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92
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DE NATURA FOSSILIUM
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Julius Caesar noticed this same thing for he writes that lapis phrygius resembles the ice he observed in the Sequana river. He calls selenite by this name because it is found in Phrygia.
Selenite
is mined in many places. It is abundant in eastern Spain near the town
of Segovia and less abundant in Gaul; in small quantities in Saxony
near Hildesheim and toward the base of Mt. Desterus beyond Bunsedorf;
abundant in Thuringia two miles from Northusa in the Stei-gerwald
valley; abundant in the mountains where the Vicelebii have built their
famous and strong fortress of Stein; in small quantities in Misena
toward Sala; at Bononia, Italy, where a portion of the walls is made
from it and where it is found in many foundations; in Sicily, Cyprus,
Phrygia, Cappadocia, Arabia, Egypt and Africa.
It
is either all white, all black or half white and half black as that
mined in Hanover in the vicinity of Francisca at the foot of Mt.
Desterus. Some of the white is similar to ophite because of its black
spots. This variety is found even today and Theophrastus writes that it
came from Egypt in ancient times. The honey-white variety is rare. Most
of the white is transparent while all other varieties are either less
transparent or opaque. All are splendent. Most selenite is soft, the
softest being from Cappadocia. Some is hard but this is the same
species as the soft differing only in hardness which may equal that of
marble. The hard is not common in beds while the soft is often found in
quite thin beds. Both hard and soft are found in Germany. Since they
consist of the same material gypsum is made from both by burning. Each
is light the softer being the lighter. Numerous beds of selenite are
common such places as Spain, Thuringia and Cappadocia, although Pliny
writes that they are never found more than five feet thick. In some
places the beds are small as in
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sufficiently
clear and white but which is very transparent. For that reason it is
used in windows the same as glass. Such a window can be seen in a
certain old church of Marieburg.
Ancon.
"Albertus writes the same and says that in the place of the lead which
is used to strengthen the glass, smooth pieces of wood are used.
Bermannus. "That is right.
Ancon. "Moreover he writes that he himself had seen such large quantities
of it in Germany that they filled wagons with it. He says that it is
found in France together with gypsum, a part of which is of the very
highest quality.
Bermannus.
"Albertus is right. When our people suffer from dysentery they take a
piece the size of a walnut, powder it, place it in sour wine and drink
it. Many people have been cured of sickness in this way.
Ancon.
"It is obviously related to gypsum since the Arabs drink the latter to
stop the expectoration of blood, to stop menstrual flow and to cure
dysentery.
Naevius.
"Dioscorides writes that gypsum will stop the flow of blood but when
drunk causes strangulation. Galen does not give it as a drink but
recommends that a plaster be made from gypsum, the white of an egg,
fine wheat flour and some pleasant binder and used to stop bleeding.
Bermannus.
"Then it is safer to drink selenite without wine. Up to now, it has
injured no one and I have seen and heard of many people being helped
fey it."
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