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A ruby stone having been roasted is re-examined, and, in case it does
not gain clarity, it is re-heated.
'Iraqi traders possessing the dark kind, desire that it should fetch a
higher price. They heat it in a crucible of the Sogdian bole and the roasting process results in its becoming lighter. All the orifices between the
two crucibles are thoroughly plugged and the stones are heated in the
crucibles which are specifically designed for heating gems. This process
or heating is continued for a period su ffic ient to melt a mithqal of gold.
A poultice is applied to the stones for cooling them. The stone finally
crystallises as a clear and transparent gem, and fetches a higher price.
This practice is applied when the stone is rendered free from all kinds of
concavities and orifices. A poultice of the bole from the mine from
where the stone is obtained is then applied. This bole is admixed with
ground clay kneaded with clarified butter and dried. It is then heated
on firewood, the jewellers being fully aware of the length of time for the
heating process. In the event, heating is carried on for an hour at the
minimum and twenty four hours at the maximum followed by cooling.
The stone is roasted again in case it does not clarify. As for the mine
from where the ruby is brought it is said that it is situated in the recesses
of the island of Serandib (Ceylon) at a place known as Naghz. It is
mined from the mountains of that island as well. In the Indian language
Serandib is Sankladip. Dip is the generic name for an island. When I
ponder upon the name it appears to me that the name designates a
cluster of islands, that is, a mother of islands surrounded by several isles.
The Arabs are accustomed to apocopation as in the following couplet by
'Amr bin Ahmar:
He fell and turned his horse leftward as though the Sarandi sabre
flashed in the hands of the furbisher.
The port of Serandib on the coastline is is called Mundri Patan and
the Khurasanians call it Madar Patan. It is the first frontier of the
Kingdom of Chulah, the word Chulah being generic to every ruler of this
region. The capital of Bijapur is situated to its north-east. Then facing
Ceylon is Bagran, where the pale variety of ruby is mined. Further to
the north is the region of Rung. It is here that the Mountain of Electricity is situated, and at the foot of it is the mine of the red ruby. The
people of that region believe that it is the electricity which generates the
red kind. It is not the electricity that bursts forth from the clouds having
been imprisoned in it. It is a kind of mountainous fire which is always
alight and leaps into big flames; hence its comparison with electricity.
This light guides boats and ships at night just as beyond 'Abbadan ships
gain guidance from the fire coming out of the Kankawan wood or as the
Alexandrian lighthouse serves as a beacon. During the day-time this light
is seen in the form of smoke.
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