TALISMANIC USE OF PRECIOUS STONES 75
" Aristotlea says
that no one except Alexander ever reached the place where the diamond
is produced. This is a valley, connected with the land Hind. The glance
cannot penetrate to its greatest depths and serpents are found there,
the like of which no man hath seen, and upon which no man can gaze
without dying. However, this power endures only as long as the serpents
live, for when they die the power leaves them. In this place summer
reigns for six months and winter for the same length of time. Now,
Alexander ordered that an iron mirror should be brought and placed at
the spot where the serpents dwelt. When the serpents approached, their
glance fell upon their own image in the mirror, and this caused their
death. Hereupon, Alexander wished to bring out the diamonds from the
valley, but no one was willing to undertake the descent. Alexander
therefore sought counsel of the wise men, and they told him to throw
down a piece of flesh into the valley. This he did, the diamonds became
attached to the flesh, and the birds of the air seized the flesh and
bore it up out of the valley. Then Alexander ordered his people to
pursue the birds and to pick up what fell from the flesh."
"
Another writer states that the mines are in the mountains of Serendib
(Ceylon) in a very deep gorge, in which are deadly serpents. When
people wish to take out the diamonds they throw down pieces of flesh,
which are seized by vultures and brought up to the brink of the gorge.
There such of the diamonds as cling to the flesh are secured; these are
of the size of a lentil or a pea. The largest pieces found attain the
size of a half-bean."
In
his version of the tale, one form of which appears in the seventh
voyage of Sindbad the Sailor, Teifashi states that the finest corundum
gems were washed down the streams that flowed from Adam's Peak, on the
island of Ceylon; in time of drought, however, this source of supply
ceased. Now it happened that many eagles built their nests on the top
of this mountain, and the gem-seekers used to place large pieces of
flesh at the foot of the mountain. The eagles pounced upon these and
bore them away to their nests, but were obliged to alight from
" The work on precious stones attributed to Aristotle was composed in Arabic probably in the ninth century.
