being of the priestly caste, they possessed 
no Jand, while Joseph’s place is taken by his sons, Manasseh 
and Ephraim. Later still there are further changes till in 1 
Chron. 12 we have no Jess than 14 tribes mentioned, Levi being 
included, but Joseph replaced as before by Manasseh and 
Ephraim, the former being again split into two. 
Associating then the names of the tribes in the genealogical 
order in which they occur in the earliest list in the Book of 
Genesis, with the stones in the sequence at which we have ar- 
