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King: Precious Stones and Metals

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PREFACE.
The high commendation lavished by all reviewers, both scientific and literary, upon the First Edition of this Trea­tise, and its rapid exhaustion by the reading public, have attested in the most gratifying manner the success of my attempt to present in a compendious form the archaeology, combined with the present history, of the things that in all ages have been accounted the truest representatives, or rather the actual constituents, of value, the most sought-after of all decorations for the person, the most multiplied as well as most enduring vehicles of the creative art of antiquity in all its phases, and therefore the most trust­worthy (when they can be read) of all historical monu­ments—things too that before the decay of Faith marking these " latter days," were ever regarded as the chosen dwelling-places of the astral influences, of those Virtues from on high whose working in them secured the blessing of heaven, the favour of man, for their fortunate possessors. The novelty of the undertaking—its thus combining in one the ancient, mediaeval, and modern views of the " Science of Precious Stones "—was perhaps its foremost recommend­ation ; its execution, however (for once less satisfactory to the author than to his readers), fell very short of my wishes, and of the idea before my mind in the first sketch­ing out of my plan. (M.)                                                                       a
King: Precious Stones and Metals Page of 377 King: Precious Stones and Metals
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