all,
that of China, we find many references in their national history to
pearls being employed in the service of their idols and as tribute fit
for emperors and great mandarins. These, however, were for the most
part fresh-water gems obtained from the River Hwai or from the rivers
of the province of Kingkau, both of which are specifically named as
sources of supply. Also the ancient dictionary called Nh'ya, which was
compiled about three thousand years ago, defines "pearl" as a precious
jewel found in the province of Shen-Si.
There
runs a story that at about the beginning of the Christian Era a pearl
was discovered near Yangchow-Fu, in the province of Kiang-Su, which was
of such stupendous brightness that after sunset its luster could be
seen for many miles.
It
is possible that the story owes its origin entirely to the fancy of an
imaginative narrator. But the professional storyteller of old time—in
China as well as in Europe—did not as a rule invent anything completely
new. He was, rather, an embroiderer, taking what he had heard from the
lips of others and adding his own contribution of imagination to the
whole. Therefore I feel inclined to think that this legend is based
upon some slight substratum of truth; that somewhere and somewhen was
found a large pearl of extraordinary luster, and that for some unknown
reason it was of such luminosity that those who saw it were mystified
and awed. It is not a far call from the wonderful and unusual to the
impossible and the incredible.
To
the Chinese of old, pearls were distinctly "bringers of good luck," as
they are to-day, and very welcome as potent charms, to be worn as
amulets against illness, fire, and such other disasters as flesh is
heir to.
From
ancient China to the Persia of the Alhalmid princess whose sarcophagus
was found and opened at Shushan, the residence of the kings of Persia,
is a long step. But the pearl necklet discovered with the remains of
the princess dates back to the fourth century B.C. and is supposed to
be the oldest of its kind in existence. Visitors to the Persian Gallery
of the Louvre in Paris may convince themselves that the Iranians
