A Manual of Precious Stones and Antique Gems (Classic Reprint)

Book excerpt: Excerpt from A Manual of Precious Stones and Antique Gems I have been induced to compile, for the benefit of amateurs and collectors of antique gems, a concise account of precious stones and antique gems; those usually called hard or fine stones, and also of some other stones and substances which cannot be comprised under the head of precious stones, but are frequently used in jewellery, and for ornamental and glyptic purposes. In this compilation I have frequently adopted the words of the best authorities, Dana, Bristow, Mr. Maskelyne, and others. In the second part I have noticed the principal precious stones, and other substances employed for glyptic purposes, known to the ancients, and described by ancient writers, and have attempted an identification of them with those known to mineralogists of the present day, in which I am much indebted to the writings of Mr. King and Mr. Maskelyne. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.