has not been possible for us hitherto to determine its nature; it is however suspected that its extreme hardness is communicated to it artificially by its being exposed to a strong fire. Nevertheless, we see jades in many burial-places with engravings or sculptures of Greek or ancient Italian work on them.
Did this stone, then, come in a rough state from the East, to be worked here, or was it found in our country ?
In
the middle ages it was believed that amulets in jade possessed the
virtue of warding off kidney complaints, and from this came the name
of hijada, which signifies " kidneys " in Spanish. Such, moreover, is the origin of the scientific name of nephrite, which
has the same meaning in Greek. In the East, handles of daggers and of
scimitars made of this substance are very much valued. The Hindoos make
vases and shapeless statuettes of it. The inhabitants of New Zealand
make it into axes and arms. The indigenous Americans made great use of
it, especially for amulets, and they even knew how to pierce and carve
it.
XLIV.
JARGOON.
A species of
siliceous zirconite, which was so named in Ceylon. It is a vitreous
substance, almost always transparent; generally either red, bluish, or
even colourless, and of a particularly resinous brightness, which
somewhat resembles that of the diamond.
