usual in its appearance, and some people are astonished at its resemblance to silver, though it is not related to it at all.
42 And there are a larger number of stones which submit to every method of treatment. In Siphnos there is a stone of this kind which is dug up about three furlongs from the sea; it is round and has the qualities of a lump of earth, and because it is soft it can be turned on a lathe and carved. When it is heated in the fire and dipped in oil, it becomes very black and hard; and dishes for the table are made out of it.
43 AH such stones submit to the power of iron, but some stones, as we have mentioned before, can be carved with other stones, but not with iron instruments. And others can be carved with iron, but only with ratlier blunt tools. And ... are .... In much the same way . . . cannot be cut with iron, and yet iron, which is harder than stone, cuts substances that are . . . stronger.40
44 That seems peculiar also, because whetstone wears away iron, although iron can divide the whetstone and shape it but cannot do this to the kind of stone from which seals are made. And again, die stone with which seals are carved consists of the material from which whetstones are formed, or something like it. And the (best) whetstone comes from Armenia.
45 The nature of the stone which tests gold is remarkable, for it seems to have the same power as fire, which can test gold too. On that account some people are puzzled about this, but without good reason, for the stone does not test in the same way. Fire works by changing and altering the colors, and the stone works by friction, for it seems to have the power of picking out the essential nature of each metal.
ac They say that a much better stone has now been found than the one used before; for this not only detects purified gold, but also gold and silver that are alloyed with copper, and it shows how much is mixed in each stater. And indications are obtained from the smallest possible weight. The smallest is the \rithe, and after
40 If certain emendations were adopted, this difficult passage might be translated as follows: "And such stones are harder. In much the same way it is peculiar that a stone cannot be cut at all with iron, and yet iron too, which is harder than stone, cuts substances which are firmer and stronger." (και είσΐν οί τοιούτοι σκληρότεροι, ναρα■κΚησΙιβ! Si ίτοττον τό ϊλαυ μη τίμνεσβαι \Ιθον σιδήρψ' καίτοι καΐ στερεώτερα και Ισχυρότερα τέμνει καΐ σίδηρο* λ/βου σκληρότερο! &».)
