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UNITED STATES, CANADA AND MEXICO 329
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eminent
art critic, approves of the application of precious stones to the
decoration of fine furniture, for, as he says, " furniture can be made
to last indefinitely, and hence is worthy of the highest artistic
effects." Instances of the use of precious stones for decorative
purposes are more common in Europe and the East than on this side of
the Atlantic. The famous peacock throne of India, looted by Nadir Shah,
the Persian conqueror, in the eighteenth century, is estimated to have
contained millions of dollars' worth of precious stones. Even now the
altars of the Catholic and Greek churches throughout the world are
often gorgeously decorated. The new palace in Potsdam, built by
Frederick the Great, after the Seven Years' War, to show that the
financial re- . sources of Prussia were not exhausted, contains an
apartment the walls of which are covered with minerals and precious
stones, offering, perhaps, the most unique example of this style of
decoration. The pair of rosewood pedestals with silver panels made for
Mrs. Mary Jane Morgan, at a cost of over $2,000, were greatly improved
in appearance by the application of a number of pieces of red, jaspery
agate from Texas, cut en cabochon. Gold quartz has been used with
pleasing effect in fine furniture and small ornaments, especially in
California. Its rich colors, its hardness, and the beautiful polish of
which it is susceptible give to the agatized wood of Arizona many
advantages for inlaid work, and judging from the reception it met with
at the World's Fair of 1889, it will probably soon be used extensively
in furniture and interior decoration. Other cheap and ornamental
stones, such as jasper, turquoise, rose-quartz, and amazonstone, might
be introduced with advantage into inlaid work on clocks, mantels, and
fine furniture. The employment of rock crystal for hand-glasses,
crystal balls, and similar articles is treated in the chapter on
quartz. One of the new departures in the United States in the uses made
of common stones has been the introduction of the so-called Scotch
jewelry ; the designs were greatly improved, and native gem stones were
used to such an extent that this jewelry found a ready sale,
displacing many of the cheaper varieties of gold and silver pins. Among
the minerals that have been so employed are agate, moss agate, jasper
of all colors, rhodonite, pyrite, labradorite, and moonstone. The
designs used are crowns,
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