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Ch. 14: Emerald, Aquamarine, Beryl

Ch. 14: Emerald, Aquamarine, Beryl Page of 401 Ch. 15: Opal | Pearls Text size:minus plus Restore normal size   Mail page  Print this page
     
     
 
THE BERYL. 179
  
 
 
  
 
to pink by artificial heat ; Scotch or " false topaz," is simply
yellow quartz. Limpid pebbles consisting of genuine topaz
are called gouttes a'eau. Mawe says the river-beds of Brazil
yield white, blue, and sea-green varieties, and Burton found
both the topaz and the ruby in the itacolumite of this country ;
the former has been known to occur in granite, and possibly it
may exist in other kinds of rocks.
Topaz is seldom found in large crystals without defects,
but it sometimes constitutes massive rocks which, in Saxony,
are called "topaz fels." Specimens of immense size in a
crystalline form have been taken from the Urals ; one of this
description in the collection of St. Petersburg, of a wine color
and perfectly transparent, has been differently estimated to
weigh twenty-two and one-half, and thirty-one pounds ; another,
found in Scotland, has a weight of nineteen ounces. A topaz
described by Tavernier, belonging to the Emperor Aurungzeeb,
which was purchased at Goa for nearly sixty thousand dollars,
weighed one hundred fifty-seven and three-fourths carats.
Very fine specimens of this gem were exhibited at the London
Exposition of 1851, from New South Wales and other regions ;
the brilliant mineral sent from Russia as phenakite, when
subjected to the test of specific gravity, proved to be topaz.
It has been said that this precious stone has never been
engraved, but this is an error, on good authority, since several
of this class are known to exist. An antique engraving
bearing a star or a cluster of stars has been counted with the
treasures of St. Petersburg ; another, engraved with the portraits of Philip II. and Don Carlos, is in the Royal Library of
Paris ; and a third, inscribed with a motto in Arabic, is thought
to be owned in the same city. As an ornamental stone, the
topaz is less popular than formerly ; therefore, its commercial
value is small compared with some other gems.
  
 
 
  
     
Ch. 14: Emerald, Aquamarine, Beryl Page of 401 Ch. 15: Opal | Pearls
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